Coat of arms of the principality of Achaea.
(also
Floris or
Florence;
Hainaut, also spelled "Hainault") (c.1255 –
23 January 1297) was
Prince of Achaea from 1289 to his death, in right of his wife,
Isabella of Villehardouin. He was the son of
John I of Avesnes and
Adelaide of Holland. From his father he received the
stadholdership (government) of
Zeeland.
After he left Zeeland, he took up service with
Charles II of Naples, who made him
constable of the
Kingdom of Naples. After his marriage with Isabella (
16 September 1289), he had one daughter:
Matilda. She would succeed him and her mother as princess.
Florent settled with his wife in
Morea. He negotiated the
Treaty of Glarentsa with the
Byzantine Empire in 1290. The situation for the
Franks in
Greece was hopeless by this time, however. The fall of the
Angevins in
Sicily meant that they were preoccupied with recouping territory there and few Western governments would send troops to defend Morea. Florent thus made peace and maintained it until 1293, when the Greeks retook
Kalamata. Florent did not despair and did not reopen the war which had been ongoing until his succession: he instead sent an embassy in protest to
Michael VIII Palaeologus. The emperor returned Kalamata. In 1296, the Greeks retook the
castle of Saint George in
Arcadia. Florent besieged the castle, but died before it could be taken.
Sources
- Grousset, René. L'Empire du Levant: Histoire de la Question d'Orient.
Category:1297 deathsCategory:House of AvesnesCategory:Princes of Achaeade:Florenz von Hennegauel:Φλωρέντιος της Αχαΐαςfr:Florent de Hainautnl:Floris van Avesnespl:Florens z Hainaut
