See also

Family of John + and Isabella + of ANGOULEME

Husband: John + (1166-1216)
Wife: Isabella + of ANGOULEME (1188-1246)
Children: Henry III + (1207-1272)
Richard (1209- )
Joan (1210- )
Eleanore (c. 1213- )
Isabella (1214- )
Marriage 26 Aug 1200 Bordeaux, Gironde, France

Husband: John +

Name: John +
Sex: Male
Father: Henry II + (1133-1189)
Mother: Eleanor of AQUITAINE (1121-1204)
Birth 24 Dec 1166 Kings Manor House, Oxford, Oxfordshire, England
Occupation King of England
Title King of England
Death 19 Oct 1216 (age 49) Newark, Nottinghamshire, England
Burial Worcester Cathedral, Worcestershire, England

Wife: Isabella + of ANGOULEME

Name: Isabella + of ANGOULEME
Sex: Female
Father: Aymer + of TAILLEFER (1160-1218)
Mother: Alice + of COURTENAY (1160-1218)
Birth 1188 Angouleme, Charentes, France
Title frm 24 Aug 1200 to 19 Oct 1216 (age 11-28) Queen Consort of England
Occupation Queen Consort of England
Title frm 6 Jun 1202 to 31 May 1246 (age 13-58) Countess of Angouleme
Death 31 May 1246 (age 57-58) Fontrevrault Abbey, Fontrevrault, Maine-et-Loire, France
Burial Fontevraud Abbey

Child 1: Henry III +

picture

Henry III +

Name: Henry III +
Sex: Male
Spouse: Eleanore + (1217-1291)
Birth 1 Oct 1207 Winchester Castle, Hampshire, England
Occupation King of England
Title frm 18 Oct 1216 to 16 Nov 1272 (age 9-65) King of England
Title frm 1216 to 1272 (age 8-65) Lord of Ireland
Title frm 1216 to 1272 (age 8-65) Duke of Aquitane
Death 16 Nov 1272 (age 65) Westminster, Middlesex, England
Burial 20 Nov 1272 Westminster Abbey, Westminster, Middlesex, England

Child 2: Richard

Name: Richard
Sex: Male
Birth 5 Jan 1209

Child 3: Joan

Name: Joan
Sex: Female
Birth 22 Jul 1210

Child 4: Eleanore

picture

Spouse: Simon VI of MONTFORT

Name: Eleanore
Sex: Female
Spouse: Simon VI of MONTFORT (1208-1265)
Birth 1213 (est)
Occupation Princess of England

Child 5: Isabella

Name: Isabella
Sex: Female
Birth 1214

Note on Husband: John +

John (24 December 1166 – 18/19 October 1216), also known as John Lackland or Softsword, was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death. During John's reign, England lost the duchy of Normandy to the French king Philip II, which resulted in the collapse of most of the Angevin Empire and contributed to the subsequent growth in power of the Capetian dynasty during the 13th century. The baronial revolt at the end of John's reign led to the signing of the Magna Carta, a document often considered to be an early step in the evolution of the constitution of the United Kingdom.

 

John, the youngest of five sons of King Henry II of England and Eleanor, Duchess of Aquitaine, was at first not expected to inherit significant lands. Following the failed rebellion of his elder brothers between 1173 and 1174, however, John became Henry's favourite child. He was appointed the Lord of Ireland in 1177 and given lands in England and on the continent. John's elder brothers William, Henry and Geoffrey died young; by the time Richard I became king in 1189, John was a potential heir to the throne. John unsuccessfully attempted a rebellion against Richard's royal administrators whilst his brother was participating in the Third Crusade. Despite this, after Richard died in 1199, John was proclaimed king of England, and came to an agreement with Philip II of France to recognise John's possession of the continental Angevin lands at the peace treaty of Le Goulet in 1200.

 

When war with France broke out again in 1202, John achieved early victories, but shortages of military resources and his treatment of Norman, Breton and Anjou nobles resulted in the collapse of his empire in northern France in 1204. John spent much of the next decade attempting to regain these lands, raising huge revenues, reforming his armed forces and rebuilding continental alliances. John's judicial reforms had a lasting, positive impact on the English common law system, as well as providing an additional source of revenue. An argument with Pope Innocent III led to John's excommunication in 1209, a dispute finally settled by the king in 1213. John's attempt to defeat Philip in 1214 failed due to the French victory over John's allies at the battle of Bouvines. When he returned to England, John faced a rebellion by many of his barons, who were unhappy with his fiscal policies and his treatment of many of England's most powerful nobles. Although both John and the barons agreed to the Magna Carta peace treaty in 1215, neither side complied with its conditions. Civil war broke out shortly afterwards, with the barons aided by Louis of France. It soon descended into a stalemate. John died of dysentery contracted whilst on campaign in eastern England during late 1216; supporters of his son Henry III went on to achieve victory over Louis and the rebel barons the following year.

