Blanche I of Navarre
- For other persons of this name see Blanca of Navarre (disambiguation).
| Blanche I | |
|---|---|
| Queen of Navarre Queen consort of Sicily | |
 Coat of arms of Blanche | |
| Reign | 8 September 1425 – 1 April 1441 |
| Predecessor | Charles III |
| Successor | Charles IV |
| Spouse | Martin I of Sicily John II of Aragon |
| Issue | Charles IV Blanche II Eleanor |
| House | House of Évreux |
| Father | Charles III |
| Mother | Eleanor of Castile |
Blanche I of Navarre (6 July 1387[1] – 1 April 1441) was Queen of Navarre from 1425 to 1441.
Life
She was the daughter of King Charles III of Navarre and infanta Eleanor of Castile.
Blanche married firstly Martin the Younger, King of Sicily and Crown Prince of Aragon. They were married by proxy on 21 May 1402 in Catania. Blanche travelled to meet her new husband and they were married in person on 26 December 1402. The bride was about eleven years old and the groom twenty-eight.
Martin had survived his previous wife and former co-ruler Mary of Sicily and their only son. He was in need of legitimate heirs. They both survived their only son. Martin died on 25 July 1409 and was succeeded by his own father, Martin I of Aragon.
Blanche remained a widow for a decade. On 6 November 1419, Blance married her second husband John, duke of Peñafiel by proxy in Olite, and the second son of Ferdinand I of Aragon and Eleanor of Alburquerque. Ferdinand had succeeded his maternal uncle Martin I in 1412.
John traveled to meet her. On 10 June 1420, they were married in person in Pamplona. Charles III died on 8 September 1425 and Blanche succeeded him as Queen regnant of Navarre. John became King Consort of Navarre in her right.
Blanche died in Santa María la Real de Nieva in 1441. After her death, John kept the government of Navarre in his own hands, from the hands of their own son Charles of Viana, the rightful heir of the line of Navarrese kings. He would became King of Aragon and King of Sicily upon the death of his elder brother Alfonso V of Aragon in 1458.
Issue
Martin and Blanche only had one son:
- Prince Martin of Sicily (1406-1407).
Blanche and John II of Aragon had four children:
- Blanca of Navarre (1420-1464), married Henry IV of Castile. The marriage was never consummated. After 13 years of marriage, Henry sought and obtained a divorce. Blanca was sent home, where her family imprisoned her, and she was later killed by poison.
- Carlos of Viana (1421-1461)
- Juana of Aragon (1423-1425)
- Eleanor (1426-1479) Queen of Navarre (1479-1479)
Ancestors
| Blanche I of Navarre | Father: Charles III of Navarre |
Paternal Grandfather: Charles II of Navarre |
Paternal Great-grandfather: Philip III of Navarre |
| Paternal Great-grandmother: Joan II of Navarre | |||
| Paternal Grandmother: Jeanne de Valois, Queen of Navarre |
Paternal Great-grandfather: John II of France | ||
| Paternal Great-grandmother: Bonne of Bohemia | |||
| Mother: Eleanor of Castile |
Maternal Grandfather: Henry II of Castile |
Maternal Great-grandfather: Alfonso XI of Castile | |
| Maternal Great-grandmother: Eleanor of Guzman | |||
| Maternal Grandmother: Juana Manuel of Castile |
Maternal Great-grandfather: Juan Manuel, Duke of Peñafiel | ||
| Maternal Great-grandmother: Blanca de La Cerda y Lara |
Bibliography
- Anthony, Raoul: Identification et Etude des Ossements des Rois de Navarre inhumés dans la Cathédrale de Lescar, Paris, Masson, 1931
- Maria Rita Lo Forte Scirpo: C'era una volta una regina ... : due donne per un regno: Maria d'Aragona e Bianca di Navarra, Napoli : Liguori, [ISBN 882073527X], 2003
References
- ^ Anthony (1931) states that she was the fourth-born daughter of King Charles III of Navarre by Queen Eleanor, and she was preceded by Juana, Maria and Margarita and the two latter died early. Anthony defines Blanca's exact birth date as 6 July 1387 by virtue of contemporary sources.