Alice de Lusignan, Countess of Surrey

Alice de Lusignan, Countess of Surrey (1224 – 9 February 1256) was a uterine half-sister of King Henry III of England and the wife of John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey. Shortly after her arrival in England from France in 1247, her half-brother arranged her marriage to the Earl, which incurred some resentment from the English nobility.[1]

Alice de Lusignan
Countess of Surrey
Born	1224 Lusignan, France
Died	9 February 1256 (aged 32 in childbirth) Warren, Sussex, England
Noble family	Lusignan
Spouse(s)	John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey
Issue Eleanor de Warenne Isabella de Warenne William de Warenne
Father	Hugh X de Lusignan, "le Brun", Seigneur de Lusignan, Count of La Marche
Mother	Isabella of Angoulême

Lineage

Alice was the second eldest daughter of Hugh X de Lusignan, "le Brun", Seigneur de Lusignan, Count of La Marche and Isabella of Angoulême, queen dowager of England.[2] She was born in Lusignan, Poitou, France in 1224, and was a member of the House of Lusignan.

She had five full brothers and three full sisters, besides her royal half-siblings from her mother's first marriage.

Lusignan, Vienne, France, the birthplace of Alice le Brun de Lusignan

Marriage

In 1247, a year after her mother's death, Alice accompanied the new papal legate William of Modena, the Cardinal Bishop of Sabina, to England, which she had decided to make her home, and live at the expense of the Crown.[3] In August of that year, her half-brother, King Henry married her to John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey (August 1231 – 29 September 1304).[4] The marriage caused some resentment amongst the English nobility, as they considered the King's Lusignan siblings to be parasites and a liability to the Kingdom. Many prestigious honours and titles were granted to the Lusignans.[5] Alice was also said to have been disdainful of all things English.[6]

John was the son of William de Warenne, 5th Earl of Surrey and Maud Marshal. Together they had three children.

Issue

• Eleanor de Warenne (1251–1282), married Sir Henry de Percy, by whom she had issue, including Henry Percy, 1st Baron Percy of Alnwick.
• Isabella de Warenne (c.1253 – before 1292), married John Balliol, and was the mother of Edward Balliol.
• William de Warenne (9 February 1256 – 15 December 1286). He was killed in a tournament. He married Joan de Vere, by whom he had two children, John de Warenne, 7th Earl of Surrey, and Alice de Warenne (15 June 1287 – 23 May 1338), who in turn married Edmund FitzAlan, 9th Earl of Arundel.

Death

Alice died in Warren, Sussex, England, on 9 February 1256 after giving birth to her only son, William. She was about thirty-two years of age.

Ancestry

Ancestors of Alice de Lusignan, Countess of Surrey

Hugh VIII of Lusignan Hugues of Lusignan, co-Seigneur of Lusignan Bourgogne de Rancon, Dame de Fontenay Hugh IX of Lusignan, Count of La Marche Orengarde N. Hugh X de Lusignan, Count of La Marche Agathe de Preuilly Alice de Lusignan Wulgrin II of Angoulême, Count of Angoulême William IV of Angoulême, Count of Angoulême Ponce de Montgommery Aymer Taillefer, Count of Angoulême Raymond I, Viscount of Turenne Marguerite of Turenne Mahaut du Perche Isabella of Angoulême Louis VI of France Peter II of Courtenay Adélaide de Maurienne Alice of Courtenay Renaud de Courtenay Elizabeth de Courtenay Hawise de Donjon

References

1. Costain, Thomas B. (1959). The Magnificent Century. Garden City, New York: Doubleday and Company, Inc. p.151
2. Vincent 2003, p. 181.
3. Costain p.151.
4. Carpenter 2020, p. xxv.
5. Costain, p.151
6. Costain,page 151.

Sources

• Carpenter, David (2020). Henry III: The Rise to Power and Personal Rule, 1207-1258. Yale University Press.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Vincent, Nicholas (2003). "Isabella of Angouleme: John's Jezebel". In Church, S.D. (ed.). King John: New Interpretations. The Boydell Press.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)