 

Contemporary chroniclers were mostly critical of John's performance as king, and his reign has since been the subject of significant debate and periodic revision by historians from the 16th century onwards. Historian Jim Bradbury has summarised the contemporary historical opinion of John's positive qualities, observing that John is today usually considered a "hard-working administrator, an able man, an able general".[1] Nonetheless, modern historians agree that he also had many faults as king, including what historian Ralph Turner describes as "distasteful, even dangerous personality traits", such as pettiness, spitefulness and cruelty.[2] These negative qualities provided extensive material for fiction writers in the Victorian era, and John remains a recurring character within Western popular culture, primarily as a villain in films and stories depicting the Robin Hood legends.

 

John was born to Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine on 24 December 1166.[3] Henry had inherited significant territories along the Atlantic seaboard – Anjou, Normandy and England – and expanded his empire by conquering Brittany.[4] Henry married the powerful Eleanor of Aquitaine, who reigned over the Duchy of Aquitaine and had a tenuous claim to Toulouse and Auvergne in southern France, in addition to being the former wife of Louis VII of France.[4] The result was the Angevin Empire, so called because of the Count of Anjou's traditional seat in the city of Angers.[nb 1] The Angevin Empire of Henry II was inherently fragile: although all the lands owed allegiance to Henry, the disparate parts each had their own histories, traditions and governance structures.[6] As one moved south through Anjou and Aquitaine, the extent of royal power in the provinces diminished considerably, scarcely resembling the modern concept of an empire at all. Some of the traditional ties between parts of the empire such as Normandy and England were slowly dissolving over time.[7] It was unclear what would happen to the empire on Henry's death. Although the tradition of primogeniture, under which an eldest son would inherit all his father's lands, was slowly becoming more widespread across Europe, it was less popular amongst the Norman kings of England.[8] Most believed that Henry would divide the empire, giving each son a substantial portion, hoping that his children would then continue to work together as allies after his death.[9] To complicate matters, much of the Angevin empire was technically owned by Henry only as a vassal of the King of France of the rival line of the House of Capet. Henry had often allied himself with the Holy Roman Emperor against France, making the feudal relationship even more challenging.[10]

 

Shortly after his birth, John was passed from Eleanor into the care of a wet nurse, a traditional practice for medieval noble families.[11] Eleanor then left for Poitiers, the capital of Aquitaine, and sent John and his sister Joan north to Fontevrault Abbey.[12] This may have been done with the aim of steering her youngest son, with no obvious inheritance, towards a future ecclesiastical career.[11] Eleanor spent the next few years conspiring against her husband Henry and neither parent played a part in John's very early life.[11] John was probably, like his brothers, assigned a magister whilst he was at Fontevrault, a teacher charged with his early education and with managing the servants of his immediate household; John was later taught by Ranulph Glanville, a leading English administrator.[13] John spent some time as a member of the household of his eldest living brother Henry the Young King, where he probably received instruction in hunting and military skills.[12]

 

John would grow up to be around 5 ft 5 in high (1.62 m), relatively short for royalty of the day, with a "powerful, barrel-chested body" and dark red hair; he appeared to contemporaries to look like an inhabitant of Poitou.[14] John enjoyed reading and, unusual for the period, built up a travelling library of books.[15] He enjoyed gambling, in particular on backgammon, and was an enthusiastic hunter, even by medieval standards.[16] He liked music, although not songs.[17] John would become a "connoisseur of jewels", building up a large collection, and became famous for his opulent clothes and also, according to French chroniclers, for his fondness for bad wine.[18] As John grew up, he became known for sometimes being "genial, witty, generous and hospitable"; at other moments, he could be jealous, over-sensitive and prone to fits of rage, "biting and gnawing his fingers" in anger.[19][nb 2]

 

During John's early years, Henry attempted to resolve the question of his succession. Henry the Young King had been crowned King of England in 1170, but without being given any formal powers by his father, and was also promised Normandy and Anjou as part of his future inheritance. Richard was to be appointed the Count of Poitou and would be given control of Aquitaine, whilst Geoffrey was to become the Duke of Brittany.[20] At this time it seemed unlikely that John would ever inherit substantial lands, and John was jokingly nicknamed "Lackland" by his father.[21]

