If there's one woman throughout history
you might not want to meet, this maybe just that person.
Known as the She-Wolf.
She caused much death and misery just about everywhere
she went and all seemingly without really much of a motive.
She has been accused of many deaths, including her husband.
Yet this lady was one consort who had as much influence
on current events as she would on future ones.
We will look into the life of this so called vicious woman, one
who stopped at nothing to get what she wanted, either by manipulation
and scare tactics to murder in some of the most horrific ways
ever seen or heard within the kingdom.
So lets head back in
time to the 13th century and take a look at Isabella of France.
Isabella was one of four children;
her father was Philip the Fair, her mother was Joan I of Navarre.
She would grow into a beautiful young woman.
born in 1292; and by the age of 7, she was already betrothed
to a 16-year-old Edward, a prince and heir to the English throne.
For now she was obviously too young
to leave her french home until she came of age to travel.
Edward, in the meantime, gained the throne of England in 1307.
Just one year later, the couple met and married
at the cathedral of Boulogne in February 1308.
By now, the bride was 13 and her husband,
to be a tall and handsome individual, was 28.
Edward was quite a quirky character; and many stories had proceeded him
before this marriage, and Isabella, although only spending a short time
with this man, started to wonder if any were true.
Scandals were commonplace, yet this young man's life
seemed to be sprinkled with stories that were difficult
to understand even for a youngster like Isabella.
On 7 February, they landed at Dover, Piers Gaveston
who was Edwards best friend was there to greet them.
Edward almost immediately handed over all the jewels
Isabella's father had given him as a wedding present.
In many eyes, Edward II was the complete opposite to his father;
he was weak, vain, and as with most men, utterly open to flattery.
You see, Edward was not a warrior; he had little to no ideas
as to how to fight.
He was far more methodical in his thoughts, leaning towards
construction rather than destruction.
But he also fooled around, he had a streak of cruelty,
and his timing, a bit like my jokes on occasion, were way off the mark!
And so, as
you can imagine, he was not what you'd call a popular
king of the day, and most people, including barons,
were already plotting to take advantage of his apparent weaknesses.
Edward had a bit of a torrid time as a youngster.
Unlike his predecessors, he was brought up as a neglected child.
Often beaten by his grotesque father, his parents didn't really seem to care.
The only supportive figure in his young life was a welsh nurse.
Now lets get back to Piers Gaveston, and where did he fit into the equation?
Well, Edward's father introduced him to court after realising his son
was a bit of a wimp and, in his eyes, wouldn't really amount to anything.
Piers on the other hand was a strong bully,
and he would hold Edward in his power both physically and mentally.
Edward succumbed quite quickly, so his handing over
of the jewels upon arrival in Dover now makes sense.
Although Edward's father eventually sent Piers away from court, Edward
invited him back. No one really knows why,
maybe thinking he'd be more secure with a bodyguard of sorts.
The court was not happy and threatened not to attend his coronation
unless Piers was sent back to exile,
but Edward was crafty, he agreed.
Yet when his big day arrived, who do you think would be carrying the crown?
Isabella managed to keep smiling; maybe she saw some amusement
in Edward controlling his court or attempting to control it.
But the people loved the queen, as for Isabella, it was a tale of woe
she commented on returning to France that she was "the
most miserable of wives." Piers continued to be under scrutiny.
Over the next few years, he was sent to exile by the barons
but returned each time.
It seems Edward could not keep his buddy away, but Isabella protested
when he treated her with some contempt.
It is fair to say that when word got out,
the queen had massive support, but Edward clung to his friend.
Isabella was now pregnant, was coerced into travelling north by Edward.
He said it was an opportunity to get away from the barons for a while.
She reluctantly accepted
but then found herself abandoned at Tynemouth castle, while
Edward with Piers travelled to Scarborough in Yorkshire to establish a base there.
Edward then left Piers to hold the fort while he rallied some royalist supporters.
Unfortunately for Edward, the barons heard of this and raided the castle.
They took Piers, had a quick Q and A
and delivered a final blow to his neck.
Edward was raged by this, but this soon
paled into insignificance when Isabella produced a child in 1312.
Yes, it was a boy and the future Edward III.
So happy was Edward now along with the country it quite possibly
seemed to signify that this marriage after all, might just work.
More so, just four years later,
when Isabella once again gave birth to another boy, this time John.
I think they thought another Edward would just confuse everyone.
All this joy would soon turn to anguish, Edward had attempted to take his army
north and battle it out with Robert the Bruce at Bannockburn,
but he was soundly beaten.
Robert went on to become the king of Scotland.
So bad was the defeat that Thomas of Lancaster
and his supporters had seen and heard enough.
They took control from Edward, and although you'd think
Isabella feared for her life, it wasn't the case as she had
a thing for Thomas and was, by all accounts, quite pleased.
Sadly for England, Thomas faired no better,
and things just went even further downhill.
Isabella had two more children, Eleanor in 1318
and finally Joan, born at the Tower of London in 1321.
Edward now found new favourites; they were known as the dispensers!
A father and son team who were up for the fight.
Thomas though was first to fall;
Edward had him arrested and executed on charges of treason.
