Joan II of Navarre - Queen of Navarre

Queen of Navarre

Joan became Queen of Navarre through a treaty with Philip VI, who was not a descendant of the later kings of Navarre, and who could not invoke a rule against female succession in Navarre. In the treaty, she had to renounce her claims not only to the crown of France but also to her grandmother's estates in Brie and Champagne (which were merged in the French royal domain). In compensation, she received the counties of Angoulême and Mortain as well as a portion of Cotentin (Longueville). Later on she exchanged Angoulême for three estates in Vexin:- Pontoise, Beaumont-sur-Oise, and Asnière-sur-Oise.

She reigned as Queen of Navarre until her death in 1349, together with her husband, Philip III of Navarre as de jure uxoris king, 1329–1343. Philip was also Count of Évreux, the heir of Count Louis of Évreux (youngest son of Philip III of France), and thus of Capetian male blood. Because of his patrimonial lands, together with Joan's gains in Normandy and her rights in Champagne, the couple had extensive possessions in Northern France.

Altogether, Joan and Philip had eight children. She was succeeded by their son Charles II of Navarre. Their daughter Blanche d'Évreux became the second wife of Philip VI of France.

Although Joan never ascended the French throne, her descendants and heirs, the kings of Navarre, were to eventually reach the throne of France when Henry IV of France inherited the crown two centuries later, in 1589. From then onwards, all kings of France were Joan's heirs general. The kings of France had already been descended from her since the ascension of Henry II; these were not, however, senior descendants of Joan.