María of Castile, the Queen-Lieutenant

 María of Castile, queen and regent of Aragon (born 14 September 1401)

The kneeling figure of María of Castile,
Queen and lieutenant-governor of Aragón,
from a fifteenth-century illustration of
the queen at worship

The first-born child of Enrique III of Castile and Catherine of Lancaster, María of Castile was born on 14 September 1401 in Segovia.*

At the time of her birth, she was named princesa de Asturias, the title given to the Castilian king's eldest child--on 6 January 1402, the Cortes of Toledo recognized María as the primogénita al trono, the legitimate heir to the throne of Castile. 

Although her brother, Juan, would replace her as heir presumptive when he was born in 1405, she was nevertheless educated to rule--her mother, Catherine of Lancaster, had served her first regency in Castile from 1390 to 1393.**

After the death of the Enrique III in 1406, Catherine of Lancaster again assumed the regency, this time for her son, Juan. As Theresa Earenfight notes, "During Catalina's second regency María was able to observe firsthand a queen regent whose actions in the political realm influenced the young princess's own notions of the duties, responsibilities, rights, and prerogatives of a queen."

On 12 June 1415, a complicated series of marriages took place in Valencia--María of Castile was married to Alfonso of Aragón (her first cousin--Alfonso's father, Fernando I of Aragón, was Maria's uncle, her father's brother); her brother Juan, king of Castile, married Alfonso's sister, María of Aragón; and her sister, Catalina, married Alfonso's brother, Enrique of Aragón. As a result of this triple alliance,   Earenfight observes, "[f]amily squabbles, and there were many," would become "international incidents."

Less than a year after María was married, King Fernando died, and Alfonso became king of Aragón. Newly arrived a the court of Aragón, María had not had a long apprenticeship in Aragonese queenship, and she seems to have been overshadowed by the king's mother, Leonor of Albuquerque. Further complicating matters, María had not yet reached puberty at the time of her marriage, which was not consummated until she was sixteen, two years after the elaborate ceremonies of the triple alliance. She would bear her husband no heirs--whether because of her own chronic ill health or his lengthy absences from the kingdom, engaged in endless warfare. (Alfonso would father three children by two of his many mistresses.)

In 1420, when he left Aragón to pursue the crown of Sicily, Alfonso put the kingdom into María's hands. She was named not as queen-regent but as lieutenant-governor: 

In the privilegios that named María lieutenant, Alfonso clearly stated that her powers as lieutenant should be equivalent to his own as king, referring to her as his alter nos. . . . She held the highest political office in . . . Alfonso's Iberian realms and, in political terms, was second only to the king himself.

Although she may have been "weak in body and constantly attacked by illness," María of Castile, queen of Aragón  (and eventually queen consort of Sicily), was a woman remarkable for "the energy and constancy with which she pursued her goals."

María of Castile governed Aragón from 1420 until 1423, when her husband returned from his military campaign in Italy. The king of Aragón managed to spend nearly ten years in his kingdom, but in 1432 he left once again, intent on conquering Naples.*** On this occasion, he intended to leave behind Juan of Navarre as his lieutenant-governor--it was the Cortes that requested María of Castile resume her previous role. 

Alfonso of Aragón never returned to his Spanish kingdom--in 1453, he finally succeeded in gaining the crown of Naples. He remained in Italy until his death on 27 June 1458. (Evidently he was planning to conquer Genoa at the time of his death.)

In the mean time, after governing the kingdom of Aragón for more than twenty years, María of Castile had returned to Castile in 1454, after the death of her brother, Juan, to negotiate with his successor, her nephew, Enrique IV, on behalf of her husband. 

There she stayed in the royal household of Arevelo--a literal "city of ladies," where she joined her niece, Isabella of Castile, and Isabella's mother, Isabel of Portugal, dowager queen of Castile. 

María of Castile, queen and lieutenant-governor of Aragón, died at Arevelo on 7 September 1458. 

For the most extended study of the biography and politics of María of Castile, see Theresa Earenfight's The King's Other Body: María of Castile and the Crown of Aragon, quoted above. 