He also carried out raids on other nobles who didn't fall in line.
Isabella was now completely fed up with all this.
She was powerless and unhappy, but just when you thought
it was time to go up, pops Roger Mortimer.
Roger was a good-looking chap, and Isabella immediately fell for him.
Passion was high, and she'd not felt this way for quite some time.
Roger managed to escape the clutches of Edward, and quite
possibly with a bit of help from Isabella,
he fled to France and remained there at the French court.
Edward and Isabella were now at each other's throats.
The once happy, harmonious relationship was in tatters.
And a mutual hatred of each other continued.
Isabella left England and returned to France; this
was a win-win situation for Edward, but he had no idea she would return.
Isabella silenced anyone who thought her marriage would survive;
she openly swore that it had ended and would live a life
as if a widow until revenge could be gained.
Yet luckily for Isabella,
she did meet up once again with Roger Mortimer and this time around,
they knew they wouldn't have to be so bashful in their actions.
There were many arguments at
the French court over the coming years, and all brought about by Isabella.
Who was finding her feet now in the upper echelons of power?
She'd already accused
her brother's wives of adultery in a letter to her father, Philip.
Who on this occasion was not fair had them all either
sent to prison or nunneries for the remainder of their lives.
But Philip wasn't finished just yet.
He also announced an old French law prohibiting any woman
from inheriting the throne.
It now became serious business
and had all sorts of repercussions both in France and England.
Chaos ensued, as all the heirs were girls; Isabella had to act quickly.
Her son, the young Prince Edward, was perfect, so what could go wrong?
To create a joint leader of both France and England was a great plan in theory,
although her son couldn't be seen to be running
the show as the English hated the French.
However, he did give financial support to his mother's ideas.
Isabella, alongside her lover
Roger and a band of mercenaries from all around Europe.
Landed on the Suffolk coastline on 24 September 1326.
It was a welcome return for the queen and one
in which the people rejoiced and gave their support.
King Edward was now facing a battle and one
he didn't have the guts to stomach.
Edward was captured in Wales on 16 November and immediately imprisoned.
He was moved to Kenilworth castle before finally being taken to Berkely castle.
As you'd expect, his dispensers were quickly dispatched
from any further duty, and Isabella now found herself in complete control
with her lover Roger Mortimer, who she placed as her chief minister.
But Isabella knew she couldn't fully hold the reigns of power until her husband died.
Isabella and Roger conspired to have Edward murdered,
but this had to be done in such a way that no one would suspect.
They had to achieve their plan by a form of none mutilation, well,
at least on the outer side of Edward's body!
Violence against a king could cause potential trouble at this dreadful time.
On the night of 21 September 1327, a group of hitmen
entered the king's cell with a red hot poker.
It was inserted through a horn into the anus of Edward,
burning out his body inside.
It's quite possibly
one of the most gruesome execution-style killings ever recorded.
But in all its gory details, it worked as
there was no mark left on the king's body.
Isabella and Roger were relieved, to say the least, yet
the country knew it was murder and revulsion spread,
but finally, the horror of the killing waned, and things
now slowly started to get back on track for the queen.
Isabella's son Edward III knew nothing of the act,
and his mother ensured it was kept that way
by sending him away on battle assignments to keep his mind occupied.
But trouble would return as both Roger and Edward never saw eye to eye.
Roger's power had gone to his head,
and he treated Edward with some contempt as if he was the king himself.
Isabella didn't see any of the warning signs
and pretty much thought everything was fine and dandy.
The mighty Mortimer was heading for a drop,
and the only man capable of doing this was Edward.
On 19 October 1330, Edward and a small band of men
entered Nottingham castle utilising a secret underground tunnel.
The men dragged Roger from his room,
Isabella fearing her life knew her son was behind the move.
She yelled, "fair son have pity on gentle Mortimer," yet although Roger
had been gentle with Isabella, it was not the case with everyone else.
Roger Mortimer
was taken to the Tower of London and chastised for his dealings, Isabella's
cry for leniency fell on deaf ears, and Roger was hung drawn
and quartered at Tyburn as if he had been just a common criminal.
These events rocked Isabella, and it had taken all her spirit
and heart away from wanting to continue.
Edward now
moved his mother to Castle Rising, a remote castle on the Norfolk headland.
She was removed from court and had no further say in affairs.
She wasn't left to rot, though.
Edward made sure she had every comfort available,
and so life, although lonely, was quite pleasing for his mother.
He would even visit her throughout the year, but it's questioned as to why?
Maybe because she was his mother,
after all, love, duty or even some sort of compassion.
It could have been guilt, and he felt shared ownership of her crimes.
Isabella would stay at Castle
Rising for many years, and she saw changes in her time.
War with France was frequent, yet her son Edward won many of the battles,
but he never had enough resources to carry
through his total domination and be crowned king of France.
Isabella lived a long life; she would pass away on 28
August 1358 at the grand old age of 66.
Her last request was to be buried at Greyfriars Church, Newgate, London.
One of the most startling requests was that she wanted
her murdered husband's heart to be buried alongside her.
It's thought that although she never fully claimed edwards
heart despite all her charm and beauty in life,
she would hold it close by forever in death.