Amadeus II (died 22 May 1308) was theCount of Geneva, which included theGenevois, but not the city ofGeneva, from 1280 to 1308. He was the second son ofCount Rudolf and succeeded his heirless brotherAymon II.^[2]

Seal of Amadeus II of Geneva

Thiscoat of arms was used by Amadeus II as early as 1288. Itsblazon is: Checquy of nine panes, or and azure (d'or à quatre points équipollés d'azur).^[1]

In June 1282 atVersoix, Amadeus and Béatrice “la Grande Dauphine”, the dowagerCountess of Albon and regent for her sonJohn I, came to an agreement whereby all the places that Amadeus' father and grandfather,William II, had been forced to cede toPeter “the Little Charlemagne” in 1250 and 1260—the so-calledgagerie^[a]—would be returned to Geneva. Thegagerie was originally to be held by Peter and his heirs until the Count of Geneva paid awar indemnity of 20,000marks, later reduced to 10,000. Béatrice was Peter's only daughter and heir, and the widow ofGuigues VII of Albon. In return for these lands, Amadeus granted to Béatrice suzerainty over certain lordships and agreed to take anyallods within the returnedgagerie asfiefs of her and her heirs, the Counts of Albon, instead. The treaty also created a mutual defensive alliance and cooperation in an offensive against "those detaining and possessing the properties and men belonging to the above-mentionedgagerie", that is, men of thehouse of Savoy, Béatrice's relatives.^[2] The conference of Versoix was under the presidency of Amadeus' uncle, theBishop of Geneva, who promised to help both parties so far as it did not threaten the rights of his diocese. The privilege of arbitrating disputes between Amadeus and Béatrice fell toHumbert I of La Tour-du-Pin, who was Béatrice's son-in-law as the husband of her daughter Anne.

War with Savoy immediately broke out following the alliance between Amadeus and the Dauphine. By 1 November 1282 the Savoyards had attackedAvalon in the Dauphiné andBellecombe in the Genevois.^[2] The castle ofLa Buissière in the Dauphiné was captured byLouis I of Vaud, who then invaded theGrésivaudan, while his brotherAmadeus, marching from theBresse, assaultedMoirans. These attacks caused the bishop to withdraw from the alliance and make peace withPhilip I, Count of Savoy, the brothers' uncle. In February 1283 the Genevois and men form theFaucigny, enemies (inimicos) of Savoy, invaded the Savoyardcastellany ofChâtelard-en-Bauges and burned the village. In the Genevan citadel ofBourg-du-Four, agents of Count Philip fomented unrest in the city against both Amadeus II and the bishop.^[2] At this point in the spring of 1283 the emperor-electRudolf of Habsburg intervened against Savoy. Rudolf first attackedMorat and, failing in this,Payerne, where his assault was repulsed and the Louis of Vaud came to the city's defence. He then ordered the citizens ofFribourg to join the ‘imperial’ host and wrote to Amadeus II ordering him to invade Savoy an open up a “second front”.^[3] Although Amadeus received an offer of one hundredknights if he needed assistance, he does not appear to have actually opened up a “second front”, perhaps understanding better than the emperor the difficulty such an effort would face.^[3]

Amadeus died 22 May 1308apud lu Bacho, and was buried the next day (23 May) atMontagny.^[4]

Amadeus married Agnes, daughter ofJohn, Count of Chalon, and his second wife, Laurette de Commercy, by a marriage contract drawn up 1 June 1285.^[5] They had three sons and two daughters who were still living at his death:

• William III, his successor^[5]
• Amadeus, who becameBishop of Toul^[5]
• Hugh, who continued his father's feuding with the house of Savoy well into the reign ofAmadeus VI of Savoy^[5]
• Jeanne (died 23 February 1303), who married Guichard VI de Beaujeu (1300)^[5]
• Marie, who is mentioned in a document of 1306^[5]

• Cox, Eugene L.The Eagles of Savoy: The House of Savoy in Thirteenth-Century Europe. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1974.
• Duparc, Pierre.Le comté de Genève: IX^e–XV^e siècle. Mémoires et documents publiés par la Société d'histoire et d'archéologie de Genève, 39. Geneva: Julien, 1978.
• Poole, Reginald S.A Descriptive Catalogue of the Swiss Coins in the South Kensington Museum Bequeathed by the Reverend Chauncy Hare Townshend. Elbiron Classics, 2006.