Eleanor of Woodstock
| Eleanor of Woodstock | |
|---|---|
 A "portrait" probably representing Eleanor at prayer, in the illustration for the Hours of the Holy Spirit in the Taymouth Hours (London, BL MS Yates Thompson 13, fol. 18r) | |
| Duchess consort of Guelders | |
| Tenure | 1332 – 12 October 1343 |
| Born | 18 June 1318 Woodstock, Oxfordshire |
| Died | 22 April 1355 (aged 36) |
| Burial | |
| Spouse | |
| Issue | Reginald III, Duke of Guelders Edward, Duke of Guelders |
| House | Plantagenet |
| Father | Edward II of England |
| Mother | Isabella of France |
Eleanor of Woodstock (18 June 1318 – 22 April 1355) was an English
Early life
Eleanor was born on 18 June 1318,
In early 1328 Eleanor's new sister-in-law, Philippa of Hainaut, wife of Edward III, became Eleanor's guardian.[6] In 1329, during the minority government, negotiations were underway for a match between Eleanor and the future John II of France;[7] the following year the prospective bridegroom was Peter, son of Alfonso IV of Aragon, but these negotiations fell through also.[8]
Duchess of Guelders
In May 1332 Eleanor married the
As Eleanor sailed from
According to legend, she was sent from court in 1338 under the pretext that she had leprosy.[10] Her husband was reportedly under the influence of the priest Jan Moliart, who had been active in her exile and the false pretense of her alleged leprosy.[10] During her supposed exile, she is said to have stayed in Deventer; she does appear to have been active as the protector of the Franciscan Friars, and a financier of their new church.[11]
Again according to legend, her husband tried to
Regency
Following her husband's death, Eleanor became the regent of Guelders for her nine-year-old son Reginald. Having assumed power, she had her old enemy Jan Moliart arrested and imprisoned.[11] Her regency was formally recognised, but she was forced to confront a relative of her late husband, Jan van Valkenburg, who demanded his right to share the regency with her.[11] The situation was soon so difficult that, according to some accounts, she was forced to resign her post of regency, and her son was formally declared of legal majority and therefore of no need of a regency at the age of eleven in 1344.
After her resignation she formally retired under the title Lady of Veluwe (after the name of her dowry), and spent much of her time acting as a benefactor of convents, particular the beggar convents such as the Order of Saint Clare.[12]
During the 1350s, she and Reginald came in conflict over making peace with his younger brother Edward, and he confiscated her lands.
Death and burial
On 22 April 1355, twelve years after she became a widow, Eleanor died at age 36.
Issue
Eleanor had two sons:
- Reginald III, Duke of Guelders, called "The Fat" (1333–1371)[14]
- Edward, Duke of Guelders (1336–1371)[14]
Ancestry
| Ancestors of Eleanor of Woodstock Jeanne of Dammartin | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Eleanor of Woodstock | |||||||||||||||
| 12. Philip III of France | |||||||||||||||
| 6. Philip IV of France | |||||||||||||||
| 13. Isabella of Aragon | |||||||||||||||
| 3. Isabella of France | |||||||||||||||
| 14. Henry I of Navarre | |||||||||||||||
| 7. Joan I of Navarre | |||||||||||||||
| 15. Blanche of Artois | |||||||||||||||
References
- ^ St John 2014, p. 25.
- ^ Haines 2003, p. 355.
- ^ Stanton 2011, p. 81.
- ^ Warner 2014, p. 146.
- ^ Chamberlin 2007, p. 100.
- ^ a b Smith 2012, p. 293.
- ^ Warner 2018, p. 141.
- ^ Haines 2003, p. 323.
- ^ Smith 2012, p. 11.
- ^ a b Smith 2012, p. 44-45.
- ^ a b c Smith 2012, p. 44.
- ^ Smith 2012, p. 45.
- ^ Warner 2016, p. 20.
- ^ a b Nijsten 2004, p. 13.
- ^ Maclagan & Louda 1999, p. 17.
Sources
- Chamberlin, Cynthia L. (2007). "A Castilian in King Edward's Court: The Career of Giles Despagne, 1313-27". In Bullòn-Fernandez, Maria (ed.). England and Iberia in the Middle Ages, 12th-15th Century. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 89–118.
- Haines, Roy Martin (2003). King Edward II: His Life, His Reign, and Its Aftermath, 1284-1330. McGill-Queen's University Press.
- Maclagan, Michael; Louda, Jiří (1999). Line of Succession: Heraldry of the Royal Families of Europe. Little, Brown & Co. ISBN 1-85605-469-1.
- Nijsten, Gerard (2004). In the Shadow of Burgundy: The Court of Guelders in the Late Middle Ages. Cambridge University Press.
- Smith, Kathryn A. (2012). The Taymouth Hours: Stories and the Construction of the Self in Late Medieval England. The British Library.
- Stanton, Anne Rudloff (2011). "Turning the Pages: Marginal Narratives and Devotional Practice in Gothic Prayerbooks". In Blick, Sarah; Gelfand, Laura (eds.). Push Me, Pull You: Imaginative, Emotional, Physical, and Spatial Interaction in Late Medieval and Renaissance Art. Brill. pp. 75–121.
- St John, Lisa Benz (2014). "In the best Interests of the Queen: Isabella of France, Edward II and the Image of a Functional Relationship". In Hamilton, J. S. (ed.). Fourteenth Century England VIII. The Boydell Press.
- Warner, Kathryn (2014). Edward II: The Unconventional King. Amberley Publishing.
- Warner, Kathryn (2016). Isabella of France: The Rebel Queen. Amberley Publishing.
- Warner, Kathryn (2018). Blood Roses: The Houses of Lancaster and York before the Wars of the Roses. Amberley Publishing.