A letter from William, count of Holland (1248, September)

Translated letter:

We, William ever venerable, by God’s grace chosen as king of the Romans, count of Holland, wish to make known to all who will view the present letters that, since the noble lady Margaret, countess of Flanders and of Hainaut, has required of us that we should immediately pay homage to her concerning the land of Zeeland which we and our ancestors held in fealty from her ancestors the counts of Flanders, at the requests of the venerable lord father Peter, deacon, cardinal of St. George at the golden Veil, legate of the apostolic see, it has pleased the aforesaid lady countess to delay and defer at her will and her pleasure, namely concerning the above-said homage that must be sought and demanded from us to the lady countess. And we acknowledge to the aforesaid countess that this delay should not cause any injustice to her or to her successors, the counts of Flanders, but rather we wish and declare that it should happen that however much the aforesaid countess delays concerning the homage to be demanded from us, nonetheless our successors, whoever after us will have held the court of Holland, whether they be heirs from our line or other successors, will be bound to pay homage to the aforesaid countess and to her successors, the counts of Flanders, concerning the land of Zeeland and to acknowledge and observe to them their other rights, as is expressed more fully in the charter, which we also renewed, of the renowned men Philip, formerly count of Flanders and Floris formerly count of Holland, our great grandfathers. We wish and profess that on account of this deferral or delay of the homage that must be exacted from us, nothing can be lost or hindered to the aforesaid countess, but that the homage should remain in the same state of needing to be exacted from us, in which it exists at present and in which it existed before this, and that she should hold the same right of exacting from us the aforesaid homage which she held before this, and we recognize this same thing regarding her successors, the counts of Flanders, after her death. In testimony of the aforesaid we have signed the present letters protected by the impression of our seal. Granted in the year of the Lord 1248, in the month of September.(1)

Original letter:

Nos Willelmus Dei gratia Romanorum in regem electus semper augustus, comes Hollandie, notum fieri volumus universis presentes litteras inspecturis quod, cum nobilis domina Margareta, Flandrie et Haynonie comitissa, a nobis instanter exigeret quod ei faceremus homagium de terra Zelandie quam nos et nostri antecessores de suis antecessoribus, comitibus Flandrie, tenuimus in feudum, ad preces venerabilis patris domini Petri, Sancti Georgii ad Velum aureum dyaconi •• cardinalis, sedis apostolice legati, placuit predicte comitisse quod sustineret et differret ad voluntatem suam et placitum suum, videlicet domine comitisse, de homagio supradicto a nobis exigendo seu requirendo. Et nos predicte comitisse recognoscimus quod ista sustinentia non faciat ei aliquod preiuditium aut suis successoribus, comitibus Flandrie, quin potius volumus et declaramus quod quantumcumque predictam comitissam contingat sustinere de homagio a nobis exigendo, successores tamen nostri, quicumque post nos comitatum Hollandie tenuerint, sive sint heredes de carne nostra sive alii successores, tenebuntur predicte comitisse et eius successoribus, comitibus Flandrie, facere homagium de terra Zelandie et alia iura sua eis recognoscere et observare, sicut in carta illustrium virorum Philippic quondam comitis Flandrie et Florentii quondam comitis Hollandie, proavi nostri, quam nos etiam innovavimus, plenius est expressum. Volumus autem et profitemur quod propter istam sustinentiam seu dilationem homagii a nobis exigendi nichil obstare vel deperire possit predicte comitisse, quin sit in eodem statu exigendi a nobis homagium in quo ad presens existit et in quo ante hoc erat, et idem ius habeat exigendi a nobis predictum homagium quod ante hoc habebat, et idem cognoscimus de eius successoribus, comitibus Flandrie, post ipsius decessum. In predictorum autem testimonium presentes litteras tradidimus sigilli nostri impressione munitas. Datum anno Domini millesimo ducentesimo quadragesimo octavo, mense septembri.

Historical context:

William, as count of Holland, acknowledges the homage he owes the countess for Zeeland, which she has agreed to defer at no injury to her own or her successors' rights.

Scholarly notes:

1 This translation was provided by Ashleigh Imus.

Printed source:

Oorkondenboek van Holland en Zeeland tot 1299, ed. A.C.F.Koch (Gravenhage: Martinus Nijhoo, 1970), 2.429-30, ep.778.

Date:

1248, September