Presentation of the faction: House of Leuven news

The beginnings of the House of Leuven :

The House of Leuven does not have its roots in the city of Leuven but in the region of Hainaut. Indeed, the founder of the House of Leuven, Lambert I, known as the Bearded One, was the son of Régnier III of Hainaut.

It all began when Regnier III of Hainaut was exiled to Bohemia by Archbishop Brunon of Cologne for his revolt against him. Lambert was still a teenager when in 958 he took refuge at the French court with his family. In 973, together with his brother Regnier, Lambert attacked the counts Renaud and Garnier, to whom Hainaut had been entrusted. The two brothers killed them in Péronne and began to occupy Hainaut, but Emperor Otto II of the Holy Roman Empire drove them back.

Despite a second attempt, the two brothers were defeated near Mons on 19 April 976. However, the emperor finally had to make concessions and gave Regnier the county of Mons and Lambert the county of Leuven, which had previously belonged to their father.

Around 990, Lambert married Gerberge, a daughter of the Carolingians, and received the county of Brussels as a dowry. In 1012, Godfrey I of Lower Lotharingia was sent by the emperor to force Lambert to obey. But three years later, the founder of the House of Leuven died in the battle of Florennes against Godfrey I of Lower Lotharingia. Despite his death, his son Henry I of Leuven and his descendants continued to rule the county of Brussels and Leuven.

The House of Leuven at the beginning of the campaign :

It is 1080 and it is only two years since Henry III of Louvain became Count. But although he has been in power for a short time, it seems that he is in a position to place his House as the first one over all other Houses in Lotharingia.

However, Henry III will have to be careful because Hainaut and Flanders have hated each other since a civil war tore these two Houses apart. A struggle is surely possible between these two Houses, but which side should be chosen? He is both the brother-in-law of Baldwin II of Hainaut and son-in-law of Robert I (the Friesian) of Flanders. Henry III will have to make the right choices if he and his family are to become more than just counts...

Description of the faction :

• Faction leader: Henry III of Leuven.
• Heir to the faction: Godfrey I of Leuven, known as “the Bearded”, “the Brave” or “the Great”.
• Diplomacy at the beginning of the campaign: Is allied to the House of Hainaut, the House of Flanders and the House of Enghien. Is not at war with anyone.
• Faction location : In the centre of present-day Belgium.
• Strength(s) : Has 3 allies and territory divided between castle and town.
• Weakness(es): Has a small territory and is surrounded by many Houses.

Composition of the House of Leuven (present from the beginning of the campaign) :

Direct family (present in the game's family tree) :
Henry III of Leuven (20) married to Gertrude of Flanders (10). They have no children.

Indirect family (brother(s) and/or sister(s) of the faction leader) :
Ide of Leuven (15), Godfrey I of Leuven (20) and Alberon I of Leuven (10).

Thank you for reading the article to the end! I hope you enjoyed it! Please feel free to comment on the article, give your opinion and make objective remarks. If I have forgotten something, please let me know and I will correct the article.

Sources used for the article :

• Wikipedia article : " Histoire de Louvain".
• Wikipedia article : " Lambert Ier de Louvain".
• Wikipedia article : " Maison de Louvain".
• Wikipedia article : " Henri III de Louvain".