User:Friedaj/Joanna of Flanders

Joanna of Flanders (c.1295 - September 1374) was Duchess of Brittainy through her marriage with John Montfort. Joanna and her husband's lives were dominated with the War of the Breton Succession (1341-April 1365), or the War of Two Jeannes --with the two rivaling duchesses' names were Jeanne (Jeanne of Flanders and Jeanne de Penthièvre). This war became a key part of the beginning of the Hundred Years' War, as the question of Breton Succession played an integral role in deciding which monarch would gain large amounts of power: the French or the English. Joanna of Flanders was backed by King Edward III, the English King.

In the War of Brenton Succession, Joanna became known for her fiery personalty, as she burned down her opponents resources regularly. After her husband was imprisoned, Joanna lead the Montfort army to defend their claim as Duke and Duchess of Brittany. After taking refuge in England, Joanna was confined to Tickhill Castle by King Edward III due to concerns of her being mentally unstable. That stated, there is no evidence that Joanna was insane.

Jean Froissart, a well-respected writer and primitive historian praised Joanna for her courage and actions. Writing for courtly officials, Froissart celebrated her for her tenacity and her military leadership abilities. Modern historian, Julie Sarpy, argues that Joanna was confined to Tickhill Castle for political reasons, not due to any mental illness.

Family
Joanna was the daughter of Louis I, Count of Nevers and Joan, Countess of Rethel. Her brother, Louis I, Count of Flanders, became the Count of Flanders, Nevers, and Rethel. This while Joanna married John of Montfort, marrying into a debated claim for Duke and Duchess of Brittainy.

Joanna and John had two children:


 * John IV, Duke of Brittany (1339-1399) with his life marred by the War of Brenton Succession, John was taken into the household of Edward III before he returned to reinforce his claim as the Duke of Brittany.
 * Joan of Brittany, Baroness of Drayton (1341-October 1399) When her brother returned to defend his claim as the Duke of Brittany, Joan of Brittany stayed in England.

The Question of Succession
John III, Duke of Brittany Was the duke of Brittany directly before the Brenton succession crisis. Long before his death, he declared his heir to be his niece Joan of Penthièvre. Shortly before dying, Duke John III reconciled with his half brother, John of Montfort, at which John was declared the successor after not getting along due to John of Montfort's hatred for John's step-mother, Yolande. Once John III, Duke of Brittany died, the succession crisis became imminent. Immediately, two rivals formed vying for the title of Duke and Duchess of Brittany:


 * The House of Montfort, the house of John of Montfort and Joanna of Flanders. Their legitimacy came from Duke John III's reconsiliation with John shortly before his death. This claim was backed by the King of England, Edward III, who would benefit from the House of Montfort taking control of Brittany.
 * The House of Blois, the hose of Charles of Blois and his wife, Joan of Penthièvre. Their legitimacy came from the Duke's previous declaration that his heir would be Joan. Only shortly before the Duke's death did he change who his successor would be, which raised questions of legitimacy directed at the House of Montfort. This claim was backed by the King of France, Philip VI, who benefited from the House of Blois controlling Brittany.

Diplomacy Before the War
In an attempt to resolve this question of succession, John of Montfort, Joanna's husband, reached out to King Philip VI. Philip, the uncle of Charles of Blois. Due to the association of the House of Montfort with the English, and the House of Blois' association to the French, historians understand that John was working to avoid starting a conflict between the English and French. Philip promised John safe conduct and invited him to Paris to be heard. Once in Paris, John was quickly imprisoned and the French courts declared Joan of Penthièvre and her husband Charles of Blois to be the heirs of Brittany. This move spurred Joanna's vengeance.

With her husband locked away, Joanna announced her son --still a child at the time -- the rightful heir and leader of her faction. Mustering an army, Joanna lead her army into the start of the War of Brenton Succession.

The War of Brenton Succession
It is important to understand that Joanna of Flanders did not write the book on being a woman participating in warfare. There was an expectation that women could lead, militarily and politically. This is clearly evident through Joan of Penthièvre's claim to the title of Duchess of Brittany. That stated, there were few men or women with as much energy and drive for revenge as Joanna.

Beginning the war with a march on Redon, Joanna went on to attempt to siege Hennebont. At the same time, her enemy Charles of Blois besieged Joanna and the House of Montfort, which Joanna responded to by requesting help from King Edward. Edward, in dire need to become allies with Brittany, found this opportunity impossible to ignore --Edward sent costly supplies for Joanna to help relieve the siege.

Charles' siege on Hennebont was deeply impactful, as it created close ties between the King of England and Joanna of Flanders. Further, this siege gave Joanna the opportunity to flex her skills as a clever military leader. At one moment during the siege, Joanna noticed the enemy camp was barely guarded. she then led a mere three hundred men to burn down all the tents and supplies. Joanna of Flanders, who quickly became known as "Jeanne la Flamme" then slyly had her knights ride out towards one of her previously secured towns: Brest to gain support and supplies before she made her way back into Hennebont.

Joanna began to move away from her sieges and began to focus more onto her fleet. Joanna's focus on naval warfare gave her a newfound title: pirate.

Charles' siege may have been effective in a different context, but certainly not against Joanna. According to Froissart, Joanna was chivalrous, had a heart of a lion, and the spirit of a fighter. Her fierce personality ensured that her opponents never mistook her for a minor inconvenience.

Joanna of Flanders slowly started stepping further back away from the war front, which would have been expected for women of her position. English warlords slowly began taking more and more leadership and acted in Joanna's place: a duchess avenging her husband. Her husband was later released, before a tumultuous two years before his death in war. In the wake of her husband's death, Joanna stepped up once more and became the leader of the Montfort house once more to protect the title for her son from the House of Blois.

Retirement or Captivity
Joanna of Flander's life ended in England. King Edward left her to Tickhill Castle. Not allowed to leave due to "insanity", Joanna was not allowed to leave the castle. Many historians today are hesitant to believe that Joanna truly experienced mental illness in her last years. What is much more likely according to most historians is that she suffered from a bad case of opinions. Joanna had become a piece of folklore, a legend of revenge and power. This causes most historians to believe that King Edward mainly wanted to simplify the chess board by removing a very important piece that he could not fully understand.