Louis, Count of Vendôme


Louis de Bourbon , younger son of John I, Count of La Marche and Catherine de Vendôme, was Count of Vendôme from 1393, and Count of Castres from 1425 until his death.
Louis was a supporter of the duc d'Orléans, and obtained valuable posts at court, becoming Grand Chamberlain of France in 1408 and Grand Maître de France in 1413. As part of the Armagnac faction, he was at odds with the Burgundians, and was imprisoned by them twice, in 1407 and 1412.
In 1414, Louis married Blanche, daughter of Hugh II, Count of Roucy; but he was captured the next year by the English at the Battle of Agincourt, and held by them for some time. Freed, he was in command of French forces at Cravant and later captured, 31 July 1423.
In 1424, he married Jeanne de Laval, daughter of Guy XIII, Count of Laval and Anne de Laval, at Rennes. Their children were:
He also had an illegitimate son, fathered with the Englishwoman, Sybil Bostum, during his captivity:
Faithful to the king, he subsequently joined Joan of Arc and many other French nobles at the defense of Orléans in 1429, commanded at the siege of Jargeau, and assisted in the coronation at Reims. He was later present at the Treaty of Arras. He died in Tours.

Ancestors

Louis' patriline is the line from which he is descended father to son.
Patrilineal descent is the principle behind membership in royal houses, as it can be traced back through the generations - which means that if Count Louis were to choose an historically accurate house name it would be Robertian, as all his male-line ancestors have been of that house.
Louis is a member of the House of Bourbon, a branch of the Capetian dynasty and of the Robertians.
Louis' patriline is the line from which he is descended father to son. It follows the Kings of France and the Counts of Paris and Worms. This line can be traced back more than 1,200 years from Robert of Hesbaye to the present day, through Kings of France & Navarre, Spain and Two-Sicilies, Dukes of Parma and Grand-Dukes of Luxembourg, Princes of Orléans and Emperors of Brazil. It is one of the oldest in Europe.
  1. Robert II of Worms and Rheingau, 770 - 807
  2. Robert III of Worms and Rheingau, 808 - 834
  3. Robert IV the Strong, 820 - 866
  4. Robert I of France, 866 - 923
  5. Hugh the Great, 895 - 956
  6. Hugh Capet, 941 - 996
  7. Robert II of France, 972 - 1031
  8. Henry I of France, 1008–1060
  9. Philip I of France, 1053–1108
  10. Louis VI of France, 1081–1137
  11. Louis VII of France, 1120–1180
  12. Philip II of France, 1165–1223
  13. Louis VIII of France, 1187–1226
  14. Louis IX of France, 1215–1270
  15. Robert, Count of Clermont, 1256–1317
  16. Louis I, Duke of Bourbon, 1279–1342
  17. James I, Count of La Marche, 1319–1362
  18. John I, Count of La Marche, 1344–1393
  19. Louis de Bourbon, Count of Vendôme, 1376–1446