Marie of Valois, Prioress of Poissy
Encyclopedia
Marie of Valois was a French Princess, the daughter of Charles VI of France
and his wife Isabeau of Bavaria
. She was a member of the House of Valois and became a nun
.
and was the sixth of twelve children, eight of them including Marie lived to adulthood. Marie was a sister of Charles VII of France
, Isabella, Queen of England, Michelle, Duchess of Burgundy
, Catherine, Queen of England
and Joanna, Duchess of Brittany.
Marie's maternal grandparents were Stephen III, Duke of Bavaria
and his first wife Taddea Visconti
. Marie's paternal grandparents were Charles V of France
and his wife Joanna of Bourbon
.
Marie's father was known to suffer from a mental illness
, which he had inherited from his own mother Queen Joanna who had herself inherited from her grandfather Louis I, Duke of Bourbon
. Isabeau had destined her daughter for the church, possibly because she saw her husband's madness as a punishment from God.
Marie entered the convent of Poissy
on the 8 September 1397, taking her vows as a nun on the 26 May 1408. She was the only one of the children that had a religious life, the rest of her surviving siblings were married off.
At the time Marie entered the convent the prioress was her great-aunt, Marie of Bourbon, who was the sister of the younger Marie's paternal grandmother, Joanna of Bourbon
. Entering the convent with young Marie as a companion was another Marie, the daughter of Christine de Pizan
. Christine described a visit to Poissy in 1400 in her work "Le Livre du Dit de Poissy," where she was greeted "joyously and tenderly" by the seven year old Princess Marie and the Prioress. Christine also described Marie's lodgings as befitting a royal princess.
Marie later became Prioress of the convent. She lived out the rest of her life here. She died of the Black Death
on 19 August 1438 at the Palais Royal
, Paris
and is buried at the convent. After her death, her brother King Charles was the only surviving sibling.
Charles VI of France
Charles VI , called the Beloved and the Mad , was the King of France from 1380 to 1422, as a member of the House of Valois. His bouts with madness, which seem to have begun in 1392, led to quarrels among the French royal family, which were exploited by the neighbouring powers of England and Burgundy...
and his wife Isabeau of Bavaria
Isabeau of Bavaria
Isabeau of Bavaria was Queen consort of France as spouse of King Charles VI of France, a member of the Valois Dynasty...
. She was a member of the House of Valois and became a nun
Nun
A nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
.
Life
Marie was born at the Bois de VincennesBois de Vincennes
The Bois de Vincennes is a park in the English landscape manner to the east of Paris. The park is named after the nearby town of Vincennes....
and was the sixth of twelve children, eight of them including Marie lived to adulthood. Marie was a sister of Charles VII of France
Charles VII of France
Charles VII , called the Victorious or the Well-Served , was King of France from 1422 to his death, though he was initially opposed by Henry VI of England, whose Regent, the Duke of Bedford, ruled much of France including the capital, Paris...
, Isabella, Queen of England, Michelle, Duchess of Burgundy
Michelle of Valois
Michelle of France was a Duchess consort of Burgundy. She was a daughter of Charles VI of France and Isabella of Bavaria-Ingolstadt...
, Catherine, Queen of England
Catherine of Valois
Catherine of France was the Queen consort of England from 1420 until 1422. She was the daughter of King Charles VI of France, wife of Henry V of Monmouth, King of England, mother of Henry VI, King of England and King of France, and through her secret marriage with Owen Tudor, the grandmother of...
and Joanna, Duchess of Brittany.
Marie's maternal grandparents were Stephen III, Duke of Bavaria
Stephen III, Duke of Bavaria
Duke Stephen III of Bavaria was a Duke of Bavaria since 1375. He was the eldest son of Stephen II and Elizabeth of Sicily.-Family:...
and his first wife Taddea Visconti
Taddea Visconti
Taddea Visconti, Duchess of Bavaria was an Italian noblewoman of the Visconti family who ruled Milan from 1277 to 1447...
. Marie's paternal grandparents were 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...
and his wife Joanna of Bourbon
Joanna of Bourbon
Joanna of Bourbon was consort to Charles V of France.Born in Vincennes, Joanna was a daughter of Peter I, Duke of Bourbon and Isabella of Valois, a half-sister of Philip VI of France as the daughter of Charles of Valois and his third wife Mahaut of Châtillon.-Family:Joanna gave birth to nine...
.
Marie's father was known to suffer from a mental illness
Mental illness
A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
, which he had inherited from his own mother Queen Joanna who had herself inherited from her grandfather Louis I, Duke of Bourbon
Louis I, Duke of Bourbon
Louis I de Bourbon, le Boiteux, the Lame was Count of Clermont-en-Beauvaisis and La Marche, and the first Duke of Bourbon.-Life:...
. Isabeau had destined her daughter for the church, possibly because she saw her husband's madness as a punishment from God.
Marie entered the convent of Poissy
Poissy
Poissy is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris from the center.In 1561 it was the site of a fruitless Catholic-Huguenot conference, the Colloquy at Poissy...
on the 8 September 1397, taking her vows as a nun on the 26 May 1408. She was the only one of the children that had a religious life, the rest of her surviving siblings were married off.
At the time Marie entered the convent the prioress was her great-aunt, Marie of Bourbon, who was the sister of the younger Marie's paternal grandmother, Joanna of Bourbon
Joanna of Bourbon
Joanna of Bourbon was consort to Charles V of France.Born in Vincennes, Joanna was a daughter of Peter I, Duke of Bourbon and Isabella of Valois, a half-sister of Philip VI of France as the daughter of Charles of Valois and his third wife Mahaut of Châtillon.-Family:Joanna gave birth to nine...
. Entering the convent with young Marie as a companion was another Marie, the daughter of Christine de Pizan
Christine de Pizan
Christine de Pizan was a Venetian-born late medieval author who challenged misogyny and stereotypes prevalent in the male-dominated medieval culture. As a poet, she was well known and highly regarded in her own day; she completed 41 works during her 30 year career , and can be regarded as...
. Christine described a visit to Poissy in 1400 in her work "Le Livre du Dit de Poissy," where she was greeted "joyously and tenderly" by the seven year old Princess Marie and the Prioress. Christine also described Marie's lodgings as befitting a royal princess.
Marie later became Prioress of the convent. She lived out the rest of her life here. She died of the Black Death
Black Death
The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...
on 19 August 1438 at the Palais Royal
Palais Royal
The Palais-Royal, originally called the Palais-Cardinal, is a palace and an associated garden located in the 1st arrondissement of Paris...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and is buried at the convent. After her death, her brother King Charles was the only surviving sibling.