Yolanda of Lusignan or Yolande I de Lusignan, Countess of La Marche (24 March 1257 – 30 September 1314) was a French noblewoman and peeress. In 1308, she succeeded her brother Guy I as

suo jure ''Suo jure'' is a Latin phrase, used in English to mean 'in his own right' or 'in her own right'. In most nobility-related contexts, it means 'in her own right', since in those situations the phrase is normally used of women; in practice, especi ...

Dame of Lusignan, of Couhé and of Peyrat, and ''suo jure''

Countess of La Marche The County of La Marche (; oc, la Marcha) was a medieval French county, approximately corresponding to the modern ''département'' of Creuse. La Marche first appeared as a separate fief about the middle of the 10th century, when William III, ...

, but not as Countess of Angoulême since after her brother's death the county was sold by her sisters,

Joan Joan may refer to: People and fictional characters * Joan (given name), including a list of women, men and fictional characters *:Joan of Arc, a French military heroine * Joan (surname) Weather events *Tropical Storm Joan (disambiguation), multip ...

and Isabelle, to King Philip IV and annexed to the French Crown. Yolanda was also the heiress of

Fougères Fougères (; br, Felger; Gallo: ''Foujerr'') is a commune and a sub-prefecture of the Ille-et-Vilaine department in the region of Brittany in northwestern France. As of 2017, Fougères had 20,418 inhabitants. The Fougères area comprises appr ...

, which she succeeded to upon her mother's death sometime after 1273.

Life

Yolanda was born in

Angoulême Angoulême (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Engoulaeme''; oc, Engoleime) is a communes of France, commune, the Prefectures of France, prefecture of the Charente Departments of France, department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of southwestern Franc ...

, France on 24 March 1257. She was the eldest child of

Hugh XII of Lusignan Hugh XII de Lusignan, Hugh VII of La Marche or Hugh III of Angoulême (c. 1235/1240 – after 25 August 1270). He was the son of Hugh XI of Lusignan and Yolande of Brittany. He succeeded his father as seigneur of Lusignan, Couhé, and Peyrat, Coun ...

, Seigneur de Lusignan, Couhe, et de Peyrat,

Count of La Marche The County of La Marche (; oc, la Marcha) was a medieval French county, approximately corresponding to the modern ''département'' of Creuse. La Marche first appeared as a separate fief about the middle of the 10th century, when William III, D ...

Count of Angoulême Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

, (died in 1270 on Crusade) and

Jeanne de Fougères Jeanne may refer to: Places * Jeanne (crater), on Venus People * Jeanne (given name) * Joan of Arc (Jeanne d'Arc, 1412–1431) * Joanna of Flanders (1295–1374) * Joan, Duchess of Brittany (1319–1384) * Ruth Stuber Jeanne (1910–2004), Amer ...

, Dame de

. She had two brothers and three sisters.

Reign

Yolanda succeeded as the heiress of Fougères upon her mother's death which occurred sometime after 1273. In 1308, Yolanda inherited her brother Guy's titles, becoming ''suo jure'' Countess of La Marche, Dame of Lusignan, of Couhe, and of Peyrat. His county of Angoulême did not pass to her as it had been sold by her sisters after Guy's death to King Philip IV, and annexed to the French crown. In 1270, when she was thirteen, Yolanda's father was killed while on

Crusade The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were i ...

with King

Louis IX of France Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), commonly known as Saint Louis or Louis the Saint, was King of France from 1226 to 1270, and the most illustrious of the Direct Capetians. He was crowned in Reims at the age of 12, following the ...

Death

Following her death on 30 September 1314, the

county of La Marche The County of La Marche (; oc, la Marcha) was a medieval French county, approximately corresponding to the modern ''département'' of Creuse. La Marche first appeared as a separate fief about the middle of the 10th century, when William III, D ...

was annexed by King

Philip IV of France Philip IV (April–June 1268 – 29 November 1314), called Philip the Fair (french: Philippe le Bel), was King of France from 1285 to 1314. By virtue of his marriage with Joan I of Navarre, he was also King of Navarre as Philip I from 12 ...

and given as an

appanage An appanage, or apanage (; french: apanage ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture. It was common in much o ...

to Philip's son

Charles IV of France Charles IV (18/19 June 1294 – 1 February 1328), called the Fair (''le Bel'') in France and the Bald (''el Calvo'') in Navarre, was last king of the direct line of the House of Capet, King of France and King of Navarre (as Charles I) from 132 ...

Issue

On an unknown date before 1281, she married her first husband, Elie Rudel, Seigneur de Pons, Lord of Montignac and by him she had two children: Jean Baptiste Pierre Jullien de Courcelles, ''Histoire généalogique et héraldique des pairs de France: des grands dignitaires de la couronne, des principales familles nobles du royaume et des maisons princières de l'Europe, précédée de la généalogie de la maison de France'', Volume 5 (Google eBook), 1825 * Renaud IV de Pons and de Bergerac (born before 1282–1308), married Isabeau de Levis by whom he had issue * Yolande de Pons (born before 1290–?), married Foulques III, Baron de Matha by whom she had issue. Yolanda married secondly Robert, Seigneur de Mathe.

Sources

# Les Sires de Pons et leurs Alliances (dont la maison de Rabaine). #Medieval Lands "Angoulême".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yolanda Of Lusignan 1257 births 1314 deaths People from Angoulême 13th-century French people 14th-century French people Marche, Countess of La, Yolanda of Lusignan House of Lusignan House de Pons 13th-century women rulers 14th-century women rulers 13th-century French women 14th-century French women