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27-399: The treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte in 911 established Rollo , a Norse warlord and Viking leader, as the first Duke of Normandy . Henry I of England seized the castle of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte in 1118. This Val-d'Oise geographical article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte The treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte (911) is

54-409: A communal effort in the conquest and subjugation of England that other regional political entities were incapable of." The Duchy of Normandy achieved success under Duke Richard I , who forged valuable marriage alliances through his children: his son and heir Richard II married Judith of Brittany ; one daughter Emma became Queen of England , Denmark and Norway through her marriages to Æthelred

81-598: A rival Viking group in the Cotentin , formed an alliance to that group, while her sisters formed the core group that were to provide loyal followers to him and his successors. His daughters forged valuable marriage alliances with powerful neighboring counts as well as to the king of England . Emma married firstly Æthelred the Unready and after his death in 1016, the invader, Cnut the Great . Her children included Edward

108-557: A war that concluded in 939. During this period the Cotentin Peninsula was lost by Brittany and gained by Normandy. There would be a convergence between Franks and Normans within a few generations. Political marriages played an important role in cultivating alliances and cohesion; wives were often called "peace weavers". Charles the Simple created an alliance and a grant of rights to those Vikings seeking to settle in 918. While

135-640: The Seine river. Lothair, the king of the West Franks, was fearful that Richard's retaliation could destabilize a large part of West Francia so he stepped in to prevent any further war between the two. In 987, Hugh Capet became King of the Franks. For the last 30 years of his reign, Richard concentrated on Normandy itself, and participated less in Frankish politics and its petty wars. In lieu of building up

162-517: The " De moribus et actis primorum Normanniae ducum " (Latin, " On the Customs and Deeds of the First Dukes of Normandy "), called him a dux . However, this use of the word may have been in the context of Richard's renowned leadership in war, and not as a reference to a title of nobility . Richard either introduced feudalism into Normandy or he greatly expanded it. By the end of his reign,

189-693: The Confessor , Alfred Aetheling and with Cnut, Harthacnut , so completing a major link between the Duke of Normandy and the Crown of England that would add validity to the claim by William the Conqueror to the throne of England. Richard also built on his relationship with the church, undertaking acts of piety, restoring their lands and ensuring the great monasteries flourished in Normandy. His further reign

216-510: The Franks were abandoning. The Normans came close to being absorbed into a lower social strata in Frankish society had not a renewed wave of Viking raids occurred in the 960s. Over time, the frontiers of the duchy, based in kinship, expanded to the west. "By the mid-eleventh century the descendants of the settlers formed the most disciplined and cooperative warrior society in Europe, capable of

243-548: The Great . Louis IV thereafter kept Richard in close confinement at Lâon , Upon hearing that Richard was being held in captivity, the boy's foster Osmond de Centville alongside Bernard the Dane had formed a mob of knights and peasants across town and marched to the King's palace where they threatened the king to return him. Louis had protested that he had kept Richard in his domain to train him in courtliness. He subsequently addressed

270-604: The Norman Empire by expansion, he stabilized the realm and reunited the Normans, forging the reclaimed Duchy of his father and grandfather into West Francia's most cohesive and formidable principality . Richard died of natural causes in Fécamp on 20 November 996. He was buried at Fécamp Abbey , which he had founded. However, in 2016, what was believed to be his tomb was opened by Norwegian researchers who discovered that

297-423: The Normans did adapt, adopt, and assimilate to Christianity, they did not necessarily adopt indigenous administration: "The creation of Norman power between first settlement and the mid-eleventh century is not primarily of assimilation to Carolingian forms, as those appear in the capitualaries". Rather, the Normans "adhered longer than the Franks around them – to older forms of social organization" that

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324-520: The Unready (1002–1016) and Cnut the Great (1017–1035); another daughter Hawise married Geoffrey I, Duke of Brittany ; a third daughter Maud married Odo II, Count of Blois . Richard I of Normandy Richard I (28 August 932 – 20 November 996), also known as Richard the Fearless (French: Richard Sans-Peur ; Old Norse : Jarl Rikard ), was the count of Rouen from 942 to 996. Dudo of Saint-Quentin , whom Richard commissioned to write

351-485: The conditions for the Vikings after their loss was to convert. As a token of his goodwill, Rollo also agreed to be baptized and to marry Gisela , a presumed legitimate daughter of Charles. The traité en forme at Saint Clair-Sur-Epte marked the beginning of Normandy as a state. Rollo refused to kiss Charles' foot to solidify the deal. Instead, he ordered one of his men to do it. Allegedly, the warrior subsequently yanked

378-476: The death of Richard's father in 942, King of West Francia Louis IV installed the boy, Richard, in his father's office. Under the influence of Arnulf I, Count of Flanders , the king took him into Frankish territory and placing him in the custody of the count of Ponthieu before the king reneged and seized the lands of the Duchy of Normandy . He then split up the duchy, giving its lands in lower Normandy to Hugh

