Joan I of Naples
Encyclopedia
Joan I born Joanna of Anjou
, was Queen of Naples
from 1343 until her death. She was also Countess of Provence
and Forcalquier
, Queen consort of Majorca
and titular Queen of Jerusalem
and Sicily 1343–82, and Princess of Achaea
1373/5–81.
(eldest son of King Robert of Naples
) and Marie of Valois (a sister of King Philip VI of France
). At the age of seven years (1334), she was betrothed to her six-year-old second cousin Prince Andrew
of the Hungarian
branch of the House of Anjou
, the son of Charles I of Hungary
and younger brother of Louis I.
When the King died in 1343, in his last will and testament, he formally bequeathed his kingdom to Joan I of Naples, and made no mention of Andrew, even as a consort and tried to exclude him from rule.
With the approval of Pope Clement VI, Joan was crowned as sole monarch of Naples in August 1344. Fearing for his life, Andrew wrote to his mother Elizabeth that he would soon flee the kingdom. She intervened, and made a state visit; before she returned to Hungary, she bribed Pope Clement to reverse himself and permit the coronation of Andrew. She also gave a ring to Andrew, which was supposed to protect him from death by blade or poison, and returned with a false sense of security to Hungary.
Hearing of the Pope's reversal, a group of noble conspirators (the involvement of Queen Joan remaining unproved) determined to forestall Andrew's coronation. During a hunting trip at Aversa, Andrew left his room in the middle of the night and was set upon by the conspirators. A treacherous servant barred the door behind him; and as Joan cowered in their bed, a terrible struggle ensued, Andrew defending himself furiously and shrieking for aid. He was finally overpowered, strangled with a cord, and flung from a window. Isolde, Andrew's Hungarian nurse saw the whole conflict, and took the Prince's corpse to the church of the monks, and remained with it until next morning in mourning. When the Hungarian knights arrived she told them everything in their mother tongue so no one else would learn about the truth, and soon they left Naples informing everything to the Hungarian King.
After the assassination
of Andrew in 1345, Joan married three more times: to Louis of Taranto
, James IV of Majorca
and Prince of Achaea
and Otto, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen
. Her one son by Andrew died at a young age, as did her two daughters by Louis.
house. The assassination of Andrew brought about the enmity of King Louis I of Hungary and his invasion
of Naples. Joan was forced for a period to flee to Avignon and to pay for her return to her kingdom by selling her rights over that city to Pope Clement VI
; after several reverses of fortune, both Joan and Louis agreed to the papal request for a truce. The matter was to be solved by a new trial over Andrew's assassination, to be held in Avignon. Joan was acquitted of all charges, and she could return.
Her second husband, Louis of Taranto
, was crowned as co-king in 1353, the only one of her husbands to whom she willingly accorded that status. In 1373, her cousin and former brother-in-law Philip II of Taranto
resigned to her his rights to the Principality of Achaea
, as did her third husband, James, before his death in 1375.
during the Western Schism
and allied herself with France, adopting Louis I of Anjou, a younger son of John II of France
as her heir. France and antipope
Clement VII counted on Naples to give them a foothold in Italy, if it came to resolving the schism by force. In retaliation, in April 1380, Pope Urban VI
declared her a heretic and her kingdom, a papal fief, to be forfeit and bestowed it upon Charles of Durazzo
, her niece's husband and heir. She reacted by switching the inheritance to Louis I of Naples
, brother of King Charles V of France
. This move, however, favoured Charles of Durazzo, as Louis was forced to remain in France after his brother's death. Charles was recognized King of Naples by Urban VI on 1 June 1381 and, with Hungarian support, advanced on Naples
, where Joan had entrusted her new husband Otto (whom she had married in 1376) with the few troops she could muster. After Otto's defeat at Anagni
, and bypassing the Neapolitan defences at Aversa, Charles entered Naples on 26 July and besieged Joan in the Castel dell'Ovo
. In late August, Otto again attempted to free his wife but was crushed and made prisoner. She was forced to surrender, and was imprisoned in the fortress of San Fele
, (near Muro Lucano
).
, and by Louis' military power, Charles had Joan killed on 12 May 1382; she was smothered with pillows, in revenge for the method of assassination inflicted upon Duke Andrew
. The Neapolitan kingdom was left to decades of recurring wars of succession. Louis of Anjou was able to retain the mainland counties of Provence and Forcalquier. James of Baux
, the nephew of Philip II of Taranto, claimed the Principality of Achaea after her deposition in 1381.