 

Henry II wanted to secure the southern borders of Aquitaine and decided to betroth his youngest son to Alais, the daughter and heiress of Humbert III of Savoy.[22] As part of this agreement John was promised the future inheritance of Savoy, Piemonte, Maurienne, and the other possessions of Count Humbert.[22] For his part in the potential marriage alliance, Henry II transferred the castles of Chinon, Loudun and Mirebeau into John's name; as John was only five years old his father would continue to control them for practical purposes.[22] Henry the Young King was unimpressed by this; although he had yet to be granted control of any castles in his new kingdom, these were effectively his future property and had been given away without consultation.[22] Alais made the trip over the Alps and joined Henry II's court, but she died before marrying John, which left the prince once again without an inheritance.[22]

 

In 1173 John's elder brothers, backed by Eleanor, rose in revolt against Henry in the short-lived rebellion of 1173 to 1174. Growing irritated with his subordinate position to Henry II and increasingly worried that John might be given additional lands and castles at his expense,[20] Henry the Young King travelled to Paris and allied himself with Louis VII.[23] Eleanor, irritated by her husband's persistent interference in Aquitaine, encouraged Richard and Geoffrey to join their brother Henry in Paris.[23] Henry II triumphed over the coalition of his sons, but was generous to them in the peace settlement agreed at Montlouis.[22] Henry the Young King was allowed to travel widely in Europe with his own household of knights, Richard was given Aquitaine back, and Geoffrey was allowed to return to Brittany; only Eleanor was imprisoned for her role in the revolt.[24]

 

John had spent the conflict travelling alongside his father and was given widespread possessions across the Angevin empire as part of the Montlouis settlement; from then onwards, most observers regarded John as Henry II's favourite child, although he was the furthest removed in terms of the royal succession.[22] Henry II began to find more lands for John, mostly at various nobles' expense. In 1175 he appropriated the estates of the late Earl of Cornwall and gave them to John.[22] The following year, Henry disinherited the sisters of Isabelle of Gloucester, contrary to legal custom, and betrothed John to the now extremely wealthy Isabelle.[25] In 1177, at the Council of Oxford, Henry dismissed William FitzAldelm as the Lord of Ireland and replaced him with the ten-year-old John.[25]

 

 

13th-century depiction of Henry II and John's siblings: (l to r) William, Henry, Richard, Geoffrey, Matilda, Eleanor, Joan and JohnHenry the Young King fought a short war with his brother Richard in 1183 over the status of England, Normandy and Aquitaine.[25] Henry II moved in support of Richard, and Henry the Young King died from dysentery at the end of the campaign.[25] With his primary heir dead, Henry rearranged the plans for the succession: Richard was to be made King of England, albeit without any actual power until the death of his father; Geoffrey would retain Brittany; and John would now become the Duke of Aquitaine in place of Richard.[25] Richard refused to give up Aquitaine;[25] Henry II was furious and ordered John, with help from Geoffrey, to march south and retake the duchy by force.[25] The two attacked the capital of Poitiers, and Richard responded by attacking Brittany.[25] The war ended in stalemate and a tense family reconciliation in England at the end of 1184.[25]

 

In 1185 John made his first visit to Ireland, accompanied by three hundred knights and a team of administrators.[26] Henry had tried to have John officially proclaimed King of Ireland, but Pope Lucius III would not agree.[26] John's first period of rule in Ireland was not a success. Ireland had only recently been conquered by Anglo-Norman forces, and tensions were still rife between Henry II, the new settlers and the existing inhabitants.[27] John infamously offended the local Irish rulers by making fun of their unfashionable long beards, failed to make allies amongst the Anglo-Norman settlers, began to lose ground militarily against the Irish and finally returned to England later in the year, blaming the viceroy, Hugh de Lacy, for the fiasco.[27]

 

The problems amongst John's wider family continued to grow. His elder brother Geoffrey died during a tournament in 1186, leaving a posthumous son, Arthur, and an elder daughter, Eleanor.[28] The duchy of Brittany was given to Arthur rather than John, but Geoffrey's death brought John slightly closer to the throne of England.[28] The uncertainty about what would happen after Henry's death continued to grow; Richard was keen to join a new crusade and remained concerned that whilst he was away Henry would appoint John his formal successor.[29] Richard began discussions about a potential alliance with Philip II in Paris during 1187, and the next year Richard gave homage to Philip in exchange for support for a war against Henry.[30] Richard and Philip fought a joint campaign against Henry, and by the summer of 1189 the king made peace, promising Richard the succession.[31] John initially remained loyal to his father, but changed sides once it appeared that Richard would win.[31] Henry died shortly afterwards.[31]

