Joan of England (1334-1348)

Joan of England
Born	December 19, 1333 or January 28, 1334 Tower of London (perhaps)
Died	July 1, 1348
Burial	Bayonne Cathedral, France
House	House of Plantagenet
Father	Edward III of England
Mother	Philippa of Hainault

Joan of England (December 19, 1333 or January 28, 1334 – July 1, 1348 ) was a daughter of Edward III and his wife, Philippa of Hainault. Joan, also known as Joanna, was born on either December 19, 1333 or January 28, 1334 in the Tower of London. As a child she was placed in the care of Marie de St Pol, wife of Aymer de Valence and foundress of Pembroke College, Cambridge. She grew up together with her sister Isabella, her brother Edward, and their cousin Joan of Kent. Joan died in the Black Death that struck Europe in 1348.

In 1338, Joan was taken on her father's journey to Koblenz, where they met Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor, and were his special guests at the Imperial Diet in the church of Saint Castor. Edward III had formed an alliance with Louis against Philip VI of France, but in 1341 the emperor deserted him.

It is possible that Joan was betrothed to one of the sons Louis had with his wife Margaret of Holland, Philippa's older sister, and actually stayed in their court to be educated there. However, Edward III withdrew her in 1340.

In 1345, she was betrothed to Peter of Castile, son of Alfonso XI of Castile and Maria of Portugal. A few years later, in the summer of 1348, Joan left England with the blessing of her parents. Thanks to a heavily armed retinue she was, perhaps, the most protected woman of Europe at the time, and it is said that her trousseau alone required an entire ship. The travel schedule included a visit to one of her family's castles in Bordeaux.

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