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Angoumois

 

Contents

Flags

Meaning/Origin of the Flag

Coat of Arms

Meaning/Origin of the Coat of Arms

Map of the historical Regions in France

Explanations about the Regions

History

Origin of the Country's Name



Flags

Angoumois Angoulême Flagge Fahne flag drapeau
Flag of Angoumois,
Drapeau de Angoumois,
Source, by: Die Welt der Flaggen




Angoulême Flagge Fahne flag drapeau Valois-Angoulême
1407–1589,
Flag of the County of Valois-Angoulême,
Drapeau du Comté de Valois-Angoulême,
Source, by: www.svowebmaster.free.fr




Angoulême Flagge Fahne flag drapeau
18th century,
Flag of the Duchy of Angoulême,
Drapeau du Duché d'Angoulême,
Source, by: ordresaintlouis.blogspot.com




Flagge Fahne flag drapeau Poitou Poitou-Charentes
1960–2016,
unofficial flag of the Region of Poitou-Charentes,
Drapeau de officieux de la Region Poitou-Charentes,
Source, by: http://svowebmaster.free.fr




Flagge Fahne flag drapeau Poitou-Charentes
1960–2016,
unofficial flag of the Region of Poitou-Charentes,
Drapeau de officieux de la Region Poitou-Charente,
Source, by: Wikipedia (FR)



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Meaning/Origin of the Flag

The flag of Angoumois shows the image of the coat of arms, golden-red lozengy divided. That is the coat of arms of the House of Taillefer, which was the second dynasty of the Counts of Angoulême. The Taillefers ruled from the 9th to the 13th century. This image of the flag was transfered to the area in which the county was located in modern times. Flags in today's sense did not exist at that time, possibly a banner with the heraldry of the sovereign. With a few exceptions, such banners (including the coats of arms) had in France nothing to do with the country, they were only referred to the coats of arms of the respective rulers. The between 1960 and 2016 existing Region of "Poitou-Charentes", to which Saintonge belonged, used an unofficial flag. It shows two horizontal stripes in silver and black and a red lion in the middle. The flag is of recent origin, and it is reminiscent of the old coat of arms of Poitou from the time of the Plantagenets (look Poitou). Another model combines the heraldry of the four former provinces, in which Poitou-Charentes consists, Poitou (white-black with red lion), Angoumois (golden-red oblique chessboarded), Aunis (partridge) and Saintonge (Mitra).

Source: Wikipedia (FR), Volker Preuß

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Coat of Arms


Wappen arms crest blason Angoumois Angoulême Taillefer
866–1220, Taillefer,
Coat of arms of Angoumois,
Blason du Angoumois,
Source, by: Wikipedia (FR)


Wappen arms crest blason Angoumois Angoulême Lusignan
1220–1308, Lusignan,
Coat of arms of the Lords of Lusignan,
Blason des Seigneurs de Lusignan,
Source, by: Wikipedia (FR)


Wappen arms crest blason Angoumois Angoulême Valois-Angoulême
1407–1589, Valois-Angoulême,
Coat of arms of Valois-Angoulême,
Blason de Valois-Angoulême,
Source, by: www.svowebmaster.free.fr


Wappen arms crest blason Angoumois Angoulême Charles de Valois
1619–1650, de Valois,
Coat of arms of Charles de Valois,
Blason du Charles de Valois,
Source, by: Wikipedia (FR)


Wappen arms crest blason Angoumois Angoulême Orléanais Elisabeth d'Orléans
1675–1696, d'Orléans,
Coat of arms of Elisabeth d'Orléans,
Blason de Elisabeth d'Orléans,
Source, by: Wikipedia (FR)


Wappen arms crest blason Angoulême
since 1757, Angoulême,
Coat of arms of the Dukes of Angoulême,
Blason des Ducs d'Angoulême,
Source, by: ordresaintlouis.blogspot.com

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Meaning/Origin of the Coat of Arms

