Joan De Valence ─ The Life and Influence of a Thirteenth-Century Noblewoman

Joan de Valence was heir to an earldom, wife and widow of William de Valence (half-brother of King Henry III), and a notable and influential presence in the volatile political world of thirteenth-century England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland. She survived wars between the crown and the baronage at mid-century; even when her husband was exiled and her position precarious she strove to protect her interests and the integrity of her family. In the reign of her nephew, King Edward I, Joan was a prominent magnate, especially after the death of her husband in 1296. In widowhood, Joan was a very public presence, even as her family was threatened by the wars in Scotland and conflicts in Ireland, and she did not flinch when protecting her own. Yet, astonishingly, her story of survival, perseverance, and influence has never been told until now.

Linda E. Mitchell is Martha Jane Phillips Starr Missouri Distinguished Professor of Women's & Gender Studies at the University of Missouri - Kansas City, USA. She is the author of Portraits of Medieval Women and Family Life in the Middle Ages and senior editor of the journal, Historical Reflections/Reflexions Historiques.