Philippa of Hainault
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Philippa of Hainault (c. 1314 – August 15, 1369) was the Queen consort of Edward III of England.
Philippa was born in Valenciennes (then in Flanders, now France) and was the daughter of William III, Count of Hainaut and Jeanne of Valois, the granddaughter of Philip III of France.
She married Edward at York Minster, on 24 January 1328, eleven months after his accession to the English throne and, unlike many of her predecessors, she did not alienate the English people by retaining her foreign retinue upon her marriage or bringing large numbers of foreigners to the English court.
Philippa accompanied Edward on his expeditions to the Kingdom of Scotland (1333) and Flanders (1338-40), where she won acclaim for her gentleness and compassion. She is also remembered by history as the tender-hearted woman, who interceded with her husband and persuaded him to spare the lives of the Burghers of Calais whom he had planned to execute as an example to the townspeople. She acted as a regent on several occasions when he was on the continent. It was during one of these times that the Scots invaded. She raised an army and defeated the Scots at Durham in 1346.
Philippa and Edward had fourteen children, including five sons who lived into adulthood and whose rivalry would eventually bring about the long-running civil wars known as the Wars of the Roses. Their sons are listed below:
- Edward, the Black Prince (1330-76)
- Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence (1338-68)
- John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster (1340-99)
- Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York (1341-1402)
- Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester (1355-97)
Another three sons and two daughters died in infancy. There were four surviving daughters, listed below:
- Isabella of England (1332-1379)
- Joan of England (1334-1348)
- Mary Plantagenet (1344-1362)
- Margaret Plantagenet (1346-1361)
Philippa died of dropsy in Windsor Castle, and was buried at Westminster Abbey.
The Queen's College in Oxford is named after her. It was founded by one of her chaplains, Robert de Eglesfield, in her honour.
[edit] Reference
- Salmonson, Jessica Amanda.(1991) The Encyclopedia of Amazons. Paragon House. page 212. ISBN 1-55778-420-5
[edit] See also
| Preceded by Isabella of France |
Queen Consort of England 24 January 1328 - 15 August 1369 |
Succeeded by Anne of Bohemia |