From her first marriage to Andrew, Duke of Calabria
, Joan had one son:
From her second marriage to Louis, Prince of Taranto, Joan had two daughters:
Joan's final two marriages were childless.
Anjou
Anjou is a former county , duchy and province centred on the city of Angers in the lower Loire Valley of western France. It corresponds largely to the present-day département of Maine-et-Loire...
, was Queen of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
from 1343 until her death. She was also Countess of Provence
Provence
Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
and Forcalquier
Forcalquier
Forcalquier is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France.Forcalquier is located between the Lure and Luberon mountain ranges, about south of Sisteron and west of the Durance river...
, Queen consort of Majorca
Kingdom of Majorca
The Kingdom of Majorca was founded by James I of Aragon, also known as James The Conqueror. After the death of his first-born son Alfonso, a will was written in 1262 which created the kingdom in order to cede it to his son James...
and titular Queen of Jerusalem
Kings of Jerusalem
This is a list of kings of Jerusalem, from 1099 to 1291, as well as claimants to the title up to the present day.-Kings of Jerusalem :...
and Sicily 1343–82, and Princess 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...
1373/5–81.
Early family and political life
Born in Naples, Joan was the daughter of Charles, Duke of CalabriaCharles, Duke of Calabria
Charles, Duke of Calabria was the son of King Robert of Naples and Yolanda of Aragon.-Biography:Born in Naples, he became Duke of Calabria in 1309 on his father's accession, and was created Vicar-General of the Kingdom of Sicily...
(eldest son of King Robert of Naples
Robert of Naples
Robert of Anjou , known as Robert the Wise was King of Naples, titular King of Jerusalem and Count of Provence and Forcalquier from 1309 to 1343, the central figure of Italian politics of his time. He was the third but eldest surviving son of King Charles II of Naples the Lame and Maria of Hungary...
) and Marie of Valois (a sister of King Philip VI of France
Philip VI of France
Philip VI , known as the Fortunate and of Valois, was the King of France from 1328 to his death. He was also Count of Anjou, Maine, and Valois from 1325 to 1328...
). At the age of seven years (1334), she was betrothed to her six-year-old second cousin Prince Andrew
Andrew, Duke of Calabria
Andrew, Duke of Calabria was the second surviving son of Charles I of Hungary and Elizabeth of Poland...
of the Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
branch of the House of Anjou
Capetian House of Anjou
The Capetian House of Anjou, also known as the House of Anjou-Sicily and House of Anjou-Naples, was a royal house and cadet branch of the direct House of Capet. Founded by Charles I of Sicily, a son of Louis VIII of France, the Capetian king first ruled the Kingdom of Sicily during the 13th century...
, the son of Charles I of Hungary
Charles I of Hungary
Charles I , also known as Charles Robert , was the first King of Hungary and Croatia of the House of Anjou. He was also descended from the old Hungarian Árpád dynasty. His claim to the throne of Hungary was contested by several pretenders...
and younger brother of Louis I.
With the approval of Pope Clement VI, Joan was crowned as sole monarch of Naples in August 1344. Fearing for his life, Andrew wrote to his mother Elizabeth that he would soon flee the kingdom. She intervened, and made a state visit; before she returned to Hungary, she bribed Pope Clement to reverse himself and permit the coronation of Andrew. She also gave a ring to Andrew, which was supposed to protect him from death by blade or poison, and returned with a false sense of security to Hungary.
Hearing of the Pope's reversal, a group of noble conspirators (the involvement of Queen Joan remaining unproved) determined to forestall Andrew's coronation. During a hunting trip at Aversa, Andrew left his room in the middle of the night and was set upon by the conspirators. A treacherous servant barred the door behind him; and as Joan cowered in their bed, a terrible struggle ensued, Andrew defending himself furiously and shrieking for aid. He was finally overpowered, strangled with a cord, and flung from a window. Isolde, Andrew's Hungarian nurse saw the whole conflict, and took the Prince's corpse to the church of the monks, and remained with it until next morning in mourning. When the Hungarian knights arrived she told them everything in their mother tongue so no one else would learn about the truth, and soon they left Naples informing everything to the Hungarian King.
