Waleran III, Duke of Limburg

Waleran III (or Walram III) (c. 1165 – 2 July 1226) was initially lord of Montjoie, then count of Luxembourg from 1214. He became count of Arlon and duke of Limburg on his father's death in 1221. He was the son of Henry III of Limburg and Sophia of Saarbrücken.

Waleran III, Duke of Limburg
Seal of Waleran.
Born	c.  1165
Died	(1226-07-02)2 July 1226 Rolduc
Buried	Rolduc Abbey
Noble family	Ardennes-Verdun
Spouse(s)	Cunigunda of Lorraine Ermesinda of Luxembourg
Father	Henry III of Limburg
Mother	Sophie of Saarbrücken

Waleran's new coat of arms, with a crown to symbolise his claim to Namur and two tails to symbolise his holding both Luxembourg and Limburg.

As a younger son, he did not expect to inherit. He carried on an adventurous youth and took part in the Third Crusade in 1192.[1] In 1208, the imperial candidate Philip of Swabia died and Waleran, his erstwhile supporter, turned to his opponent, Otto of Brunswick. In 1212, he accompanied his first cousin Henry I, Duke of Brabant, to Liège, then in a war with Guelders. Waleran's first wife, Cunigunda, a daughter of Frederick I, Duke of Lorraine, died in 1214 and in May he married Ermesinda of Luxembourg,[2] and became count jure uxoris there. Ermesinda claimed Namur and so Waleran added a crown to his coat of arms to symbolise this claim.

In 1221, he inherited Limburg and added a second tail to the rampant lion on his arms. This symbolised his holding of two great fiefs. In 1223, he again tried to take Namur from the Margrave Philip II. He failed and signed a peace treaty on 13 February in Dinant. He then took part in various imperial diets and accompanied the Emperor Frederick II into Italy. Returning from there, he died in Rolduc.

Family and children

Waleran had four children by his first wife, Cunigunda of Lorraine,[3] daughter of Frederick I, Duke of Lorraine, and three children by his second wife, Ermesinda of Luxembourg.[3]

Children with Cunigunda of Lorraine:

1. Sophie (c. 1190 – 1226/27), married c. 1210 Frederick of Isenberg
2. Matilda (c. 1192 – aft. 1234), married c. 1210 William III of Jülich, mother of William IV, Count of Jülich
3. Henry IV, Duke of Limburg[3]
4. Waleran (c. 1200 – 1242), married Elisabeth of Bar, daughter of Ermesinda of Luxembourg by her first husband, Theobald I, Count of Bar

Children with Ermesinda of Luxembourg:

1. Catherine (c. 1215 – 1255), married Matthias II, Duke of Lorraine, nephew of Waleran's first wife
2. Henry V, Count of Luxembourg[3]
3. Gerhard, Count of Durbuy

Notes

1. Gade 1951, p. 77.
2. Péporté 2011, p. 109-110.
3. Loud & Schenk 2017, p. xxix.

References

• Gade, John A. (1951). Luxemburg in the Middle Ages. E.J. Brill.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Loud, Graham A.; Schenk, Jochen, eds. (2017). The Origins of the German Principalities, 1100-1350: Essays by German Historians. Routledge.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Péporté, P. (2011). Historiography, Collective Memory and Nation-Building in Luxembourg. Brill.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

Waleran III, Duke of Limburg House of Ardennes-Verdun Born: 1165 Died: 2 July 1226
Preceded by Ermesinde and Theobald	Count of Luxemburg with Ermesinde 1214-1226	Succeeded by Ermesinde
Preceded by Henry III	Duke of Limburg 1221–1226	Succeeded by Henry IV
	Count of Arlon 1221–1226	Succeeded by Henry V