Margaret of Burgundy (October 1374 – 8 March 1441) was Duchess of Bavaria as the wife of Duke William II and the mother of Jacqueline, Countess of Hainaut

Life

Margaret was the third child and first daughter out of nine children born to

Philip II, Duke of Burgundy 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 ...

, and

Margaret III, Countess of Flanders Margaret III (13 April 1350 – 16/21 March 1405) was a ruling Countess of Flanders, Countess of Artois, and Countess of Auvergne and Boulogne between 1384 and 1405. She was the last Countess of Flanders of the House of Dampierre. She was al ...

. Margaret's father used the marriages of his children to achieve far-sighted goals. In keeping with this strategy, Margaret and her brother John were wedded in a double marriage to William of Bavaria and his sister

Margaret Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian. Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular through ...

. This marriage, celebrated on 12 April 1385 in

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the ...

, would later influence the union of Hainaut and Holland with Burgundy and Flanders, as carried out by Margaret's nephew

Philip the Good Philip III (french: Philippe le Bon; nl, Filips de Goede; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) was Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonge ...

. Margaret exerted a lot of political influence during the reign of her spouse: William ruled both Holland and Hainaut, but preferred Holland and spent a lot of his reign there. Margaret thus governed Hainaut in his name. After 16 years of childless marriage, Margaret gave birth to a daughter,

Jacqueline Jacqueline may refer to: People * Jacqueline (given name), including a list of people with the name * Jacqueline Moore (born 1964), ring name "Jacqueline", American professional wrestler Arts and entertainment * ''Jacqueline'' (1923 film), ...

, on 16 August 1401. Margaret's political position increased in the 1410s, as she was granted several towns and castles as her personal fiefs. William died in 1417 from an infection which developed after he was bitten by a dog. Although he and Margaret attempted to ensure that their daughter would inherit all his lands, a war of succession broke out after his death. Jacqueline would eventually come to inherit Hainaut,

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former Provinces of the Netherlands, province on the western coast of the Netherland ...

, and

Zeeland , nl, Ik worstel en kom boven("I struggle and emerge") , anthem = "Zeeuws volkslied"("Zeelandic Anthem") , image_map = Zeeland in the Netherlands.svg , map_alt = , m ...

, but not Bavaria. During the reign of her daughter, Margaret was involved in several political acts. She preferred the Le Quesnoy castle as her residence, which was also her personal fief. She died at Le Quesnoy on 8 March 1441, having outlived her childless daughter.

Ancestry

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Margaret of Burgundy People from Montbard 1374 births 1441 deaths House of Valois-Burgundy House of Wittelsbach Countesses of Holland Countesses of Hainaut People from Le Quesnoy