Henry the Liberal: Count of Champagne, 1127-1181 By Theodore Evergates Kindle Edition 0812292529 9780812292527 Henry the Liberal: Count of Champagne, 1127 1181 Over the course of the twelfth century, the county of Champagne grew into one of the wealthiest and most important of French principalities, home to a large and established aristocracy, the site of international trade fairs, and a center for artistic, literary, and intellectual production. It had not always been this way, notes Theodore Evergates, who charts the ascent of Champagne under the rule of Count Henry the Liberal.Tutored in the liberal arts and mentored in the practice of lordship from an early age, Henry commanded the barons and knights of Champagne on the Second Crusade at twenty and succeeded as count of Champagne at twenty five. Over the next three decades Henry immersed himself in the details of governance, most often in his newly built capital in Troyes, where he resolved disputes, confirmed nonlitigious transactions, and monitored the disposition of his fiefs. He was a powerful presence beyond the county as well, serving in King Louis VIIs military ventures and on diplomatic missions to the papacy and the monarchs of England and Germany.Evergates presents a chronicle of the transformation of the lands east of Paris as well as a biography of one of the most engaging princes of twelfth century France. Count Henry was celebrated for balancing the arts of governance with learning and for his generosity and inquisitive mind, but his enduring achievement, Evergates makes clear, was to transform the county of Champagne into a dynamic principality within the emerging French state.

One of a pair of biographies Theodore Evergates has also published a biography of Henry II s wife Marie Henry the Liberal explores the career of a count who ruled over a prosperous polity at the economic crossroads of western Europe By nature of the surviving sources this of course cannot be a biography of the kind that could be written of a contemporary figure Much of who Henry was a person and the kinds of business which occupied his days as count of Champagne are simply lost to us However Evergates depth of knowledge about Champagne and its medieval documentary record allows him to recover as much of a twelfth century life as is possible particularly Henry s contribution to cultural and administrative matters 0812292529

Henry the Liberal: Count of Champagne, 1127-1181 By Theodore Evergates

0812292529

9780812292527

English

320

Kindle Edition

Over the course of the twelfth century the county of Champagne grew into one of the wealthiest and most important of French principalities home to a large and established aristocracy the site of international trade fairs and a center for artistic literary and intellectual production It had not always been this way notes Theodore Evergates who charts the ascent of Champagne under the rule of Count Henry the Liberal. Tutored in the liberal arts and mentored in the practice of lordship from an early age Henry commanded the barons and knights of Champagne on the Second Crusade at twenty and succeeded as count of Champagne at twenty five Over the next three decades Henry immersed himself in the details of governance most often in his newly built capital in Troyes where he resolved disputes confirmed nonlitigious transactions and monitored the disposition of his fiefs He was a powerful presence beyond the county as well serving in King Louis VII s military ventures and on diplomatic missions to the papacy and the monarchs of England and Germany. Evergates presents a chronicle of the transformation of the lands east of Paris as well as a biography of one of the most engaging princes of twelfth century France Count Henry was celebrated for balancing the arts of governance with learning and for his generosity and inquisitive mind but his enduring achievement Evergates makes clear was to transform the county of Champagne into a dynamic principality within the emerging French state Henry the Liberal Count of Champagne 1127 1181.