Thecounts of Holland ruled over theCounty of Holland in theLow Countries between the 10th and the 16th century.
While the Frisian kingdom had comprised most of the present day Netherlands, the later province of Friesland in the Netherlands was much reduced. Already in the early Middle Ages West-Frisia (Frisia west of the Vlie) was not considered to be a part of Frisia anymore, and came to be known as Holland (present day provinces North and South Holland and Zeeland).Floris II was the first count who restyled his name from count of "West-Frisia", in count of "Holland".
Frisia Proper in medieval time therefore only included the middle and eastern part. The middle part (corresponding to the present day Dutch province of Friesland) was populated by free peasants who successfully resisted all attempts by feudal lords to subdue them, mainly the counts of Holland and the bishops of Utrecht. In the eastern part, local chieftains created their own states (within the Holy Roman Empire) in the late Middle Ages. They became a county after 1446 until 1744, after which it was incorporated within Prussia and later Germany.
The first count of Holland, Dirk I, was the son or foster-son ofGerolf, Count in Frisia (Dijkstra suggests that Dirk may have been the son of a sister of Gerolf and that his own father died while he was still an infant). He received land aroundEgmond fromCharles the Fat at a place called Bladella (modern-day Bladel near Eindhoven, The Netherlands) in 922.[citation needed] This is seen as the beginning of the county of Holland.[by whom?] However, until about 1100, the usual names for the county were West-Friesland, Frisia or Kennemerland; in spite of this the counts from Dirk I onwards are traditionally namedof Holland.
Note that the chronology of the first few counts is uncertain. The existence of a count between Dirk I and Dirk II was only recently suggested, since it is thought that the references to counts named Dirk between 896 and 988 refer to three, not two, different counts. This third Count Dirk is placed between Dirk I and II and numbered as Dirk Ibis to avoid confusion with the already established numbering referring to the other counts of Holland named Dirk.
The counts of West-Frisia ruled locally in the name of the archbishop of Utrecht, but over time, the counts of Holland came to dominate the bishopric of Utrecht. The archbishop of Utrecht governed the area on behalf of the Holy Roman Emperor, who saw his power diminished by the feudal system in which the counts and dukes ruled almost as sovereigns.
The counts of Holland tried frequently to increase their territory but apart from the acquisition of Zeeland during the 14th century they had no lasting success. Instead, it became a part of the mighty medieval dynasties' possessions, first Wittelsbach then Valois and thereafter Habsburg.
| Name | Lifespan | Reign start | Reign end | Notes | Family | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gerulf II | ca. 850 - 898 or 914 (ca. 48 or 64 years) | ca. 885 | 895/896 | son or grandson ofGerulf I of Frisia, or the same Gerulf | Holland | |
| Dirk I | ca. 875 - ca. 923 or 939 (ca. 48 or 64 years) | 896 | ca. 923 or 939 | son ofGerolf? | Holland |  |
| Dirk II | ca. 932 - 988 | 939 | 988 | son ofDirk I; count of Frisia | Holland |  |
| Arnulf | ca. 951 - 993 (ca. 42 years) | 988 | 993 | son ofDirk II; count of Frisia | Holland |  |
Dirk III
| ca. 982 - 1039 (ca. 57 years) | 993 | 1039 | son ofArnulf; count of Frisia | Holland |  |
| Dirk IV | ca. 1015 - 1049 (ca. 34 years) | 1039 | 1049 | son ofDirk IIIHierosolymita; count of Frisia | Holland |  |
| Floris I | ca. 1025 - 1061 (ca. 36 years) | 1049 | 1061 | son of Dirk III; count of Frisia | Holland |  |
| Name | Lifespan | Reign start | Reign end | Notes | Family | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dirk V
| 1054 - 1091 (37 years) | 1061 | 1091 | son ofFloris I; regents:Gertrude of Saxony (widow of Floris I),Robertthe Frisian (second husband of Gertrude); count of Frisia | Holland |  |
Floris II
| ca. 1084 - 1121 (ca. 37 years) | 1091 | 1121 | son ofDirk V; first count who named himself count of 'Holland' | Holland |  |
Dirk VI
| 1114 - 1157 (43 years) | 1121 | 1157 | son ofFloris II | Holland |  |
Floris III
| ca. 1140 - 1190 (ca. 50 years) | 1157 | 1190 | son ofDirk VI | Holland |  |
Dirk VII
| ca. 1165 - 1203 (ca. 38 years) | 1190 | 1203 | son ofFloris III | Holland |  |
