Beatrice of Sicily (1252 – 17 November/12 December 1275) was titular

Latin Empress The following is a list of the Latin empresses consort of Constantinople. Yolanda of Flanders and Marie of Brienne were not only empresses consort but also empresses regent. Catherine I and Catherine II were empresses regnant, not empresses con ...

as the wife of

Philip of Courtenay Philip, also Philip of Courtenay (1243 – 15 December 1283), held the title of Latin Emperor of Constantinople from 1273–1283, although Constantinople had been reinstated since 1261 AD to the Byzantine Empire; he lived in exile and on ...

. Her parents were

Charles I of Sicily Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou, was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the second House of Anjou. He was Count of Provence (1246–85) and Forcalquier (1246–48, 1256–85) i ...

and

Beatrice of Provence Beatrice of Provence (23 September 1267), was ruling Countess of Provence and Forcalquier from 1245 until her death, as well as Countess of Anjou and Maine, Queen of Sicily and Naples by marriage to Charles I of Naples. She was the fourth and ...

. Under the

Treaty of Viterbo The Treaty of Viterbo (or the Treaties of Viterbo) was a pair of agreements made by Charles I of Sicily with Baldwin II of Constantinople and William II Villehardouin, Prince of Achaea, on 24 and 27 May 1267, which transferred much of the rights to ...

(27 May 1267),

Baldwin II of Courtenay Baldwin II, also known as Baldwin of Courtenay (french: Baudouin de Courtenay; late 1217 – October 1273), was the last Latin Emperor ruling from Constantinople. Biography Baldwin II was born in Constantinople (the only Latin emperor to be b ...

transferred much of the rights to the Latin Empire to Charles I.John V.A. Fine, Jr., ''The Late Medieval Balkans'' (1987), page 170 Charles was to be confirmed in possession of

Corfu Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...

and some cities in

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

. He was also given suzerainty over the

Principality of Achaea The Principality of Achaea () or Principality of 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 ...

and sovereignty of the Aegean Islands, excepting those held by

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

and

Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( el, Λέσβος, Lésvos ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with approximately of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece. It is separated from Anatolia, Asia Minor ...

Chios Chios (; el, Χίος, Chíos , traditionally known as Scio in English) is the fifth largest Greek island, situated in the northern Aegean Sea. The island is separated from Turkey by the Chios Strait. Chios is notable for its exports of mastic ...

Samos Samos (, also ; el, Σάμος ) is a Greek island in the eastern Aegean Sea, south of Chios, north of Patmos and the Dodecanese, and off the coast of western Turkey, from which it is separated by the -wide Mycale Strait. It is also a separate ...

, and

Amorgos Amorgos ( el, Αμοργός, ; ) is the easternmost island of the Cyclades island group and the nearest island to the neighboring Dodecanese island group in Greece. Along with 16 neighboring islets, the largest of which (by land area) is Niko ...

. The same treaty arranged the marriage of

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

to the Latin Empire, and Beatrice, second daughter of Charles. If the marriage was childless, Philip's rights would be inherited by Charles I. Beatrice was approximately fifteen-years-old at the time of her betrothal. On 15 October 1273, Beatrice and Philip were married in

Foggia Foggia (, , ; nap, label= Foggiano, Fògge ) is a city and former ''comune'' of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere, also known ...

. The bride was twenty-one-years old and the groom thirty. Her father-in-law died days later. Philip was proclaimed emperor with Beatrice as empress. The marriage was harmonious and produced a daughter,

Catherine I of Courtenay Catherine I, also Catherine of Courtenay (25 November 1274 – 11 October 1307), was the recognised Latin Empress of Constantinople from 1283 to 1307, although she lived in exile and only held authority over Crusader States in Greece. In 1301, sh ...

, born on 25 November 1274. Beatrice died in late 1275 after a short illness.

References

External links

Her profile in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beatrice Of Sicily 1252 births 1275 deaths Capetian House of Anjou Capetian House of Courtenay Latin Empresses of Constantinople 13th-century Italian women Charles I of Anjou Daughters of kings