Juliane de Fontevrault

Juliane (Juliana) de Fontevrault (1090 – after 1136), was a French noble, the illegitimate daughter of King Henry I of England. She is notorious for attempting to murder her father.

Life

Juliane de Fontevrault was an illegitimate daughter of Henry I of England; her father, at her birth, was not yet king. Her mother is unknown, though some scholars have suggested a woman by the name of Ansfrida (Ansfride).[1] Her half-siblings included Empress Maude, William Adelin, Sybilla, Queen of Scots and Robert of Gloucester.

Juliane was married to Eustace of Bretuil, the illegitimate son of William of Bretuil.

In February 1119, Eustace and Juliane threatened to join a rebellion against Henry I of England unless they were given the castle of Ivry.[2] To ensure Eustace's loyalty, Henry set up an hostage exchange between Eustace and Juliana's daughters (Henry's own granddaughters), and the son of Ralph Harnec, Constable of Ivry. Eustace cut out the eyes of Ralph's son and Ralph, furious, appealed to Henry for justice. Henry allowed Ralph to blind Eustace and Juliane's daughters.

Enraged, Juliane journeyed to Bretuil to defend the citadel, where she found an unmotivated garrison. She offered to agree to a truce, but when she met her father, she shot an arrow at him - but missed. He destroyed the drawbridge and forced her to surrender the castle, placing her in confinement. Determined to escape, she leapt from her castle tower into the freezing moat water and fled to her husband.[3]

Eventually, Henry pardoned Eustace and Juliane. They were stripped of Bretuil but were granted rents from various lands, which totaled three hundred silver marks each year. Eustace died in 1136, and Henry died on 1 December 1135. Juliane, in her later years, retired to the abbey of Fontevrault.[4] She lived to see early conflicts between her half-sister Maude and her cousin Stephen.

References

  1. ↑ Thompson 2003, pp. 147–148; Green 2009, p. 322
  2. ↑ Hollister 2003, p. 253
  3. ↑ Hollister 2003, p. 254
  4. ↑ Hollister 2003, p. 255
  • Judith A. Green: Henry I.: King of England and Duke of Normandy. 2006
  • Hollister, C. Warren (2003). Frost, Amanda Clark, ed. Henry I. New Haven, US and London, UK: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-09829-7.
  • Thompson, Kathleen (2003). "Affairs of State: the Illegitimate Children of Henry I". Journal of Medieval History. 29 (2): 129–151. doi:10.1016/S0304-4181(03)00015-0. ISSN 0304-4181.
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