Eschiva of Saint-Omer
1219 - after 1265
Eschiva of Saint-Omer (died 1265), was a princess suo jure of the Principality of Galilee from 1240 to 1247. She was the daughter of Ralph of Saint-Omer.
Early life
Eschiva was the daughter of Ralph of Saint-Omer and Agnes Grenier, the daughter of Reginald of Sidon. In 1198, Ralph was exiled from the Kingdom of Jerusalem after attempting to assassinate King Aimery. During his trial, Ralph formed a defence based around his interpretation of the assise sur la ligece, basing it on the need of a judgment in court for cases regarding lords and their vassals. The innovation was applying the Assise to the king himself, but Aimery refused, and his vassals withdrew service from him with Ralph going into banishment. Ralph would eventually go to Constantinople in 1204, and while it is extremely likely that Eschiva went with him, we cannot confirm this for certain.
Marriage
At an unspecified time, Eschiva would marry Odo of Montbéliard, one of the most powerful noblemen in the kingdom, who would become the Prince of Galilee by right of his wife. While not much is known for certain about Eschiva, some of her life can be assumed based on her husband's activity. King John of Brienne would make Odo a highly important noble in his court, appointing him as constable in 1220 and bailli in 1223, but King Frederick sought to replace him with Thomas of Aquino.
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