The coat of arms of the Angoumois shows a golden-red lozengy divided shield. That is the coat of arms of the House of Taillefer, which was the second dynasty of the Counts of Angoulême. The Taillefers ruled from the 9th to the 13th century. However, this Heraldry did not achieve as a Heraldic feature that would have been taken over in the coats of arms of the successors in the rule over the county. In the Afteryears the heraldry of the County of Angoumois was quite variable and was associated with the heraldry of their lords. About 1747 it seems that it was created a Heraldry for Angoumois (Angoulême), because with Charles Philippe de France (1757–1836) from the House of Bourbon (as king of France Charles X.), appeared a coat of arms that could be brought into connection to the Duchy of Angoulême, because his son and successor as Duke, Louis Antoine d'Artois (1775–1844) used this coat of arms too. The associated Heraldry showed the blue, with golden lilies topped shield of the Capetians, which was surrounded by a red border with a merlon-cut. The coat of arms of the Capetians showed three golden lilies on blue, but originally was the coat of arms sprinkled with lilies. From 1365 (by others sources 1376), the number of lilies was reduced to three. The lily-symbol is very old, already the Germanic tribe of the Franks has used it. The House of the Capetians has provided the kings of France between 987 and 1328. It goes back to Hugo Capet, son of Hugo the Great, who was electet to the King of France, in 987, after the death of King Ludwig V. from the House of the Carolingians. The Capetians brought out three branch lines which became the Kings of France: Valois 1328–1589, Bourbon 1589–1792 and 1814–1830, and Orléans 1830–1848. Nevertheless, the coat of arms of Taillefer has survived to modern times as an emblem of Angoumois.

Source: Heraldique Europeenne, Volker Preuß, Wikipedia (FR), Wikipedia (D)

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Map of the historical Regions in France

The historical, French Regions:

in black: governorate and province in 1776,
in red: former county, province oder governorate

Map: Volker Preuß

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Explanations about the Regions

The until the French Revolution existing provinces (or governorates) have been historically grown structures, which had their roots oftenly in former fiefdoms of the French crown, historic counties and duchies. They oftenly existed for hundreds of years and had preserved regionality (e.g. cultural particularities and regional languages). On the occasion of the French Revolution such phenomena were of course not desirable, and as part of their bloody and violent egalitarianism any regional references were eliminated. Shortly after the French Revolution the provinces were dissolved and France became divided into many départements, which should have approximately the same size and the same status. The départements were named after rivers or mountains, to use never and in no circumstances the name of an old province. However, there was no success in cutting the connections of the people of France to their respective regions, so that administrative regions were re-created in 1960, to have a better control in regional administrative processes. In this way became départements, which were placed in a historical province, administratively grouped to an oftenly historically named region. The resulted structures coincide only approximately with the boundaries of the old provinces. In the strictly centralist France any regionality is avoided, so that even the official flags of these regions mostly look like flags of companies, unloving, unhistorical, technocratic and modernistic, and these flags should not be a subject of any lexical considerations here. Only in a few of that regions, exist official flags which remember the historical models. But, even the existence of these today's regions is douptful, because in 2014 was passed a territorial reform valid from the year 2016, that reduces the number of the existing regions by merging to nearly the half. However, there exist unofficial flags in nearly all of these regions, which should remember the old provinces and the old heraldry.

Wikipedia Link to the regions of France: click or tap here
FOTW Link to the regions of France: click or tap here

Source: Flags of the World, Wikipedia (D), Volker Preuß

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History

antiquity · settlement by Celtic tribes

52 B.C. · Roman conquest, the area of the today's Poitou comes to the province of Celtica, later to the province of Aquitania

418 A.D. · the Visigoths be settled as federates

5th century A.D. · conquest of Gaul by the Franks (under King Clovis) to 507 conquest of Aquitaine, expansion of the empire to the Atlantic Ocean, the Pyrenees and the Alps

ca. 550 · administrative division of the empire into the kingdoms of Austrasia and Neustria, and the Duchy of Aquitaine and the Kingdom of Burgundy

639 · death of King Dagobert I., the power goes over to the Mayors of the Palace (maior domus) of Austrasia (House of the Carolingians)

687 · Pepin II. asserts itself as Mayor of the Palace throughout the Frankish Empire

8th century · fights between the Dukes of Aquitania and the Frankish kings

751 · Pepin the Short (III., grandson of Pepin II.) eliminates the Merovingian monarchy and let hisself elect to the king from the Franks

839 · Turpion, mentioned as first Count of Angoulême (Angoumois)

