Hugh VII of Lusignan explained

Hugh VII the Brown of Lusignan or Hugues II de La Marche (French: Hugues le Brun) (1065 - 1151), Sire de Lusignan, Couhé and Château-Larcher and Count of La Marche, was the son of Hugh VI of Lusignan. He was one of the many notable Crusaders in the Lusignan family. In 1147 he took the Cross and followed King Louis VII of France on the Second Crusade.

Biography

Hugh married before 1090 Sarrasine or Saracena de Lezay (1067 - 1144), whose origins are unknown. She may have been identical to the Saracena who was widow of Robert I, Count of Sanseverino.Their children were:

• Hugh VIII of Lusignan
• William de Lusignan, Lord of Angles
• Rorgo de Lusignan
• Simon de Lusignan, Seigneur de Lezay, fl. 1144, married before 1173 NN, the parents of:
  • Guillaume I de Lusignan, Lord of Lezay, who died unmarried and without issue
  • Simon II de Lusignan (Deux Sèvres, bef. 1180  - 1200), Lord of Lezay, married before 1195. His children:
    • Hugues I de Lezay, Seigneur de Lezay, married to NN, the parents of:
      • Jean I de Lezay, Seigneur de Lezay, married to NN, the parents of:
        • Claire I de Lezay, Dame de Lezay, married to Pons II d'Aulnay, Vicomte d'Aulnay
• Galeran de Lusignan
• Ænor or Aénor de Lusignan (b. c. 1130), married before 1144 Geoffrey or Geoffroy V de Thouars (c. 1120  - aft. 1176), Vicomte de Thouars, son of Aimery VI de Thouars, Vicomte de Thouars, and wife Agnes=Mathilde de Poitiers

He is mentioned by troubadour Jaufre Rudel in the envoi of "Quan lo rius de la fontana":^[1]

Senes breu de parguamina Tramet lo vers en cantan En plana lengua romana, A'n Ugo Bru per Filhol.

"Without a parchment scroll I send this poem, singing in plain Romance language, to Hugo Brown, through Filhol."

Sources

• Painter . Sidney . The Lords of Lusignan in the Eleventh and Twelfth Centuries . Speculum . 32. 1, Jan . The University of Chicago Press . 1957 . 27–47 . 10.2307/2849244 . 2849244 . 161153870 .
• Book: Riley-Smith, Jonathan . The First Crusaders, 1095-1131 . Cambridge University Press . 2002 .

Notes and References

1. Book: Jeanroy . Alfred . Les chansons de Jaufré Rudel . 1924 . Champion . Paris . 9780270037722 . iii.