*This post has been adapted and expanded from The Monstrous Regiment of Women: Female Rulers in Early Modern Europe (Palgrave Macmillan).

**Catherine of Lancaster had her own claim to the throne of Castile through her mother--Catherine was the daughter of the English duke of Lancaster, John of Gaunt, and of Constanza of Castile, daughter and heir of Pedro of Castile and León. When Catherine of Lancaster was married to Enrique in 1388, she was sixteen and he was just nine--when Juan I of Castile died in 1390, the eighteen-year-old Catherine, now queen, became regent for Enrique, who was just eleven. According to Theresa Earenfight, "it proved to be a difficult minority and eventful regency, punctuated by struggles within the regency council itself and opposition from the powerful Castilian nobility and clergy." No doubt!

***Alfonso was just one of the many powerful men hoping to gain the favor of Joanna II of Naples and succeed to the crown of her kingdom.

The "Notorious" Joanna I, Queen of Naples

Joanna I, queen of Naples (recognized as heir presumptive, 4 November 1330)

Earlier this year I posted about Joanna II of Naples (1373-1445)--today we'll look at the Joanna who preceded her as queen regnant of Naples.

A detail of a fresco, Certosa di San Giacoma, Capri,
featuring Joanna, painted during her lifetime

Born in 1328, Joanna became the heir presumptive to the throne of Naples after her three elder siblings died, followed by the death of her father, Charles, duke of Calabria. Her mother, Marie of Valois, died in 1331. 

On 4 November 1330, her grandfather, King Robert of Naples, also known as "Robert the Wise," named his granddaughter his heir, rather than his nephews. He may have made the best decision possible, but maybe not the wisest?

Following the ceremony of homage to Joanna, her grandfather created her duchess of Calabria (1333) and princess of Salerno (1334). He also arranged for the girl's marriage to her cousin, Andrew, son of one of those overlooked nephews, Charles of Hungary, the king hoping to obviate any claims by the boy's father on the throne of Naples. The two children were married 1333 (at ages five and six--yet one more example of "traditional" marriage . . . ).

Before King Robert died in 1343, he formally arranged for Joanna's succession--but, by the same will, he did not name any role for Andrew. In the event of Joanna's death, according to Robert's plan, she was to be succeeded by her younger sister, Maria of Calabria.

In 1343, Joanna was still too young to rule in her own right; on her regency council was Sancha of Majorca, her step-grandmother (King Robert's second wife)--who was a strong advocate for the young queen before being forced out of the regency council a year later, in 1344. (Sancha, dowager queen of Naples, became a nun at the convent of Santa Maria della Croce in Naples, which was known as the place of the buried-alive [sepolte vive]. She died there eighteen months later.)

The result of Sancha's removal from the regency was conflict among the remaining parties--in addition to Andrew's family in Hungary, there were competing claims from King Robert's younger brother and one of Joanna's cousins, Charles, duke of Durazzo, son of King Robert's youngest brother, who tried to cement his "rightful" claim to the throne of Naples by marrying Joanna's younger sister. 

Despite all the competing claims and strife, Joanna was crowned queen of Naples--by the pope--on 28 August 1344. And, following her grandfather's will, she opposed the coronation of her husband, Andrew. He received the title of "king," but no crown and no role in governing. (Joanna also inherited from her grandfather the title of queen of Jerusalem and Sicily.)

Continued opposition, conspiracy, and maneuvering resulted in Andrew's assassination in 1345. Joanna was, of course, blamed for the murder. (She also gave birth to Charles Martel, Andrew's posthumous child, on Christmas Day, 1345.)

In 1347, Joanna married Louis of Taranto, a first cousin (I'm not even going to try to explain the relationships), in order to secure her crown, but the result was disaster for her and for Naples. Louis of Hungary, the older brother of Joanna's assassinated first husband, invaded Naples, and Joanna was forced to flee, leaving behind her son. (The boy was sent to Hungary by Louis--and died there, in 1348, not yet three years old.)

Joanna and her second husband wound up in Provence, where Joanna was countess. She also traveled to Avignon to meet with Pope Clement VI; she arranged for his dispensation for her second marriage (the closely related couple had married without a papal dispensation), managed to acquire a papal declaration of innocence for her suspected involvement in Andrew's murder, and, in return, sold Avignon to the papacy. (In 1307, the papacy had been removed from Rome to Avignon, where it would remain until 1377. Clement VI was the fourth pope to reside in Avignon--and since the papacy was in the city, it was a benefit for the papacy to have rights to the city.)

In her exile, Joanna gave birth to her second child, a girl named Catherine of Taranto (she would die in 1349, about one year old). After Louis of Hungary left Naples during the plague, Joanna and her husband were able to retake the city--but, in the process, her husband effectively took all power and control from the queen. 

After the Hungarians returned to attempt to reclaim Naples in 1350, Louis agreed to rule with Joanna. Joanna gave birth to a second daughter, Françoise of Taranto, who lived only a few months. Louis and Joanna managed to retake territories, restore order, and remain in power, but in 1362, Louis of Taranto died. 

Freed from her second husband, Joanna ruled alone, with varying degrees of success and calm, despite having married her third husband, James IV of  Majorca, who proved to be deranged, and then a fourth, Otto, duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen, who at least tried to protect her rights in Naples against various (and plentiful) male claimants.

Joanna I of Naples, on her throne and with her sceptre,
from the church of St. Mary Magdalen,
Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume, Provence;
Louis and Joanna issued a charter in favor of the church

In the end, though, one of those determined men, Charles of Durazzo (a different Charles of Durazzo, this one Joanna's second cousin and, also, the husband of Joanna's niece, Margaret of Durazzo, the youngest daughter of Joanna's sister Maria), invaded Naples in 1381, forcing Joanna to surrender and then imprisoning her. He had her killed on 27 July 1382. 

Although Charles of Durazzo claimed that the queen died of natural causes, other witnesses claim she was either strangled while she was kneeling in prayer or smothered by feather mattresses. Having been excommunicated by the Roman pope, Urban VI, for her support of the Avignonese pope, she could not be given a proper burial--her body was thrown into a well.

Two interesting notes: Birgitta of Sweden visited Naples between 1365 and 1372, meeting Queen Joanna. About the relationship between the queen and the future saint, Nancy Goldstone writes, "Joanna was . . . profoundly affected" by Birgitta. Birgitta herself would characterize her relationship with the queen as "one of a mother instructing an obedient daughter," and offered her various prophecies. After Birgitta's death, Joanna joined in with those who sought her canonization. 

Joanna also corresponded with Catherine of Siena, whom she "respected and encouraged," "sympathizing" with her "passionate approach to religion and politics." Unfortunately, however, Catherine of Siena would later denounce the queen for her support of the popes in Avignon over those in Rome. 

I recommend Nancy Goldstone's biography, which I have quoted here, The Lady Queen: The Notorious Reign of Joanna I, Queen of Naples, Jerusalem, and Sicily. But if you're not ready for an entire book, Helen Castor's review of Goldstone's biography is, in itself, an excellent introduction and analysis. 

Margaret of Durazzo: Queen and Regent--and Mother of a Queen

Margaret of Durazzo, queen and regent of Naples (born 28 July 1347)

Margaret of Durazzo was daughter of Charles of Durazzo and Maria of Calabria--whose elder sister was Joanna I, queen regnant of Naples.

In 1370, Margaret of Durazzo was married to her cousin, also named Charles of Durazzo (confusing, isn't it?). The Charles of Durazzo who was Margaret's husband had been held as a hostage for his father's good behavior by Joanna I. Although the queen opposed the marriage for her own political reasons, the two, who were first cousins, received a papal dispensation in order to marry.

Margaret of Durazzo

The conflict between Joanna I and Pope Urban VI, whom she had once supported, involved more than this question of marriage--in 1382, the pope dethroned Joanna and awarded her crown to Margaret of Durazzo's husband. Of course Joanna just didn't hand over Naples to him--he had to fight for the kingdom. And after he captured Joanna, he had her strangled. 

