Giselbert of Loon

Giselbert van Loon (c. 980 – c. 1045) was the first count of the County of Loon, a fief of the County of Hesbaye.

It is not documented when Giselbert started his rule. He was count until his death, sometime before 18 May 1046. Giselbert took the initiative to build a castle in Borgloon, the original center of the county. The castle was a motte-and-bailey, with a hall and a chapel in the front court. This front court forms the core of the later town of Borgloon. The castle itself was destroyed and the hill on which it stood was excavated in the 19th century.

Giselbert was a son of either Count Rudolf, Count of Betuwe, or Otto, Count of Looz. Giselbert's brother Arnold succeeded Rudolf as Count of Haspinga. When Haspinga was donated to the Prince-bishopric of Liège, Loon, itself a fief of Haspinga, became a fief of Liege. It is likely that Giselbert and Arnold's brother Balderik, who was Prince-Bishop of Liège from 1008 to 1018, played a role in the donation of Haspinga to Liege.

At the end of his life, Giselbert was a guardian of the goods of the Saint-Jacobs-Abbey Liege, founded by his brother Balderik.

Giselbert was succeeded by his son Emmo and possibly Otto, who ruled the county together. Giselbert was married to Erlande of Geldenaken, and they had the following children:

• Emmo (died on January 17, 1078), Count of Looz (Loon)
• Otto I (died in 1101), Count of Duras. Otto's son Giselbert II, Count of Duras, married Oda, daughter of Otto II, Count of Chiny. Giselbert later battled Arnold II, Count of Looz, over the Abbey of Sint-Truiden.
• Herman

To contribute to the confusion concerning Giselbert, some sources claim that his wife was not Erlande, but rather Luitgard of Namur that other sources identify as his mother.^[1]

References

• "Het Graafschap Loon" (Dr. J. Baerten, Van Gorcum - Assen 1969)