Joan of Artois
Encyclopedia
Joan of Artois, Countess of Foix, Viscountess of Béarn (French: Jeanne d'Artois; 1289 – after 24 March 1350), was a French
noblewoman, and the wife of Gaston I de Foix, Count of Foix
, Viscount of Béarn
. From 1331 to 1347 she was imprisoned by her eldest son on charges of scandalous conduct, dissolution, and profligacy. Joan was the great-granddaughter of King Henry III of England
and Eleanor of Provence
.
, France, the second eldest daughter of Philip of Artois
and Blanche de Dreux. Her paternal grandparents were Robert II of Artois
and Amicie de Courtenay, and her maternal grandparents were John II, Duke of Brittany
and Beatrice of England
, the daughter of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence.
Joan had two brothers, Robert III of Artois
, and Othon of Artois; and four sisters, Margaret
, Isabelle, Marie, and Catherine, Countess of Aumale.
In 1298, when Joan was nine years old, her father died of the wounds he had received at the Battle of Furnes
in which he had fought a year earlier.
Joan's aunt was Mahaut of Artois with whom her brother Robert would litigate to obtain possession of the County of Artois
which Mahaut had inherited suo jure
despite being challenged by Robert, who believed the title and estates rightfully belonged to him following the death of his grandfather Robert II in 1302 at the Battle of the Golden Spurs
. However, Mahaut's rights as suo jure Countess of Artois were upheld by King Philip IV
, and upon her own death in 1329, the title passed to her daughter, Joan II, Countess of Burgundy, and Queen consort
of King Philip V of France
.
, the marriage contract was signed and Joan was subsequently wed to Gaston de Foix. Five months later on 3 March 1302, upon the death of his father, Gaston became the Count of Foix and Viscount of Béarn; however his mother Marguerite de Béarn acted as his regent
until he reached his majority.
Gaston and Joan together had six children:
and profligacy. A charter dated 1317 legally prevented her from having the guardianship of her children. Joan's husband had been killed two years previously on 13 December 1315, at the Battle of Pontoise. In spite of a compromise signed in 1325 in Beaugency
, bitter quarrels became more frequent between Joan and her eldest son Gaston who had succeeded his father as Count of Foix. In 1331, King Philip VI
authorised Gaston to imprison Joan in the Château de Foix
. She was later moved to Orthez
, then to Lourdes
; finally in 1347, her third eldest son, the Bishop of Lavaur secured her release from prison and she retired to Carbonne
. French historian Jules Michelet
suggested a link between Joan's imprisonment in 1331 and the fact that her brother Robert was at the time being sued for forgery
and accused of practising witchcraft
against the life of King Philip VI.
Joan died on an unknown date sometime after 24 March 1350.
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
noblewoman, and the wife of Gaston I de Foix, Count of Foix
Counts of Foix
The counts of Foix ruled the independent County of Foix, in what is now southern France, during the Middle Ages. Later they extended their power to almost the entire Pyrenees mountain range, moving their court to Pau, in Béarn, until eventually the last count of Foix acceded to the French throne as...
, Viscount of Béarn
Béarn
Béarn is one of the traditional provinces of France, located in the Pyrenees mountains and in the plain at their feet, in southwest France. Along with the three Basque provinces of Soule, Lower Navarre, and Labourd, the principality of Bidache, as well as small parts of Gascony, it forms in the...
. From 1331 to 1347 she was imprisoned by her eldest son on charges of scandalous conduct, dissolution, and profligacy. Joan was the great-granddaughter of King Henry III of England
Henry III of England
Henry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for 56 years from 1216 until his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...
and Eleanor of Provence
Eleanor of Provence
Eleanor of Provence was Queen consort of England as the spouse of King Henry III of England from 1236 until his death in 1272....
.
Family
Joan was born in 1289 in ConchesConches-en-Ouche
Conches-en-Ouches is a commune in the Eure department in northern France.-Geography:It is located by the Rouloir river, southwest of Évreux in the Haute-Normandie region. The town is located on a plateau known as the Pays d'Ouche.-Population:-References:...
