Isabella, Countess of Angoulême

Isabella was the Queen of England from 1200 to 1216 as the second wife of King John and became Countess of Angoulême in her own right from 1202 until her death. She was also the Countess of La Marche from 1220 to 1246 as the wife of Count Hugh. Isabella bore five children with King John, including Henry III, and had another nine children with Hugh X of Lusignan. Her marriage to John was notable for the conflict it incited with France, leading to the loss of their French lands. She was engaged to Hugh IX le Brun before her marriage to John, and her betrothal was a factor in the subsequent political strife.

Following King John’s death, Isabella swiftly ensured her son Henry’s coronation. She later married Hugh X of Lusignan without the consent of the English council, causing political tension and leading to the confiscation of her dower lands. Her actions in France included a failed conspiracy against King Louis IX and an attempt to poison him, after which she sought refuge in Fontevraud Abbey, where she died. Isabella’s death prompted her children from her second marriage to seek opportunities in England at the court of her son, Henry III.