Jan I of Brabant is the most famous duke of Brabant. During his short reign, he managed to carve out his place in history, his deeds appealing to both the common folk and scholars.
Jan of
Brabant was born in 1252 as son of Hendrik IV and Aleidis of
Burgundy. At that time, the
duchy of Brabant covered part of what is now the south of
the Netherlands and the north of
Belgium.
It was a rich and prosperous region, strategically in the center of
Europe.
In 1261, his father died. This power vacuum drew the attention of competitors, such as the duke of
Gelre, which is in what is now the east of the Netherlands. His mother decided that Jan should
inherit the throne, rather than his retarded older brother Hendrik IV. He received a thorough
education in Latin, French, and the art of war. In 1267, he became Duke of Brabant at the young age
of 15.
In 1270, he married the daughter of the French king Louis IX, Margaretha. It was a politically
motivated marriage, which was all the more clear because she was originally promised to Hendrik IV,
his older brother. The marriage did not last long: Margareta died while giving birth in 1271. This
left Jan without a heir. Jan, however, would not let this stand in the way of his carnal desires, and
he started a rather large number of affairs-even by the standards of those days. He fell truly in
love with a simple red-headed peasant girl, Janneke Pijlijser. His mother introduced him to another
Margaretha, Margaretha of Flandres, who was the heir of Guy of Flandres, in 1273. This did not stop
his extramarital affairs, though.
In 1285, Jan joined the war against Aragon, at the request of his brother in law, the king of
France. For his efforts, he was knighted.
His wife died in that same year, making him vow never to remarry. He could not marry his one true
love, Janneke Pijlijser. as she was a peasant girl and he a mighty duke. His love for her
manifested in the form of many love poems.
Limburg was vulnerable to invasion, as Irmgard died childless in 1283. Jan decided to snatch the
opportunity, which brought him in conflict with Reinnoud of Gelre, who also had a claim to Limburg.
Both started bringing in their allies, and in 1288, this culminated in a huge battle, with on the
one hand Jan, together with the counts of Berg, Gulik and Loon, and on the other sided the
archbishop of Köln, Reinnout of Gelre and Henry of Luxembourgh. On the 5th of June, at Worringen,
Jan of Brabant rode to victory at the head of his troop, in spite of being vastly outnumbered. This
victory is considered his most important achievement.
Jan was a huge fan of the knighlty practice of jousting tournaments. During his reign, he organized
72, winning all but the last. In one of those tournaments, which he organized in England, he won a
princess bride for his son Jan II. In the last tournament, he was mortally wounded. He died, at age
42, like a true knight, in 1294
Summarizing his life, there seems to be almost too much Jan to fit in one person. Jousting
champion, master of strategy, lover, poet, knight... He is exactly like the knights and nobles
portrayed in medieval fantasy. Only this man was all too real.
There are more Dukes named Jan of Brabant, but this one is the most famous by far.
Sources:
http://www.michel-tencate.tmfweb.nl/hertogjan.htm
http://www.vriendenvanhertogjan.nl/
http://henry.vinden.nl/hertogjan/historie.html
http://www.sintermeerten.nl/projecten/woeringen/content-opdracht2.htm
http://members.home.nl/joopbelet/Waar4.htm
http://www.ping.be/~ping0803/Dorpen/historisch.htm