Bertha, Duchess of Brittany
Bertha of Cornwall (b.c 1114, died 1156), also known as Bertha of Brittany (Breton: Berthe Breizh ), was hereditary Duchess of Brittany between 1148 until her death.[1] Bertha was the eldest daughter of Conan III of Brittany by Maude, the illegitimate daughter of King Henry I of England.[1] She was the last member of the Cornwall family to reign over Brittany.
By 1138 Bertha was married to Alan Count of Penthièvre, who was created created 1st Earl of Richmond by Stephen of England for his support against the dispossessed Empress Matilda during the English Civil War.[1][2] The marriage between Bertha and Alan may have been intended to bring Brittany on the side of Stephen in the war.
Bertha had three children with Alan,
- Conan IV, Duke of Brittany, b. 1138, their son and heir.
- Constance of Brittany, who married Alan III, Vicomte of Rohan.
- Enougen, abbess of St. Sulpice.
By 1146 her husband Alan had died, and Bertha returned home to Brittay where she married Eudes, Viscount of Porhoet.[1] Two years later her father Duke Conan III died, and on his deathbed he had renounced Hoèl as illegitimate and no son of his, designating Bertha as his heiress. However, Hoel would remain as count of Nantes.[1]
When Bertha died in 1156 war broke out between Bertha's son Conan IV and her second husband Eudes.[1] With her death the ducal throne passed to her son. Eudes may have made a compact with his brother-in-law, Hoel of Nantes to divide Brittany between them. However in late 1156 Conan IV was able to defeat Eudes and secure his maternal inheritance.
References
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