Hugh VI of Lusignan
Hugh VI of Lusignan (c.
1039 –
1110), known as
"le diable" (The Devil) was the son of
Hugh V of Lusignan and
Almodis de la Marche, and a participant in the
First Crusade.
Despite his piety, Hugh was in constant conflict with the abbey of St. Maixent. On numerous occasions his disputes with the monks grew so violent that the duke of Aquitaine, the bishops of Poitiers and Saintes, and
Pope Paschal II were forced to intervene. From these conflicts Hugh was dubbed
"le diable", the devil, by the monks of St. Maixent.
In
1086 the Castilian army was destroyed in battle by the
Almoravids. Hugh's
Catalan half-brother,
Berenguer Ramon II, Count of Barcelona was threatened by the
Almoravids. Hugh VI undertook an expedition to Spain in
1087 along with another half-brother,
Raymond IV of Toulouse, to assist the count of Barcelona.
Hugh took the cross for the First Crusade, along with his brothers
Raymond and
Berenguer. He participated in the
Crusade of 1101.
From his marriage to Ildégarde de Thouars, Hugh had a son and successor,
Hugh VII of Lusignan.
* Riley Smith, Jonathan.
The First Crusaders, 1095-1131, 1998
