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Isabeau of Bavaria
Isabeau of Bavaria (or Isabelle; also Elisabeth of Bavaria-Ingolstadt; c. 1370 – 24 September 1435) was Queen of France as the wife of King Charles VI from 1385 to 1422. She was born into the House of Wittelsbach as the only daughter of Duke Stephen III of Bavaria-Ingolstadt and Taddea Visconti of Milan. At age 15 or 16, Isabeau was sent to France to marry the young Charles VI; the couple wed three days after their first meeting. Isabeau was honored in 1389 with a lavish coronation ceremony and entry into Paris.
In 1392, Charles suffered the first attack of what was to become a lifelong and progressive mental illness, resulting in periodic withdrawal from government. The episodes occurred with increasing frequency, leaving a court both divided by political factions and steeped in social extravagances. A 1393 masque for one of Isabeau's ladies-in-waiting—an event later known as Bal des Ardents—ended in disaster with Charles almost burning to death. Although the King demanded Isabeau's removal from his presence during his illness, he consistently allowed her to act on his behalf. In this way she became regent to the Dauphin of France (heir apparent), and sat on the regency council, allowing her far more power than was usual for a medieval queen consort.
Charles' illness created a power vacuum that eventually led to the Armagnac–Burgundian Civil War between supporters of his brother Louis I, Duke of Orléans, and the royal dukes of Burgundy, Philip the Bold and John the Fearless. Isabeau shifted allegiances as she chose the most favorable paths for the heir to the throne. When she followed the Armagnacs, the Burgundians accused her of adultery with the Duke of Orléans; when she sided with the Burgundians, the Armagnacs removed her from Paris and she was imprisoned. In 1407, John the Fearless assassinated Orléans, sparking hostilities between the factions. The war ended soon after Isabeau's son Charles had John assassinated in 1419—an act that saw him disinherited. Isabeau attended the 1420 signing of the Treaty of Troyes, which decided that the English king should inherit the French crown after the death of her husband. She lived in English-occupied Paris until her death in 1435.
Isabeau was popularly seen as a spendthrift and irresponsible philanderess. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries historians re-examined the extensive chronicles of her lifetime, concluding that many unflattering elements of her reputation were unearned and stemmed from factionalism and propaganda.
Isabeau's parents were Duke Stephen III of Bavaria-Ingolstadt and Taddea Visconti, the eldest child of Bernabò Visconti, Lord of Milan, who turned her over to Duke Stephen for a dowry of 100,000 ducats. During this period, Bavaria was counted among the most powerful German states, divided though it was at certain times among members of the House of Wittelsbach. The Visconti family was anxious to cultivate political connections with the powerful Wittelsbachs, and three of Taddea's siblings also married members of various branches of the family. Isabeau was most likely born in Munich, where she was baptized as Elisabeth at the Church of Our Lady. Her notable Wittelsbach ancestors included her great-grandfather Holy Roman Emperor Louis IV.
In 1383, Isabeau's uncle, Duke Frederick of Bavaria-Landshut, suggested that she be considered as a bride for King Charles VI of France. The match was proposed again at the lavish Burgundian double wedding in Cambrai in April 1385. At this event, John, Count of Nevers (who became known as John the Fearless after he succeeded his father Philip the Bold as duke of Burgundy in 1404) married Margaret of Bavaria, whereas John's sister, Margaret of Burgundy, married Duke William II of Bavaria-Straubing, one of the brothers of Margaret of Bavaria. Charles, then 17, rode in the tourneys at the wedding. He was an attractive, physically fit young man who enjoyed jousting and hunting and was anxious to be married.
As part of his duties as a member of the regency council that governed France during the minority of Charles VI, the king's uncle, Philip the Bold, thought that the proposed marriage to Isabeau would be an ideal means to build an alliance with the Holy Roman Empire in opposition to the crown of England. Isabeau's father reluctantly agreed to the plan and sent her to France with his brother Frederick on the pretext of taking a pilgrimage to Amiens, whose Cathedral housed a celebrated relic of the time (the reputed head of John the Baptist). He was adamant that she was not to know that she was being sent to France to be examined as a prospective bride for Charles and refused permission for her to be examined in the nude, as was customary at the time. According to the contemporary chronicler Jean Froissart, Isabeau was 13 or 14 when the match was proposed and about 16 at the time of the marriage in 1385, suggesting a birth date of around 1370.
Before her presentation to Charles, Isabeau visited Hainaut for about a month, staying with her granduncle Duke Albert I, Count of Holland, who also ruled part of the hereditary Wittelsbach territories of Bavaria-Straubing. Albert's wife, Margaret of Brieg, had Isabeau discard her Bavarian style of dress, which would have been deemed unsuitable as courtly attire in France, and taught her etiquette suitable for the French court. She learned quickly, suggestive of an intelligent and quick-witted character. On 13 July 1385, she traveled to Amiens to be presented to Charles.
