Marie of France (1198 – 15 August 1224) was a daughter of

Philip II of France Philip II (21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), byname Philip Augustus (french: Philippe Auguste), was King of France from 1180 to 1223. His predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks, but from 1190 onward, Philip became the first French m ...

and his disputed third wife

Agnes of Merania Agnes of Merania (1175 - July 1201) was Queen of France by marriage to King Philip II. She is called Marie by some of the French chroniclers. Biography Agnes Maria was the daughter of Berthold, Duke of Merania, who was Count of Andechs, a castle ...

. She was a member of the

House of 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 ...

Early life and legitimacy

In order to marry Agnes, Marie's father Philip had to get a divorce from his neglected second wife Ingeborg of Denmark.

Pope Innocent III Pope Innocent III ( la, Innocentius III; 1160 or 1161 – 16 July 1216), born Lotario dei Conti di Segni (anglicized as Lothar of Segni), was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1198 to his death in 16 ...

(1198–1216) refused to grant Philip a divorce. Philip still did remarry though. His first choice was

Marguerite of Geneva Margaret of Geneva (1180?–1252), was a countess of Savoy by marriage to Thomas I of Savoy.Eugene L. Cox, The Eagles of Savoy : The House of Savoy in Thirteenth-Century Europe, Princeton University Press, 2015 (réimpr. 2015) (1re éd. 1974), ...

, but they did not marry. Philip then married Agnes in 1196. Agnes gave birth to Marie and then to her brother, Philip I, Count of Boulogne. Innocent III declared Philip's marriage to Agnes null and void, as he was still married to Ingeborg. He ordered the King to part from Agnès; when he did not, the Pope placed France under an interdict in 1199. This continued until 7 September 1200. Needing an alliance from Ingeborg's brother, King

Valdemar II of Denmark Valdemar (28 June 1170 – 28 March 1241), later remembered as Valdemar the Victorious (), was the King of Denmark (being Valdemar II) from 1202 until his death in 1241. Background He was the second son of King Valdemar I of Denmark and Sophi ...

(1202–41), Philip finally allowed Ingeborg to be recognized as his Queen in 1213.

Marriages

Marie's first betrothal was to Prince Alexander of Scotland (future King Alexander II); the pair were only two years of age. Alexander succeeded as King aged sixteen in 1214, his engagement to Marie having been broken off around 1202. Marie's second betrothal was to Arthur I, Duke of Brittany, who was fighting against John for the Kingdom of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Marie's father recognised Arthur's rights to many French lands but recognised John as the rightful King of England. Marie and Arthur were betrothed in 1202 but never married due to Arthur's disappearance and supposed death, for which John was blamed. Marie's first marriage to

Philip I of Namur Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...

in 1211, was a diplomatic move by her father, Philip II, to gain control over Flanders and Hainault. The marriage did not produce children and Philip died in 1212. With the death of her first husband, Marie was able to remarry. She married April 22, 1213 in

Soissons Soissons () is a commune in the northern French department of Aisne, in the region of Hauts-de-France. Located on the river Aisne, about northeast of Paris, it is one of the most ancient towns of France, and is probably the ancient capital o ...

to Henry I, Duke of Brabant. This was a second marriage for them both, Henry having been widowed three years earlier by his first wife

Mathilde of Flanders Matilda of Boulogne (1170 – 16 October 1210) was the younger daughter of Matthew, Count of Boulogne, and Marie I, Countess of Boulogne. Matilda became Duchess of Brabant by her marriage to Henry I, Duke of Brabant. Matilda's parents' ma ...

. The couple had two daughters: # Elizabeth (d. October 23, 1272), married in Leuven March 19, 1233 Count Dietrich of Cleves, Lord of

Dinslaken Dinslaken is a town in the district of Wesel, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is known for its harness racing track, its now closed coal mine in Lohberg and its wealthy neighborhoods ''Hiesfeld'' and ''Eppinghoven''. Geography Dinslaken ...

(c. 1214–1244), married 1246 Gerhard II, Count of Wassenberg (d. 1255) # Marie, died young Marie died on 15 August 1224 and was buried at

Affligem Abbey Affligem Abbey ( nl, Abdij Affligem, french: Abbaye d'Affligem) is a Benedictine abbey in the municipality of Affligem, Flemish Brabant, Belgium, to the north-west of Brussels. Dedicated in 1086, it was the most important monastery in the Du ...

Ancestry

Notes

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Marie Of France 1198 births 1224 deaths House of Capet French princesses Duchesses of Brabant House of Reginar Burials at St. Peter's Church, Leuven 13th-century French people 13th-century French women Children of Philip II of France Daughters of kings