Joan of England

Joan of England, born on 22 July 1210, became the Queen of Scotland through her marriage to Alexander II on 21 June 1221. She was the daughter of John, King of England, and Isabella of Angoulême. Initially, Philip II of France considered her as a potential bride for his son, but her father promised her to Hugh X of Lusignan in 1214. Her dowry included Saintes, Saintonge, and the Isle of Oléron. However, after her father’s death in 1216, her mother married Hugh X, keeping Joan at his court to maintain her dowry. In 1220, Joan was sent back to England, where she was then betrothed to Alexander II of Scotland.

Joan and Alexander married when she was nearly eleven years old, and Alexander was twenty-three. They had no children, which was a concern but an annulment was avoided to prevent potential conflict with England. Joan’s position at the Scottish court was not strong, overshadowed by her mother-in-law, queen dowager Ermengarde, but her English heritage made her an important figure. She accompanied Alexander to England for negotiations over disputed territories with her brother, King Henry III. Joan died on 4 March 1238 at Havering-atte-Bower and was buried at Tarrant Crawford Abbey in Dorset, as per her wishes.