Joan of England

Joan of England was the name of four female members of the medieval English royal family (later, retroactively, known as the Plantagenet dynasty). All four women became queen consorts of foreign rulers.

Princess of Wales

Joan of England (died March 1236) was an illegitimate daughter of King John of England and a woman named Clemence. She should not be confused with her legitimate half-sister Joan, Queen of Scotland.

Related Topics:
March - 1236 - John of England

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Little is known for certain about Joan's early life; she was evidently born before her father, King John, married his first wife in 1189. Her mother's name is known only from Joan's obituary in the Tewkesbury Annals, where she is mysteriously called "Regina Clementina" (Queen Clemence). Joan seems to have spent her childhood in France, as King John had her brought to England from Normandy for her wedding in December 1203.

Related Topics:
1189 - 1203

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Joan married Llywelyn the Great, Prince of Wales, between December 1203 and October 1204. She and Llywelyn had at least four children together:

Related Topics:
Llywelyn the Great - 1204

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

• Gwladys Ddu (died 1251), married (1) Reginald de Broase and (2) Ralph de Mortimer
• Elen (died 1253), married (1) John le Scot, Earl of Chester and (2) Robert de Quincy
• Susanna, who was sent to England as a hostage in 1228
• Dafydd ap Llywelyn (after 1211-1246)

In April 1226 Joan obtained a papal decree from Pope Honorius III, declaring her legitimate on the basis that her parents had been unmarried at the time of her birth, but without giving her a claim to the English throne. In 1230, Llywelyn discovered Joan in adultery with William de Braose in their bedchamber. William de Braose was hanged, and Joan herself was imprisoned for some time before Llywelyn accepted her back as his wife.

Related Topics:
1226 - Pope Honorius III - 1230 - William de Braose

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Joan was buried at the priory of Llanfaes near Beaumaris, and her stone coffin can be seen in Beaumaris parish church.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Fiction

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

This princess Joan and her affair with William de Braose was the subject of Saunders Lewis's Welsh verse play Siwan.

Related Topics:
Saunders Lewis - Welsh

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Joan appears as a main character in Sharon Kay Penman's historical novel "Here Be Dragons".

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Sources

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

• Rotuli Litterarum Clausarum in Turri Londinensi I, p. 12.
• Luard, Henry. Annales Monastici 1, 1864
• Tewkesbury Annals
• Chronicle of Ystrad Fflur