Henry I, Count of Vianden


Henry I was the hereditary Count of Vianden from 1210 and, through his wife, Marquis of Namur from 1229.

Family background

Henry was the son of Frederic III, Count of Vianden :de:Friedrich III. |, and Mechthild of Neuerburg,. At least his father married a Mechtild and another son, Frederick I, younger brother of Henry, inherited Neuerburg and married Cecilia of Isenburg, but that dynasty became extinct with the death of Frederick III of Neuerburg in 1332 :de:Neuerburg |.

Life

In 1216 Henry married Margaret, Marchioness of Namur, sometimes called "Sibilia", daughter of Peter II of Courtenay and Yolanda of Flanders. Margaret was the widow of Raoul, lord of Issoudun and thence Lady of Châteauneuf-sur-Cher and Mareuil-en-Berry. Margaret became Marchioness of Namur after the death of her brother Henry II, Marquis of Namur in 1229. Margaret and Henry ruled Namur until 1237 when they had to transfer Namur to Margaret's brother, emperor Baldwin II of Courtenay. Henry and Margaret continued ruling Vianden.
Henry V, Count of Luxembourg, maternal grandson of Henry IV, Count of Luxembourg, invaded Namur and ruled it 1256-1264 as Henry IV. Baldwin sold Namur in c. 1263 to his cousin Guy of Dampierre, count of Flanders and Henry IV was removed by military force but they made peace with family marriage.
After Henry's death in 1252, Margaret entered a convent in Marienthal.

Issue

Henry and Margaret had the following children: