Philip of Chieti (1263–1308) was the 8th and youngest child of

Guy, Count of Flanders Guy of Dampierre (; ) ( – 7 March 1305, Compiègne) was the Count of Flanders (1251–1305) and List of rulers of Namur, Marquis of Namur (1264–1305). He was a prisoner of the French when his Flemings defeated the latter at the Battle of ...

and his first wife

Matilda of Béthune Matilda of Béthune (died 8 November 1264), was a noblewoman from Artois who became countess of Flanders by marriage to Guy, Count of Flanders. She was heiress to her father's titles as Lady of Béthune, of Dendermonde, of Richebourg and of Warn ...

. Philip was destined for a career in the church and studied for that purpose in Paris, where he met

Charles of Anjou Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou or Charles d'Anjou, was King of Sicily from 1266 to 1285. He was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the House of Anjou-Sicily. Between 1246 a ...

. Charles, the younger brother of King

Louis IX of France Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), also known as Saint Louis, was King of France from 1226 until his death in 1270. He is widely recognized as the most distinguished of the Direct Capetians. Following the death of his father, Louis VI ...

, had just acquired the crown of Naples, and Philip traveled with him in his service to southern Italy. There he married in 1284 with Matilda of Courtenay (1254–1303), only child of the late Raoul de Courtenay, who had been made Count of Chieti and Loreto by Charles of Anjou as a reward for his part in the conquest of Naples. Philip lived a good life as count of Chieti and Teano, until news reached him of the great Flemish victory in the

Battle of the Golden Spurs The Battle of the Golden Spurs (; ) or 1302 Battle of Courtrai was a military confrontation between the royal army of Kingdom of France, France and rebellious forces of the County of Flanders on 11 July 1302 during the 1297–1305 Franco-Flem ...

. He was allowed by Charles of Anjou to travel to Flanders to support his family, but he had to abandon his titles in Italy. When he returned to Flanders, he took over the regency over Flanders from his younger brother

John I, Marquis of Namur John I (1267 – 31 January 1330) was the count of Namur from 1305 to 1330. He was a member of the House of Dampierre, the son of Guy of Dampierre, Count of Flanders and Marquis of Namur, and his second wife Isabelle of Luxembourg. John was th ...

, as his father and two elder brothers were still imprisoned in France. One of his first acts was the establishment of Flemish

Bishoprics In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated ...

. The existing Bishoprics of

Arras Arras ( , ; ; historical ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of the Artois region, with a ...

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; ; ), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the Escaut river. A sub-pref ...

and

Tournai Tournai ( , ; ; ; , sometimes Anglicisation (linguistics), anglicised in older sources as "Tournay") is a city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia located in the Hainaut Province, Province of Hainaut, Belgium. It lies by ...

were still under the influence of France, and excommunicated many Flemish nobles to break their resistance. Therefore Philip of Chieti sent his request to

Pope Boniface VIII Pope Boniface VIII (; born Benedetto Caetani; – 11 October 1303) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 December 1294 until his death in 1303. The Caetani, Caetani family was of baronial origin with connections t ...

, well knowing that the Pope was in conflict with the King of France over his

bull A bull is an intact (i.e., not Castration, castrated) adult male of the species ''Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e. cows proper), bulls have long been an important symbol cattle in r ...

, Unam Sanctam. Unfortunately for Philip, Boniface died soon after. On 18 August 1304, King

Philip IV of France Philip IV (April–June 1268 – 29 November 1314), called Philip the Fair (), was King of France from 1285 to 1314. Jure uxoris, By virtue of his marriage with Joan I of Navarre, he was also King of Navarre and Count of Champagne as Philip&n ...

launched a new attack against Flanders, one week after the Flemish defeat in the

Battle of Zierikzee The battle of Zierikzee was a naval battle between a Flemish fleet and an allied Franco-Hollandic fleet which took place on 10 and 11 August 1304. The battle, fought near the town of Zierikzee, ended in a Franco-Dutch victory. The battle is part ...

, in which

Guy of Namur Guy of Dampierre, Count of Zeeland, also called Guy of Namur () (ca. 1272 – 13 October 1311 in Pavia), was a Flemish noble who was the Lord of Ronse and later the self-proclaimed Count of Zeeland. He was a younger son of Guy, Count of Flander ...

was taken prisoner and

John III, Lord of Renesse Jan van Renesse (1249 – 16 August 1304) was a member of the Zeeland nobility. Together with Wolfert van Borselen he co-led a party favoring Flanders and against Holland, with considerable influence in Zeeland. With the support of Edward I of Eng ...

killed. Philip of Chieti took command over a strong Flemish army to stop the French invasion and fought the inconclusive

Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle The Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle (or Pevelenberg) was fought on 18 August 1304 between the French and the Flemish. The French were led by their king, Philip IV. Prelude The French king wanted revenge for the defeat in Battle of the Golden Spur ...

. When the

Treaty of Athis-sur-Orge The Treaty of Athis-sur-Orge was a peace treaty signed on 23 June 1305 between King Philip IV of France and Robert III of Flanders. The treaty was signed at Athis-sur-Orge after the Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle and concluded the Franco-Flemish W ...

was signed on 23 June 1305, his elder brother

Robert III, Count of Flanders Robert III (1249 – 17 September 1322), also called Robert of Béthune and nicknamed The Lion of Flanders (''De Leeuw van Vlaanderen''), was the Count of Nevers from 1273 and Count of Flanders from 1305 until his death. History Robert was the ...

was released from captivity. Philip of Chieti transferred the regency to his brother and returned to Italy. Here he lived in poverty with his second wife Pérenelle de Milly and three small children. He died in November 1308 and was buried in Naples.

Sources

* GHEERARDIJN, M., Filips van Chieti en Loreto, 2006 {{Authority control House of Dampierre 14th-century people from the county of Flanders 1263 births 1308 deaths Sons of counts