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Birth:          ABT 1174 S-Gravenhage, Zuid-Holland, Holland
Death:          4 Feb 1222 

Notes
fought at Bovines in the Imperial Army, 1215
went on a Crusade to Damietta, 1215-1219
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_I,_Count_of_Holland
William I (c. 1167, The Hague – 4 February 1222), Count of Holland from 1203 to 
1222. He was the younger son of Floris III and Ada of Huntingdon.
Life[edit]

William was raised in Scotland. He started a revolt against his brother, Dirk VII and 
became count in Friesland after a reconciliation. Friesland was considered as a part of 
Holland by the Counts of Holland. His niece, Ada, Countess of Holland inherited 
Holland in 1203, but William couldn't accept this. After a war of succession, known as 
the Loon War (1203–1206), William won the county. Ada and her husband, Louis II, 
were supported by the bishop of Liège and bishop of Utrecht, and the count of 
Flanders. William was supported by the duke of Brabant and by the majority of the 
Hollanders.

Emperor Otto IV acknowledged him as count of Holland in 1203, because he was a 
supporter of the Welfs. He and many others changed allegiance to emperor Frederick 
II after the battle of Bouvines in 1214. He took part in a French expedition against 
king John of England. The pope excommunicated him for this.

Possibly because of this, William then became a fervent crusader. He campaigned in 
Prussia and joined in the conquest of Alcácer do Sal. In Europe, he came to be called 
William the Crazy for his chivalric and reckless behaviour in battle. William conquered 
the city of Damietta during the Fifth Crusade.

Evolution of the county[edit]

There were great changes in the landscape of Holland in the end of the 12th and 
during the 13th century. Many colonists bought land to turn the swamps into polders. 
Most of the swamps had been sold, and irrigation had started during the reign of 
William. Huge infrastructural works were done; the island called Grote Waard was 
enclosed with dikes all around and a dam was built at Spaarndam. New governmental 
bodies were created, the so-called water boards, which were charged with the task of 
protecting the polders against ever-present threat of flooding. Count William granted 
city rights to Geertruidenberg in 1213, to Dordrecht in 1217, to Middelburg in 1220 
and perhaps also to Leiden. In this way he gave an impulse to trade.

Family[edit]

Count William was married twice. First, he was married in 1197 at Stavoren to Adelaide 
of Guelders, daughter of Otto I, Count of Guelders and Richarde of Bavaria. They had 
the following children:
1.Floris IV, Count of Holland (24 June 1210 The Hague–19 July 1234, Corbie, France).
2.Otto (d. 1249), Regent of Holland in 1238–1239, Bishop of Utrecht.
3.William (d. 1238), Regent of Holland in 1234–1238.
4.Richardis (d. 1262).
5.Ada (d. 1258), Abbess at Rijnsburg 1239.

Adelaide died on 12 February 1218 while William was away on crusade. It was Count 
William that introduced his son, Count Floris IV to Marie of Brabant, daughter of Henry 
I, Duke of Brabant and Maud of Boulogne and Alsace, whom Floris quickly married.

Parents
____ Florenz (Floris) III "Crusader" (ABT 1141 - 1 Aug 1190)
DE HUNTINGDON Ada (ABT 1146 - AFT 11 Jan 1204)

Siblings
____ William (Willem) I (ABT 1174 - 4 Feb 1222)

Marriage To VON GUELDERS Adelaide (Aleid) (Adelheid) (ABT 1186 - 12 Feb 1218)
    m. 1197 Stavorn, Holland

Notes

Parents
____ Otto I (ABT 1150 - 1207)
VON WITTLESBACH Richardis (ABT 1163 - 7 Sep 1231)

Children by VON GUELDERS Adelaide (Aleid) (Adelheid) ABT 1186 - 12 Feb 1218
____ Florenz (Floris) IV (24 Jun 1210 - 19 Jul 1234)

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