Note on Wife: Isabella + of ANGOULEME

Isabella of Angoulême (French: Isabelle d'Angoulême, IPA: [izab?l d?~gul?m]; 1188 – 31 May 1246) was suo jure Countess of Angoulême and queen consort of England as the second wife of King John. She was queen from 24 August 1200 until John's death on 19 October 1216. She had five children by the king including his heir Henry who succeeded John as Henry III of England. In 1220, Isabella married secondly Hugh X of Lusignan, Count of La Marche, by whom she had another nine children.

 

Isabella formed a conspiracy against King Louis IX of France in 1241, after being publicly snubbed by his mother, Blanche of Castile for whom she had a deep-seated hatred.[1] In 1244, after the plot had failed, Isabella was accused of attempting to poison the king, and to avoid arrest, sought refuge in Fontevraud Abbey where she died two years later at the age of about 58.

 

She was the only daughter and heir of Aymer Taillefer, Count of Angoulême, by Alice of Courtenay, who was sister of Peter II of Courtenay, Latin Emperor of Constantinople and granddaughter of King Louis VI of France.

 

Isabella became Countess of Angoulême in her own right on 16 June 1202, by which time she was already queen of England. Her marriage to King John took place on 24 August 1200, at Bordeaux, a year after he annulled his first marriage to Isabel of Gloucester. She was crowned queen in an elaborate ceremony on 9 October at Westminster Abbey in London. Isabella was originally betrothed to Hugh IX le Brun, Count of Lusignan,[2] son of the then Count of La Marche. As a result of John's temerity in taking her as his second wife, King Philip II of France confiscated all of their French lands, and armed conflict ensued.

 

At the time of her marriage to John, the 12-year-old Isabella was already renowned for her beauty[3] and has sometimes been called the Helen of the Middle Ages by historians.[4] However, her marriage to John cannot be said to have been successful, in part because she was much younger than her husband and possessed a volatile temper to match his own. King John, however, was deeply infatuated with his young, beautiful wife; he neglected his state affairs to spend time with Isabella, often remaining in bed with her until noon, although it was the custom for kings to rise at five o'clock in the morning to commence their duties. The common people began to term her a "siren" or "Messalina", although they were pleased with her beauty.[5] Her mother-in-law, Eleanor of Aquitaine readily accepted her as John's wife.[6]

 

On 1 October 1207 at Winchester Castle, Isabella gave birth to a son and heir who was named Henry after the King's father, Henry II. He was quickly followed by another son, Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall, King of the Romans; and three daughters, Joan, Isabel, and Eleanor. All five children survived into adulthood, and would make illustrious marriages; all but Joan would produce offspring of their own.

 

[edit] Second marriageWhen King John died in October 1216, Isabella's first act was to arrange the speedy coronation of her nine-year-old son at the city of Gloucester on 28 October. As the royal crown had recently been lost in The Wash, along with the rest of King John's treasure, she supplied her own golden circlet to be used in lieu of a crown.[7] The following July, less than a year after his crowning as King Henry III of England, she left him in the care of his regent, William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke and returned to France to assume control of her inheritance of Angoulême, which had belonged to her suo jure since 1202.

 

In the spring of 1220, she married Hugh X of Lusignan, "le Brun", Seigneur de Luisignan, Count of La Marche, the son of Hugh IX, to whom she had been betrothed before her marriage to King John. It had been previously arranged that her eldest daughter Joan should marry Hugh, and the little girl was being brought up at the Lusignan court in preparation for her marriage. Hugh, however, upon seeing Isabella, whose beauty had not diminished,[8] preferred the girl's mother. Princess Joan was provided with another husband, King Alexander II of Scotland, whom she wed in 1221.

