Agnes De Launcekrona
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Agnes de Launcekrona was
Lady of the Bedchamber Lady of the Bedchamber is the title of a lady-in-waiting holding the official position of personal attendant on a British queen regnant or queen consort. The position is traditionally held by the wife of a peer. A lady of the bedchamber would gi ...
to Queen consort
Anne of Bohemia Anne of Bohemia (11 May 1366 – 7 June 1394), also known as Anne of Luxembourg, was Queen consort of England, Queen of England as the first wife of King Richard II. A member of the House of Luxembourg, she was the daughter of Charles IV, Holy ...
(1366 – 1394). She became the second wife of Robert de Vere, 9th Earl of Oxford, a
favourite A favourite was the intimate companion of a ruler or other important person. In Post-classical Europe, post-classical and Early modern Europe, early-modern Europe, among other times and places, the term was used of individuals delegated signifi ...
of King
Richard II of England Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Edward, Prince of Wales (later known as the Black Prince), and Jo ...
.


Origins

Nothing is known about the origins of Agnes. According to Costain, she was described as a countess (from a German or Netherlandish family) and also as the daughter of a Flemish saddler. While her rank and nationality are unknown, what proved significant was that in English society she was not considered a suitable spouse for an earl.


Marriage to the Earl of Oxford

Agnes accompanied Anne of Bohemia, the future consort of King Richard II to England in December 1381. She served in the capacity of Lady of the Bedchamber, and was also the custodian of the jewels and valuables given to Queen Anne by her mother,
Elizabeth of Pomerania Elizabeth of Pomerania (, ; – 15 April 1393) was the fourth and last wife of Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia. Life Elizabeth was the daughter of Bogislaw V, Duke of Pomerania and Elisabeth of Poland. Her mater ...
.Costain, p.128 Anne was duly married to King Richard and crowned Queen consort on 22 January 1382. On an unknown date, Agnes caught the eye of the King's favourite, Robert de Vere, 9th Earl of Oxford, Marquess of Dublin, Duke of Ireland. She has been described as "dark and lively, with a foreign kind of prettiness". She became de Vere's mistress, and then in 1387, he repudiated and subsequently divorced his wife, Philippa de Coucy and promptly married Agnes. This created a scandal throughout the kingdom, especially as Philippa was the first cousin of the King, being the youngest daughter of his aunt,
Isabella of England Isabella of England (1214 – 1 December 1241) was an English princess of the House of Plantagenet The House of Plantagenet (Help:IPA/English, /plænˈtædʒənət/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''plan-TAJ-ə-nət'') was a royal hou ...
. Her royal uncles, the Dukes of
Lancaster Lancaster may refer to: Lands and titles *The County Palatine of Lancaster, a synonym for Lancashire *Duchy of Lancaster, one of only two British royal duchies *Duke of Lancaster *Earl of Lancaster *House of Lancaster, a British royal dynasty ...
,
Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...
, and
York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...
were especially angered. Even his own mother,
Maud de Ufford Maud de Ufford, Countess of Oxford (1345/1346 – 25 January 1413) was a wealthy English noblewoman and the wife of Thomas de Vere, 8th Earl of Oxford. Her only child was Robert de Vere, 9th Earl of Oxford, the favourite of King Richard II. In 1 ...
took Philippa's side against her son, saying that she held Philippa "more dear than if she had been her own daughter", and cursed Robert for his actions. She took Philippa into her own household, while Robert brought Agnes to live with him in
Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...
. As for Queen Anne's reaction to the scandalous conduct of her Lady of the Bedchamber, there are two versions. The first is that the Queen disapproved of de Vere's repudiation of his highborn wife to marry her Lady of the Bedchamber. The second version is that Queen Anne, through genuine fondness for Agnes, wrote to the
Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...
, urging him to grant the divorce. The latter story was circulated throughout England, with the result that Anne lost some of the popularity she had previously enjoyed. The divorce was granted to de Vere upon false evidence which he had submitted to the Pope. It was his love for Agnes that had kept de Vere from taking up his duties in Ireland where there was rebellion, which he had been given regal powers to quell. By this time, de Vere had made many enemies amongst the nobles who resented the high favour in which de Vere was held by the King. In point of fact, it was his close relationship to King Richard which was the catalyst for the formation of the
Lords Appellant The Lords Appellant were a group of nobles in the reign of Richard II of England, King Richard II, who, in 1388, sought to impeach five of the King's favourites in order to restrain what was seen as tyrannical and capricious rule. The word ''appel ...
which was an organised group of noblemen who seized political control of the kingdom from King Richard. In the same year of his marriage to Agnes, de Vere led royal forces against the Lords Appellant but the former were defeated at Radcot Bridge on 20 December 1387, and de Vere, after escaping by leaping into the river on horseback and galloping away on the other side, made his way to London. He was forced into exile by
Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
in 1388 and went to live in
Louvain Leuven (, , ), also called Louvain (, , ), is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the sub-municipalities of ...
, Brabant. Robert de Vere was subsequently declared a traitor, and his honours and properties were forfeited. Agnes never held the titles of Countess of Oxford or Duchess of Ireland, as Philippa continued to use those titles after the divorce. Pope Urban VI declared de Vere's divorce to Philippa invalid on 17 October 1389. It is likely that Agnes returned to
Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...
instead of having accompanied her husband into exile in Brabant.Costain, p.176 In 1392, Robert de Vere died of the injuries he had sustained during a boar hunt. He was succeeded as Earl of Oxford by his uncle, Aubrey de Vere, as neither of his two marriages had produced children.


References


Works cited

* Thomas B. Costain, ''The Last Plantagenets'', Popular Library, New York, 1962 * Barbara W. Tuchman, ''A Distant Mirror'', Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1978 * Linda Clark, ''Authority and Subversion'', Google Books, retrieved 6 November 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Launcekrona, Agnes De 14th-century births Year of death unknown 14th-century English women 14th-century women from Bohemia
Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
Ladies of the Bedchamber 14th-century English nobility 14th-century people from Bohemia De Vere family