Isabella (or Elizabeth) of Sicily is an example of a medieval princess who found no happiness in her marriage. Brought to Hungary to be raised with her future husband, one might expect that the young couple would grow to love each other. Instead, Isabella’s husband neglected her in favour of his concubines and even imprisoned her.
Early Life
Estimates of Isabella’s birth range from 1261 to 1264/1265. She was the youngest child of Charles I of Anjou, King of Naples, and Beatrice of Provence. At the time of her birth, her father was Count of Anjou and Maine, as well as Count of Provence and Forcalquier in right of his wife. Charles was the youngest brother of St. Louis, King of France, who was married to Beatrice’s older sister, Margaret.
By the time of Isabella’s birth, her father was campaigning for the throne of Sicily. At the time, the Kingdom of Sicily encompassed not only the island of Sicily but also much of Southern Italy. Charles officially became the King of Sicily in 1266.
Isabella’s mother, Beatrice, died in 1267. The next year, Charles was looking for a new wife and turned towards Hungary to strengthen his position. He asked for the hand of Margaret, the only unmarried daughter of King Bela IV of Hungary. Margaret was a nun and wished to remain one, so she refused to marry Charles. Instead, Charles married Margaret of Burgundy, Countess of Tonnerre, but he still wished to enter a marriage alliance with Hungary.
In 1269, a double marriage was decided. Charles’ eldest son and heir, also named Charles, would marry Bela’s granddaughter, Mary. Bela’s grandson, Ladislaus, would in turn marry Charles’ daughter, Isabella. Mary and Ladislaus were both children of Bela’s son and heir, Stephen. In 1270, Bela died, and Stephen became King Stephen V of Hungary. This same year, the double marriage occurred. Isabella received 200,000 silver marks as her dowry. Soon, the kings of Hungary and Naples practically exchanged daughters. Stephen’s daughter, Mary, was sent to Naples, and Isabella was sent to Hungary.
Isabella was only somewhere between the ages of five and nine when she was sent to her future husband’s country. Ladislaus was about eight years old, so a little bit younger or older than Isabella, depending on the year of her birth. Charles provided three small ships to escort Isabella to Hungary, but fearing sea storms, he then chartered three galleys from Venice to take Isabella to her new home. Isabella now had to learn the language and customs of her new country. In Hungary, she was known as Elizabeth, a variant of her name that was more favourable there. During her early years in Hungary, Isabella would have had little contact with Ladislaus. In 1272, Stephen V of Hungary died, and Ladislaus became king at the age of ten. This made Isabella Queen of Hungary between the ages of seven and eleven.
Becoming Queen
Since Ladislaus IV was underage, his mother, Elizabeth the Cuman, ruled as regent. Isabella was crowned Queen in July 1273. She had a seal and was appearing in charters in 1275. In May 1277, the royal council declared the soon-to-be fifteen-year-old Ladislaus to have reached the age of majority. That same year, the marriage of Ladislaus and Isabella was formalised. However, Ladislaus preferred the company of his Cuman concubines. Overall, Ladislaus favoured the Cumans above everyone else, perhaps due to his mother’s influence. He preferred dressing the Cuman way and relied on many Cumans as his main advisors rather than the native Hungarians. The Cumans, being foreigners and many of them still pagan, did not earn Ladislaus the respect of his countrymen.
Disastrous Marriage
In 1278, Ladislaus’s only brother, Andrew, died, so there was now more pressure for Isabella to produce an heir. Ladislaus, however, continued spending his time with his Cuman concubines, much to the anger of the Hungarian nobles and the Church. His favourite mistress was named Edua, whom Ladislaus is said to have treated as if she were the real queen. In 1280, some barons tried to get Ladislaus and Isabella to reconcile by locking them together, but this seems to have done nothing to improve their relationship. The Pope and his legate, Philip of Fermo, tried to intervene on Isabella’s behalf. There would be some temporary reconciliations between the couple, but they never lasted.
The Mongols invaded Hungary in January 1285. Isabella took refuge in Buda Castle, which the Mongol army laid siege to. The Mongols ravaged Hungary for about two months before they were driven out. Also in January 1285, Isabella’s father died. Without her father to defend her, Ladislaus seemed to have wanted to repudiate Isabella for good.