 

Isabella had married Hugh without waiting to receive the consent of the King's council in England, which was the required procedure for a former Queen of England, as the Council had the power to not only choose the Queen Dowager's second husband, but to decide whether or not she should be allowed to marry at all. Isabella's flouting of this law caused the Council to confiscate her dower lands and stop the payment of her pension.[9] Isabella and her husband retaliated by threatening to keep the Princess Joan in France (she had not yet departed for England); and after furious letters sent by the Council to the Pope, signed by Isabella's son, King Henry, which urged the Pontiff to excommunicate the Count and Countess, the Council, in order to placate the King of Scotland, who was eager to receive his future bride, came to terms with Isabella. She was granted, in compensation for her dower lands in Normandy, the stannaries in Devon and the revenue of Aylesbury for a period of four years. She also received £3000 pounds as payment for arrears in her pension.[10]

 

By Hugh X, Isabella had nine more children. Their eldest son Hugh XI of Lusignan succeeded his father as Count of La Marche and Count of Angoulême in 1249.

 

[edit] Rebellion and deathDescribed as "vain, capricious, and troublesome",[11] Isabella could not reconcile herself to the necessary loss in rank which resulted after her marriage to the Count of La Marche. Isabella had been a Queen of England and deeply resented having to give precedence to women who were now of higher rank than she, a mere Countess of Angoulême and La Marche.[12] In 1241, when Isabella and Hugh were summoned to the French court to swear fealty to King Louis IX of France's brother, Alphonse, who had been invested as Count of Poitou, their mother, the Queen Dowager Blanche openly snubbed her. This so infuriated Isabella, who had a deep-seated hatred of Blanche due to the latter having fervently supported the French invasion of England during the First Barons' War in May 1216, that she began to actively conspire against King Louis. Isabella and her husband, along with other disgruntled nobles, including her son-in-law Raymond VII of Toulouse, sought to create an English-backed confederacy which united the provinces of the south and west against the French king.[13] In 1244, after the confederacy had failed and Hugh had made peace with King Louis, two royal cooks were arrested for attempting to poison the King; upon questioning they confessed to having been in Isabella's pay.[14] Before Isabella could be taken into custody, she fled to Fontevraud Abbey, where she died on 31 May 1246.

 

By her own prior arrangement, she was first buried in the Abbey's churchyard, as an act of repentance for her many misdeeds. On a visit to Fontevraud, her son King Henry III of England was shocked to find her buried outside the Abbey and ordered her immediately moved inside. She was finally placed beside Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. Afterwards, most of her many Lusignan children, having few prospects in France, set sail for England and the court of Henry, their half-brother.

 

[edit] IssueWith King John of England: 5 children, all of whom survived into adulthood, including:

1.King Henry III of England (1 October 1207 – 16 November 1272). Married Eleanor of Provence, by whom he had issue, including his heir, King Edward I of England.

2.Richard, Earl of Cornwall and King of the Romans (5 January 1209 – 2 April 1272). Married firstly Isabel Marshal, secondly Sanchia of Provence, and thirdly Beatrice of Falkenburg. Had issue.

3.Joan (22 July 1210 – 1238), the wife of King Alexander II of Scotland. Her marriage was childless.

4.Isabella (1214 – 1241), the wife of Emperor Frederick II, by whom she had issue.

5.Eleanor (1215 – 1275), who would marry firstly William Marshal, 2nd Earl of Pembroke; and secondly Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, by whom she had issue.

With Hugh X of Lusignan, Count of La Marche: nine children, all of whom survived into adulthood, including:

1.Hugh XI of Lusignan (1221 – 1250), Count of La Marche and Count of Angoulême. Married Yolande de Dreux, Countess of Penthièvre and of Porhoet, by whom he had issue.

2.Aymer of Lusignan (1222 – 1260), Bishop of Winchester

3.Agnès de Lusignan (1223 – 1269). Married William II de Chauvigny (d.1270), and had issue.

4.Alice of Lusignan (1224 – 9 February 1256). Married John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey, by whom she had issue.

5.Guy of Lusignan (c. 1225 – 1264), killed at the Battle of Lewes. (Tufton Beamish maintains that he escaped to France after the Battle of Lewes and died there in 1269).

6.Geoffrey of Lusignan (c. 1226 – 1274). Married in 1259 Jeanne, Viscountess of Châtellerault, by whom he had issue.

7.William of Lusignan (c. 1228 – 1296). 1st Earl of Pembroke. Married Joan de Munchensi, by whom he issue.

8.Marguerite de Lusignan (c. 1229 – 1288). Married firstly in 1243 Raymond VII of Toulouse; secondly c. 1246 Aimery IX de Thouars, Viscount of Thouars and had issue

9.Isabella of Lusignan (1234 – 14 January 1299). Married firstly before 1244 Maurice IV, seigneur de Craon (1224–1250), by whom she had issue; she married secondly, Geoffrey de Rancon.