- AKA: Isabella of France
- Princess of France
- 1308-1327: Queen Consort of England
- 1327-1330: Regent of England
Isabella Capet was born circa 1295 to Philip IV Capet (1268-1314) and Joan I of Navarre (1271-1305) and died 22 August 1358 of unspecified causes. She married Edward II of England (1284-1327) 25 January 1308 JL in Boulogne-sur-Mer.
Biography
Isabella Capet, also known as Isabella of France, was born on April 1, 1295, in Paris, France. She was the daughter of King Philip IV of France and his wife Joan of Navarre. In 1308, at the age of 13, Isabella was betrothed to King Edward II of England as part of a peace treaty between France and England.
Isabella and Edward were married on January 25, 1308, in Boulogne-sur-Mer, France. Isabella was only 12 years old at the time, while Edward was 23. Despite their age difference, the couple seemed to have a happy marriage at first. They had four children together, including the future King Edward III.
However, over time, tensions grew between Isabella and Edward. Edward was known to be more interested in his male favorites than in his wife, and Isabella was often left alone and neglected. In addition, Edward's reign was marked by political turmoil, and he faced criticism for his handling of the Scottish Wars of Independence.
In 1325, Isabella was sent to France on a diplomatic mission to negotiate peace between England and France. While in France, Isabella met and fell in love with Roger Mortimer, a powerful nobleman who had been exiled from England by Edward. Together, Isabella and Mortimer hatched a plan to overthrow Edward and seize the throne for themselves.
Isabella returned to England in 1326, ostensibly to negotiate a settlement between Edward and Mortimer. However, instead of negotiating, Isabella and Mortimer gathered support from discontented barons and raised an army to depose Edward. Edward was eventually captured and imprisoned, and Isabella and Mortimer took control of the government.
Isabella's reign as queen was short-lived, however. In 1330, her son Edward III of England (1312-1377) led a rebellion against Mortimer and had him executed. Isabella was placed under house arrest for the remainder of her life and was not allowed to see her children again. She died on August 22, 1358, in Hertfordshire, England, at the age of 63.
Issue
Edward and Isabella had four children, and she suffered at least one miscarriage. Their itineraries demonstrate that they were together nine months prior to the births of all four surviving offspring. Their children were:[1]
- Edward III of England (1312-1377), Future King of England - Born on November 13, 1312, in Windsor Castle, Edward III would go on to become one of England's most successful and powerful monarchs. He ascended to the throne at the age of 14, following the deposition of his father, and reigned for 50 years.
- John of Eltham, Earl of Cornwall (1316-1336) - Born on July 15, 1316, in Eltham Palace, John was the second son of Edward II and Isabella. He was known as John of Eltham and was created Earl of Cornwall in 1328. John died in Perth, Scotland, on September 13, 1336, at the age of 20.
- Eleanor of England (1318-1355) married Reinoud II van Gelre (c1295-1343) - Born on May 18, 1318, in Woodstock Palace, Eleanor was the third child of Edward II and Isabella. She married the Count of Guelders, Reinoud II, in 1332 and had several children. Eleanor died on April 22, 1355, at the age of 36.
- Joan of England (1321-1362) married King David II of Scotland - Born on July 5, 1321, in the Tower of London, Joan was the youngest child of Edward II and Isabella. She married David II, the King of Scotland, in 1328, when she was just seven years old. The marriage was not consummated until many years later, and Joan and David had no children. Joan died on September 7, 1362, at the age of 41.
Children
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Edward III of England (1312-1377) | 13 November 1312 Windsor Castle, Berkshire, England, United Kingdom | 21 June 1377 Sheen Palace, Surrey, England, United Kingdom | Philippa of Hainaut (1311-1369) |
| John of Eltham, Earl of Cornwall (1316-1336) | 15 August 1316 Eltham Palace, Kent, England, United Kingdom | 13 September 1336 Perth, Scotland, United Kingdom | |
| Eleanor of England (1318-1355) | 18 June 1318 | 22 April 1355 | Reinoud II van Gelre (c1295-1343) |
| Joan of England (1321-1362) | 5 July 1321 Tower of London, Greater London, England, United Kingdom | 7 September 1362 Hertford Castle, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom | David II of Scotland (1324-1371) |
Siblings
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Marguerite Capet (1288-c1294) | 1288 | 1294 | |
| Louis X Capet (1289-1316) | October 1289 | 5 June 1316 | Marguerite de Bourgogne (1290-1315) Clementia of Anjou (1293-1328) |
| Blanche Capet (1290-c1294) | 1290 Paris, France | 13 April 1294 Saint Denis, France | |
| Philip V Capet (c1292-1322) | 1292 | 3 January 1322 | Jeanne de Bourgogne (1292-1330) |
| Charles IV Capet (1294-1328) | June 1294 Clermont, Picardy, France | 1 February 1328 Vincennes, Île-de-France, France | Blanche de Bourgogne (c1296-1326) Marie von Luxemburg (1304-1324) Jeanne of Évreux (1310-1370) |
| Isabella Capet (c1295-1358) | 1295 | 22 August 1358 | Edward II of England (1284-1327) |
| Robert Capet (1297-1308) | 1297 Paris, France | 1308 Saint Germain-en-Laye, France | |
Ancestry Trees
- Charlemagne Family Ancestry
- Rollo Family Ancestry
- Rurik Family Ancestry
- Capetian dynasty
- House of Normandy
See Also
- wikipedia:en:Isabella of France
- Isabella of France at thePeerage
- Capetian Kings - Foundation for Medieval Genealogy
- Isabella of France - Geni.com
- Isabella of France at Find A Grave
- Jirí Louda and Michael MacLagan, Lines of Succession: Heraldry of the Royal Families of Europe, 2nd edition (London, U.K.: Little, Brown and Company, 1999), table 65. Hereinafter cited as Lines of Succession.
- Alison Weir, Britain's Royal Families: The Complete Genealogy (London, U.K.: The Bodley Head, 1999), page 90. Hereinafter cited as Britain's Royal Families.
- Marcellus Donald R. von Redlich, Pedigrees of Some of the Emperor Charlemagne's Descendants, volume I (1941; reprint, Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A.: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2002), page 64. Hereinafter cited as Pedigrees of Emperor Charlemagne, I.
- Ainsworth, Peter. (2006) Representing Royalty: Kings, Queens and Captains in Some Early Fifteenth Century Manuscripts of Froissart's Chroniques. in Kooper (ed) 2006.
- Anselme de Sainte-Marie, Père (1726) (in fr). Histoire généalogique et chronologique de la maison royale de France. 1 (3rd ed.). Paris: La compagnie des libraires. https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k76026j/f16.image.
- Boutell, Charles. (1863) A Manual of Heraldry, Historical and Popular. London: Winsor & Newton.
References
- ^ Haines, Roy Martin (2003). King Edward II: His Life, his Reign and its Aftermath, 1284–1330. Montreal, Canada and Kingston, Canada: McGill-Queen's University Press. p. 355. ISBN 978-0-7735-3157-4.
Vital Records
Church gravestone
- Location: Christ Church Greyfriars Churchyard, London, City of London, Greater London, England
Isabella Capet (c1295-1358) Born: 1295 Died: 22 August 1358
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English royalty
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| Vacant Title last held by Margaret of France
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Queen consort of England 25 January 1308 – 25 January 1327 |
Vacant Title next held by Philippa of Hainault
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