After the assassination
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
of Andrew in 1345, Joan married three more times: to Louis of Taranto
Louis of Taranto
Louis I of Naples , of the House of Anjou, was the Prince of Taranto from 1346 and King of Naples from 1352. He was a son of Philip I of Taranto and Catherine II of Valois, Princess of Achaea. His paternal grandparents were Charles II of Naples and Maria of Hungary...
, James IV of Majorca
James IV of Majorca
James IV of Majorca was King of Majorca from 1349 until his death.James was the son of James III of Majorca and Constance of Aragon...
and 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 Otto, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen
Otto, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen
Otto, Duke of Brunswick and Lunenburg was the fourth and last husband of Joan I of Naples. He also held the title of Prince of Taranto nicknamed as Otto the Tarantine.-Biography:...
. Her one son by Andrew died at a young age, as did her two daughters by Louis.
Political intrigues
Her reign was marked by violent political struggles among the members of the AngevinCapetian House of Anjou
The Capetian House of Anjou, also known as the House of Anjou-Sicily and House of Anjou-Naples, was a royal house and cadet branch of the direct House of Capet. Founded by Charles I of Sicily, a son of Louis VIII of France, the Capetian king first ruled the Kingdom of Sicily during the 13th century...
house. The assassination of Andrew brought about the enmity of King Louis I of Hungary and his invasion
Neapolitan Campaigns
The Neapolitan campaigns of Louis the Great, also called the Neapolitan Adventure in Hungarian, was a war between the Kingdom of Hungary, led by Louis the Great, and the Kingdom of Naples. It was fought from 1347 until 1352....
of Naples. Joan was forced for a period to flee to Avignon and to pay for her return to her kingdom by selling her rights over that city to Pope Clement VI
Pope Clement VI
Pope Clement VI , bornPierre Roger, the fourth of the Avignon Popes, was pope from May 1342 until his death in December of 1352...
; after several reverses of fortune, both Joan and Louis agreed to the papal request for a truce. The matter was to be solved by a new trial over Andrew's assassination, to be held in Avignon. Joan was acquitted of all charges, and she could return.
Her second husband, Louis of Taranto
Louis of Taranto
Louis I of Naples , of the House of Anjou, was the Prince of Taranto from 1346 and King of Naples from 1352. He was a son of Philip I of Taranto and Catherine II of Valois, Princess of Achaea. His paternal grandparents were Charles II of Naples and Maria of Hungary...
, was crowned as co-king in 1353, the only one of her husbands to whom she willingly accorded that status. In 1373, her cousin and former brother-in-law Philip II of Taranto
Philip II of Taranto
Philip II of Taranto of the Angevin house, was Prince of Achaea and Taranto, and titular Emperor of Constantinople from 1364 to his death in 1374....
resigned to her his rights to the Principality 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...
, as did her third husband, James, before his death in 1375.
Troubles with the Papacy
In addition, Joan supported the Avignon PapacyAvignon Papacy
The Avignon Papacy was the period from 1309 to 1376 during which seven Popes resided in Avignon, in modern-day France. This arose from the conflict between the Papacy and the French crown....
during the Western Schism
Western Schism
The Western Schism or Papal Schism was a split within the Catholic Church from 1378 to 1417. Two men simultaneously claimed to be the true pope. Driven by politics rather than any theological disagreement, the schism was ended by the Council of Constance . The simultaneous claims to the papal chair...
and allied herself with France, adopting Louis I of Anjou, a younger son of John II of France
John II of France
John II , called John the Good , was the King of France from 1350 until his death. He was the second sovereign of the House of Valois and is perhaps best remembered as the king who was vanquished at the Battle of Poitiers and taken as a captive to England.The son of Philip VI and Joan the Lame,...
as her heir. France and antipope
Antipope
An antipope is a person who opposes a legitimately elected or sitting Pope and makes a significantly accepted competing claim to be the Pope, the Bishop of Rome and leader of the Roman Catholic Church. At times between the 3rd and mid-15th century, antipopes were typically those supported by a...
Clement VII counted on Naples to give them a foothold in Italy, if it came to resolving the schism by force. In retaliation, in April 1380, Pope Urban VI
Pope Urban VI
Pope Urban VI , born Bartolomeo Prignano, was Pope from 1378 to 1389.-Biography:Born in Itri, he was a devout monk and learned casuist, trained at Avignon. On March 21, 1364, he was consecrated Archbishop of Acerenza in the Kingdom of Naples...
declared her a heretic and her kingdom, a papal fief, to be forfeit and bestowed it upon Charles of Durazzo
Charles III of Naples
Charles the Short or Charles of Durazzo was King of Naples and titular King of Jerusalem from 1382 to 1386 as Charles III, and King of Hungary from 1385 to 1386 as Charles II. In 1382 Charles created the order of Argonauts of Saint Nicholas...
