Robert III of Flanders (1249 –
September 17,
1322), also called
Robert of Bethune and nicknamed
The Lion of Flanders was Count of
Nevers 1273-1322 and
Count of Flanders 1305-1322.
History
Count Robert III, far left, and his successors.
Robert was the oldest son of
Guy of Dampierre from his first marriage with
Mathilda of Bethune. His father essentially gave up the rule of
Flanders to him in November 1299, during his war with
Philip IV of France. Both father and son were taken into captivity in May 1300, and Robert was not released until 1305.
Robert of Bethune gained military fame in
Italy, when he fought at the side of his father-in-law,
Charles I of Sicily (1265-1268) against the last
Hohenstaufens,
Manfred and
Conradin. Together with his father he took part in 1270 in the
Eighth Crusade, led by
Saint Louis. After his return from the Crusade he continued to be a loyal aid for his father, politically and militarily, in the fight against the attempts of the French King
Philip IV the Fair to add Flanders to the French
crown lands.
Guy of Dampierre broke all feudal bonds with the French king (on
January 20,
1297) mainly under his influence. When the resistance seemed hopeless Robert allowed himself to be taken prisoner, together with his father and his brother William of Crèvecoeur, and taken to the French King (May 1300). Shortly before that he had become the
de facto ruler of Flanders. He was locked in the castle of
Chinon. Contrary to popular belief, and the romantic portrayal by
Hendrik Conscience in his novel about these events (
The Lion of Flanders), he did not take part in the
Battle of the Golden Spurs.
In July 1305, after his father had died in captivity, he was allowed to return to his county. The execution of the
Treaty of Athis-sur-Orge would mark the rule of Count Robert. Initially he achieved some success in moving the countryside and the cities to fulfill their duties. However, in April 1310 he started to radically resist the French, with support of his subjects and his family. Both diplomatically and militarily he managed to make a stand against the French King. When he marched to
Lille in 1319 the militia from
Ghent refused to cross the
Leie with him. When his grandson
Louis I of Nevers pressured him as well, Robert gave up the battle and went to Paris in 1320 to restore feudal bonds with the French King.
But even after that, he would hamper the execution of the Treaty of Athis-sur-Orge. Robert died in 1322 and was succeeded by his grandson, Louis, Count of Nevers and Rethel.
He was buried in Flanders in the
Sint-Martin's Cathedral in
Ieper, as was his explicit wish to be buried on Flemish soil. His body was only allowed to be transferred to the abbey of
Flines (near
Douai) when
Lille and Douai were again part of the County of Flanders. His first wife and his father were also buried in this abbey.
Family
Robert married twice. His first wife was Blanche (d. 1269), daughter of
Charles I of Sicily and
Beatrice of Provence, in 1265. They had one son, Charles, who died young.
His second wife was
Yolande of Burgundy (d.
June 11,
1280),
Countess of Nevers, daughter of
Eudes of Burgundy, in c. 1271. They had five children:
* Jean, Seigneur of Cassel (d. 1332)
* Yolande (1331 - 1395), married
Henry IV of Bar.
A cultural symbol of Flemish nationalism
During the 19th century, numerous
nationalist-minded writers, poets and artists in various European countries were busily taking up heroic characters from their countries' respective histories and myths, and making them into
romantic symbols of national feeling and pride. The prominent Flemish writer
Hendrik Conscience did that very effectively with the character of Robert of Bethune, and his book
The Lion of Flanders ("De Leeuw van Vlaanderen") is still considered a masterpiece of Flemish literature.
As noted, historians have accused Conscience of some historical inaccuracies such as depicting his hero as having taken part in the
Battle of the Golden Spurs, contrary to historical fact. It was also pointed out that in reality
The Lion of Flanders probably did not even speak
Dutch. Certainly, he could not have been in any way a Flemish nationalist, having lived in the
feudal era, centuries before the very concept of nationalism appeared. The same could, however, be said of numerous other ancient heroes made into the symbols of various national movements - and such criticism never stopped nationalists from continuing to revere such heroes.
During the
Second World War,
Nazi Germany undertook the policy of calling the
Waffen-SS units raised among various occupied countries and peoples by the names of respective national heroes, so as to mask the fact that those joining these units were in fact
collaborators with a foreign occupier. As part of that policy, the Flemish Waffen-SS unit was called
Lions of Flanders.
Conscience's portrayal of the count also inspired
De Vlaamse Leeuw (Flemish: "The Flemish Lion"), long the unofficial anthem of Flemish nationalists and in recent decades officially recognised as the
national anthem of
Flanders.
