March 15, 1190: Death of Princess Isabella of Hainault, Queen of France

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Adèle of Champagne, Archbishop William of the White Hand, Baldwin V of Flanders, Henri of Champagne, King Louis VII of the Franks, King Philip II of France, King Richard I of the English, Pope Clement III, Princess Isabella of Hainault, Queen of France, The Third Crusade

Isabella of Hainault (April 5, 1170 – March 15, 1190) was a Queen of France as the first wife of King Philippe II Augusté of France She was also formally ruling Countess of Artois de jure between 1180 and 1190.

Early life

Isabella was born in Valenciennes on April 5, 1170, the daughter of Baldwin V, Count of Hainaut, and Margaret I, Countess of Flanders. When she was just one year old, her father had her betrothed to Henri, the future Count of Champagne. He was the nephew of Adèle of Champagne, the Queen of the Franks the third wife of King Louis VII of the Franks. She was regent of France from 1190 to 1191 while her son Philippe II Augusté participated in the Third Crusade.

Princess Isabella of Hainault, Queen of France

In 1179, both their fathers swore that they would proceed with the marriage, to Henri of Champagne but her father later agreed to her marrying King Philippe II Augusté.

Queen of France

King Louis VII intended to make Philippe co-ruler with him as soon as possible, in accordance with the traditions of the House of Capet, but these plans were delayed when Philippe became ill after a hunting trip. His father went on pilgrimage to the Shrine of Thomas Becket to pray for Philippe’s recovery and was told that his son had indeed recovered. However, on his way back to Paris, the king suffered a stroke.

In declining health, King Louis VII had his 14-year-old son crowned and anointed as king at Reims on November 1, 1179 by Archbishop William of the White Hands.

The ten year old Isabella married Philippe Augusté on April 28, 1180 at Bapaume, and brought as her dowry the County of Artois. The marriage was arranged by her maternal uncle Philippe, Count of Flanders, who was advisor to the King. The wedding did not please the queen dowager, for it meant the rejection of her nephew and the lessening of her brothers’ influence.

From the time of his coronation, all real power was transferred to Philippe, as his father’s health slowly declined. The great nobles were discontented with Philip’s advantageous marriage. His mother and four uncles, all of whom exercised enormous influence over Louis, were extremely unhappy with his attainment of the throne since Philip had taken the royal seal from his father. King Louis VII died on September 18, 1180.

Isabelle was crowned Queen of France at Saint Denis on May 28, 1180. As Baldwin V rightly claimed his daughter to be a descendant of Charlemagne, the chroniclers of the time saw in this marriage a union of the Carolingian and Capetian dynasties.

King Philippe II Augusté of France

Though Isabella received extravagant praise from certain annalists, she initially failed to win Philippe Augusté’s affections owing to her inability to provide him with an heir, although she was only 14 years old at the time. Meanwhile, in 1184, Philippe II Augusté was waging war against Flanders; angered at seeing his wife’s father Baldwin support his enemies, he called a council at Sens for the purpose of repudiating her.

According to Gislebert of Mons, Isabella then appeared barefooted and dressed as a penitent in the town’s churches, thus gaining the sympathy of the people. Her appeals angered them so much that they went to the palace and started shouting loud enough to be heard inside. Robert, the king’s uncle, successfully interposed; no repudiation followed, for repudiating her would also have meant the loss of Artois.

Finally, on September 5, 1187, she gave birth to the desired son, Louis.

Death

Isabella’s second pregnancy was extremely difficult. On March 14, 1190, she gave birth to twin boys named Robért (who died the same day) and Philippe (who died 3 days afterwards, on March 17). Owing to complications in childbirth, she died in Paris the next day (March 15), aged not quite 20, and was buried in the cathedral of Notre-Dame.

She was mourned greatly in the capital, having been a popular queen. Her husband was not with her when she died, nor did he attend the funeral, as he was away in Normandy campaigning against King Richard I of the English. When Philippe II Augusté learnt of her death, he hastily signed a truce with Richard and returned to Paris, where he confirmed the placement of her tomb and spent several days in mourning before returning to Normandy the following week. In a letter to Pope Clement III, he wrote that he greatly missed his late wife.

