Beatrice of Rethel (1130/35[1] – 30 March 1185) was a French noblewoman and Queen of Sicily as the third wife of Roger II.[2]
| Beatrice of Rethel | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Queen consort of Sicily | |
| Tenure | 1151 – 26 February 1154 |
| Born | 1130/35 |
| Died | 30 March 1185 |
| Spouse | Roger II of Sicily |
| Issue | Constance, Queen of Sicily |
| Father | Guitier, Count of Rethel |
| Mother | Beatrix of Namur |
Family
editBeatrice was born in 1130 or 1135, the eldest daughter and one of the nine children of Guitier of Rethel and Beatrix of Namur.[3] Her father was Count of Rethel from 1158 to 1171.
Marriage, issue and widowhood
editIn 1151, Beatrice married Roger II of Sicily.[3] She was queen for three years, until Roger's death on 26 February 1154.[4] Beatrice was a little over three weeks pregnant at the time of his death, and their only child, Constance, was born the following November.[3]
Beatrice survived her husband by thirty-one years but there is no record of her having married again. Her daughter Constance was confined to a monastery as a nun since childhood due a prophecy that "her marriage would destroy the kingdom". Beatrice lived long enough to see her betrothed in 1184. Constance became queen of Sicily in 1194.[5]
References
edit- ^ Stürner 1992, p. i.
- ^ Metcalfe 2009, p. xvi.
- ^ a b c Houben 2002, p. 96.
- ^ Ullmann 2003, p. 122.
- ^ Schipa 1957, p. 131.
Sources
edit- Alio, Jacqueline (2018). Queens of Sicily 1061-1266. Trinacria Editions (Sicilian Medieval Studies).
- Houben, Hubert (2002). Roger II of Sicily: A Ruler Between East and West. Translated by Loud, G.A.; Loud, Diane. Cambridge University Press.
- Metcalfe, Alex (2009). Muslims of Medieval Italy. Edinburgh University Press.
- Schipa, Michaelangelo (1957). "Italy and Sicily under Frederick II". In Tanner, J.R.; Previté-Orton, C. W.; Brooke, Z.N. (eds.). The Cambridge Medieval History. Vol. IV. Cambridge University Press.
- Stürner, Wolfgang (1992). Friedrich II.: Die Königsherrschaft in Sizilien und Deutschland 1194-1220. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft.
- Ullmann, Walter (2003). A Short History of the Papacy in the Middle Ages. Routledge.