Ada
| 1188 - 1223 (35 years) | 1203 | 1207 | daughter ofDirk VII; ruled together withLouis I; no issues | Holland |  |
William I
| 1168 - 1222 (54 years) | 1203 | 1222 | son ofFloris III | Holland |  |
Floris IV
| 1210 - 1234 (24 years) | 1222 | 1234 | son ofWilliam I | Holland |  |
William II
| 1227 - 1256 (28 years) | 1235 | 1256 | son ofFloris IV | Holland |  |
Floris V
| 1254 - 1296 (42 years) | 1256 | 1296 | son ofWilliam II;Floris de Voogd regent and guardian for Floris V (1256–1258) | Holland |  |
John I
| 1284 - 1299 (15 years) | 1296 | 1299 | son ofFloris V;John III, Lord of Renesse regent forJohn I (1296-1299);John II, Count of Hainaut inherited the county after John I's death | Holland |  |
| Name | Lifespan | Reign start | Reign end | Notes | Family | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
John II
| 1247 - 1304 (57 years) | 1299 | 1304 | son ofJohn I of Avesnes andAdelaide of Holland, Adelaide is daughter ofFloris IV; a.k.a. count John II of Hainaut | Avesnes |  |
William III
| 1287 - 1337 (50 years) | 1304 | 1337 | son ofJohn II | Avesnes |  |
William IV
| 1307 - 1345 (38 years) | 1337 | 1345 | son ofWilliam III | Avesnes |  |
Margaret I
| 1310 - 1356 (45 years) | 1345 | 1354 | daughter ofWilliam III; a.k.a. countess Margaret II of Hainaut | Avesnes |  |
| Name | Lifespan | Reign start | Reign end | Notes | Family | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
William V
| 1330 - 1389 (58 years) | 1349 | 1389 | son ofMargaret I; a.k.a. duke William I of Bavaria, count William III of Hainaut, count William IV of Zeeland | Wittelsbach |  |
Albert
| 1336 - 1404 (68 years) | 1389 | 1404 | son ofMargaret I; count of Holland, Hainaut, and Zeeland | Wittelsbach |  |
William VI
| 1365 - 1417 (52 years) | 1404 | 1417 | son ofAlbert; a.k.a. duke William II of Bavaria-Straubing, count William IV of Hainaut, count William V of Zeeland | Wittelsbach |  |
Jacqueline
| 1401 - 1436 (35 years) | 1417 | 1433 | daughter ofWilliam VI; countess of Holland, Zeeland and Hainaut; a.k.a. duchess Jacqueline of Bavaria-Straubing; no heir; With Jacqueline's remarriage to the English Henry of Gloucester, title passes to the dukes of Burgundy | Wittelsbach |  |
There was a war of succession between uncle (John III, Duke of Bavaria) and niece (Jacqueline, Countess of Hainaut). This war was finally won byPhilip the Good in 1433, who, in the meantime had inherited John's claims on the county. Philip and Jacqueline were double first cousins, Philip's mother is daughter ofAlbert while Jacqueline's mother was daughter ofPhilip the Bold of Burgundy. In April 1433 he forced Jacqueline to abdicate from Hainaut and Holland on his behalf.
| Name | Lifespan | Reign start | Reign end | Notes | Family | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philip Ithe Good (Philippe IIIle Bon) | 1396 - 1467 (70 years) | 1432 | 1467 | son ofJohn the Fearless andMargaret of Bavaria, Margaret is daughter ofAlbert | Valois-Burgundy |  |
| Charles Ithe Bold (Charles Ile Téméraire) | 1433 - 1477 (43 years) | 1467 | 1477 | son ofPhilip I | Valois-Burgundy |  |
| Mary Ithe Rich | 1457 - 1482 (25 years) | 1477 | 1482 | daughter ofCharles I; countess of Frisia | Valois-Burgundy | .jpg) |
During the 'foreign rule' by Burgundy and Habsburg, the county was governed by astadtholder in name of the count. In 1581, theEstates General of theUnited Provinces declared themselves independent from the Spanish rule of Philip II (who was Philip III of Holland). Until theTreaty of Münster in 1648, the kings of Spain still used the title Count of Holland, but they had lost the actual power over the county to theStates of Holland.
The county remained in existence as a constituent member state of the Dutch Republic until 1795. There were no more counts however since the Estates of Holland and West-Frisia were the sovereign of the county (although the countship was offered toWilliam the Silent in 1584, shortly before his death). Thestadtholders, who were servants of the Estates, were the de facto chief-executives during this period.
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1until 1648; 2until 1659; 3until 1678.Circles est. 1500:Bavarian,Swabian,Upper Rhenish,Lower Rhenish–Westphalian,Franconian,(Lower) Saxon Circles est. 1512:Austrian,Burgundian,Upper Saxon,Electoral Rhenish · Unencircled territories | ||||||