, France, the second eldest daughter of Philip of Artois
Philip of Artois
Philip of Artois was the son of Robert II of Artois, Count of Artois and Amicie de Courtenay. He was the Lord of Conches, Nonancourt, and Domfront....
and Blanche de Dreux. Her paternal grandparents were Robert II of Artois
Robert II of Artois
Robert II was the Count of Artois, the posthumous son and heir of Robert I and Matilda of Brabant.An experienced soldier, he took part in the Aragonese Crusade and attempted an invasion of Sicily in 1287. He defeated the Flemings in 1297 at the Battle of Furnes...
and Amicie de Courtenay, and her maternal grandparents were John II, Duke of Brittany
John II, Duke of Brittany
John II was Duke of Brittany and Earl of Richmond, from 1286 to his death. He was son of Duke John I and Blanche of Navarre...
and Beatrice of England
Beatrice of England
Beatrice of England , also known as Beatrice de Dreux, was a Princess of England as the daughter of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence...
, the daughter of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence.
Joan had two brothers, Robert III of Artois
Robert III of Artois
Robert III of Artois was the son of Philip of Artois and Blanche of Brittany.In 1318 he married Joan of Valois , daughter of Charles of Valois, and had issue:* Louis...
, and Othon of Artois; and four sisters, Margaret
Margaret of Artois
Margaret of Artois was the eldest child of Philip of Artois and his wife, Blanche of Brittany. She was a member of the House of Artois. She was married to Louis d'Évreux, her daughters all made good political marriages...
, Isabelle, Marie, and Catherine, Countess of Aumale.
In 1298, when Joan was nine years old, her father died of the wounds he had received at the Battle of Furnes
Battle of Furnes
The Battle of Furnes was fought on 20 August 1297 between French and Flemish forces.The French were led by Robert II of Artois and the Flemish by Guy of Dampierre. The French forces were victorious...
in which he had fought a year earlier.
Joan's aunt was Mahaut of Artois with whom her brother Robert would litigate to obtain possession of the County of Artois
County of Artois
The County of Artois was an historic province of the Kingdom of France, held by the Dukes of Burgundy from 1384 until 1477/82, and a state of the Holy Roman Empire from 1493 until 1659....
which Mahaut had inherited suo jure
Suo jure
Suo jure is a Latin phrase meaning "in her [or his] own right".It is commonly encountered in the context of titles of nobility, especially in cases where a wife may hold a title in her own right rather than through her marriage....
despite being challenged by Robert, who believed the title and estates rightfully belonged to him following the death of his grandfather Robert II in 1302 at the Battle of the Golden Spurs
Battle of the Golden Spurs
The Battle of the Golden Spurs, known also as the Battle of Courtrai was fought on July 11, 1302, near Kortrijk in Flanders...
. However, Mahaut's rights as suo jure Countess of Artois were upheld by King Philip IV
Philip IV of France
Philip the Fair was, as Philip IV, King of France from 1285 until his death. He was the husband of Joan I of Navarre, by virtue of which he was, as Philip I, King of Navarre and Count of Champagne from 1284 to 1305.-Youth:A member of the House of Capet, Philip was born at the Palace of...
, and upon her own death in 1329, the title passed to her daughter, Joan II, Countess of Burgundy, and Queen consort
Queen consort
A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king. A queen consort usually shares her husband's rank and holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles. Historically, queens consort do not share the king regnant's political and military powers. Most queens in history were queens consort...
of King Philip V of France
Philip V of France
Philip the Tall was King of France as Philip V and, as Philip II, King of Navarre and Count of Champagne. He reigned from 1316 to his death and was the penultimate monarch of the House of Capet. Considered a wise and politically astute ruler, Philip took the throne under questionable...
.
Marriage and issue
The letters of King Philip IV dated 7 April 1299, recount the private agreements between the king and Roger Bernard III, Count of Foix relating to the proposed marriage of Joan (who was ten years old at the time), to the Count's eldest son, Gaston (born 1287). In October 1301 at SenlisSenlis, Oise
Senlis is a French commune located in the Oise department near Paris. It has a long and rich heritage, having traversed centuries of history. This medieval town has welcomed some of the most renowned figures in French history, including Hugh Capet, Louis IX, the Marshall of France, Anne of Kiev and...
, the marriage contract was signed and Joan was subsequently wed to Gaston de Foix. Five months later on 3 March 1302, upon the death of his father, Gaston became the Count of Foix and Viscount of Béarn; however his mother Marguerite de Béarn acted as his regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
until he reached his majority.
