Margaret of Bavaria (1363 – 23 January 1424,

Dijon Dijon (, ; ; in Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Digion'') is a city in and the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Côte-d'Or Departments of France, department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in eas ...

) was Duchess of Burgundy by marriage to

John the Fearless John I (; ; 28 May 1371 – 10 September 1419) was a scion of the French royal family who ruled the Burgundian State from 1404 until his assassination in 1419. He played a key role in French national affairs during the early 15th century, part ...

. She was the

regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

of the Burgundian

Low Countries The Low Countries (; ), historically also known as the Netherlands (), is a coastal lowland region in Northwestern Europe forming the lower Drainage basin, basin of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta and consisting today of the three modern "Bene ...

during the absence of her spouse in 1404–1419 and the regent in French Burgundy during the absence of her son in 1419–1423. She became most known for her successful defense of the Duchy of Burgundy against Count

John IV of Armagnac John IV (15 October 1396 – 5 November 1450) was a Count of Armagnac, County of Fézensac, Fézensac, and County of Rodez, Rodez from 1418 to 1450. He was involved in the intrigues related to the Hundred Years' War and in conflicts against the ...

in 1419.

Life

Margaret was the fifth child of

Albert I, Duke of Bavaria Albert I, Duke of Lower Bavaria (; 25 July 1336 – 13 December 1404), was a feudal ruler of the counties of Holland, Hainaut, and Zeeland in the Low Countries. Additionally, he held a portion of the Bavarian province of Straubing, his Bavari ...

, Count of Hainault,

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former provinces of the Netherlands, province on the western coast of the Netherland ...

, and

Zeeland Zeeland (; ), historically known in English by the Endonym and exonym, exonym Zealand, is the westernmost and least populous province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the southwest of the country, borders North Brabant to the east ...

and Lord of

Frisia Frisia () is a Cross-border region, cross-border Cultural area, cultural region in Northwestern Europe. Stretching along the Wadden Sea, it encompasses the north of the Netherlands and parts of northwestern Germany. Wider definitions of "Frisia" ...

, and Margaret of Brieg.

Marriage

On 12 April 1385, at the Burgundian double wedding in

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; ; ), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the Escaut river. A sub-pref ...

, Margaret married

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, Count of Nevers, the son and heir of

Philip the Bold Philip II the Bold (; ; 17 January 1342 – 27 April 1404) was Duke of Burgundy and ''jure uxoris'' Count of Flanders, Artois and Burgundy. He was the fourth and youngest son of King John II of France and Bonne of Luxembourg. Philip was th ...

Duke of Burgundy Duke of Burgundy () was a title used by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, from its establishment in 843 to its annexation by the Crown lands of France, French crown in 1477, and later by members of the House of Habsburg, including Holy Roman E ...

, and

Margaret of Dampierre Margaret III (13 April 1350 – 16/21 March 1405) was a ruling Countess of Flanders, Countess of Artois, and Countess of Auvergne and Boulogne between 1384 and 1405. She was the last ruler of Flanders of the House of Dampierre. She was al ...

, Countess of

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

Artois Artois ( , ; ; Picard: ''Artoé;'' English adjective: ''Artesian'') is a region of northern France. Its territory covers an area of about 4,000 km2 and it has a population of about one million. Its principal cities include Arras (Dutch: ...

and

Burgundy Burgundy ( ; ; Burgundian: ''Bregogne'') is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. ...

; at the same time her brother,

William II, Duke of Bavaria William II of Bavaria (5 April 1365—31 May 1417) was Duke of Bavaria-Straubing and count of Holland (listed as William VI), Hainaut (listed as William IV) and Zeeland. He ruled from 1404 until 1417, when he died from an infection caused by ...

, married Margaret of Burgundy.

Duchess regent

With the death of Philip the Bold in 1404, and

in 1405, John inherited his parents' territories, and Margaret became duchess. In 1409, Margaret was named deputy regent of the Duchy of Burgundy, to rule whenever her spouse was absent from the Duchy to attend to other parts of his realm. In 1419, Margaret became a widow. Her son confirmed his father's appointment of Margaret as deputy regent of Burgundy, and she ruled Burgundy during the absence of her son in 1419–1423.

Children

Margaret and John had: *

Margaret Margaret is a feminine given name, which means "pearl". It is of Latin origin, via Ancient Greek and ultimately from Iranian languages, Old Iranian. It has been an English language, English name since the 11th century, and remained popular thro ...

, Countess of Gien and Montargis (1393–2 February 1442,

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

), married, on 30 August 1404,

Louis Louis may refer to: People * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer Other uses * Louis (coin), a French coin * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also ...

Dauphin of France Dauphin of France (, also ; ), originally Dauphin of Viennois (''Dauphin de Viennois''), was the title given to the heir apparent to the throne of France from 1350 to 1791, and from 1824 to 1830. The word ''dauphin'' is French for dolphin and ...

, then, on 10 October 1422, Arthur de Richemont, Constable of France, the future Duke of Brittany * Catherine (d. 1414,

Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

) * Mary (d. 30 October 1463, Monterberg bei Kalkar), married

Adolph I, Duke of Cleves Adolph I of Cleves () (2 August 1373 – 23 September 1448) was the second Count of Cleves and the fourth Count of Mark. Life He was the son of Adolph III, Count of Mark, and Margaret of Jülich (and thus the brother of Margaret of Cleves) ...

Philip the Good Philip III the Good (; ; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) ruled as Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death in 1467. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonged. During his reign, ...

(1396–1467), Duke of Burgundy, Count of Flanders * Isabella, Countess of Penthièvre (d. 18 September 1412, Rouvres), married at

Arras Arras ( , ; ; historical ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of the Artois region, with a ...

on 22 July 1406 to Olivier de Châtillon-Blois, Count of Penthièvre and Périgord * Joan (b. 1399, Bouvres), d. young *

Anne Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), Annie a ...

(1404 – 14 November 1432,

), married

John, Duke of Bedford John of Lancaster, Duke of Bedford (20 June 1389 – 14 September 1435) was a medieval English prince, general, and statesman who commanded England's armies in France during a critical phase of the Hundred Years' War. Bedford was the third son ...

* Agnes (1407 – 1 December 1476, Château de Moulins), married Charles I, Duke of Bourbon

References

Sources

* * * * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Margaret Of Bavaria Duchesses of Burgundy 1363 births 1424 deaths House of Valois House of Valois-Burgundy House of Wittelsbach Countesses of Artois Countesses of Burgundy Countesses of Flanders Countesses of Nevers Women of medieval Bavaria Philip the Good (Duke of Burgundy) 15th-century women regents 15th-century regents Women in medieval European warfare Women in 15th-century warfare Royal reburials Daughters of dukes Daughters of counts Regents in the Holy Roman Empire