Isabella of Villehardouin
Encyclopedia
William II of Villehardouin
William II of Villehardouin, was the last Villehardouin prince of Achaea and ruled the principality at the height of its power and influence.William was the son of Geoffrey I Villehardouin...
, Prince of Achaea
Principality of Achaea
The Principality of Achaea or of the Morea was one of the three vassal states of the Latin Empire which replaced the Byzantine Empire after the capture of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade. It became a vassal of the Kingdom of Thessalonica, along with the Duchy of Athens, until Thessalonica...
, and of his second wife Anna, the third daughter of Michael II Komnenos Doukas
Michael II Komnenos Doukas
Michael II Komnenos Doukas or Comnenus Ducas , often called Michael Angelos in narrative sources, was the ruler of Epirus from 1230 until his death in 1266/68.-Life:...
, the despot of Epiros
Despotate of Epirus
The Despotate or Principality of Epirus was one of the Byzantine Greek successor states of the Byzantine Empire that emerged in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in 1204. It claimed to be the legitimate successor of the Byzantine Empire, along with the Empire of Nicaea, and the Empire of Trebizond...
.
On 28 May 1271 Isabella married Philip of Sicily, son of Charles I of Sicily
Charles I of Sicily
Charles I , known also as Charles of Anjou, was the King of Sicily by conquest from 1266, though he had received it as a papal grant in 1262 and was expelled from the island in the aftermath of the Sicilian Vespers of 1282...
. This marriage had been pre-determined by the Treaty of Viterbo
Treaty of Viterbo
The Treaty of Viterbo was a pair of agreements made by Charles I of Sicily with Baldwin II of Constantinople and William II Villehardouin, Prince of Achaea, on 27 May 1267, which transferred much of the rights to the Latin Empire from Baldwin to Charles.-Background:The recapture of Constantinople...
in May 1267 between Charles, the exiled Baldwin II of Constantinople
Baldwin II of Constantinople
Baldwin II of Courtenay was the last emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople.He was a younger son of Yolanda of Flanders, sister of the first two emperors, Baldwin I and Henry of Flanders...
and Isabella's father. Taking advantage of the precarious situation of the remains of the Latin Empire
Latin Empire
The Latin Empire or Latin Empire of Constantinople is the name given by historians to the feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. It was established after the capture of Constantinople in 1204 and lasted until 1261...
in the face of renascent Greek power, Charles gained suzerain rights over Achaea; furthermore, the heirs of Baldwin and William were to marry children of Charles, and Charles was to have the reversion of both the Empire and the Principality should the couples have no heirs.
Philip became titular King of Thessalonica in 1274, but he died on 1 January 1277, predeceasing his father. In line with the Treaty, on the death of Isabella's father William, in 1278, it was her father-in-law Charles who succeeded as Prince of Achaea.
Charles died in 1285, to be succeeded by his son Charles II
Charles II of Naples
Charles II, known as "the Lame" was King of Naples, King of Albania, Prince of Salerno, Prince of Achaea and Count of Anjou.-Biography:...
. In 1289, however, on Isabella's marriage to Florent of Hainaut
Florent of Hainaut
Florent of Hainaut was Prince of Achaea from 1289 to his death, in right of his wife, Isabella of Villehardouin. He was the son of John I of Avesnes and Adelaide of Holland...
and on Charles II's accession as King of Sicily
Kingdom of Sicily
The Kingdom of Sicily was a state that existed in the south of Italy from its founding by Roger II in 1130 until 1816. It was a successor state of the County of Sicily, which had been founded in 1071 during the Norman conquest of southern Italy...
, he conferred on the couple the titles of Prince and Princess of Achaea, on condition that, if she survived her husband, she would not remarry without Charles II's consent. Florent and Isabella had one daughter, Matilda
Matilda of Hainaut
Matilda of Hainaut was the Princess of Achaea from 1313 to 1318.From 1307, when Philip of Savoy relinquished his claim, to 1312, when Isabella of Villehardouin died, Achaea was disputed between two claimants: Isabella and Philip I of Taranto. In 1313, Philip granted it to Matilda, daughter of...
.
As Prince, Florent negotiated the Treaty of Glarentsa with the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
in 1290. The peace lasted until 1293, when the Greeks retook Kalamata
Kalamata
Kalamata is the second-largest city of the Peloponnese in southern Greece. The capital and chief port of the Messenia prefecture, it lies along the Nedon River at the head of the Messenian Gulf...
; Florent, however, persuaded Michael VIII Palaiologos
Michael VIII Palaiologos
Michael VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus reigned as Byzantine Emperor 1259–1282. Michael VIII was the founder of the Palaiologan dynasty that would rule the Byzantine Empire until the Fall of Constantinople in 1453...
to return it. In 1296, the Greeks retook the castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
of Saint George in Arcadia
Arcadia
Arcadia is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Peloponnese. It is situated in the central and eastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. It takes its name from the mythological character Arcas. In Greek mythology, it was the home of the god Pan...
. Florent laid siege to it, but died in 1298 before it could be taken.
Isabella was married again in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
on 12 February 1301. Her third husband was Philip of Savoy, Lord of Piedmont, who now became Prince of Achaea in his turn. Philip aimed to reconquer the whole of Lacedaemonia
Lacedaemonia
Lacedaemonia may mean:*Laconia, a modern prefecture of Greece*The ancient region of Greece of the same name; see Laconia *Lacedaemonia, the name borne by the city of Sparta from Late Antiquity to the 19th century....
from the Greeks
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
. He was an authoritarian ruler and this put him at odds with the barons of his realm. He tried to placate the barons of Morea
Morea
The Morea was the name of the Peloponnese peninsula in southern Greece during the Middle Ages and the early modern period. It also referred to a Byzantine province in the region, known as the Despotate of Morea.-Origins of the name:...
, but was forced to accept a parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
in 1304. The Greek peasantry, crushed by taxes, then revolted in turn. In 1306 Philip and Isabella were summoned to Charles II's court at Naples. Philip was accused of disloyalty and failure to support Charles in a campaign against Epirus
Epirus
The name Epirus, from the Greek "Ήπειρος" meaning continent may refer to:-Geographical:* Epirus - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans, straddling modern Greece and Albania...
, and Isabella of failing to seek her suzerain's consent before marrying Philip. Charles deprived the two of Achaea and on May 5, 1306 bestowed it directly upon his son Philip I of Taranto
Philip I of Taranto
Philip I of Taranto : of the Angevin house, was titular Emperor of Constantinople , despot of Epirus, King of Albania, Prince of Achaea and Taranto, and Lord of Durazzo....
(who thus became Philip II of Achaea). Philip of Savoy eventually relinquished his claim to Achaea on May 11, 1307 in exchange for the County of Alba. Isabella, separated herself from him and went to live in Hainaut
County of Hainaut
The County of Hainaut was a historical region in the Low Countries with its capital at Mons . In English sources it is often given the archaic spelling Hainault....
, continuing to assert her right to the Principality.
Isabella died on 23 January 1312, after which Philip of Savoy remarried. On Philip of Taranto's death in 1313, Isabella's daughter by Florent, Matilda of Hainaut, became Princess of Achaea.