Houses of Montlhéry and Le Puiset

The Houses of Montlhéry and Le Puiset (referred to as the Montlhéry Clan by Riley-Smith^[1]) is the name given by two powerful families, joined in marriage, that played a major role in the 11th and 12th centuries in both the Crusades as well as the administration of the Holy Land.^[2] The Montlhéry branch consists of the relatives (descendants and in-laws) of Guy I of Montlhéry (referred to here as simply Guy) and Hodierna of Gometz. The Le Puiset branch consists of the descendants of Everard I of Breteuil. Everard’s son Hugh I of Le Puiset (or simply Hugh) married Guy’s daughter Alice, bringing the families together. Prominent members of the families are as follows.

• Milo I of Montlhéry (d. 1102), son of Guy
• Guy III Trousseau (d. 1109), son of the previous
• Guy I of Dampierre (d. 1151), grandson of Milo I
• Guy II of Dampierre (d. 1216), grandson of the previous (Third Crusade)
• Hugh II Bardoul of Broyes (d. before 1121), son-in-law of Milo I
• Hugh III of Broyes (d. 1199), grandson of the previous (Second Crusade)
• Guy II the Red of Rochefort (d. 1108), son of Guy
• Hugh I of Rethel (d. 1108), son-in-law of Guy
• Guitier of Rethel (d. 1171), grandson of the previous
• Walter of Saint-Valéry (d. after 1098), son-in-law of Guy
• Bernard II of Saint-Valéry (d. unknown), son of the previous
• Eudon of Saint-Valéry (d. unknown), brother of the previous
• Éverard III (d. 1099), son of Hugh and grandson of Guy
• Hugh III of Le Puiset (d. 1132), son of the previous
• Ralph the Red of Pont-Echanfray (d. 1120 in the White Ship disaster), grandson-in-law of Hugh
• Guy of Puiset (d. 1127), son of Hugh
• Walo II of Chaumont-en-Vexin (d. 1098), son-in-law of Hugh
• Drogo de Chaumont (d. 1099), son of the previous
• Waleran of Le Puiset (d. 1126), son of Hugh
• Joscelin IV of Lèves (d. unknown), son-in-law of Hugh and father-in-law of Ralph the Red
• Héribrand III of Hierges, son-in-law of Hugh I of Rethel.

• Baldwin II (d. 1131), son of Hugh I of Rethel
• Melisende, Queen of Jerusalem (d. 1153), daughter of the previous
• Subsequent kings.

• William I of Bures (d. 1142), son of Hugh of Crécy, and grandson of Guy
• William II of Bures (d. 1158), brother of the previous.

• Joscelin I (d. 1131), grandson of Guy
• Joscelin II (d. 1159), son of the previous.

• Hugh I of Jaffa (d. between 1112 and 1118), son of Hugh
• Hugh II of Jaffa (d. 1134), son of the previous.

• Gilduin of Le Puiset (d. 1135), Abbot of St. Mary of the Valley of Jehoshaphat, son of Hugh
• Cecilia of Le Bourcq, Lady of Tarsus, sister of King Baldwin II
• Manasses of Hierges, Constable of Jerusalem, grandson of Hugh I of Rethel
• Renaud of Montlhéry, Bishop of Troyes, son of Milo I
• Guy of Dampierre, Bishop of Chalon, son of Guy I of Dampierre
• Hugh de Puiset, Bishop of Durham (d. 1195), son of Hugh III of Le Puiset
• Hugh of Crécy (d. 1147), seneschal, son of Guy II the Red of Rochefort.

• House of Dampierre (Guy I of Dampierre)
• House of Courtenay (Joscelin I, Lord of Courtenay, son-in-law of Guy)
• House of Dammartin (Drogo de Chaumont)
• House of Châteaudun (descendants of Melisende and her husband Fulk the Younger, King of Jerusalem).

The family trees of the Montlhéry and Le Puiset houses can be found in Riley-Smith.^[3]

• Riley-Smith, Johathan, The First Crusaders, 1095-1131, Cambridge University Press, London, 1997
• La Monte, John L.,The Lords of Le Puiset on the Crusades, Speculum, 1942
• Runciman, Steven, A History of the Crusades, Volume I: The First Crusade and the Foundation of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, Cambridge University Press, London, 1951
• Riley-Smith, Jonathan, The Atlas of the Crusades, Facts On File, New York, 1990, pg 14

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