Yolande of Aragon

Yolande of Aragon
Duchess of Anjou Countess of Maine Countess of Provence and Forcalquier Countess of Piedmont Titular Queen Consort of Naples
Yolande of Aragon
Duchess of Anjou
Tenure	2 December 1400–29 April 1417
Born	11 August 1384 Zaragoza, Kingdom of Aragon
Died	14 November 1442 (aged 58) Chateau de Tuce-de-Saumur, France
Burial	Cathédrale Saint-Maurice d'Angers, France
Spouse	Louis II of Anjou
Issue	Louis III of Anjou Marie of Anjou, Queen Consort of France René I of Naples Yolande, Countess of Montfort l'Amaury Charles, Count of Maine
House	Aragon
Father	John I of Aragon
Mother	Yolande of Bar
Religion	Roman Catholic

Yolande of Aragon (11 August 1384 – 14 November 1442) was a throne claimant and titular queen regnant of Aragon, titular queen consort of Naples, Duchess of Anjou, Countess of Provence, and regent of Provence during the minority of her son. She was a daughter of John I of Aragon and his wife Yolande of Bar (daughter of Robert I, Duke of Bar, and Marie of Valois). Yolande played a crucial role in the struggles between France and England, influencing events such as the financing of Joan of Arc's army in 1429 that helped tip the balance in favour of the French. She was also known as Yolanda de Aragón and Violant d'Aragó. Tradition holds that she commissioned the famous Rohan Hours.

Yolande was born in Zaragoza, Aragon, on 11 August 1384, the eldest daughter of King John I of Aragon by his second wife, Yolande of Bar, the granddaughter of King John II of France. She had three brothers and two sisters, as well as five older half-siblings from her father's first marriage to Martha of Armagnac. Yolande later played an important role in the politics of England, France, and Aragon during the first half of the 15th century.

In 1389, Louis II was crowned King of Naples. His mother Marie of Blois opened negotiations for a marriage between her son and Yolande to prevent Aragon from obstructing his rule there. When Yolande was eleven, she signed a document to disavow any promises made by ambassadors about her marrying Louis II. In 1395, Richard II of England also opened negotiations for Yolande's hand. To prevent this marriage, Charles VI of France offered his own daughter Isabella to King Richard. After the death of Yolande's father, Marie of Blois convinced Yolande's uncle Martin I of Aragon to have Yolande wed Louis II. Yolande signed a protest, but was forced to retract it later. The couple married in Arles on December 2, 1400. Despite Yolande's earlier objections and the later illnesses of her husband, the marriage was a success.