Blanche of France (French: Blanche de France) (1253–1323) was a daughter of King Louis IX of France and Margaret of Provence.

Biography

Blanche was born in 1253 in Jaffa, County of Jaffa and Ascalon during the Seventh Crusade led by her father, Louis IX of France. In November 1269, she married Ferdinand de la Cerda, Infante of Castile, eldest son of Alfonso X of Castile and Violant of Aragon. They had: Ferdinand predeceased his father in 1275 at Ciudad Real. Blanche and Ferdinand's sons did not inherit the throne of their grandfather, since their uncle, the second son, Sancho, enforced his claim, even by rebelling. Blanche's brother Philip warned Sancho that he would invade Castile on behalf of his two nephews. Blanche left Castile never to return. Her sons were sent to live with their grandmother Violant of Aragon who had them sent to the fortress of Xàtiva so they would be safe from Sancho. Blanche died at the Monastère des Clarisses de l’Ave Maria, in Paris, in 1323.

Ancestry

Sources