Beatrice of England

Beatrice of England
Countess of Richmond
Tenure	1268–1275
Born	24 June 1242 Bordeaux, France
Died	24 March 1275 (aged 32) London, England
Burial	Grey Friars Church, London
Spouse	John II, Duke of Brittany
Issue	Arthur II, Duke of Brittany John, 1st Earl of Richmond Marie, Countess of Saint Pol Blanche, Countess of Artois Eleanor of Brittany, Abbess of Fontevrault
House	Plantagenet
Father	Henry III of Winchester, King of England
Mother	Eleanor of Provence

Beatrice of England (24 June 1242^[1] – 24 March 1275), also known as Beatrice de Dreux, was a Princess of England as the daughter of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence. Her siblings were Edward I of England, Margaret, Queen of Scotland, Edmund Crouchback, 1st Earl of Lancaster, Richard of England, John of England, Katherine of England, William of England, and Henry of England. She and her family were members of the Royal house of Plantagenet, which first ruled in the 12th century and was founded by Henry II of England.

Childhood

Beatrice was the second eldest daughter of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence. According to Matthew Paris, she was born in Bordeaux, France on the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (24 June).^[2] Beatrice's childhood was plagued by tragedy, and the stresses of her father's reign coupled with her mother's unpopularity with the English people.

Her oldest brother Edward became dangerously ill when she was very young. Though he recovered, Beatrice's youngest sister Katharine died at a very young age leaving Beatrice's parents grief-stricken. Katharine, who possibly had a degenerative disease that had caused her to become deaf, died at the age of three.

The English were unhappy with King Henry III owing to the influence that Eleanor and her Savoyard kinsmen exercised on the monarchy, and the Barons demanded more power. In 1263, Eleanor was sailing on a barge that was attacked by London citizens. This harsh, bitter dislike created several problems for Henry III and his family. On the other hand, Eleanor and Henry enjoyed a happy marriage, and Beatrice grew up in a loving environment, close to her siblings.

Marriage and issue

At one point, Henry conducted negotiations for Beatrice to marry the king of France and also rejected a proposal that she should wed the son of the King of Norway. When she was eighteen she married John de Dreux, heir to the dukedom of Brittany. It was a love match. Beatrice later changed her name to Beatrice de Dreux, and she and John II had six children:

• Arthur II, Duke of Brittany
• John of Brittany, Earl of Richmond
• Marie of Brittany, Countess of Saint-Pol, wife of Guy III of Châtillon (1268–1339)
• Pierre, Viscount de Leon (1269–1312)
• Blanche of Brittany, wife of Philip of Artois (1271–1327)
• Eleanor of Brittany, Abbess of Fontevrault (1275–1342)

Beatrice

Death

Beatrice died on 24 March 1275 in London, England. Her death was once said to have occurred in childbirth, but the dates do not bear out this theory, which has been disproved in several articles. John II honoured his wife with a chantry, an institutional chapel on private land or within a greater church, which was to be finished when he died, so that he and Beatrice would be together again. Beatrice was buried at Grey Friars Church in Greenwich, London.^[3] Her husband succeeded as duke 11 years after her death, therefore Beatrice was never styled Duchess of Brittany.

Historical overview

Though little information is available concerning Beatrice's activities, she was an important part of English history. Her marriage to John II helped forge an alliance with France, thus placing the Earldom of Richmond under the so-called shield of England.

During Henry's reign, there was much opposition to him in England. At a time when Simon de Montfort wanted to strip the king of some of his power to give more say to the barons, it was necessary for Henry to strengthen his rule via family marriages to useful people. His first daughter had married the King of Scotland, and Beatrice's marriage to John II, who controlled the Earldom of Richmond, gave Henry an additional source of power. Moreover, a substantial number of French nobles came to England and could be appointed to political positions.

When Henry was crowned, very few areas within the Angevin empire (comprising Gascony, Béarn, Angoulême, Saintonge and Agenais), remained loyal to Henry.

