French nobility, also called "the Young" or "the Troubadour". Duke of Aquitaine and Gascony as Guillaume VII also Count of Poitou. He was the only son of Guillaume VIII and his third wife Hildegarde de Bourgogne. He succeeded his father in 1088 and married Ermengarde de Anjou in the following year. The marriage seems to have been not very happy. Her mood swings and unpredictable behaviour, coupled with the failure to conceive a child led to the dissolution of the marriage. Around 1094 he married countess Philippa de Toulouse, heiress of Guillaume IV. With her, he had two sons and five daughters. His reign was dominated by the conflict with the St-Gilles family for the power in Toulouse. After he had conquered Toulouse for the first time he sold his rights to Bertrand de St-Gilles to have enough money for a crusade. In March 1101 he started with Welf IV of Bavaria for the Holy Land. In September, after passing through Constantinople his army was defeated at Heraclea. He was able to flee and reached Antioch with only six men. After visiting Jerusalem he returned home in fall 1102. He kidnapped the willing Dangereuse de l'Isle-Bouchard, wife of Aimery de Chatellerault and installed her in his castle in Poitiers. She became his mistress and bore him five children including Raimund of Antioch. When Philippa returned from Toulouse to find she had been replaced she appealed to the church and accused her husband openly of adultery. Even after being excommunicated he refused to part from Dangereuse. Philippa retired to Fontevrault where she died a year later.
French nobility, also called "the Young" or "the Troubadour". Duke of Aquitaine and Gascony as Guillaume VII also Count of Poitou. He was the only son of Guillaume VIII and his third wife Hildegarde de Bourgogne. He succeeded his father in 1088 and married Ermengarde de Anjou in the following year. The marriage seems to have been not very happy. Her mood swings and unpredictable behaviour, coupled with the failure to conceive a child led to the dissolution of the marriage. Around 1094 he married countess Philippa de Toulouse, heiress of Guillaume IV. With her, he had two sons and five daughters. His reign was dominated by the conflict with the St-Gilles family for the power in Toulouse. After he had conquered Toulouse for the first time he sold his rights to Bertrand de St-Gilles to have enough money for a crusade. In March 1101 he started with Welf IV of Bavaria for the Holy Land. In September, after passing through Constantinople his army was defeated at Heraclea. He was able to flee and reached Antioch with only six men. After visiting Jerusalem he returned home in fall 1102. He kidnapped the willing Dangereuse de l'Isle-Bouchard, wife of Aimery de Chatellerault and installed her in his castle in Poitiers. She became his mistress and bore him five children including Raimund of Antioch. When Philippa returned from Toulouse to find she had been replaced she appealed to the church and accused her husband openly of adultery. Even after being excommunicated he refused to part from Dangereuse. Philippa retired to Fontevrault where she died a year later.
