Robert I, Count of Artois


Robert I, called the Good, was the first Count of Artois. He was the fifth son of King Louis VIII of France and Blanche of Castile.

Life

He received Artois as an appanage, in accordance with the will of his father on attaining his majority in 1237. In 1240 Pope Gregory IX, in conflict with Emperor Frederick II, offered to crown Robert as emperor in opposition to Frederick, but the French count refused to pretend to such a title.

Marriage

On 14 June 1237 Robert married Matilda, daughter of Henry II of Brabant and Marie of Hohenstaufen.

They had two children:

Death

While participating in the Seventh Crusade, Robert died while leading a reckless attack on Al Mansurah, without the knowledge of his brother King Louis IX. After fording a river, he and a group of Knights Templars charged a Mamluk outpost, during which the Mamluk commander, Fakhr-ad-Din Yusuf, was killed. Emboldened by his success, Robert, the Templar knights, and a contingent of English troops charged into the town and became trapped in the narrow streets. According to Jean de Joinville, Robert defended himself for some time in a house there, but was at last overpowered and killed.