Thomas II of Savoy
| Thomas II | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Lord (later Count) of Piedmont | |
| Reign | 1233–1259 |
| Born | c. 1199 |
| Died | 7 February 1259 |
| Spouse |
Joan, Countess of Flanders Beatrice Fieschi |
| Issue |
Thomas Amadeus Louis Ι Eleanor Margaret Alice |
| House | House of Savoy |
| Father | Thomas I of Savoy |
| Mother | Margaret of Geneva |
Thomas II (c. 1199, Montmélian – 7 February 1259) was the Lord of Piedmont from 1233 to his death, Count of Flanders jure uxoris from 1237 to 1244, and regent of the County of Savoy from 1253 to his death, while his nephew Boniface was fighting abroad. He was the son of Thomas I of Savoy and Margaret of Geneva.
Thomas started his career in the church, as a canon at Lausanne and became prévôt of Valence by 1226. In 1233, when Thomas I of Savoy died, Thomas, being a younger son, inherited only the lordship of Piedmont, which he later raised to the status of a county. Historians and genealogists have retrospectively dubbed him "Thomas II of Savoy" in order to distinguish him from the other Thomases of the House of Savoy.
In 1235, when Thomas left his ecclesiastical career, he sought to fully divide his lands from the County of Savoy. His elder brother, Amadeus IV, negotiated with him to grant Thomas additional lands within the county, but that all lands would stay part of the county. Further, Thomas was encouraged like his other brothers to expand his holdings outside of Savoy.
In 1234, Thomas and his brother William escorted his niece, Margaret of Provence to her wedding with Louis IX of France. While Thomas hoped to stay with her at the French court, the king's mother, Blanche of Castile, wanted greater control over the new queen, and so dismissed all who came with her before the couple even reached Paris.
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