History is widely known Marguerite de Valois - French Queen Margot. But the paradox is that the French throne knew two queens Margot, and the second is undeservedly in the shadow of the first. We are talking about Margaret of Burgundy, the wife of Louis the Grumpy. We talk about her short, but bright and eventful life in our material.
A little about French traditions of past centuries
As you know, in the old days, kings looked for wives for their grown-up royal offspring. For this, of course, only noble families were considered. The future king's bride was supposed to be a princess herself - or at least a duchess. Girls to the court - girls, because they used to marry very early, candidates for the prince's wife turned 14-16 years old - they were often brought from abroad. So King Philip the Fourth at one time attended to the search for suitable daughters-in-law - after all, he had three sons. First, it was necessary to marry Louis, the eldest - it was he who, after his father, was to take the throne.
And now,Before talking about the life of Margarita herself, let us briefly explain who her husband was - this is important enough to understand the essence of the whole history of the French queen.
Louis Tenth - Grumpy
Louis, nicknamed by the people the Grumpy for his quarrelsome and absurd character, was born in 1289. His father, as already mentioned above, was King Philip the Fourth, nicknamed the Handsome, his mother was John the First, or Navarre, Queen of Navarre (a province now belonging to Spain).
Everyone, even his own father, spoke of Louis as a fool. He was spoiled, pampered and lazy, he did not receive an education, preferring to spend time in festivities, festivities and amusements. At the same time, he himself was gloomy, boring and was only interested in horse racing, dog hunting and games. All these qualities terribly interfered with him when he suddenly became king overnight - his father was crippled by an unknown disease; Philip the Fourth passed away in a matter of days, and the king of France was the one who had absolutely no idea, firstly, what it means to "rule the country", and secondly, how to do it.
Father's business was set cool, Louis could not only continue his father's undertakings, but also preserve what had already been created. In everything related to the administration of France, he obeyed Charles of Valois, his uncle, his own paternal brother. Charles was not that stupid - he was a troublemaker, and the things that he put into the head of his negligent nephew did not bring the good of France at all. All of Ludovik's attempts to do something failed.
KFortunately for the country, the reign of the Grumpy King did not last long - only two years. In 1314 he succeeded to the throne, in 1316 at the age of 27 he died suddenly. A year earlier, with the "help" of royal servants, his wife, Queen of France Margaret of Burgundy, passed away. And now it's time to talk about her life…
Before marriage
Unlike many other girls brought to the court from other countries over the years, Marguerite of Burgundy was a Frenchwoman. And by no means simple: her family was so noble that you can’t imagine anymore - after all, her mother, Agnes of France, was the daughter of the greatest Louis the 9th, nicknamed the Saint (by the way, there is a curious fact here: it turns out that Saint Louis was Margaret’s grandfather, while to her husband Louis, he was a paternal great-grandfather; thus, it turns out that Louis and Margaret are relatives even before marriage, and the latter is in some way incestuous). Her father, Robert II, was the Duke of Burgundy, it was in the castle in Burgundy that Margaret grew up.
Besides her, there were as many as eleven other brothers and sisters in the family, but Margo was the smartest, the most beautiful - and the most characteristic of them all. She was not afraid to express her opinion, which she had on any issue, she read a lot, understood many worldly affairs.
Margarita studied languages, geography, literature, danced beautifully - in general, by the age of fourteen she, who loved fun, noise, noise, outfits, holidays, and already quiteformed as a woman, was quite an adult girl, suitable for marriage. So it is not at all surprising that it was Philip the Handsome who "had his eye" on her in search of his first daughter-in-law.
Margarita of Burgundy was terribly delighted with the offer of the king. So much alluring was opening up ahead - Paris, balls, high society, and someday - the rule of France! Little did she know that life in Paris would be a little different than she imagined.
Marriage
In 1305, a wedding ceremony took place between fifteen-year-old Margaret and sixteen-year-old Louis. It cannot be said that the future king made a great impression on his bride, but she optimistically thought that, as they say, “she will endure, fall in love.” Against the background of the plain and pale-skinned Louis, the swarthy, dark-haired and dark-eyed Marguerite especially shone. Many courtiers did not take their eyes off her - but not Louis himself. He was emphatically courteous to Margarita, but that was all - otherwise he was cold and indifferent.
