County of Boulogne
| County of Boulogne | ||||||||
| Comté de Boulogne | ||||||||
| Part of the Kingdom of France (1212–1501) | ||||||||
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| Capital | Boulogne | |||||||
| Political structure | Part of the Kingdom of France (1212–1501) | |||||||
| Historical era | Middle Ages | |||||||
| • | acquisition by the House of Flanders | 896 | ||||||
| • | annexed by Philip II of France | 1212 | ||||||
| • | incorporation into the crown lands of France | 1501 | ||||||
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Coat of arms
The County of Boulogne was a county within the kingdom of France during the 9th to 15th centuries, centred on the city of Boulogne-sur-Mer. It was ruled by the counts of Flandres in the 10th century, but a separate House of Boulogne emerges in the 11th. It was annexed by Philip II of France in 1212 and after this was treated as part of the county of Artois, until it was finally annexed into the royal domain in 1550.
Boulogne was already a pagus within the kingdom of the Franks (pagus Bononiensis). There are few records prior to the 11th century. A proverbially wicked count named Herrequin is recorded for the 9th century, but he may be legendary (see Herla, Erlking). It seems to have come under the rule of the counts of Flanders in the late 9th or early 10th century. In 886, bishop Gauzlin of Paris asked count Erkenger of Boulogne to solicit German help against the Viking raids. Erkenger was lost all his possessions in 896, as he remained loyal to Charles the Simple. It may have been at this point that Baldwin II, Count of Flanders gained control over Boulogne.
Eustace II of Boulogne accompanied William the Conqueror's invasion in 1066. Boulogne was also a major participant in the First Crusade; Eustace III of Boulogne's brothers, Godfrey of Bouillon and Baldwin of Bouillon, both became kings of Jerusalem, and Eustace himself was offered but declined the title.
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