John II of Anjou ( Nancy, August 2, 1426 – December 16, 1470,

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

) was

Duke of Lorraine The kings and dukes of Lorraine have held different posts under different governments over different regions, since its creation as the kingdom of Lotharingia by the Treaty of Prüm, in 855. The first rulers of the newly established region were ...

from 1453 to his death. He was the son of

René of Anjou René of Anjou (; ; 16 January 1409 – 10 July 1480) was Duke of Anjou and Count of Provence from 1434 to 1480, who also reigned as King of Naples from 1435 to 1442 (then Aragonese conquest of Naples, deposed). Having spent his last years in Aix ...

and Isabella, Duchess of Lorraine. He was married to Marie de Bourbon, daughter of

Charles I, Duke of Bourbon Charles de Bourbon (1401 – 4 December 1456) was the oldest son of John I, Duke of Bourbon and Marie, Duchess of Auvergne. Biography Charles was Count of Clermont-en-Beauvaisis from 1424, and Duke of Bourbon and Auvergne from 1434 to his dea ...

Duchy

John inherited the duchy from his mother, Duchess Isabelle, during the life of his father, Duke

, also Duke of Lorraine and titular

king of Naples The following is a list of rulers of the Kingdom of Naples, from its first Sicilian Vespers, separation from the Kingdom of Sicily to its merger with the same into the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Kingdom of Naples (1282–1501) House of Anjou ...

. As

heir-apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

of Naples, he was styled the

Duke of Calabria Duke of Calabria was the traditional title of the heir apparent of the Kingdom of Naples after the accession of Robert of Naples. It was also adopted by the heads of certain Houses that had once claimed the Kingdom of Naples in lieu of the royal ...

and spent most of his time engaging in plots for the Angevin recovery of Naples. In 1460, he decisively defeated the

Ferdinand Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "courage" or "ready, prepared" related to Old High German "to risk, ventu ...

Nola Nola is a town and a municipality in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania, southern Italy. It lies on the plain between Mount Vesuvius and the Apennines. It is traditionally credited as the diocese that introduced bells to Christian worship. ...

, but was unable to prevent others from coming to his aid. He was defeated at battle of Troia in 1462 and at

Ischia Ischia ( , , ) is a volcanic island in the Tyrrhenian Sea. It lies at the northern end of the Gulf of Naples, about from the city of Naples. It is the largest of the Phlegrean Islands. Although inhabited since the Bronze Age, as a Ancient G ...

in 1465. In 1466, the

Catalans Catalans ( Catalan, French and Occitan: ''catalans''; ; ; or ) are a Romance ethnic group native to Catalonia, who speak Catalan. The current official category of "Catalans" is that of the citizens of Catalonia, a nationality and autono ...

chose his father as King of Aragon, and he was created

Prince of Girona 200px, Shield of Princes of Girona The Prince or Princess of Girona (, ) is one of the titles of the heir of the Crown of Spain. The title was historically accorded to the heir apparent or heir presumptive to the Crown of Aragon. Current legis ...

, as

. He went into Catalonia to press the family's claims, but died, supposedly by poison, in

Personal

In 1444, he married Marie de Bourbon (1428–1448), daughter of

and

Agnes of Burgundy, Duchess of Bourbon Agnes of Burgundy (1407 – 1 December 1476), duchess of Bourbon (Bourbonnais) and Auvergne, countess of Clermont, was the daughter of John the Fearless (1371–1419) and Margaret of Bavaria. Her maternal grandparents were Albert I, Duke of Ba ...

(and granddaughter to

John the Fearless John I (; ; 28 May 1371 – 10 September 1419) was a scion of the French royal family who ruled the Burgundian State from 1404 until his assassination in 1419. He played a key role in French national affairs during the early 15th century, part ...

, and niece to

Philip the Good Philip III the Good (; ; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) ruled as Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death in 1467. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonged. During his reign, ...

, both Dukes of Burgundy and enemies and allies to her father). Marie was from the

House of Bourbon The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a dynasty that originated in the Kingdom of France as a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Kingdom of Navarre, Navarre in the 16th century. A br ...

and was the only

Duchess consort of Lorraine The royal consorts of the rulers of the Lorraine region have held varying titles, over a region that has varied in scope since its creation as the kingdom of Lotharingia by the Treaty of Prüm, in 855. The first rulers of the newly established re ...

from the reign of Valois-Anjou. The marriage contract was signed in April 1437, however, the ceremony took place around 1444 when she was older and would be able to consummate the marriage. Marie and John had the following issue: # Isabelle (1445–1445) # Jean (1445–1471), # René (1446–1446) # Marie (1447–1447) #

Nicholas Nicholas is a male name, the Anglophone version of an ancient Greek name in use since antiquity, and cognate with the modern Greek , . It originally derived from a combination of two Ancient Greek, Greek words meaning 'victory' and 'people'. In ...

(1448–1473) Marie died giving birth to her last and only surviving child

; she died on July 7, 1448, and was buried at

Meurthe-et-Moselle Meurthe-et-Moselle () is a '' département'' in the Grand Est region of France, named after the rivers Meurthe and Moselle. Its prefecture and largest city is Nancy and it borders the departments of Meuse to the west, Vosges to the south, ...

Lorraine, France. John also had several illegitimate children: * John (d. 1504), Count of Briey, married Nancy St. Georges * Albert, seigneur d'Essey * Jeanne d'Abancourt, married Achille, Bastard of Beauveu * a daughter named Marguerite * another daughter, married Jean d'Ecosse

References

Sources

* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:John Ii, Duke Of Lorraine 1426 births 1470 deaths John 2 of Lorraine

John 2 John 2 is the second chapter of the Gospel of John in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It contains the famous stories of the miracle of Jesus turning water into wine and Jesus expelling the money changers from the Temple. The author of ...

Sons of kings Heirs apparent who never acceded

Duchy

Personal

See also

References

Sources