Foulques III (Nerra, den svarte) av Anjou III (De Anjou) (972 - 1040)

Fulk III “the Black”, born circa 966, was the son of Geoffrey Grisegonelle "Greymantle" or "Grey Tunic". He one of the most remarkable figures of his period and the most powerful member of the dynasty. Fulk ruled Anjou for 53 years. He was both cruel and devotional, and had a violent and pious temperament. He was partial to acts of extreme cruelty and penitence.
A temperamental, passionate and unbalanced charcater, his most heinous act was having his first wife (and cousin), Elisabeth of Vendôme, burned at the stake in her wedding dress, after discovering her with a goatherder in December 999.
Fulk came into conflict with the Counts of Rennes, he conquered and slew Conan I of Rennes at the Battle of Conquereuil on 27 June 992. He then extended his power over the Counties of Maine and Touraine. He died at Metz, while on pilgrimage.
Fulk was an old man when he decided to make what might be his last pilgrimage, as penance for his sins. The first night he stayed at the abbey of St. Maur-sur-Loire, where he learned more about the life of St. Maur. Fulk became overcome with passion and devotion in the Holy Lands. Previously Fulk was known as "the Black." Fulk died in Metz while returning from his last pilgrimage. He is buried in the chapel of his monastery at Beaulieu. By his first wife Elisabeth, he left one daughter, Adela. By his second wife (1001), Hildegard of Sundgau, he had two children, Geoffrey Martel, who was his successor, and Ermengard.
A writer said of Fulk III that “he was a plunderer, murderer, robber, and swearer of false oaths, a truly terrifying character of fiendish cruelty, founded not one but two large abbeys. This Fulk was filled with unbridled passion, a temper directed to extremes. Whenever he had the slightest difference with a neighbor he rushed upon his lands, ravaging, pillaging, raping, and killing. Nothing could stop him, least of all the commandments of God.”

Fulk III (972 – 21 June 1040), called Nerra (that is, le Noir, "the Black") after his death, was Count of Anjou from 21 July 987 to his death. He was the son of Geoffrey Greymantle and Adelaide of Vermandois.
Fulk Nerra's castle keep at Loches

Fulk III was the founder of Angevin power. He was only fifteen when he succeeded his father, and had a violent but also pious temperament, was partial to acts of extreme cruelty as well as penitence. In his most notorious act, he had his first wife (and cousin) Elisabeth of Vendôme burned at the stake in her wedding dress, after he discovered her in adultery with a goatherd in December 999. On the other hand, he made four pilgrimages to the Holy Land in 1002, 1008, and 1038 and, in 1007, built the great abbey at Beaulieu-lès-Loches. As a result, historiography has this to say about him:
“ Fulk of Anjou, plunderer, murderer, robber, and swearer of false oaths, a truly terrifying character of fiendish cruelty, founded not one but two large abbeys. This Fulk was filled with unbridled passion, a temper directed to extremes. Whenever he had the slightest difference with a neighbor he rushed upon his lands, ravaging, pillaging, raping, and killing; nothing could stop him, least of all the commandments of God.[1]

Fulk fought against the claims of the counts of Rennes, defeating and killing Conan I of Rennes at the Battle of Conquereuil on 27 June 992. He then extended his power over the Counties of Maine and Touraine.

Fulk's enterprises came up against the no less determined and violent ambitions of Odo II of Blois, against whom he made an alliance with the Capetians. On 6 July 1016, he defeated Odo at the Battle of Pontlevoy. In 1025, after capturing and burning the city of Saumur, Fulk reportedly cried, "Saint Florentius, let yourself be burned. I will build you a better home in Angers." However, when the transportation of the saint's relics to Angers proved difficult, Fulk declared that Florentius was a rustic lout unfit for the city, and sent the relics back to Saumur.

