Margaret I, Countess of Burgundy
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Margaret I (french: Marguerite; 1310 – 9 May 1382) was a
Capet The House of Capet (french: Maison capétienne) or the Direct Capetians (''Capétiens directs''), also called the House of France (''la maison de France''), or simply the Capets, ruled the Kingdom of France from 987 to 1328. It was the most s ...
ian princess who ruled as
Countess of Burgundy This is a list of the County of Burgundy, counts of Burgundy, i.e., of the region known as Franche-Comté, not to be confused with the Duchy of Burgundy, from 982 to 1678. House of Ivrea (982–1190) House of Hohenstaufen (1190–1231) ...
and
Artois Artois ( ; ; nl, Artesië; English adjective: ''Artesian'') is a region of northern France. Its territory covers an area of about 4,000 km2 and it has a population of about one million. Its principal cities are Arras (Dutch: ''Atrecht'') ...
from 1361 until her death. She was also countess of
Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...
,
Nevers Nevers ( , ; la, Noviodunum, later ''Nevirnum'' and ''Nebirnum'') is the prefecture of the Nièvre Departments of France, department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in central France. It was the principal city of the ...
and
Rethel Rethel () is a commune in the Ardennes department in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture and third-most important city and economic center in the department. It is situated on the river Aisne, near the northern border of Champagne and 37& ...
by marriage to
Louis I of Flanders Louis I ( – 26 August 1346, ruled 1322–1346) was Count of Flanders, Nevers and Rethel. Life He was the son of Louis I, Count of Nevers, and Joan, Countess of Rethel, and grandson of Robert III of Flanders. He succeeded his father as c ...
, and
regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
of Flanders during the minority of her son, Louis II, in 1346.


Family

Margaret was born in 1310, the second daughter of Countess Joan II of Burgundy and the future King
Philip V of France Philip V (c. 1293 – 3 January 1322), known as the Tall (french: Philippe le Long), was King of France and Navarre (as Philip II) from 1316 to 1322. Philip was the second son of King Philip IV of France and Queen Joan I of Navarre. He was gr ...
. Her father ascended the French throne in 1316. In 1320, Margaret married Count
Louis I of Flanders Louis I ( – 26 August 1346, ruled 1322–1346) was Count of Flanders, Nevers and Rethel. Life He was the son of Louis I, Count of Nevers, and Joan, Countess of Rethel, and grandson of Robert III of Flanders. He succeeded his father as c ...
. Her husband was dependent on her father in suppressing the rebellion of
Nicolaas Zannekin Nicolaas Zannekin (died 23 August 1328), was a Flemish peasant leader, best known for his role in a peasant revolt in Flanders from 1323 to 1328. Nicolaas Zannekin was a rich farmer from Lampernisse. During the early 14th century AD, Zannekin se ...
. King Philip died in 1322, and the crown was inherited by her uncle, King Charles IV. Margaret's mother, Joan II, succeeded her own mother, Mahaut, as
countess of Artois The count of Artois (French: Comtes d'Artois, Dutch: Graven van Artesië) was the ruler over the County of Artois from the 9th century until the abolition of the countship by the French Revolution, French revolutionaries in 1790. House of Artois ...
in 1329. Margaret's elder sister, Joan III, inherited the counties of Artois and Burgundy when their mother died in 1330.


Rule

Margaret's husband was killed in the
Battle of Crécy The Battle of Crécy took place on 26 August 1346 in northern France between a French army commanded by King PhilipVI and an English army led by King EdwardIII. The French attacked the English while they were traversing northern France du ...
on 26 August 1346. He and Margaret had one son, Count
Louis II of Flanders Louis II ( nl, Lodewijk van Male; french: Louis II de Flandre) (25 October 1330, Male – 30 January 1384, Lille), also known as Louis of Male, a member of the House of Dampierre, was Count of Flanders, Nevers and Rethel from 1346 as well as ...
,Hereford Brooke George, Genealogical Tables Illustrative of Modern History, (Oxford Clarendon Press, 1875), table XXVIII who succeeded his father and for whom she acted as a regent in the beginning of his reign. In 1357, Margaret's granddaughter, Margaret, then seven years old, was married to Duke Philip I of Burgundy, grandson and heir of Margaret's sister. They were childless and, upon his death in 1361, the elder Margaret succeeded to the comital thrones of Artois and Burgundy. In 1369, the younger Margaret married
Philip the Bold Philip II the Bold (; ; 17 January 1342 – 27 April 1404) was Duke of Burgundy and '' jure uxoris'' Count of Flanders, Artois and Burgundy. He was the fourth and youngest son of King John II of France and Bonne of Luxembourg. Philip II was ...
, youngest son of King
John II of France John II (french: Jean II; 26 April 1319 – 8 April 1364), called John the Good (French: ''Jean le Bon''), was King of France from 1350 until his death in 1364. When he came to power, France faced several disasters: the Black Death, which kill ...
. According to Guizot, whilst Margaret I favoured the marriage of her granddaughter to Philip the Bold, the girl's father, Louis II, and the Flemish communes, preferring England to France, were unwilling to arrange the marriage. Reputedly, Margaret, ''vexed at the ill will of the count her son, had one day said to him, as she tore open her dress before his eyes, "Since you will not yield to your mother's wishes, I will cut off these breasts which gave suck to you, to you and to no other, and will throw them to the dogs to devour." '' Louis, persuaded, agreed to the marriag

The unrest in coastal Low Countries escalated to open rebellions in Margaret's last years. A revolt in
Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in ...
was put down by joint operation of Margaret's son and grandson-in-law. However, after the Battle of Beverhoutsveld, Louis II was expelled from Flanders by the Flemings under
Philip van Artevelde Philip van Artevelde (c. 1340 – 27 November 1382) was a Flemish patriot, the son of Jacob van Artevelde. Because of his father's prominence he was godson of English queen Philippa of Hainault, who held him in her arms during his baptism. La ...
. A French army (and Philip the Bold) came to help them regain Flanders, and the revolting Flemings were decisively defeated at the
Battle of Roosebeke The Battle of Roosebeke (sometimes referred by its contemporary name as Battle of Westrozebeke) took place on 27 November 1382 on the Goudberg between a Flemish army under Philip van Artevelde and a French army under Louis II of Flanders who ha ...
, the year in which Margaret died. However, the citizens of Ghent continued to resist with
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
aid, and it was left to her granddaughter and grandson-in-law to subdue the town.


Death

Countess Margaret died in 1382, leaving her cousin Blanche as the final surviving Capetian. Her counties were inherited by her only son, Louis, who died two years later. In 1384, all her possessions, together with Flanders and the rest of Louis' inheritance, went to her only surviving grandchild, Margaret III of Flanders.


References


Sources

* * , - {{Authority control 1310 births 1382 deaths French princesses 14th-century women rulers House of Capet 14th-century French women French suo jure nobility Countesses of Burgundy Countesses of Flanders 14th-century peers of France 14th-century women from the county of Flanders Burials at the Basilica of Saint-Denis Daughters of kings