Margaret of Burgundy did not immediately recognize the indifference of the king and put up with him. For two years of her married life, she stubbornly tried to attract his attention, but everything was in vain. According to some sources, Louis envied his wife, her light, cheerful disposition, the fact that many - including Philip the Fourth himself - adored her, and therefore secretly hated her. Whether this was actually the case is hard to say. However, Philip really was very fond of his daughter-in-law, who somehow reminded him of his own wife. The more painful it was for Margaritato admit defeat - even the father-in-law, the Iron King (as Philip was called), won over her, but her husband - she could not!
Blanca
Meanwhile, Philip's younger sons were also getting married. And not on anyone, but on the cousins of Queen Margaret of Burgundy - Jeanne and Blanche. And if Zhanna was more calm, reasonable and “correct”, then Blanca had the same ardent character as Margarita herself, and therefore the girls quickly became friends.
Both Marguerite and Blanca of Burgundy were bored not only in marriage, but also in Paris - perhaps that is also why they decided to take the step that later turned out to be fatal for them.
Brothers d'Onet
Gaultier and Philippe d'Aunay came from a Norman family, both were knights and belonged to the retinue of Philip the Fourth's younger brother. How exactly they met Margarita and Blanca is not known for certain, but the fact remains: the twenty-year-old wife of Louis Margarita of Burgundy, suffering from a lack of attention from her husband, really liked the beautiful Philip, two years younger than her, and most importantly - quick-witted, cheerful and giving tribute to her beauty. Thus began their relationship, which, perhaps, was originally started by Margarita as a short-term affair, but by the will of fate flowed into a real romance - ardent and passionate. Both Philip and Margarita really fell in love with each other, and therefore continued to meet for several years in the Nelskaya Tower.
Of course, Margarita confided her secret to her friends - Blanca and Jeanne. Jeanne loved herwife, but Blanca shared the anguish of Margarita, and therefore, having learned from her that Philip had an equally handsome older brother, she decided to get in touch with him. Thus, soon Zhanna was forced to cover for two of her friends.
Exposure
Perhaps, the relationship of Margarita and Blanca with the brothers d'Aunay continued until old age, if not for one "but". Everything, as always, was the fault of the case. According to legend, the daughter of Philip the Fourth, Isabella, presented the wives of her brothers with gold purses that she had painted with her own hands. The girls could not resist - and gave them to their lovers. Faced with the knights in her uncle's retinue, Isabella saw familiar bags on their belts, drew conclusions - and informed her father.
The wrath of Philip the Fourth was terrible. The d'Aunay brothers were seized and tortured, under torture they confessed to everything. Margarita and Blanca also had to confess. The girls were sentenced to life imprisonment in the fortress of Château Gaillard, while their lovers were brutally executed right in front of them.
Queen of France
Queen of Navarre Margaret of Burgundy (she inherited this title from John the First) became Queen of France only nominally, while in prison. It happened in 1314 - Philip the Handsome died unexpectedly, Louis ascended the throne. Margarita languished in the fortress, but at the same time she was considered a queen. Such is the mockery of fate.
Death
Louis did not love Margarita, and after her betrayal, he was completely weary of marriage with her. He needed a queen by his side - but not his current wife. However, in order to marry again (and a candidate for the role of a new wife was found), a divorce was required - the Pope did not give a divorce, since treason was not considered a sufficient reason for this. Now, if Margarita confirmed in writing that Jeanne is not the daughter of Louis … But Margarita, of course, refused to do this - and thereby determined her future fate.
By the tacit consent of Louis and by his own orders, Margaret of Burgundy was strangled in the fortress of Chateau Gaillard. Louis himself survived her by only one year, dying of a fever in 1316.
Janna
For the first six years of their marriage, Louis and Marguerite had no children. Only in 1312, the daughter Jeanne was finally born. At first, the paternity of Louis was not questioned, however, when the story of Marguerite's betrayal surfaced, rumors spread that the girl's father was actually Philip d'Aunay. That is why Jeanne, who logically could claim the throne after Louis the Grumpy, was not allowed to the throne, despite the fact that she could not be proven illegitimate.
Nevertheless, a law was hastily drawn up forbidding women to inherit the French throne. Jeanne received only the title of Queen of Navarre - she is known as Joanna II. Such is the tragic story of Margaret of Burgundy, Queen of France.
