One of the most famous royal weddings in medieval Europe took place six hundred years ago this month. On June 2nd 1420, Katherine of Valois married Henry V of England in a ceremony that would seal the king's ambitions but set the course for decades of fighting. This month with be Katherine's month on the blog. And we'll start at the very beginning, with her parents.
The popular interpretation of the marriage of Henry V and Katherine of Valois from the 19th century 'A Chronicle of England'
Katherine was, of course, a French princess but the parent who gave her that title had a far from happy reign. Her father was Charles VI, King of France who ruled between 1380 and 1422. He has two nicknames - the Beloved (le Bien-Aime) and the Mad (le Fol, later le Fou). And it's the second which has become the hallmark of his rule.
Charles VI, King of France between 1380 and 1422
Charles was born on December 3rd 1368 in Paris to Charles V, a successful and energetic monarch, and Joanna of Bourbon. However, his father's death on September 16th 1380 turned Charles into a boy king. Aged just 11 at the time, he saw his uncles wield power on his behalf until he took control at the age of 21. However, soon afterwards, he began to experience severe mental health problems that would affect him for the rest of his life. At one point, Charles was so unwell he believed he was made of glass and had iron sewn into his clothes to stop himself breaking. He also suffered bouts of psychosis and during one, swang out at a group of men, killing several without knowing it.
A 19th century imagining of Isabeau of Bavaria, Queen of France from 1385 until 1422
Catherine's mother would become one of the most controversial queens of the Middle Ages. Isabeau of Bavaria was born around 1370 to Stephen, Duke of Bavaria-Ingolstadt and Taddea Visconti, part of a powerful Milanese family. On July 17th 1385, she married the young French king. Although the wedding was an arranged match, Charles was apparently so overcome with attraction for his bride that he demanded they marry immediately. Isabeau's coronation as Queen of France took place on August 23rd 1389 by which time she had given birth to two sons who died young and was heavily pregnant with her first daughter.
The coronation of Isabeau of Bavaria as Queen of France, taken from Jean Froissart's Chronicles. her devoted husband, Charles VI, is at her side.
By the time her youngest daughter was born, in 1401, Isabeau's life was very different. Her husband's ill health had seen her assume an important political role and following this would lead to difficulties and controversies for the queen. As that little girl, Catherine, grew up, her mother was increasingly involved in factional fighting to try and secure the power of her dynasty and ensure one of her sons succeeded as King of France. She watched that dream come to an end at the signing of the Treaty of Troyes when the crown was promised to the English king, Henry V, who was about to marry her daughter, Catherine.
Charles and Isabeau at the Treaty of Troyes when their throne was promised to the King of England.
Catherine was often described as a neglected child by historians although recent research has questioned whether that reality or part of the propaganda aimed at Isabeau. From her father, Catherine inherited a set of genes that would see her own eldest son, Henry VI, experience severe mental health issues. From her mother, she inherited a sense of female power that would set her at odds with the royal court she married into. For Katherine of Valois, despite the all but mute image of a fragile beauty begun in Shakespeare's time, was a rebel with a cause - her own happiness. I'll explore that through this month that's all about Katherine. And it all began with her parents, Charles and Isabeau.
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