Yolande of Dreux (20 March 1263 – 2 August 1330) was a sovereign Countess of Montfort-l'Amaury from 1311 until 1322. Through her first marriage to

Alexander III of Scotland Alexander III (; Modern Gaelic: ; 4 September 1241 – 19 March 1286) was King of Alba (Scotland) from 1249 until his death. He concluded the Treaty of Perth, by which Scotland acquired sovereignty over the Western Isles and the Isle of Man. ...

, Yolande became Queen of Scotland. Through her second marriage to

Arthur II, Duke of Brittany Arthur II (25 July 1261 – 27 August 1312), of the House of Dreux, was Duke of Brittany from 1305 to his death. He was the first son of John II and Beatrice, daughter of Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence. After he inherited the duc ...

, she became

Duchess of Brittany This is a list of rulers of Brittany. In different epochs the rulers of Brittany were kings, princes, and dukes. The Breton ruler was sometimes elected, sometimes attained the position by conquest or intrigue, or by hereditary right. Hereditary ...

Life

Early life

She was the daughter of Robert IV,

Count of Dreux The Counts of Dreux were a noble family of France, who took their title from the chief stronghold of their domain, the château of Dreux, which lies near the boundary between Normandy and the Île-de-France. They are notable for inheriting the Du ...

, and Beatrice, Countess of Montfort. Her father was a

patrilineal Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritanc ...

descendant of King

Louis VI of France Louis VI (1 December 1081 – 1 August 1137), called the Fat () or the Fighter (), was List of French monarchs, King of the Franks from 1108 to 1137. Like his father Philip I of France, Philip I, Louis made a lasting contribution to centralizing ...

, making her a member of a cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty with powerful connections.

Queen of Scotland

In 1281, King Alexander III of Scotland lost his son David and two other children in the two following years, leaving his granddaughter,

Margaret, Maid of Norway Margaret (, ; March or April 1283 – September 1290), known as the Maid of Norway, was the queen-designate of Scotland from 1286 until her death. As she was never crowned, her status as monarch is uncertain and has been debated by historia ...

, as his heir presumptive. He needed to remarry to have a new heir to the throne. Yolande was daughter of the stepdaughter of Jean de Brienne, the second spouse of king Alexander's mother, queen dowager Marie de Coucy, and considered a suitable match. Yolande was related to her husband, Alexander III, through shared ancestry in the French noble houses of Coucy and Dreux. In addition to providing an heir for the

Kingdom of Scotland The Kingdom of Scotland was a sovereign state in northwest Europe, traditionally said to have been founded in 843. Its territories expanded and shrank, but it came to occupy the northern third of the island of Great Britain, sharing a Anglo-Sc ...

, Alexander's marriage to Yolande represented a move to distance Alexander from his neighbour

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots (Latin: Malleus Scotorum), was King of England from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he was Lord of Ireland, and from 1254 ...

and to emphasize Scottish independence from England. An embassy was sent from Scotland in February 1285 and returned with Yolande in the company of her brother John. The marriage was celebrated on 15 October 1285 at

Jedburgh Abbey Jedburgh Abbey, a ruined Augustinians, Augustinian abbey which was founded in the 12th century, is situated in the town of Jedburgh, in the Scottish Borders, north of the border with England at Carter Bar. History Towards the middle of the 9th ...

, attended by a great many nobles of France and Scotland. Alexander died on either 18 March or 19 March 1286, after falling from his horse, while riding from his court at

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

to join Yolande at

Kinghorn Kinghorn (; ) is a town and parish in Fife, Scotland. A seaside resort with two beaches, Kinghorn Beach and Pettycur Bay, plus a fishing port, it stands on the north shore of the Firth of Forth, opposite Edinburgh. Known as the place where K ...

. Following his death, queen dowager Yolande moved to Stirling Castle and declared that she was pregnant. The Guardians of Scotland were elected by a parliament held at Scone, Perth and Kinross on 2 April or 28 April 1286 and swore to govern the kingdom until Alexander's declared heir Margaret of Norway arrived to take the throne or Yolande gave birth to a child who would be preferred over Margaret. It is unclear what happened to her pregnancy; either she had a

miscarriage Miscarriage, also known in medical terms as a spontaneous abortion, is an end to pregnancy resulting in the loss and expulsion of an embryo or fetus from the womb before it can fetal viability, survive independently. Miscarriage before 6 weeks ...

