Queen Isabella

Synopsis
A biography of the extraordinary life of Isabella of France, who deposed and later possibly murdered her husband, England's Edward II.

My thoughts
Isabella was the lovely French princess who was sent to negotiate with William Wallace and ultimately fell in love with him in the blockbuster Braveheart. Unfortunately, that aspect of the movie was completely fictitious. Fortunately, Isabella's real life was even more dramatic (and much less cliched).

Isabella, the treacherous "she-wolf of France," is one of the most notorious and vilified figures in English history. Weir rightly calls this out as misogyny. A man who reacted as Isabella did would have been remembered as a righteous victor, but because Isabella was a woman who challenged her husband and king, history has been particularly unkind to her. Weir also points out that Edward II, far from being the spineless wimp from Braveheart, was actually a courageous military leader.

Isabella arrived in England from France at the age of 12 to cement a fragile peace between the two countries by marrying the future Edward II. Edward was a weak king who was easily controlled by his favorites, creating a toxic culture in the English court. Isabella allied herself with a faction that opposed Edward's favorite and lover Hugh Despenser, and she began to fear for her safety. Under the guise of a diplomatic mission, she returned to France, where she began to plot to overthrow Edward II in favor of their son, another Edward. With money and men from France, Isabella returned to England and successfully installed Edward III on the throne. She and Roger Mortimer, her co-conspirator and lover, were the powers behind the king. But when Edward III came into his own, he began to resent Isabella and Mortimer. He asserted his power and sent his mother into exile in the English countryside. As for Edward II, he lived as a prisoner in relative comfort until he was murdered, allegedly at Isabella's request or at least with her advance knowledge.

... Or was he? Weir argues that Edward II escaped to mainland Europe, lived out his life as a hermit, and even forgave Isabella and Edward III. So everyone lived happily ever after. Weir cites one letter as proof, but much of her case seems to be based on educated guesses and wishful thinking. She's had some success writing historical fiction and this twist would have been delightfully shocking in a novel, but there needs to be more evidence for a biography.

As with Eleanor of Aquitaine, Alison Weir does a marvelous job unearthing details of Isabella's life (always difficult with medieval queens because women didn't create much of a paper trail back then) and explaining what life was like in the fourteenth century. However, it can make for a very dry read at times as Weir catalogs the royal household's road trips, wardrobe expenditures, and grocery budgets.

Bottom line
Exceptional and enlightening. Definitely worth a read.

Fine print
Queen Isabella, by Alison Weir
Genre: history, non-fiction
Photo by Goodreads
I borrowed this book from my library.