In 1285 or 1286, Ladislaus imprisoned Isabella in the monastery on Margaret Island, Buda. He also deprived her of all of her estates and income. There were rumours that Ladislaus had encouraged the Mongols to invade Hungary, and Ladislaus, hearing these rumours, thought that Isabella was among those who spread them. Some, including Archbishop Lodomerius of Esztergom, believed that Ladislaus’s sister, Elizabeth, who lived at the monastery, had turned Ladislaus against his wife.
Pope Honorius IV wrote to Ladislaus, demanding that he release Isabella and restore her possessions. She was probably released by July 1287, but Ladislaus would still not restore her properties. In November 1287, Archbishop Lodomerius held an assembly where he read the Pope’s letter and urged Ladislaus to return Isabella’s possessions to her. Ladislaus promised to do this at first, but he did not follow through. Finally, in 1289, after much urging from the Church, Ladislaus reconciled with Isabella and restored her possessions to her. Isabella spent the second half of 1289 touring some of the estates that had been returned to her.
By this time, Ladislaus had become very unpopular, and he was even losing favour with the Cumans. On 10 July 1290, Ladislaus was assassinated by some of his own trusted Cumans. Leaving behind no children, Ladislaus was succeeded by his cousin, Andrew III, the last remaining male member of the royal Arpadian dynasty.
Widowhood in Hungary
Isabella was still in her twenties when her husband died, but she did not marry again. She would, however, remain in Hungary for about another ten years.
Isabella appears to have been involved in the founding of the Franciscan Friary at Segesd in 1290, the year of Ladislaus’ death. She appears to have been welcomed by the new King, Andrew III. Her birth family, however, did not support his claim. Her sister-in-law, Mary of Hungary, Queen of Naples, put in her bid and passed her claim to her eldest son, Charles Martel. The latter never managed to claim Hungary successfully and died in 1295. Despite her birth family’s opposition to Andrew, there is no evidence of any problems between him and Isabella. In November 1297, Isabella borrowed a thousand ounces of gold to return to Naples. Her reason for returning to her homeland after spending almost her entire life in Hungary is unknown.
Final Years in Naples
In February 1299, Isabella passed through Slavonia on her way to Naples. It is not known exactly when Isabella returned to her homeland, but in July 1300, she was in Manfredonia, Italy. Ladislaus’ sister Elizabeth was also there, suggesting that she had travelled with Isabella from Hungary. While Isabella and Elizabeth were thought to have been on bad terms while Ladislaus was alive, it seems that the two had now reconciled.
Once back in Naples, Isabella’s brother, King Charles II, gave her 40 ounces of gold per month. In 1301, Queen Mary transformed an old monastery in Naples into a Dominican nunnery. This seems to have been done for her sister, Elizabeth, and Isabella, and that this nunnery would be a retirement community for noblewomen. This nunnery was known as San Pietro a Castello. Isabella became a Dominican nun at this monastery and spent her final years there. Isabella died in late October 1303, in her late thirties or early forties, at San Pietro a Castello, and was buried there.
Isabella is one of the more tragic and forgotten Queens of Hungary. Her childlessness and difficult relationship with her husband weakened her position as queen. Her marriage is seen as a sharp contrast to that of her brother, Charles, and Ladislaus’s sister, Mary, which resulted in many children. Because Isabella and Ladislaus failed to produce heirs, it would be Charles and Maria’s descendants who would rule both Naples and Hungary.
Sources
Hardi Irsai, Angela; “Isabella of Apulia (Anjou), one of the Hungarian Queens with the saddest fate”
Mielke, Christopher; “Every hyacinth the garden wears: the material culture of medieval queens of Hungary (1000-1395)”
Mielke, Christopher; “No Country for Old Women: Burial Practices and Patterns of Hungarian Queens of the Arpad Dynasty (975-1301)”
Mielke, Christopher; The Archaeology and Material Culture of Queenship in Medieval Hungary, 1000-1395
“Isabella/Elizabeth of Anjou” on epistolae.ctl.columbia.edu
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