, or the baby was stillborn or died shortly after birth. However, by one account the Guardians gathered at

Clackmannan Clackmannan ( ; , perhaps meaning "Stone of Manau"), is a small town and civil parish set in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. Situated within the Forth Valley, Clackmannan is south-east of Alloa and south of Tillicoultry. The town is within ...

on Saint Catherine's Day – 25 November 1286 – to witness the birth, but the child was

stillborn Stillbirth is typically defined as fetal death at or after 20 or 28 weeks of pregnancy, depending on the source. It results in a baby born without signs of life. A stillbirth can often result in the feeling of guilt or grief in the mother. T ...

. Tradition says the baby was buried at Cambuskenneth. After the queen dowager's pregnancy did not result in a living child, the council began preparations for Margaret of Norway to be taken to Scotland as their new sovereign. Queen dowager Yolande remained in Scotland for a couple of years supported by her dower provisions and living possibly at Stirling Castle: it is known that she was still in Scotland at least as late as in 1288. At some point, she returned to France.

Duchess of Brittany and Countess of Montfort

In May 1294, Yolande married

. Together they had at least six children. Arthur died in 1312, being succeeded by his son

John III, Duke of Brittany John III ''the Good'' (in Breton ''Yann III'', in French ''Jean III''; 8 March 128630 April 1341) was Duke of Brittany, from 1312 to his death and 5th Earl of Richmond from 1334 to his death. He was the son of Arthur II, Duke of Brittany, and ...

. Yolande succeeded her mother 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 ...

'' Countess of Montfort in 1311. She continued to manage her Scottish affairs: as late as shortly before her death, she is noted to have sent a knight to Scotland to see to her dower lands. Yolande died on 2 August 1330 in the convent of Port-Royal des Champs outside of Paris. Her county of Montfort passed to her son John, who would later fight for his claim to his father's duchy in the

Breton War of Succession The War of the Breton Succession (, ) or Breton Civil War was a conflict between the Counts of Blois and the Montforts of Brittany for control of the Duchy of Brittany, then a fief of the Kingdom of France. It was fought between 1341 and ...

Issue

Yolande and Arthur had at least six children: *

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, born c. 1294, later Count of Montfort – known as ''Jean de Montfort'' * Beatrice, born c. 1295, married Guy X of Laval * Joan, born c. 1296–1364, married Robert, son of Robert III of Flanders * Alice, born c. 1297–1377, married Bouchard VI of Vendôme * Blanche, born c. 1300, died young * Marie, born c. 1302, entered a convent

Note

References

Sources

* * * Macdougall, Norman, "L'Écosse à la fin du XIIIe sieclè: un royaume menacé" in James Laidlaw (ed.) ''The Auld Alliance: France and Scotland over 700 Years.'' Edinburgh University, Edinburgh, 1999. * * Marshall, Rosalind, ''Scottish Queens, 1034-1714'' * Richard Oram: ''The Kings and Queens of Scotland'' * Timothy Venning: ''The Kings and Queens of Scotland'' * Mike Ashley: ''British Kings and Queens'' * Elizabeth Ewan, Sue Innes and Sian Reynolds: ''The Biographical Dictionary of Scottish Women'' * Mike Ashley, ''The Chronicle of Lanercost 1272-1346'' Necrologe de l'abbaie de Port-Royal-des-Champs , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Yolande De Dreux 1263 births 1330 deaths House of Dreux House of Dunkeld Scottish royal consorts Duchesses of Brittany French suo jure nobility 14th-century women rulers 13th-century Scottish people 14th-century Scottish people 13th-century Scottish women 14th-century Scottish women 13th-century Breton people 13th-century Breton women 13th-century French women 14th-century Breton people 14th-century Breton women Remarried queens consort Daughters of counts Daughters of countesses regnant