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Isabeau of Bavaria
Isabeau of Bavaria (or Isabelle; also Elisabeth of Bavaria-Ingolstadt; c. 1370 – 24 September 1435) was Queen of France as the wife of King Charles VI from 1385 to 1422. She was born into the House of Wittelsbach as the only daughter of Duke Stephen III of Bavaria-Ingolstadt and Taddea Visconti of Milan. At age 15 or 16, Isabeau was sent to France to marry the young Charles VI; the couple wed three days after their first meeting. Isabeau was honored in 1389 with a lavish coronation ceremony and entry into Paris.
In 1392, Charles suffered the first attack of what was to become a lifelong and progressive mental illness, resulting in periodic withdrawal from government. The episodes occurred with increasing frequency, leaving a court both divided by political factions and steeped in social extravagances. A 1393 masque for one of Isabeau's ladies-in-waiting—an event later known as Bal des Ardents—ended in disaster with Charles almost burning to death. Although the King demanded Isabeau's removal from his presence during his illness, he consistently allowed her to act on his behalf. In this way she became regent to the Dauphin of France (heir apparent), and sat on the regency council, allowing her far more power than was usual for a medieval queen consort.
Charles' illness created a power vacuum that eventually led to the Armagnac–Burgundian Civil War between supporters of his brother Louis I, Duke of Orléans, and the royal dukes of Burgundy, Philip the Bold and John the Fearless. Isabeau shifted allegiances as she chose the most favorable paths for the heir to the throne. When she followed the Armagnacs, the Burgundians accused her of adultery with the Duke of Orléans; when she sided with the Burgundians, the Armagnacs removed her from Paris and she was imprisoned. In 1407, John the Fearless assassinated Orléans, sparking hostilities between the factions. The war ended soon after Isabeau's son Charles had John assassinated in 1419—an act that saw him disinherited. Isabeau attended the 1420 signing of the Treaty of Troyes, which decided that the English king should inherit the French crown after the death of her husband. She lived in English-occupied Paris until her death in 1435.
Isabeau was popularly seen as a spendthrift and irresponsible philanderess. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries historians re-examined the extensive chronicles of her lifetime, concluding that many unflattering elements of her reputation were unearned and stemmed from factionalism and propaganda.
Isabeau's parents were Duke Stephen III of Bavaria-Ingolstadt and Taddea Visconti, the eldest child of Bernabò Visconti, Lord of Milan, who turned her over to Duke Stephen for a dowry of 100,000 ducats. During this period, Bavaria was counted among the most powerful German states, divided though it was at certain times among members of the House of Wittelsbach. The Visconti family was anxious to cultivate political connections with the powerful Wittelsbachs, and three of Taddea's siblings also married members of various branches of the family. Isabeau was most likely born in Munich, where she was baptized as Elisabeth at the Church of Our Lady. Her notable Wittelsbach ancestors included her great-grandfather Holy Roman Emperor Louis IV.
In 1383, Isabeau's uncle, Duke Frederick of Bavaria-Landshut, suggested that she be considered as a bride for King Charles VI of France. The match was proposed again at the lavish Burgundian double wedding in Cambrai in April 1385. At this event, John, Count of Nevers (who became known as John the Fearless after he succeeded his father Philip the Bold as duke of Burgundy in 1404) married Margaret of Bavaria, whereas John's sister, Margaret of Burgundy, married Duke William II of Bavaria-Straubing, one of the brothers of Margaret of Bavaria. Charles, then 17, rode in the tourneys at the wedding. He was an attractive, physically fit young man who enjoyed jousting and hunting and was anxious to be married.
As part of his duties as a member of the regency council that governed France during the minority of Charles VI, the king's uncle, Philip the Bold, thought that the proposed marriage to Isabeau would be an ideal means to build an alliance with the Holy Roman Empire in opposition to the crown of England. Isabeau's father reluctantly agreed to the plan and sent her to France with his brother Frederick on the pretext of taking a pilgrimage to Amiens, whose Cathedral housed a celebrated relic of the time (the reputed head of John the Baptist). He was adamant that she was not to know that she was being sent to France to be examined as a prospective bride for Charles and refused permission for her to be examined in the nude, as was customary at the time. According to the contemporary chronicler Jean Froissart, Isabeau was 13 or 14 when the match was proposed and about 16 at the time of the marriage in 1385, suggesting a birth date of around 1370.
Before her presentation to Charles, Isabeau visited Hainaut for about a month, staying with her granduncle Duke Albert I, Count of Holland, who also ruled part of the hereditary Wittelsbach territories of Bavaria-Straubing. Albert's wife, Margaret of Brieg, had Isabeau discard her Bavarian style of dress, which would have been deemed unsuitable as courtly attire in France, and taught her etiquette suitable for the French court. She learned quickly, suggestive of an intelligent and quick-witted character. On 13 July 1385, she traveled to Amiens to be presented to Charles.