405-419: The forester's wife, Seinfreda, but she was a virtuous woman and suggested he court her unmarried sister, Gunnor , instead. Gunnor became his mistress and her family rose to prominence. Her brother, Herfast de Crepon , may have been involved in a controversial heresy trial. Gunnor was, like Richard, of Viking descent, being part Danish by blood. Richard finally married her to legitimize their children: Richard

432-668: The foundational document of the Duchy of Normandy , establishing Rollo , a Norse warlord and Viking leader, as the first Duke of Normandy in exchange for his loyalty to Charles III , the king of West Francia , following the Siege of Chartres . The territory of Normandy centered on Rouen , a city in the Marches of Neustria which had been repeatedly raided by Vikings since the 840s, and which had finally been taken by Rollo in 876. Rollo in June 911 unsuccessfully laid siege to Chartres . He

459-486: The gates of Rouen , fleeing to Amiens and being decisively defeated in 947. A period of peace ensued, Louis dying in 954, 13 year old Lothair becoming king. The middle-aged Hugh appointed Richard as guardian of his 15-year-old son, Hugh Capet in 955. In 962, Theobald I, Count of Blois , attempted a renewed invasion of Rouen, Richard's stronghold, but his troops were summarily routed by Normans under Richard's command, and forced to retreat before ever having crossed

486-536: The interred remains could not have been those of Richard, as testing revealed that they were much older. Although it is not in doubt that Richard was buried in the Abbey in 996, it is known that his remains were moved within the Abbey several times after his burial. Richard used marriage to build strong alliances. His marriage to Emma of Paris connected him directly to the House of Capet . His second wife, Gunnor , from

513-621: The king's leg whilst he was standing and kissed it, causing Charles to topple onto the ground. With Norse bands of settlers, composed of non-aristocratic lineages, there came multiple communities formed and a new political ethos that was not Frankish. The Norsemen ("Northmen") came to be known as Normans in French. This identity formation was partly possible because the Norse were adapting indigenous culture, speaking French, renouncing paganism and converting to Christianity , and intermarrying with

540-704: The local population. The territory covered by the treaty corresponds to the northern part of today's Upper Normandy down to the Seine , but the territory of the Vikings would eventually extend west beyond the Seine to form the Duchy of Normandy , so named because of the Norsemen who ruled it. The treaty allowed these new settlements, but not all Vikings were welcome. With the death of Alan I, King of Brittany , another group of Vikings occupying Brittany faced their own dispute. Around 937, Alan I's grandson Alan II returned from England to expel those Vikings from Brittany in

567-559: The mob by holding Richard up in his arms into the crowd's view and returning him. Bernard de Senlis and Ivo de Bellèsme also assisted in Richard's release, along with pagan Norse forces led by Harald of Bayeux . In 946, at the age of 14, Richard allied himself with the Norman and Viking leaders in France and with men sent by Harold of Denmark . A battle was fought after which Louis IV

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594-409: The most important Norman landholders held their lands in feudal tenure. Richard was born to William Longsword , princeps (chieftain or ruler) of Normandy , and Sprota , a Breton concubine bound to William by a more danico marriage. He was also the grandson of the famous Rollo . William was told of the birth of a son after the battle with Riouf and other Viking rebels, but his existence

621-568: Was captured. Hostages were taken and held until King Louis recognised Richard as Duke, returning Normandy to him. Richard agreed to "commend" himself to Hugh, the Count of Paris , Hugh resolved to form a permanent alliance with Richard and promised his daughter Emma, who was little more than a girl, as a bride; the marriage would take place in 960. Louis, working with Arnulf, persuaded Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor to attack Richard and Hugh. The combined armies of Otto, Arnulf, and Louis were driven from

648-481: Was defeated in battle on 20 July 911. In the aftermath of this conflict, Charles the Simple decided to negotiate a treaty with Rollo. The talks, possibly led by Heriveus , the archbishop of Reims, resulted in the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte in 911. Initial proceedings with the treaty were difficult; Rollo was initially offered Flanders, though he refused on the account that the land was uncultivable. Instead, he

675-414: Was given all the land between the river Epte and the sea "in freehold and good money". In addition, it granted him Brittany "for his livelihood". At the time, Brittany was an independent country which present day France had unsuccessfully tried to conquer. In exchange, Rollo guaranteed the king his loyalty, which involved military assistance for the protection of the kingdom against other Vikings. One of

702-467: Was kept secret until a few years later when William Longsword first met his son Richard. After kissing the boy and declaring him his heir, William sent Richard to be raised in Bayeux . Richard was about ten years old when his father was killed on 17 December 942. After William was killed, Sprota became the wife of Esperleng, a wealthy miller. Rodulf of Ivry was their son and Richard's half-brother. With

729-424: Was marked by an extended period of peace and tranquility. Richard's first marriage in 960 was to Emma , daughter of Hugh the Great , and Hedwige of Saxony . They were betrothed when both were very young. She died after 19 March 968, with no issue. According to Robert of Torigni , not long after Emma's death, Duke Richard went out hunting and stopped at the house of a local forester. He became enamored with

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