Louis I, Count of Loon
Louis (Latin Ludovicus, German Ludwig, Dutch Lodewijk; born after 1107; died 11 August 1171) was the Count of Loon, now in modern Belgium, Burgrave of Mainz, in Germany. He inherited these offices from his father. He also established the County of Rieneck apparently based upon the Burgrave's lands.
Louis I, Count of Loon | |
|---|---|
 The castle of the Counts of Loon in Brustem | |
| Born | after 1107 |
| Died | 11 August 1171 Chapel of the infirmary in Borgloon |
| Noble family | House of Loon |
| Spouse(s) | Agnes of Metz |
| Issue | |
| Father | Arnold II, Count of Loon |
| Mother | Aleide? |
Life
He was the son of Arnold II, Count of Looz, and his wife whose name may have been Adeleide or Agnes.[1] Arnold II died in 1139, and Louis was his heir.
He was advocate of Averbode Abbey. In 1154, he donated Laethof Manor in Heusden-Zolder to the abbey.
He constructed a castle in Brustem (now part of Sint-Truiden).
Louis married Agnes of Metz (c. 1114 – c. 1175/1180),[2] the daughter of Folmar V, Count of Metz, and Matilda of Dagsburg, the heiress of Longwy. Agnes commissioned Hendrik van Veldeke to write his "Life of Saint Servatius". Louis I served as burgrave of Metz from 1159 to 1162. Via his wife, he also had a claim on the Duchy of Luxembourg, however, he could not realize this claim.
In 1171, Louis attempted to conquer the County of Duras. However, Gilles, Count of Duras, called in the help of the citizens of Sint-Truiden and together they defeated Louis' army. Louis died during this battle, on 11 August 1171. He was buried in the chapel of the infirmary in Borgloon. His grave can still be found there.
Issue
Louis and Agnes had the following children:
- Agnes, married Otto I of Wittelsbach, Duke of Bavaria
- Arnold, died young
- Gerard, Count of Loon
- Hugo, married and had issue
- Bonne, married Walter Berthout, Lord of Mechelen and Grimbergen
- Imagina married Godfrey III, Count of Louvain
- Lauretta (d. before 1193), married Gilles, Count of Duras (divorced 1174), grandson of Otto II, Count of Duras, and later married to Theobald I of Bar.
Louis was succeeded as Count of Loon by his son Count Gerard.
Notes
- Vaes p.129
- Baerten 1965, p. 1242.
References
- Baerten (1965). "Les origines des comtes de Looz et la formation territoriale du comté". Revue belge de philologie et d'histoire. 43 (2): 468.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- Baerten (1965). "Les origines des comtes de Looz et la formation territoriale du comté (suite et fin)". Revue belge de philologie et d'histoire. 43 (4).CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- Baerten, Jean (1969), Het Graafschap Loon (11de - 14de eeuw) (PDF)
- Souvereyns; Bijsterveld (2008), "Deel 1: De graven van Loon", Limburg - Het Oude Land van Loon
- Vanderkindere, Léon (1902), "9", La formation territoriale des principautés belges au Moyen Age (PDF), 2, p. 128
- Vaes, Jan (2016), De Graven van Loon. Loons, Luiks, Limburgs, ISBN 9789059087651
Louis I, Count of Loon House of Loon Born: after 1107 Died: 11 August 1171 | ||
| Preceded by Arnold II |
Count of Loon 1139–1171 |
Succeeded by Gerhard |
External links
- Cawley, Charles (24 June 2012), Lower lotharingia, nobility, Medieval Lands database, Foundation for Medieval Genealogy,