Pictures of the old French court

by Mrs. Bearne

It might appear as if some idea of the kind pervaded this and a former volume, in which, with the exception perhaps of Charles V. and Louis XII., none of the Kings of France treated of can be exactly so described; whereas the talents, beauty, and goodness of the Queens seem generally made evident. But all the researches into the history of their times, from which these records are drawn, seem to prove that during the eight reigns in question most of the Queens of France really were distinguished for their excellent qualities, and that except the unlucky Charlotte de Savoie they were all more or less good-looking; Blanche de Navarre, Isabeau de Bavière, and Marie d’Anjou being remarkably beautiful; and that at any rate Blanche de Navarre, the three Jeannes, wives of Philippe de Valois, Jean and Charles V., and Anne de Bretagne, were highly cultivated women, possessing superior talents and strongly-marked characters. In Isabeau de Bavière we find an entirely different personality.

Stephan I., Duke of Bavaria, of the ancient house of Wittelsbach, died in 1375, leaving three sons, between whom he divided his dominions, and from whom descend the three lines of Ingolstadt, Landshut, and Munich.

The strongest ties of affection and friendship united these three brothers, who however, seem to have borne little resemblance to each other.

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Stephan of Ingolstadt was short in stature, but good-looking, high-spirited, and full of romance, his chief delight being in love-making and warlike adventures. Friederich of Landshut, a brave, wise, able prince, was by far the most capable member of the family, while Johann, a rough and fearless sportsman, led a wild, jovial life in his own court and castles, which he filled with huntsmen, hawks, dogs, and horses.[86] From him descends the Munich line of Bavarian princes.[87] Johann took a German wife, but Stephan and Friederich married Taddea and Maddalena, daughters of Bernabo Visconti, one of the chiefs of that family so renowned for splendour, power, and cruelty, then ruling in Milan. After a few years Taddea died, and left Stephan with a son and daughter named Ludwig and Isabeau, or Elizabeth. The latter was born at Ingolstadt 1370 or 1371. By his second marriage he had no children.

In all Germany, and perhaps in all Europe, there is not a more beautiful country than Bavaria, with its lakes, mountains, forests, and ancient castles. Here Isabeau spent her short childhood, idolized by her father and brother, flattered and spoiled by all around her, for her extraordinary beauty was the admiration of the court. It was a brief childhood, for she was only about twelve years old when the first negotiations for her marriage with the King of France were begun. Her uncle, Friederich of Landshut, was serving in Flanders with the French against the English army in the year 1383, just at the time when the uncles and guardians of the young Charles VI. were looking for a wife for him, and as his father, the late King Charles V., had desired that he should be married to a German, and thus secure an ally to France against England, they were hesitating between the daughters of Austria, Lorraine, and one or two others that had been suggested, and inquired of Duke Friederich whether there were any marriageable princess of his family who would be suitable.

Friederich was naturally anxious not to let slip the chance of the crown of France for one of his house; so he explained that, although he had no children of the right age, his brother, Stephan, had a daughter in all respects suitable, being extremely beautiful and about two years younger than the King, and he lost no time in writing to inform his brother of the splendid prospect which seemed to be opening before them. But Duke Stephan, less ambitious than his brother, was in no way elated by this proposal. He replied that, in the first place, he did not like unequal alliances, and between himself and the King of France the difference was too great; neither did he wish his daughter to go so far away, but would prefer to marry her to some noble of his own country; besides which objections, there existed a custom that a prospective Queen of France should, like candidates for the army in our own days, pass a sort of medical examination which was conducted by certain matrons chosen from among the ladies of highest rank at the French court; and to this the Duke refused to consent. He declared that he was not going to allow either himself or his daughter to be made ridiculous by sending her to France on an uncertainty, or to risk the affront of her being rejected. She should stay in her own country and marry some one nearer home. So, for the time, the negotiations were broken off.

It was indeed most unfortunate that the very sensible decision of Stephan was not adhered to, and also that in the one and only case in which the Dukes of Berry and Burgundy carried out the directions of the late King, their brother, the result should have been so deplorable. In all other respects they disobeyed his injunctions. They brought up his sons in opposition to his wishes, they wasted the treasure he had taken so much time and care to collect, they impoverished the people by their extortions, and incensed them by their misgovernment, so that they were fast bringing France back to that state of anarchy and misery from which she had been rescued by the wise rule of Charles V.

If Isabeau had stayed, as her father wished, at his comparatively simple court and married some German noble, it would probably have been much better both for France and herself; but this was not to be, for the rest of the family and connections of that young princess strongly disapproved of the decision of Duke Stephan, and used all their endeavours to prevail upon him to alter it. For many generations the numerous members of the house of Wittelsbach had married into all the royal and ruling families of France, Burgundy, and Flanders. Amongst others, the Duchesse de Brabant was a relation of theirs and was most anxious for the marriage.