843 · division of the Frankish Empire (Treaty of Verdun), there arise the West Frankish Kingdom of Charles II. (the Bald), the Middle Frankish Kingdom of Lothar (Lotharingia), and the East Frankish Kingdom of Louis II., Aquitaine (including Angoumois) comes to the Empire of Charles the Bald

866 · Vulgrin I., Count of Perigord and Agen, from the House of Taillefer, is Count of Angoulême

870 · at the division of the Frankish Empire (Treaty of Meersen) arises the West Frankish Kingdom, the East Frankish Kingdom, and the Frankish Kingdom of Italy

877 · Ludwig ascends the West Frankish throne, Aquitaine is given as a fief and a duchy to Rainulf, Count of Poitiers (House of the Ramnulfids)

880 · by the division of the Frankish Empire (Treaties of Verdun and Ribbemont) arises the West Frankish Kingdom (later France), the East Frankish Kingdom (later German Empire), the Kingdom of Italy, the Kingdom of Upper Burgundy (under Rudolf the Welf) and the Kingdom of Lower Burgundy persists

987 · death of the childless West Frankish King Louis V. (House of Carolingians), his heir and uncle Charles of Lower Lorraine could not prevail, the nobility elects Hugh Capet (House of Capet) to the king, the Capetians are the Kings of France to 1328

1220 · Isabella, daughter of Aymar Taillefer, merrys as second wife Hugo X. of Lusignan, the County of Angoumois comes in this way the House of Lusignan

1308 · death of Guido I., the last Count of Angoumois out of the House of Lusignan, the two sisters sell the county to Philip IV., King of France, Angoumois comes in this way to the royal domain

1325 · Charles IV., King of France (and from 1328 King of Navarre) transfers the County of Angoumois to his cousin Philip of Évreux

1328 · death of King Charles IV. (the Fair), extinction of the direct Capetian line, according to Salic Law Count Philip of Valois (Son of Prince Charles of Valois, first cousin of King Charles IV.) came on the French throne (as King Philip VI .), the English king Edward III. lays claim to the throne as a maternal nephew of Charles IV., reason for the "Hundred Years War" (Anglo-French War, 1338–1453), out of the House of Valois came all kings of France from 1328 to 1589

1343 · death of Philip of Évreux

1371 · The Duke of Berry gets the Angoumois as fief

1394 · Charles VI., King of France, hands over the County of Angoumois as appanage to his younger brother Louis de Valois, Duke of Orléans

1407 · Jean de Valois, a member of the House of Valois-Orléans, is enfeoffed with the County of Angoulême (and even the County of Périgord), split off as House of Valois-Angoulême

1515 · François de Valois (Valois-Angoulême) becomes King of France as Francis I., the County of Angoumois comes in this way to the royal domain, Angoumois becomes a duchy

1583–1619 · the Duchy of Angoulême (Angoumois) is awarded as Paragium to Diane de France

1619 · Charles de Valois, illegitimate son of King Charles IX. becomes Duke of Angoulême, the title is awarded to 1654 several times to members of the family-line of Valois, but also to the House of Lorraine

1696 · the Duchy is again a part of the royal domain

1775–1824 · Louis Antoine de Bourbon, the eldest son of King Charles X., gets the title of Duke of Angoulême

1776 · the already in the 14th century created governorates of the civil administration of the kingdom of France become committed to a number of 39, and correspond in this way to the number of provinces, in previous years could any provinces be summarized in one governorate

1789 · French Revolution, the governorates and provinces become abolished, Angoumois comes mostly to the department of Charente-Inférieure (later Charente-Maritime)

1960 · reintroduction of regions in France, formation of the region of Poitou-Charentes (capital Poitiers), but not within the historic boundaries, just by integration of the departments of Charente-Maritime, Charente, Deux-Sèvres and Vienne

2016 · the Poitou-Charentes region merges with the Aquitaine and Limousin regions in the new, larger region of New Aquitaine (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)

Source: Wikipedia (DE), Taschenatlas Weltgeschichte

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Origin of the Country's Name

The name "Angoumois" goes back to the name of the city "Angoulême". Both names were used for the county and later for the duchy too.

Source: Volker Preuß

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