Philippa Roet

Philippa de Roet (c. 1346 – c. 1387) – also known as Philippa Pan or Philippa Chaucer – was the sister of Katherine Swynford and the wife of Geoffrey Chaucer.

Philippa was the daughter of Sir Gilles de Roet, who was a knight of Hainault and accompanied Queen Philippa to England. He later became the Guienne King of Arms. There is no history of her mother, but it is thought that Philippa had two sisters and a brother: Katherine, Elizabeth, and Walter. Her father went to serve the queen's sister, Marguerite, who was the empress of Germany and the three younger children – Walter, Philippa and Katherine – were left in the care of Queen Philippa.

It was her father’s relationship with royalty that gave Philippa and her family high status and a reputation among the upper class, who took Philippa in as a ‘domicella’, or lady-in-waiting. This phase of her life began with the households of Elizabeth of Ulster and Queen Philippa, and ended with Constanza of Castile. These associations proved to be valuable, as Philippa began to receive annuities from Edward III, Richard II, and John of Gaunt, Costanza's husband.

Philippa is believed to have picked up the nickname "Philippa Pan" while working at Elizabeth of Ulster's household. There are records from 1357–1359 from the house of Elizabeth of Ulster which mention "a lady designated as Philippa Pan". "Pan" may have been an abbreviation of “Planetaria”, meaning mistress of the pantry, which is most likely where Philippa worked in the Ulster household. The name might also come from her father, who sometimes went by 'Paon' or Payne.

Geoffrey Chaucer was commissioned to work as a page in Elizabeth's household in 1357, where Philippa was already working as a domicella. This is where they are believed to have met; after Elizabeth's death, both were sent to work for the queen, caring for her infant daughter, Philippa of Eltham. Philippa was around 10 years old at the time and Chaucer was said to be around 12. Their marriage might have been arranged by Queen Philippa herself in September 1366. It was apparently tradition for domicellas and esquires who worked in the same household to marry.

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