Counts of Blois

Counts Of Blois

The County of Blois was originally centred on Blois, south of Paris, France. One of the chief cities, along with Blois itself, was Chartres. Blois was associated with Champagne, Châtillon (the lords of which tended to reside in Blois), and later with the French royal family, to whom the county passed in 1391. Blois was later important during the Hundred Years' War; Joan of Arc based herself there.

The extent of the county varied over time. The northern portion, bordering on Normandy, was sometimes alienated as the County of Chartres, but the Counts of Blois who possessed it did not use a separate title for it. These lands were finally sold to the crown by Joanne of Châtillon in 1291. In 1439, the area around Châteaudun was separated as the County of Dunois for Jean Dunois.