, her niece's husband and heir. She reacted by switching the inheritance to Louis I of Naples
Louis I of Naples
Louis I of Anjou , or Louis I of Naples, was the second son of King John II of France and Bonne of Luxembourg...
, brother of King Charles V of France
Charles V of France
Charles V , called the Wise, was King of France from 1364 to his death in 1380 and a member of the House of Valois...
. This move, however, favoured Charles of Durazzo, as Louis was forced to remain in France after his brother's death. Charles was recognized King of Naples by Urban VI on 1 June 1381 and, with Hungarian support, advanced on Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, where Joan had entrusted her new husband Otto (whom she had married in 1376) with the few troops she could muster. After Otto's defeat at Anagni
Anagni
Anagni is an ancient town and comune in Latium, central Italy, in the hills east-southeast of Rome. It is a historical center in Ciociaria.-Geography:...
, and bypassing the Neapolitan defences at Aversa, Charles entered Naples on 26 July and besieged Joan in the Castel dell'Ovo
Castel dell'Ovo
Castel dell'Ovo is a castle located on the former island of Megaride, now a peninsula, on the gulf of Naples...
. In late August, Otto again attempted to free his wife but was crushed and made prisoner. She was forced to surrender, and was imprisoned in the fortress of San Fele
San Fele
San Felè is a town and comune in the province of Potenza in the Basilicata region of Italy.-Geography:It is bounded by the comuni of Atella, Bella, Castelgrande, Filiano, Muro Lucano, Rapone and Ruvo del Monte.-History:...
, (near Muro Lucano
Muro Lucano
Muro Lucano is a town and comune in the province of Potenza, in the region of Basilicata, southern Italy.-History:The town is situated on the site of the ancient Numistri, at the foot of the Apennines, the scene of a battle between Hannibal and Marcellus in the second Punic war.-Main sights:The...
).
The end
Preoccupied by the coronation of Louis at the hands of Pope Urban VIPope Urban VI
Pope Urban VI , born Bartolomeo Prignano, was Pope from 1378 to 1389.-Biography:Born in Itri, he was a devout monk and learned casuist, trained at Avignon. On March 21, 1364, he was consecrated Archbishop of Acerenza in the Kingdom of Naples...
, and by Louis' military power, Charles had Joan killed on 12 May 1382; she was smothered with pillows, in revenge for the method of assassination inflicted upon Duke Andrew
Andrew, Duke of Calabria
Andrew, Duke of Calabria was the second surviving son of Charles I of Hungary and Elizabeth of Poland...
. The Neapolitan kingdom was left to decades of recurring wars of succession. Louis of Anjou was able to retain the mainland counties of Provence and Forcalquier. James of Baux
James of Baux
James of Baux , Duke of Andria, was the last titular Latin Emperor of Constantinople from 1374 to 1383 and Prince of Achaea from 1382 to 1383....
, the nephew of Philip II of Taranto, claimed the Principality of Achaea after her deposition in 1381.
Issue
In total, Joan had three children from her first two marriages:From her first marriage to Andrew, Duke of Calabria
Andrew, Duke of Calabria
Andrew, Duke of Calabria was the second surviving son of Charles I of Hungary and Elizabeth of Poland...
, Joan had one son:
- Charles Martel of Naples (NaplesNaplesNaples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, 25 December 1345 – Hungary aft. 10 May 1348)
From her second marriage to Louis, Prince of Taranto, Joan had two daughters:
- Catherine of Naples (1347–aft. 1362)
- Francesca of Naples (1349–1352)
Joan's final two marriages were childless.
Role in literature
- Alexandre Dumas, pèreAlexandre Dumas, pèreAlexandre Dumas, , born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie was a French writer, best known for his historical novels of high adventure which have made him one of the most widely read French authors in the world...
wrote a romance, Joan of Naples, part of his eight-volume series Celebrated Crimes (1839–40). - A fictionalised account of her life can also be found in the novel Queen of the Night by Alan Savage.
Ancestry
External links
- A. Dumas, Joan of Naples: e-text Coat of arms of the House of Anjou-Sicily House of Anjou-Sicily