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Margaret of France ( – 14 February 1318) was
Queen of England The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies (the Bailiwi ...
as the second wife of King
Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vas ...
. She was a daughter of
Philip III of France Philip III (1 May 1245 – 5 October 1285), called the Bold (french: le Hardi), was King of France from 1270 until his death in 1285. His father, Louis IX, died in Tunis during the Eighth Crusade. Philip, who was accompanying him, returned ...
and Maria of Brabant.


Childhood

Margaret was the daughter of King
Philip III of France Philip III (1 May 1245 – 5 October 1285), called the Bold (french: le Hardi), was King of France from 1270 until his death in 1285. His father, Louis IX, died in Tunis during the Eighth Crusade. Philip, who was accompanying him, returned ...
and his second wife, Maria of Brabant. King Philip died when Margaret was six years old and she grew up under guidance of her mother and Queen
Joan I of Navarre Joan I (14 January 1273 – 31 March/2 April 1305) ( eu, Joana) was Queen of Navarre and Countess of Champagne from 1274 until 1305; she was also Queen of France by marriage to King Philip IV. She founded the College of Navarre in Paris in 130 ...
, the wife of her half-brother King Philip IV.


Marriage negotiations

The death of his beloved first wife,
Eleanor of Castile Eleanor of Castile (1241 – 28 November 1290) was Queen of England as the first wife of Edward I, whom she married as part of a political deal to affirm English sovereignty over Gascony. The marriage was known to be particularly close, and ...
, in 1290, left King
Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a va ...
grief-stricken. He was at the time at war with France and Scotland. He and Eleanor had only one surviving son,
Edward Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sax ...
, and so the king was anxious to remarry to have more sons. In summer of 1291, Edward betrothed his son to Blanche, half-sister to Margaret and Philip IV, in order to achieve peace with France. However, having been told of Blanche's renowned beauty, Edward decided to have his son's bride for his own and sent emissaries to France. Philip IV agreed to have Blanche marry Edward on the conditions that a truce would be concluded between the two countries, and that Edward would give up the province of Gascony. Edward agreed, and sent his brother
Edmund Crouchback Edmund, Earl of Lancaster and Earl of Leicester (16 January 12455 June 1296) nicknamed Edmund Crouchback was a member of the House of Plantagenet. He was the second surviving son of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence. In his chi ...
,
Earl of Lancaster The title of Earl of Lancaster was created in the Peerage of England in 1267. It was succeeded by the title Duke of Lancaster in 1351, which expired in 1361. (The most recent creation of the ducal title merged with the Crown in 1413.) King Henry ...
, to fetch the new bride. Edward had been deceived, for Blanche was to be married to Rudolph, the eldest son of King
Albert I of Germany Albert I of Habsburg (german: Albrecht I.) (July 12551 May 1308) was a Duke of Austria and Styria from 1282 and King of Germany from 1298 until his assassination. He was the eldest son of King Rudolf I of Germany and his first wife Gertrude o ...
. Instead, Philip IV offered her younger sister Margaret to marry Edward (then 55). Upon hearing this, Edward declared war on France, refusing to marry Margaret. After five years, a
truce A ceasefire (also known as a truce or armistice), also spelled cease fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be between state ac ...
was agreed upon under the influence of
Pope Boniface VIII Pope Boniface VIII ( la, Bonifatius PP. VIII; born Benedetto Caetani, c. 1230 – 11 October 1303) was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 December 1294 to his death in 1303. The Caetani family was of baronial ...
. A series of treaties in the first half of 1299 provided terms for a double marriage: Edward I would marry Margaret and his son would marry Isabella, Philip IV's only surviving daughter. Additionally, the English monarchy would regain the key territory of
Guyenne Guyenne or Guienne (, ; oc, Guiana ) was an old French province which corresponded roughly to the Roman province of '' Aquitania Secunda'' and the archdiocese of Bordeaux. The name "Guyenne" comes from ''Aguyenne'', a popular transformation o ...
and receive £15,000 owed to Margaret as well as the return of Eleanor of Castile's lands in Ponthieu and Montreuil as a
dower Dower is a provision accorded traditionally by a husband or his family, to a wife for her support should she become widowed. It was settled on the bride (being gifted into trust) by agreement at the time of the wedding, or as provided by law. ...
first for Margaret and then Isabella.


