Father Rene I of Lorraine | Name Yolande, of | |
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Born 2 November 1428Nancy ( 1428-11-02 ) Issue Rene II, Duke of LorraineNicolas, Lord of JoinvilleJeanne, Duchess of AnjouYolande, Landgravine of HesseMarguerite, Duchess of Alencon Spouse Frederick II, Count of Vaudemont Children Rene II, Duke of Lorraine, Margaret of Lorraine Parents Rene of Anjou, Isabella, Duchess of Lorraine Grandchildren Claude, Duke of Guise, Antoine, Duke of Lorraine Similar People Rene of Anjou, Margaret of Lorraine, Isabella - Duchess of Lorraine, Yolande of Aragon, Marie of Anjou | ||
Yolande (2 November 1428, Nancy – 23 March 1483, Nancy), was Duchess of Lorraine (1473) and Bar (1480). She was the daughter of Isabella, Duchess of Lorraine, and René of Anjou (King of Naples, Duke of Anjou, Bar and Lorraine, Count of Provence). Though she was nominally in control of major territories, she ceded her power and titles to her husband and her son.
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In the 19th century, a romanticised version of her early life was popularised by the play King René’s Daughter by Henrik Hertz, in which she is portrayed as a beautiful blind princess living in an isolated garden paradise. It was later adapted to Tchaikovsky's opera Iolanta. There is no evidence that she was ever blind.
Marriage and children
In 1445, she married her second cousin Frederick II, Count of Vaudémont (1420–1470), at Nancy. The marriage was a dynastic alliance, arranged to end the dispute which existed between René of Anjou and Frederick's father, Antoine of Vaudémont, regarding the succession to the Duchy of Lorraine.
Children
- René (future Duke of Lorraine) (1451–1508), Duke of Lorraine. On 1 September 1485 he married secondly, Philippa of Guelders, by whom he had issue, from whom descended Mary, Queen of Scots.
- Nicolas of Lorraine, Lord of Joinville and Bauffremont, died in 1476.
- Peter of Lorraine, died in 1451.
- Jeanne of Lorraine (1458 – Jan. 25, 1480), married in 1474 to Charles IV, Duke of Anjou. There was no issue from the marriage.
- Yolande of Lorraine, who died in 1500, married William II, Landgrave of Hesse, by whom she had issue.
- Marguerite of Lorraine (1463–1521), married René, Duke of Alençon (1454–1492). She had issue, from whom descended King Henry IV of France.
Legacy
In 1473, on the death of her nephew Nicolas, she inherited the Duchy of Lorraine, but passed it immediately to her eldest son René II. In 1480, after the death of her father, she did the same with the Duchy of Bar. She died on 23 March 1483, which was the birthday of her sister Queen Margaret, who had died the previous summer. Yolande was 54 years old.