Theobald or Thibault, known as the Trickster, was a vassal of 10th Century West Frankish King Lothair.

He is one of my maternal 27 x great-grandfathers.

He was born sometime around 910 but history does not record where. He is the son of Thibault, Viscount of Tours, and his 1st wife, who records do not name¹.

Titles

In 944, Theobald succeeded his father as Theobald I, “Le Tricheur” (The Trickster or The Cheater) Count of Blois and Viscount of Tours¹.

He also held the titles of Count of Chartres and Count of Châteaudun².

Family

He married Luitgarde de Vermandois, sometime in 943 or 944¹.

Together they had four children¹:

• Theobald
• Hugh
• Eudes
• Emma

Notable events

In 952, Theobald’s brother-in-law Alain II, Duke of Evraux, died¹. Theobald took over Brittany as guardian of his underage nephew Drogo¹.

He plotted against Richard I, Count of Normandy – whose grandfather is Rollo the Viking, another ancestor of mine. Richard defeated Theobald in battle in 955¹.

This means he was at war with his daughter’s husband’s family. Theobald’s daughter Emma married Duke William IV of Aquitaine, whose cousin is Richard I. William and Richard have a common grandfather in Rollo the Viking, also known as Robert I of Normandy.

In 957, Theobald signed a charter withdrawing his claims to a serf in favour of the monks of Saint-Martin de Tours¹.

In 960, he gained control of the counties of Chatres and Châteaudun, becoming a vassal of Lothair, King of the West Franks by 963¹. He established a fortification in Châteaudun on top of ancient wooden Celtic forts^{3 4 5 6}. The only part of Thibauld’s fortifications which still exist are the dungeons in the castle⁷.

I describe the chateau in greater detail in a separate article.

In 964, the Archbishop of Reims excommunicated Theobald for confiscating estates, including Coucy, from the archbishopric¹.

In May 974, history records him as donating to Saint-Florent de Saumur, without indicating what he donated¹.

Death

He died on 16 January in 975⁸ or 977, but records do not show where he died¹. History does not record how he died, or where he’s buried.

References

1. Fmg.ac. (2023). CENTRAL FRANCE – BLOIS, TOURS. [online] Available at: http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/CENTRAL%20FRANCE.htm [Accessed 31 Jul. 2024][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩]
2. Office de Tourisme de Chateaudun. (2018). History of the town. [online] Available at: https://www.chateaudun-tourisme.fr/en/plan/visits/history-of-the-town [Accessed 21 Aug. 2024][↩]
3. Office de Tourisme de Chateaudun. (2018). History of the town. [online] Available at: https://www.chateaudun-tourisme.fr/en/plan/visits/history-of-the-town [Accessed 21 Aug. 2024][↩]
4. Château de Châteaudun; Frenchchateau.net; (Retrieved 2024-06-18) [↩]
5. Le château de Châteaudun, premier des châteaux de la Loire; Chateau-Chateaudun.fr; (Retrieved 2024-06-18) (Site in French) [↩]
6. Un millefeuille architectural, entre Moyen Âge et Renaissance; Chateau-Chateaudun.fr; (Retrieved 2024-06-18) (Site in French) [↩]
7. Site visit by author; 2024-06-15[↩]
8. Royalty for Commoners (4th edition); Roderick W Stuart; Genealogical Publishing Ltd; 2002[↩]