Jacques de Châtillon

Who was Jacques de Châtillon?

Jacques de Châtillon was Seigneur de Leuze, de Condé, de Carency, de Huquoy et d'Aubigny, the son of Guy III, Count of Saint-Pol and Matilda of Brabant. He married Catherine de Condé and had issue; his descendants brought Condé, Carency, etc. into the House of Bourbon.

King Philip IV of France succeeded in his attempt to annex the County of Flanders by appointing Jacques, the uncle to his wife Joan I of Navarre, as governor of the County in 1300. The Flemish Count Guy of Dampierre and his two sons had been taken captive by the French.

This soldier was a bad choice for governor. He understood little about the specific situation in Flanders, where cities like Bruges and Ghent were far richer and powerful than any city in France. He didn't see the opposition between the supporters of the count and those in favor of the king of France. Neither did he recognize the rivalry between the city rulers and the common people, organised in guilds. They wanted political power. When de Châtillon chose the side of the patricians, the workers sided with the Liebaards. After his appointment, Jacques de Châtillon entered Bruges.