Fulk also commissioned many buildings, primarily for defensive purposes. While fighting against the Bretons and Blesevins, protecting his territory from Vendôme to Angers and from there to Montrichard, he had more than a hundred castles, donjons, and abbeys constructed, including those at Château-Gontier, Loches (a stone keep), and Montbazon. He built the donjon at Langeais (990), one of the first stone castles. These numerous pious foundations, however, followed many acts of violence against the church.

Fulk died in Metz while returning from his last pilgrimage. He is buried in the chapel of his monastery at Beaulieu. By his first wife, Elisabeth, he left one daughter, Adela. By his second wife (1001), Hildegard of Sundgau, he had two children, Geoffrey Martel, his successor, and Ermengarde, through whom he was an ancestor of Geoffrey Plantagenet and the Plantagenet kings of England.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fulk_III,_Count_of_Anjou

He was born on 21 Jun 967 in Anjou, France. He died on 21 Jun 1040 in Metz, France.115 He was buried on 21 Jun 1040 in , Beaulieu-Lès-Loches, 37.16 He was also known as Le Noir The Black. He graduated in Made 3 Or 4 Pilgrimages To Jerusalem To Atone For His Sins..16 Name Suffix:<NSFX> The Black
ADELAIDE IS GEOFFREY'S 1ST WIFE; MLC/RAName Suffix:<NSFX> III

Known as a terrifying character of fiendish cruelty.
Plunderer, murderer, robber, and swearer of fale oaths.
Made 3 or 4 pilgrimages to Jerusalem to atone for his sins .
When taken w/ remorse he abandoned himself to incredible penances.
Buried at Abbey de St. Pier re de Beaulieu, France.

" Not all founders [of monasteries] were known for their kindness. Fulk
of Anjo u, plunderer, murderer, robber, and swearer of false oaths, a truly
terrifying character of fiendish cruelty, founded not one but two large
abbeys. This Fu lk was filled with unbridled passion, a temper directed to
extremes. Whenever he had the slightest difference with a neighbor he
rushed upon his lands, rav aging, pillaging, raping, and killing; nothing
could stop him, least of all th e commandments of God. This appalling man
had countless crimes upon his consc ience, but when seized with a fit of
remorse he abandoned himself to incredibl e penances. Thus the very tomb of
St. Martin, whose monks he had ill-treated, saw him prostrate, with bare
feet and in penitent's dress; and four times dur ing his life he went to
Jerusalem as a devout pilgrim, treading half-naked the sorrowful road of the
passion while two of his servants flogged him until the blood flowed,
crying, "Lord, receive thy perjured Fulk!" "
--- Richard Erdoe s, *AD 1000: Living on the Brink of Apocalypse*, 1988
(reprint 1995) p 121 _FA2

Parents: Count Of Anjou Geoffroi Ier Grisegonelle D'ANJOU and Countess Anjou Adelaide De VERMANDOIS. Parents: Count Of Anjou Geoffroi Ier Grisegonelle D'ANJOU and Adelaide De Chalon DE VERMANDOIS. Parents: Count Of Anjou Geoffroi Ier Grisegonelle D'ANJOU and Of Vermandois ADELAIDE.

Spouse: Hildegarde Of Lotharingia. Count Of Fulk III The BLACK and Hildegarde Of Lotharingia were married after 1000 in , , Anjou, France.115,263 Children were: Comtesse Ermengarde D'ANJOU.

Spouse: HILDEGARDE. Count Of Fulk III The BLACK and HILDEGARDE were married. Children were: 1st Baron Of Kendal Ivo Fitzrichard TAILLEBOIS DE REUMAR, Ermengarde Ou Blanche D'ANJOU.

Children were: Comtesse Ermengarde D'ANJOU.

Spouse: Elizabeth De VENDOME. Count Of Fulk III The BLACK and Elizabeth De VENDOME were married before 989 in , , , France. Children were: Adele De ANJOU.