And thus Margaret of Durazzo became queen of Naples. The pope then became suspicious that Charles, now king of Naples, was plotting against him--so he excommunicated both King Charles and Queen Margaret, placing Naples under interdict in 1385. But as the conflict continued, Urban found himself imprisoned by Charles, although he ultimately managed to escape to Genoa.

Meanwhile, Charles of Durazzo, king of Naples, now claimed the throne of Hungary, deposing the country's ruling queen, Mary. He was successful--but only briefly. He was assassinated on 7 February 1386.

Back in Naples, Margaret of Durazzo, queen consort of Naples, now became regent of Naples for her nine-year-old son, Ladislaus. But Pope Urban refused to recognize him and called for a crusade against him. Overwhelmed by opposing forces, Margaret and her son were forced to retreat into the fortress of Gaeta. Fortunately for mother and son, Urban died in 1389 and was replaced by Boniface IX, who recognized Ladislaus's title. 

Margaret of Durazzo's tomb,
Cathedral of Salerno

Margaret's regency ended in 1400, and she retired to Salerno, where she became a member of the Third Order of Saint Francis, a lay order whose members lived in community and dedicated their lives to prayer and service. She died on 6 August 1412. 

Margaret's son, Ladislaus "the Magnificent," king of Naples and titular king of Jerusalem, ruled Naples until his death in 1417. He was succeeded by a woman we have met before, his sister Joanna, who ruled Naples as Joanna II.

Joanna II, Queen of Naples

Joanna II, queen of Naples (died 2 February 1435)

Joanna was the second queen regnant of Naples--she was preceded on the throne by Joanna I of Naples (b. 1328), who ruled from 1343 until her assassination in 1382. The second Queen Joanna was born in 1373, the daughter of Charles III of Naples--the very guy who deposed the first Queen Joanna, had her killed, and then assumed her throne.

But the reign of the first queen Joanna had set a precedent for a queen regnant in Naples. Joanna II's mother, Margaret of Durazzo, had provided yet another model of a woman wielding political power. When Charles III died in 1386, Margaret governed Naples as regent for the son and heir, Joanna's younger brother, Ladislaus. But when Ladislaus died in 1414, after three childless marriages, Joanna was able to follow him onto the throne, becoming queen of Naples in her own right.

Joanna of Naples with her second husband,
James of Bourbon, Count of La March,
in stained glass, Chartres Cathedral

At the time of her accession, Joanna was forty years old, a widow and childless. In order to gain French support in Naples, she married James of Bourbon in 1415, but he proved to be a less than supportive partner--instead of bolstering Joanna in her position as queen, he imprisoned her and sought sole power for himself. After Joanna's supporters managed her release, she reestablished herself as a ruling queen. The situation in Naples was finally settled enough by October 1419 that she could celebrate her coronation.

The next few years of Joanna's reign were difficult, complicated by the continued designs of powerful men who wished to displace the queen and rule Naples themselves and by Joanna's own relationships with a series of male favorites. But Joanna managed to stay in power, using skill and finesse to play potential heirs to the throne of Naples against one another, alternately favoring one, then his rival. Perhaps that's why she so aggravated her contemporaries.

Despite the tensions, conflicts, and controversies, her two decades on the throne were relatively peaceful. Even so, this Encyclopedia Britannica Online summary of her reign is typical in its dismissive assessment: her "long reign (1414–35) was marked by a succession of love affairs, by continual intrigues, and by power struggles over her domain between the French house of Anjou and that of Aragon, in Spain." (For which powerful king weren't love affairs, intrigue, and power struggles all part of the job, business as usual?)

Joanna died without children. She named René d'Anjou, the brother of one of those long-time rivals, to follow her on the throne.

There is no full-length biography of Joanna II of Naples--and she certainly deserves one. Although the nineteenth-century historian Anna Jameson is every bit as condemnatory of Joanna II as the venerable Encyclopedia Britannica, she at least gives the second queen Joanna an extended--if scandalized--biographical treatment in the first volume of her 1838 Memoirs of Celebrated Female Sovereigns, which you can read on Google Books.