Queenship

Edward was then 60 years old, at least 40 years older than his bride. The wedding took place at
Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of t ...
on 10 September 1299. Margaret was never crowned due to financial constraints, being the first uncrowned queen since the
Conquest Conquest is the act of military subjugation of an enemy by force of arms. Military history provides many examples of conquest: the Roman conquest of Britain, the Mauryan conquest of Afghanistan and of vast areas of the Indian subcontinent, ...
. This in no way lessened her dignity as the king's wife, however, for she used the royal title in her letters and documents, and appeared publicly wearing a crown even though she had not received one during a formal rite of investiture. Edward soon returned to the Scottish border to continue his campaigns and left Margaret in London, but she had become pregnant quickly after the wedding. After several months, bored and lonely, the young queen decided to join her husband. Nothing could have pleased the king more, for Margaret's actions reminded him of his first wife Eleanor, who had had two of her sixteen children abroad. In less than a year Margaret gave birth to a son,
Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...
, who was named after
Thomas Becket Thomas Becket (), also known as Saint Thomas of Canterbury, Thomas of London and later Thomas à Becket (21 December 1119 or 1120 – 29 December 1170), was an English nobleman who served as Lord Chancellor from 1155 to 1162, and the ...
, since she had prayed to him during her pregnancy. The next year she gave birth to another son,
Edmund Edmund is a masculine given name or surname in the English language. The name is derived from the Old English elements ''ēad'', meaning "prosperity" or "riches", and ''mund'', meaning "protector". Persons named Edmund include: People Kings an ...
. Many who fell under the king's wrath were saved from too stern a punishment by the queen's influence over her husband, and the statement, ''Pardoned solely on the intercession of our dearest consort, queen Margaret of England'', appears. In 1305, the young queen acted as a mediator between her step-son and husband, reconciling the heir apparent to his aging father, and calming her husband's wrath. She and her stepson, who was only two years younger than she, also became fond of each other: he once made her a gift of an expensive ruby and gold ring, and she on one occasion rescued many of the prince's friends from the wrath of the king. Margaret favoured the
Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...
order and was a benefactress of a new foundation at
Newgate Newgate was one of the historic seven gates of the London Wall around the City of London and one of the six which date back to Roman times. Newgate lay on the west side of the wall and the road issuing from it headed over the River Fleet to Mid ...
. She employed the minstrel Guy de Psaltery and both she and her husband liked to play chess. The mismatched couple were blissfully happy. When her sister Blanche died in 1305, Edward ordered full court mourning to please his wife. He had realised the wife he had gained was "a pearl of great price" as Margaret was respected for her beauty, virtue, and piety. The same year Margaret gave birth to a girl, Eleanor, named in honour of Edward's first wife, a choice which surprised many, and showed Margaret's unjealous nature. In 1307, when Edward went on summer campaign to Scotland, Margaret accompanied him. Edward died in
Burgh by Sands Burgh by Sands () is a village and civil parish in the City of Carlisle district of Cumbria, England, situated near the Solway Firth. The parish includes the village of Burgh by Sands along with Longburgh, Dykesfield, Boustead Hill, Moorhous ...
.


Widowhood

Margaret never remarried after Edward's death in 1307, despite being only 26 when widowed. She was alleged to have stated that, "when Edward died, all men died for me". Margaret was not pleased when Edward II elevated
Piers Gaveston Piers Gaveston, Earl of Cornwall (c. 1284 – 19 June 1312) was an English nobleman of Gascon origin, and the favourite of Edward II of England. At a young age, Gaveston made a good impression on King Edward I, who assigned him to the househ ...
to become
Earl of Cornwall The title of Earl of Cornwall was created several times in the Peerage of England before 1337, when it was superseded by the title Duke of Cornwall, which became attached to heirs-apparent to the throne. Condor of Cornwall * Condor of Cornwall, ...
upon his father's death, since the title had been meant for one of her own sons. She attended the new king's wedding to her half-niece Isabella, and a silver casket was made with both their arms. After Isabella's coronation, Margaret retired to Marlborough Castle (which was by this time a
dower house A dower house is usually a moderately large house available for use by the widow of the previous owner of an English, Scottish or Welsh estate. The widow, often known as the "dowager", usually moves into the dower house from the larger family h ...
), but she stayed in touch with the new queen and with her half-brother Philip IV by letter during the confusing times leading up to Gaveston's death in 1312. Margaret, too, was a victim of Gaveston's influence over her stepson. Edward II gave several of her dower lands to the favourite, including
Berkhamsted Castle Berkhamsted Castle is a Norman motte-and-bailey castle in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire. The castle was built to obtain control of a key route between London and the Midlands during the Norman conquest of England in the 11th century. Robert of ...
. In May 1308, an anonymous informer reported that Margaret had provided £40,000 along with Philip IV to support the English barons against Gaveston. Due to this action, Gaveston was briefly exiled and Margaret remained fairly unmolested by the upstart until his death in June 1312. She was present at the birth of
Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring r ...
in November 1312. On 14 February 1318 she died in her castle at Marlborough. Dressed in a Franciscan habit, she was buried at
Christ Church Greyfriars Christ Church Greyfriars, also known as Christ Church Newgate Street, was a church in Newgate Street, opposite St Paul's Cathedral in the City of London. Established as a monastic church in the thirteenth century, it became a parish church ...
in London, a church she had generously endowed. Her tomb was destroyed during the Reformation.


Issue

In all, Margaret gave birth to three children: *
Thomas of Brotherton, 1st Earl of Norfolk Thomas of Brotherton, 1st Earl of Norfolk (1 June 13004 August 1338), was the fifth son of King Edward I of England (1239–1307), and the eldest child by his second wife, Margaret of France, the daughter of King Philip III of France. He was, ...
(1 June 1300 – 4 August 1338) *
Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent (5 August 130119 March 1330), whose seat was Arundel Castle in Sussex, was the sixth son of King Edward I of England, and the second by his second wife Margaret of France, and was a younger half-brother o ...
(5 August 1301 – 19 March 1330) * Eleanor (4 May 1306 – 1311) Died at Amesbury Abbey, buried at Beaulieu Abbey.


Genealogical table


References


Sources

* * * *200 * * * * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Margaret of France, Queen of England 1270s births Year of birth uncertain 1318 deaths English royal consorts French princesses House of Capet Irish royal consorts Duchesses of Aquitaine 13th-century French people 14th-century French people 13th-century English people 14th-century English people 13th-century French women 14th-century French women 13th-century English women 14th-century English women Edward I of England Daughters of kings