Charles II of Alençon, called the Magnanimous (1297 – 26 August 1346) was

Count of Alençon Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York ...

and

Count of Perche The county of Perche was a medieval county lying between Normandy and Maine. It was held by an independent line of counts until 1226. One of these, Geoffroy V, would have been a leader of the Fourth Crusade had he not died before the assembled f ...

(1325–1346), as well as Count of Chartres and Count of Joigny (1335–1336) as husband of Jeanne of Joigny.

Life

Charles was the second son of Charles of Valois and his first wife

Margaret, Countess of Anjou Margaret of Anjou (1272 – 31 December 1299) was Countess of Anjou and Maine in her own right and Countess of Valois, Alençon and Perche by marriage. Margaret's father was King Charles II of Naples, whilst her husband was Charles, Count of Va ...

, and brother of

Philip VI of France Philip VI (french: Philippe; 1293 – 22 August 1350), called the Fortunate (french: le Fortuné, link=no) or the Catholic (french: le Catholique, link=no) and of Valois, was the first king of France from the House of Valois, reigning from 13 ...

. In April 1314 he married Jeanne of Joigny, who succeeded her father John II as Countess of Joigny in 1335, but she died on 2 September 1336. They had no children. Charles made his debut in Guyenne under the orders of his father and showed great courage at his first siege. On the death of his father on December 16, 1325, Charles received the county of Alençon, the lands of Champrond, Châteauneuf-en-Thymerais and Senonches, as well as the forest of Perche, in accordance with an agreement made by his father. His brother Philip became King of France in 1328, but Edward III of England claimed the crown and refused to do homage. Philip appointed Charles lieutenant general of the kingdom and sent him to put down a rebellion in Saintes, sparked by the English. He captured Saintes and several other strongholds.

Marriage and issue

In December 1336, he married

Maria de La Cerda y Lara Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial *170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 *Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, da ...

(1310 – 19 November 1379, Paris), the daughter of Fernando de la Cerda, Lord of Lara. They had: # Charles III, Count of Alençon (1337 – 5 July 1375,

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...

), made

Archbishop of Lyon The Archdiocese of Lyon (Latin: ''Archidiœcesis Lugdunensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Lyon''), formerly the Archdiocese of Lyon–Vienne–Embrun, is a Latin Church metropolitan archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. The Archbishops o ...

in 1365. # Philippe of Alençon (1338–1397, Rome), made

Bishop of Beauvais The Diocese of Beauvais, Noyon, and Senlis ( la, Dioecesis Bellovacensis, Noviomensis et Silvanectensis; french: Diocèse de Beauvais, Noyon et Senlis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in France. The ...

in 1356, later

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...

Archbishop of Rouen The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Rouen (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Rothomagensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Rouen'') is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. As one of the fifteen Archbishops of France, the Arch ...

Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem ( la, Patriarchatus Latinus Hierosolymitanus) is the Latin Catholic ecclesiastical patriarchate in Jerusalem, officially seated in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It was originally established in 1099, wit ...

Patriarch of Aquileia The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and in certain ...

, and

Bishop of Ostia The Roman Catholic Suburbicarian Diocese of Ostia is an ecclesiastical territory located within the Metropolitan City of Rome in Italy. It is one of the seven suburbicarian dioceses. The incumbent Bishop is cardinal Giovanni Battista Re. Since ...

and Sabina # Peter II, Count of Alençon (1340 – 20 September 1404), married Marie Chamaillart, Viscountess of Beaumont-au-Maine. # Isabelle of Alençon (1342 – 3 September 1379,

Poissy Poissy () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the centre of Paris. Inhabitants are called ''Pisciacais'' in French. Poissy is one ...

), became a nun. # Robert of Alençon, Count of Perche (1344–1377),, married on 5 April 1374 Jeanne of Rohan, daughter of John I, Viscount of Rohan.

Death

Charles entered the

War of the Breton Succession The War of the Breton Succession (, ) was a conflict between the Counts of Blois and the Montforts of Brittany for control of the Sovereign Duchy of Brittany, then a fief of the Kingdom of France. It was fought between 1341 and 12 April 1 ...

in 1340, and was subsequently killed at the

Battle of Crécy The Battle of Crécy took place on 26 August 1346 in northern France between a French army commanded by King PhilipVI and an English army led by King EdwardIII. The French attacked the English while they were traversing northern France du ...

. Like his father, he was buried in the now-demolished church of the Couvent des Jacobins in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

; his effigy is now in the

Basilica of St Denis The Basilica of Saint-Denis (french: Basilique royale de Saint-Denis, links=no, now formally known as the ) is a large former medieval abbey church and present cathedral in the commune of Saint-Denis, a northern suburb of Paris. The building ...

. He was succeeded in

Alençon Alençon (, , ; nrf, Alençoun) is a commune in Normandy, France, capital of the Orne department. It is situated west of Paris. Alençon belongs to the intercommunality of Alençon (with 52,000 people). History The name of Alençon is fi ...

by his eldest son Charles, and in

Perche Perche () (French: ''le Perche'') is a former province of France, known historically for its forests and, for the past two centuries, for the Percheron draft horse breed. Until the French Revolution, Perche was bounded by four ancient territorie ...

by his son Robert.

Arms

Image:Alençon Arms.svg, Coat of arms of the counts and dukes of Alençon of the House of Valois Image:Blason ville fr Chambellay (Maine-et-Loire).svg, Coat of arms of the counts of Perche

Ancestry

References

Sources

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Charles 02 of Alencon 1297 births 1346 deaths People of the Hundred Years' War House of Valois-Alençon Counts of Alençon Counts of Perche Counts of Joigny French military personnel killed in action 14th-century peers of France