Gaston and Joan together had six children:
- Gaston II de Foix, Count of Foix, Viscount of Béarn (1308 – 26 September 1343), married in 1327 Eleanore de Comminges (died after 16 May 1365), daughter of Bernard VII, Count of Comminges and Laure de Montfort, by whom he had a son, Gaston III, Count of Foix, Viscount of BéarnGaston III of Foix-BéarnGaston III/X of Foix-Béarn, also Gaston Fébus or Gaston Phoebus was the 11th count of Foix, and viscount of Béarn . Officially, he was Gaston III of Foix and Gaston X of Béarn.-Early life:...
; he also had several illegitimate children by his favourite mistress Marie de Sans de Roncevalles, as well as by other women whose names are not recorded. - Roger Bernard IV de Foix (1310 – after 24 March 1350), married Constanza de Luna (1310 – January 1353), daughter of Artal de Luna and Constanza Perez of Aragon, by whom he had three children.
- Robert de Foix, Bishop of Lavaur
- Margaret of Foix
- Blanche de Foix, married in 1328 Jean de Grailly, Viscount of Castillon, Captal de Buch, by whom she had two children, including Jean de Grailly, Captal de Buch.
- Joan of Foix (died 1358), married Infante Peter of Aragon, Count of Ribagorza y Ampurias, by whom she had three children, including Eleanor of Aragon, Queen of CyprusEleanor of Aragon, Queen of CyprusEleanor of Aragon was Queen consort of Cyprus as the wife of King Peter I of Cyprus. She was a member of the House of Barcelona as the daughter of Peter of Aragon and his wife Joan of Foix.-Queen of Cyprus:...
, titular Queen of JerusalemKingdom of JerusalemThe Kingdom of Jerusalem was a Catholic kingdom established in the Levant in 1099 after the First Crusade. The kingdom lasted nearly two hundred years, from 1099 until 1291 when the last remaining possession, Acre, was destroyed by the Mamluks, but its history is divided into two distinct periods....
.
Imprisonment
Joan's powerful influence over her husband Gaston created permanent conflict with both the local nobility and the administration, who in 1317 issued a request to Parliament in order to discharge her from the guardianship of her children, accusing her of scandalous conduct, dissolutionDecadence
Decadence can refer to a personal trait, or to the state of a society . Used to describe a person's lifestyle. Concise Oxford Dictionary: "a luxurious self-indulgence"...
and profligacy. A charter dated 1317 legally prevented her from having the guardianship of her children. Joan's husband had been killed two years previously on 13 December 1315, at the Battle of Pontoise. In spite of a compromise signed in 1325 in Beaugency
Beaugency
Beaugency is a commune in the Loiret department in north-central France. It is located on the Loire river, upriver from Blois and downriver from Orléans.-History:...
, bitter quarrels became more frequent between Joan and her eldest son Gaston who had succeeded his father as Count of Foix. In 1331, King Philip VI
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...
authorised Gaston to imprison Joan in the Château de Foix
Château de Foix
The Château de Foix is a castle which dominates the town of Foix in the French département of Ariège. An important tourist site, it is known as a centre of the Cathars. It has been listed as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture....
. She was later moved to Orthez
Orthez
Orthez is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France.It lies 40 km NW of Pau on the Southern railway to Bayonne. The town also encompasses the small village of Sainte-Suzanne thus residents of the town are called either Orthéziens or Sainte-Suzannais...
, then to Lourdes
Lourdes
Lourdes is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in south-western France.Lourdes is a small market town lying in the foothills of the Pyrenees, famous for the Marian apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes occurred in 1858 to Bernadette Soubirous...
; finally in 1347, her third eldest son, the Bishop of Lavaur secured her release from prison and she retired to Carbonne
Carbonne
Carbonne is a commune in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern France.-Geography:The A64 autoroute passes near the village, and there is a train station of the railway Toulouse - Bayonne....
. French historian Jules Michelet
Jules Michelet
Jules Michelet was a French historian. He was born in Paris to a family with Huguenot traditions.-Early life:His father was a master printer, not very prosperous, and Jules assisted him in the actual work of the press...
suggested a link between Joan's imprisonment in 1331 and the fact that her brother Robert was at the time being sued for forgery
Forgery
Forgery is the process of making, adapting, or imitating objects, statistics, or documents with the intent to deceive. Copies, studio replicas, and reproductions are not considered forgeries, though they may later become forgeries through knowing and willful misrepresentations. Forging money or...
and accused of practising witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
against the life of King Philip VI.
Joan died on an unknown date sometime after 24 March 1350.