Isabella’s son Louis succeeded her as Count of Artois. Her dowry of Artois eventually returned to the French crown following the death of her husband, when her son Louis became king.

Appearance

“Queen Isabelle, she of noble form and lovely eyes.” In 1858, Isabelle’s body was exhumed and measured at the cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris. At 90 cm from pelvis to feet, she would have stood about 1.72-1.75 m, (5’8″-5’9″) tall. It was during this exhumation that a silver seal (now in the British Museum) was discovered in the queen’s coffin. Little used during her lifetime, it is one of the few medieval seals with a royal connection to survive from the Middle Ages.

April 1, 1204: Death of Eleanor of Aquitaine

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Angevin Empire, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry II of England, Louis VII of France, Pope Eugene III, The Third Crusade, William IX of Aquitaine

Eleanor of Aquitaine (c. 1122 – 1 April 1204)

Eleanor (or Aliénor) was the oldest of three children of William X, Duke of Aquitaine and his wife, Aenor de Châtellerault, the daughter of Aimery I, Viscount of Châtellerault, and Dangereuse de l’Isle Bouchard, who was William IX’s longtime mistress as well as Eleanor’s maternal grandmother. Her parents’ marriage had been arranged by Dangereuse with her paternal grandfather William IX. Her father was renowned in early 12th-century Europe for having a glittering ducal court.

A romanticized portrait of Eleanor of Aquitaine

Eleanor’s year of birth is not known precisely: a late 13th-century genealogy of her family listing her as 13 years old in the spring of 1137 provides the best evidence that Eleanor was perhaps born as late as 1124.

On the other hand, some chronicles mention a fidelity oath of some lords of Aquitaine on the occasion of Eleanor’s fourteenth birthday in 1136. This, and her known age of 82 at her death make 1122 the most likely year of her birth.

Her parents almost certainly married in 1121. Her birthplace may have been Poitiers, Bordeaux, or Nieul-sur-l’Autise, where her mother and brother died when Eleanor was 6 or 8.

As the heir of the House of Poitiers, rulers in southwestern France, she was one of the wealthiest and most powerful women in western Europe during the High Middle Ages. She was patron of literary figures such as Wace, Benoît de Sainte-Maure, and Bernart de Ventadorn. She was also known to have led armies several times in her life and was a key leading figure of the unsuccessful Second Crusade.

She became Duchess of Aquitaine upon her father’s death in April 1137, and three months later she married Louis, son of her guardian King Louis VI of France. A few weeks later, Prince Louis became the French king, Louis VII of France.

King Louis VII of France

Eleanor and Louis had two daughters, Marie and Alix. As Queen of France, Eleanor participated in the unsuccessful Second Crusade. Soon afterwards, she sought an annulment of her marriage, but her request was rejected by Pope Eugene III.

Eventually, Louis agreed to an annulment, as 15 years of marriage had not produced a son. The marriage was annulled on March 21, 1152 on the grounds of consanguinity within the fourth degree. Their daughters were declared legitimate, custody was awarded to Louis, and Eleanor’s lands were restored to her.

As soon as the annulment was granted, Eleanor became engaged to her third cousin Henry, Duke of Normandy. The couple married on Whitsun, May 18, 1152. In 1154 Henry became King Henry II of England and Eleanor became Queen of England as his Consort. Because of Jure uxoris (a Latin phrase meaning “by right of (his) wife”) Henry II became Duke of Aquitaine and ruler of all his wife’s lands. Joining these lands with England and Normandy to create the vast Angevin Empire.

King Henry II of England

Eleanor and Henry II had five sons and three daughters. However, Henry II and Eleanor eventually became estranged. Henry imprisoned her in 1173 for supporting the revolt of their eldest son, Henry the Young King, against him.

Eleanor was not released until July 6, 1189, when her husband died and their third son ascended the throne as King Richard I the Lionheart.

As queen dowager, Eleanor acted as regent while Richard went on the Third Crusade. She lived well into the reign of her youngest son, King John of England, Lord of Ireland.