Godfrey III, Duke of Lower Lorraine
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Godfrey III (c. 997 – 1069), called the Bearded, was the eldest son of Gothelo I, duke of Upper and Lower Lorraine. By inheritance, he was margrave of Antwerp and count of Verdun. The Holy Roman Emperor Henry III authorised him to succeed his father as duke of Upper Lorraine in 1044, but refused him the ducal title in Lower Lorraine, for he feared the power of a united duchy. Instead Henry appointed a younger son, Gothelo II, as duke in the lower duchy. At a much later date, Godfrey became duke of Lower Lorraine, but he had lost the upper duchy be then.
Godfrey rebelled against his king and devastated land in Lower Lorraine, as well as the city of Verdun, which, though his by inheritance, Henry had not given him. He was soon defeated by an imperial army and was deposed imprisoned together with his son (Gibichenstein, 1045). When his son died in prison, the war recommenced. Baldwin V of Flanders joined Godfrey and Henry gave Thierry, Bishop of Verdun, the eponymous county. Godfrey surprised the bishop (who escaped) and sacked Verdun, burning the cathedral. On 11 November 1048 at Thuin, Godfrey fell on Adalbert, his replacement in Upper Lorraine, and defeated him, killing him in battle. Henry immediately nominated the young Gerard of Chatenoy to replace Adalbert at the Diet of Worms. In his subsequent campaigns to take the Moselle region, Godfrey met with stiff resistance from Gerard and was forced to renounce his claims and reconcile with the bishop. He even assisted in rebuilding the cathedral he had destroyed.
In 1053, his first wife Doda having died, Godfrey remarried to Beatrice of Bar, the widow of Boniface III of Tuscany and mother of Matilda, Boniface' heir. Henry arrested Beatrice and her young son Frederick and imprisoned her in Germany, separate from either husband or son, who died within days. The emperor claimed the marriage had been contracted without his consent and was invalid. Young Frederick died a short while later. Nevertheless, Godfrey took over the government of the Tuscany in right of Beatrice and Matilda.
Baldwin V then rebelled, carrying the war to Trier and Nijmegen. Henry responded by devastating Flanders and ravaging Lille and Tournai (1054). In this war, Godfrey captured Frederick of Luxembourg, Duke of Lower Lorraine, who had received that duchy and Antwerp from Henry III.
In 1055, Godfrey besieged Antwerp, but Frederick was delivered by the Lorrainers, no longer loyal to Godfrey. Henry died in 1056 and his successor, Henry IV, was only six years old. In that year, Baldwin made peace and did homage to the new king. In 1059, by the treaty of Andernach, Baldwin received the march of Ename in Brabant in exchange for giving up the march of Valenciennes, which he had confiscated in 1045.
Godfrey was exiled to Tuscany, where he joined Beatrice and co-governed her. In 1065, he was recalled to become duke of Lower Lorraine after the death of Frederick. He was also given Antwerp again. He installed his court at Bouillon and died on Christmas Eve 1069.
[edit] Family
By Beatrice, daughter of Frederick II, Duke of Upper Lorraine, he had:
- Godfrey, succeeded him in Lower Lorraine
- Ida, married Eustace II, Count of Boulogne
- Wiltrude, married Adalbert of Calw
He is sometimes counted as Godfrey II of Lower Lorraine.
| Preceded by: Frederick |
Duke of Lower Lorraine 1065 – 1069 |
Succeeded by: Godfrey IV |
| Preceded by: Gothelo I |
Duke of Upper Lorraine 1044 – 1047 |
Succeeded by: Adalbert |