Spouse: Hildegarde De ANJOU. Count Of Fulk III The BLACK and Hildegarde De ANJOU were married in 1000 in Anjou, France.15,20,314,707 Children were: Geoffrey Of Anjou MARTEL, Elizabeth De ANJOU, Geoffroy II De ANJOU, Comtesse Ermengarde D'ANJOU.
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lzrslong/b351.htm#P187727
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Geoffrey's successor Fulk III Nerra [d.1040], one of the most remarkable figures of his period and the most powerful member of the dynasty, ruled from 987 to 1040. He finally drove his encroaching neighbours back beyond the frontiers of Anjou and built strongly fortified castles along the border of his territory. Fulk's son Geoffrey II 'Martel' (1040-60) pursued the policy of expansion begun by his father and annexed the Vendômois and a part of Maine to Anjou. Because he left no sons, his two nephews, Geoffrey III the Bearded [le Barbu] and Fulk IV 'the Rude' [le Réchin], shared the succession. However, they soon came into armed conflict, and Fulk defeated Geoffrey in 1068. Nevertheless, he had to give up most of the lands that Fulk III Nerra had acquired to defend his fief against the claims of the Duke of Normandy.
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Fulk III (972 – 21 June 1040), called Nerra (that is, le Noir, "the Black") after his death, was Count of Anjou from 21 July 987 to his death. He was the son of Geoffrey Greymantle and Adelaide of Vermandois.

Fulk III was the founder of Angevin power. He was only fifteen when he succeeded his father, and had a violent but also pious temperament, was partial to acts of extreme cruelty as well as penitence. In his most notorious act, he had his first wife (and cousin) Elisabeth of Vendôme burned at the stake in her wedding dress, after he discovered her in adultery with a goatherd in December 999. On the other hand, he made four pilgrimages to the Holy Land in 1002, 1008, and 1038 and, in 1007, built the great abbey at Beaulieu-lès-Loches. As a result, historiography has this to say about him:
“ Fulk of Anjou, plunderer, murderer, robber, and swearer of false oaths, a truly terrifying character of fiendish cruelty, founded not one but two large abbeys. This Fulk was filled with unbridled passion, a temper directed to extremes. Whenever he had the slightest difference with a neighbor he rushed upon his lands, ravaging, pillaging, raping, and killing; nothing could stop him, least of all the commandments of God.[1]
. . . un des batailleurs les plus agités du Moyen Âge.[2]
”
Fulk fought against the claims of the counts of Rennes, defeating and killing Conan I of Rennes at the Battle of Conquereuil on 27 June 992. He then extended his power over the Counties of Maine and Touraine.
Fulk's enterprises came up against the no less determined and violent ambitions of Odo II of Blois, against whom he made an alliance with the Capetians. On 6 July 1016, he defeated Odo at the Battle of Pontlevoy. In 1025, after capturing and burning the city of Saumur, Fulk reportedly cried, "Saint Florentius, let yourself be burned. I will build you a better home in Angers." However, when the transportation of the saint's relics to Angers proved difficult, Fulk declared that Florentius was a rustic lout unfit for the city, and sent the relics back to Saumur.
Fulk also commissioned many buildings, primarily for defensive purposes. While fighting against the Bretons and Blesevins, protecting his territory from Vendôme to Angers and from there to Montrichard, he had more than a hundred castles, donjons, and abbeys constructed, including those at Château-Gontier, Loches (a stone keep), and Montbazon. He built the donjon at Langeais (990), one of the first stone castles. These numerous pious foundations, however, followed many acts of violence against the church.
Fulk died in Metz while returning from his last pilgrimage. He is buried in the chapel of his monastery at Beaulieu. By his first wife, Elisabeth, he left one daughter, Adela. By his second wife (1001), Hildegard of Sundgau, he had two children, Geoffrey Martel, his successor, and Ermengarde, through whom he was an ancestor of Geoffrey Plantagenet and the Plantagenet kings of England.