Individual Details

William I, Count of Holland

(1167 - 4 Feb 1222)

According to Wikipedia:

William I (c. 1167 - 4 February 1222) was the count of Holland from 1203 to 1222. He was the younger son of Floris III and Ada of Huntingdon.

Early life

Holland, penny struck by William I between 1213-1222
William was born in The Hague, but raised in Scotland. He started a revolt against his brother, Dirk VII and became count in Friesland after a reconciliation. Friesland was considered a part of Holland by the counts of Holland. His niece Ada inherited Holland in 1203, but William refused to accept this. After a war of succession, known as the Loon War (1203-1206), William won the county. Ada and her husband, Louis II of Loon, were supported by the bishop of Liège, bishop of Utrecht, and the count of Flanders. William was supported by the duke of Brabant and by the majority of the Hollanders.

Countship
Emperor Otto IV acknowledged him as count of Holland in 1203 because he was a supporter of the Welfs. He and many others changed allegiance to Frederick II after the battle of Bouvines in 1214. He took part in a French expedition against King John of England. The pope excommunicated him for this. Possibly because of this, William then became a fervent crusader and by this his excommunication was lifted. He campaigned in Prussia and joined in the conquest of Alcácer do Sal. In Europe, he came to be called William the Crazy for his chivalric and reckless behaviour in battle. William conquered the city of Damietta during the Fifth Crusade.

There were great changes in the landscape of Holland in the end of the 12th and during the 13th century. Many colonists bought land to turn the swamps into polders. Most of the swamps had been sold, and irrigation had started during the reign of William. Huge infrastructural works were done; the island called Grote Waard was enclosed with dikes all around and a dam was built at Spaarndam. New governmental bodies were created, the so-called water boards, which were charged with the task of protecting the polders against ever-present threat of flooding. Count William granted city rights to Geertruidenberg in 1213, to Dordrecht in 1217, to Middelburg in 1220 and perhaps also to Leiden. In this way he gave an impulse to trade.

Family
Count William was married twice. First, he was married in 1197 at Stavoren to Adelaide of Guelders, daughter of Otto I, Count of Guelders and Richarde of Bavaria. They had the following children:

Floris IV (1210-19 July 1234), who succeeded William I as count of Holland
Otto (died in 1249), regent of Holland in 1238-1239, bishop of Utrecht
William (died in 1238), regent of Holland in 1234-1238
Richardis (died in 1262)
Ada, abbess at Rijnsburg in 1239[1]
Adelaide died on 12 February 1218 while William was away on crusade. In 1220 Count William married Marie of Brabant, widow of Emperor Otto IV.

References
De Boer, Dick; Cordfunke, Erik (1995), Graven van Holland : portretten in woord en beeld (880-1580), Zwolle: Walburg Pers, pp. 29-30, ISBN 978-90-6011-915-0
djr (2019-09-17). "Digitaal Vrouwenlexicon van Nederland". resources.huygens.knaw.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 2019-10-05.


-- MERGED NOTE ------------

According to Wikipedia:

William I (c. 1167 - 4 February 1222) was the count of Holland from 1203 to 1222. He was the younger son of Floris III and Ada of Huntingdon.

Early life

Holland, penny struck by William I between 1213-1222
William was born in The Hague, but raised in Scotland. He started a revolt against his brother, Dirk VII and became count in Friesland after a reconciliation. Friesland was considered a part of Holland by the counts of Holland. His niece Ada inherited Holland in 1203, but William refused to accept this. After a war of succession, known as the Loon War (1203-1206), William won the county. Ada and her husband, Louis II of Loon, were supported by the bishop of Liège, bishop of Utrecht, and the count of Flanders. William was supported by the duke of Brabant and by the majority of the Hollanders.

Countship
Emperor Otto IV acknowledged him as count of Holland in 1203 because he was a supporter of the Welfs. He and many others changed allegiance to Frederick II after the battle of Bouvines in 1214. He took part in a French expedition against King John of England. The pope excommunicated him for this. Possibly because of this, William then became a fervent crusader and by this his excommunication was lifted. He campaigned in Prussia and joined in the conquest of Alcácer do Sal. In Europe, he came to be called William the Crazy for his chivalric and reckless behaviour in battle. William conquered the city of Damietta during the Fifth Crusade.

There were great changes in the landscape of Holland in the end of the 12th and during the 13th century. Many colonists bought land to turn the swamps into polders. Most of the swamps had been sold, and irrigation had started during the reign of William. Huge infrastructural works were done; the island called Grote Waard was enclosed with dikes all around and a dam was built at Spaarndam. New governmental bodies were created, the so-called water boards, which were charged with the task of protecting the polders against ever-present threat of flooding. Count William granted city rights to Geertruidenberg in 1213, to Dordrecht in 1217, to Middelburg in 1220 and perhaps also to Leiden. In this way he gave an impulse to trade.

Family
Count William was married twice. First, he was married in 1197 at Stavoren to Adelaide of Guelders, daughter of Otto I, Count of Guelders and Richarde of Bavaria. They had the following children:

Floris IV (1210-19 July 1234), who succeeded William I as count of Holland
Otto (died in 1249), regent of Holland in 1238-1239, bishop of Utrecht
William (died in 1238), regent of Holland in 1234-1238
Richardis (died in 1262)
Ada, abbess at Rijnsburg in 1239[1]
Adelaide died on 12 February 1218 while William was away on crusade. In 1220 Count William married Marie of Brabant, widow of Emperor Otto IV.

References
De Boer, Dick; Cordfunke, Erik (1995), Graven van Holland : portretten in woord en beeld (880-1580), Zwolle: Walburg Pers, pp. 29-30, ISBN 978-90-6011-915-0
djr (2019-09-17). "Digitaal Vrouwenlexicon van Nederland". resources.huygens.knaw.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 2019-10-05.

Events

Birth1167
Marriage1197Stavoren, Friesland, Netherlands - Adelaide of Guelders
Death4 Feb 1222

Families

SpouseAdelaide of Guelders (1182 - 1218)
ChildFloris IV, Count of Holland (1210 - 1234)
FatherFloris III, Count of Holland (1141 - 1190)
MotherAda of Scotland ( - 1206)
SiblingDirk VII, Count of Holland ( - 1203)
SiblingMargaret of Holland ( - )
SiblingAda of Holland (1163 - 1205)