Blanche of Castile
| Blanche of Castile | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Queen consort of France | |
| Tenure | 14 July 1223 – November 1226 |
| Coronation | 6 August 1223 |
| Born |
4 March 1188 Palencia, Castile |
| Died | 27 November 1252 (aged 64) Paris, France |
| Burial | Maubuisson Abbey |
| Spouse | Louis VIII of France |
| Issue |
Louis IX of France (Saint Louis) Robert I, Count of Artois Alphonse, Count of Poitiers Saint Isabelle Charles I of Naples |
| House | House of Ivrea |
| Father | Alfonso VIII of Castile |
| Mother | Eleanor of England |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Blanche of Castile (Spanish: Blanca; 4 March 1188 – 27 November 1252) was Queen of France as the wife of Louis VIII. She acted as regent twice during the reign of her son, Louis IX. She was born in Palencia, Spain, 1188, the third daughter of Alfonso VIII, king of Castile, and Eleanor of England. Eleanor was a daughter of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine.
In her youth, she visited the Abbey of Santa María la Real de Las Huelgas, founded by her parents, several times. In consequence of the Treaty of Le Goulet between Philip Augustus and John of England, Blanche's sister, Urraca, was betrothed to Philip's son, Louis. Their grandmother Eleanor of Aquitaine, after meeting the two sisters, judged that Blanche's personality was more fit for a queen consort of France. In the spring of 1200, Eleanor crossed the Pyrenees with her and brought her to France instead.
On 22 May 1200 the treaty was finally signed, John ceding with his niece the fiefs of Issoudun and Graçay, together with those that André de Chauvigny, lord of Châteauroux, held in Berry, of the English crown. The marriage was celebrated the next day, at Port-Mort on the right bank of the Seine, in John's domains, as those of Philip lay under an interdict. Blanche was twelve years of age, and Louis was only a year older so the marriage was consummated a few years later. Blanche bore her first child in 1205.
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