The marriage of Beatrice and John II would prove to be useful for Henry III, if only to help Henry recover Poitou. Now Henry had English security and influence on the northern border, and the instance on English overlordship. Though Henry was planning on regaining Poitou, he was defeated after his campaign. Because he could not regain Poitou, his domains were small compared to the Angevin empire. With his various strategies, Henry III reigned over England for 56 years until his death in 1272.

Her descendants include queen consorts Elizabeth Woodville^[4] and Anne of Cleves.

Ancestry

Bibliography

• Boutell, Charles. The Handbook to English Heraldry. University of Michigan, Michigan:
• Reeves and Turner, 1914. 138.
• Cannon, John, and Ralph Griffiths. The Oxford Illustrated History of the British Monarchy. New York, New York: Oxford UP, 1988. 147.
• Crawford, Anne. Letters of Medieval Women. Grand Rapids: Sutton, Limited, 2002. 35.
• French, George R. Shakespeareana Genealogica. Boston, Massachusetts: Macmillan, 1869. 5-30.
• Matthew Paris, Matthew Paris’s English History from the Year 1235 to 1273, trans. JA Giles, vol. 1 (George Bell & Sons, 1889)
• Richardson, Douglas. Plantagenet Ancestry : A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families. Boston: Genealogical Company, Incorporated, 2004. 13-18.
• The Yorkshire Archaeological Society. The Yorkshire Archaeological Journal. Yorkshire: Yorkshire Archaeological Society, 1905. 163.

References

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House of Plantagenet   Henry II of England Wife: Eleanor of Aquitaine William IX, Count of Poitiers Henry the Young King Richard I of England Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany Matilda of England, Duchess of Saxony Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile Joan of England, Queen of Sicily John, King of England Illegitimate: William de Longespée, Earl of Salisbury Geoffrey (archbishop of York)   Henry the Young King Wife: Margaret of France, Queen of England and Hungary William Plantagenet (died in infancy)   Richard I of England Wife: Berengaria of Navarre Illegitimate: Philip of Cognac   John, King of England Wife: Isabella of Angoulême Henry III of England Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall Joan of England, Queen of Scotland Isabella of England Eleanor of Leicester Illegitimate: Joan, Lady of Wales Richard FitzRoy Oliver FitzRoy Geoffrey FitzRoy John FitzRoy Henry FitzRoy Osbert Gifford Eudes FitzRoy Bartholomew FitzRoy Maud FitzRoy Isabel FitzRoy Philip FitzRoy William de Forz   Henry III of England Wife: Eleanor of Provence Edward I of England Margaret of England Beatrice of England Edmund Crouchback Katherine of England   Edward I of England Wives: Eleanor of Castile Margaret of France, Queen of England Eleanor of England, Countess of Bar Joan, Countess of Hertford and Gloucester Alphonso, Earl of Chester Margaret of England, Duchess of Brabant Mary of Woodstock Elizabeth of Rhuddlan Edward II of England Thomas of Brotherton, 1st Earl of Norfolk Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent   Edward II of England Wife: Isabella of France Edward III of England John of Eltham, Earl of Cornwall Eleanor of Woodstock Joan of the Tower   Edward III of England Wife: Philippa of Hainault Edward, the Black Prince Isabella de Coucy Joan of England (1335–1348) Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York Mary of Waltham Margaret, Countess of Pembroke Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester   Richard II of England Wives: Anne of Bohemia Isabella of Valois   Henry IV of England Wives: Mary de Bohun Joan of Navarre, Queen of England Henry V of England Thomas of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Clarence John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford Humphrey of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Gloucester Blanche of England Philippa of England   Henry V of England Wife: Catherine of Valois Henry VI of England   Henry VI of England Wife: Margaret of Anjou Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales   Edward IV of England Wife: Elizabeth Woodville Elizabeth of York Mary of York Cecily of York Edward V of England Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York Anne of York, Lady Howard Catherine of York Bridget of York Illegitimate: Elizabeth Arthur Plantagenet, 1st Viscount Lisle Grace Mary John Tuchet, 6th Baron Audley unnamed   Edward V of England no consort or issue   Richard III of England Wife: Anne Neville Edward of Middleham, Prince of Wales Illegitimate: John of Gloucester Katherine, Countess of Pembroke Richard of Eastwell Category