Elizabeth of Vermandois, Countess of Leicester
| Elizabeth of Vermandois | |
|---|---|
| Spouse(s) |
Robert de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Leicester William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey |
| Noble family | House of Capet |
| Father | Hugh I, Count of Vermandois |
| Mother | Adelaide, Countess of Vermandois |
| Born | c. 1085 |
| Died | 13 February 1131 |
Elizabeth of Vermandois, or Elisabeth or Isabel de Vermandois (c. 1085 – 1131), was the third daughter of Hugh Magnus and Adelaide of Vermandois, and as such represented both the Capetian line of her paternal grandfather Henry I of France, and the Carolingian ancestry of her maternal grandfather Herbert IV of Vermandois. As the wife of two Anglo-Norman magnates, Robert de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Leicester and William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey, she is the ancestress of hundreds of well-known families down to the present time.
In 1096, Robert de Beaumont, Count of Meulan reputed to be "the wisest man in his time between London and Jerusalem" insisted, in defiance of the laws of the church, on marrying a very young Elizabeth, he being over fifty at the time. In early 1096 Bishop Ivo, on hearing of the proposed marriage, wrote a letter banning the marriage and preventing its celebration on the grounds the two were related within prohibited degrees. In April of that year Elizabeth's father count Hugh left on Crusade, his last act being to see his daughter married to count Robert. The crusader was able to convince Pope Urban to issue a dispensation for the marriage which then went forward.
Her husband was a nobleman of some significance in France, having inherited lands from his maternal uncle Henry, Count of Meulan, and is known to have fought at the Battle of Hastings as a companion of William the Conqueror. He was rewarded with ninety manors in the counties of Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire and Wiltshire. The count of Meulan was one of Henry I's "four wise counsellors and was one of the king's commanders at the Battle of Tinchebray 28 September 1106. In 1107 Robert became Earl of Leicester.
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