Hawise, of Normandy

Hawise of Normandy held the titles of Countess of Rennes, Duchess of Brittany, and served as Regent to her son Alan III, Duke of Brittany, from 1008 until 1026. She was the progeny of Richard I of Normandy and Gunnor, and had siblings including Richard II ‘the Good’, Duke of Normandy, and Robert, Archbishop of Rouen, Count of Evreux. Her marriage to Geoffrey I, Duke of Brittany, was part of a strategic double alliance with Normandy, aimed at securing political stability between the two regions.

After Geoffrey’s death in 1008, leaving behind two young sons, Alan III and Eudo, Hawise assumed the role of regent during Alan III’s minority. In 1010, she faced a significant challenge to her regency and her son’s rule with the spread of peasant revolts from Normandy into Brittany. With her encouragement, Alan III led the nobility in suppressing the uprisings.