Christian Women of the Medieval Era – Part 37

Introduction:

It’s hard to believe but it’s been over a year now since we started our series on Medieval Christian women. Our journey through history so far has covered much of the 1000 years of the Middle Ages, from 500 AD to 1500 AD. From Genovefa (423 – 502) through Gertrude the Great of Helfta (1256-1302) we have told the stories of God’s humble servants. There were queens, abbesses, nuns, Beguines, writers, godly wives, mothers, empresses, social reformers, and many other women who served Christ. 

In our series on Medieval Christian women, we have found that each of these women did her part in transforming the culture around her by following in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus who cared for the poor and neglected. They accomplished countless acts of piety and charity in many ways using the gifts that God gave them for service. We will get to talk to all of these amazing women when we get to Heaven!

The period between 500 to 1500 AD, sometimes called the “Dark Ages” was really a time of cultural growth and exciting life for most people. There were advances in all areas of culture taking place including agriculture, religion, politics, economics, and science. It is sad that we don’t study the stories of the women in this period if for no other reason than to see the interconnectedness we have with these saints. In our last post on Blanche of Castile we saw that Christianity passed down from generation to generation in the Middle Ages through the wise teaching of godly mothers. This week we will talk about a very godly daughter, Isabelle of France.

Isabelle of France – Saintly Sister

Isabelle was born in March of 1224, the daughter of Louis VIII and Blanche of Castile. Blanche had 13 children but only 5 of them survived until adulthood, Isabelle and 4 brothers. One of her brothers was the future King Louis IX, also known to us today as Saint Louis.

Her father Louis VIII died when Isabelle was only 2 years old. Louis entrusted the regency of the throne to Queen Blanche. Blanche had proven to be a wise and godly ruler. She raised her children to honor God and two of them would go on to become saints – Isabelle and Louis. Blanche also gave her children a good education. Isabelle could read Latin expertly as well as French. She not only read Scripture but also the classics. She enjoyed the tales of knights and chivalry that were very popular in her day.^[1]

As a well-bred daughter in an aristocratic home, Isabelle also learned to embroider. She took great pleasure in embroidering priestly vestments. She was intensely interested in religious subjects and sought spiritual guidance. She was drawn to the Franciscan way of life. Royalty usually remained within the church hierarchy, but Isabelle’s piety and spirituality were obvious to all. Thanks to a papal bull from Pope Innocent IV on May 26, 1254 she received permission to have as her personal confessor a Franciscan friar.

Isabelle loved her brother Louis and was loyal to him as his royal sister, but she remained more devoted to the Franciscan order for the rest of her life. Isabelle refused offers of marriage in order to continue a life of virginity. She was promised to Hugh XI the son of Hugh X of Lusignan with the Treaty of Vendome in March 1227. The marriage was fixed for June 1230, but Isabelle broke off the engagement because she was determined to keep her vow of chastity. Later she turned down Conrad IV of Germany, the son of the Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick II. Everyone including Pope Innocent IV tried to convince her to marry Conrad, but Isabelle stayed true to her vow. 

Isabelle spent her time ministering to the poor and the sick. After her mother died, she had a strong desire to found a monastery of the Order of the Poor Ladies of St. Clare of Assisi.^[2] How special for Isabelle to be alive at this time while Clare was ministering in Italy. Isabelle’s brother, King Louis acquired the land for her not far from the Seine. In June 1256 the first stone of the new monastery at Longchamp was laid. Like Francis and Clare, Isabelle needed permission for the Rule which she would write for her monastery. She received the sanction of Pope Alexander IV in 1259. Isabelle wrote the Rule which was created for this monastery, which was named the Monastery of the Humility of the Blessed Virgin. The sisters who lived there were called “Sisters of the Humble Order of Servants of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary”. Some of the first sisters came from the Poor Clare Monastery in Reims. 

In spite of all of her hard work and her “right” to be the abbess, Isabelle refused to accept the position. She wanted to spend all of her time helping the poor and sick. The Rule that she had drawn up was not everything she hoped it would be. There were some minor adjustments that she felt were important for outward observances so she revised it and submitted it to Pope Urban IV. Pope Urban approved the new Rule in 1263. As part of the new Rule, the sisters were to be subject to the Franciscan Friars Minor. This Rule was adopted by other French and Italian monasteries of the Order of St. Clare. However, as we will see in a later post on Clare of Assisi there were some differences in Isabelle’s Rule from many others. For example, Francis and Clare did not believe that the brothers and sisters should own property. But this monastery at Longchamp would belong to the community of Sisters of the Humble Order of Servants of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary. The monastery would remain as such until it was closed during the French Revolution. Later it was destroyed.

Isabelle never became a nun, but she followed the rules of poverty and chastity for the rest of her life. For the next seven years she worked tirelessly to follow in Christ’s footsteps ministering to the poor and helpless. She died in her house at Longchamp on February 23, 1270 and was buried in the church at the monastery. She was beatified by Pope Leo X in 1521 and canonized by Pope Innocent XII in 1696. Today Isabelle is still remembered as the patron saint of sick people.  

History does not have to be dry as dust. It especially interesting when we study the biographies of the people who lived long ago. We can learn much from their examples. Their lives can be an encouragement to us as we have many of the same struggles. One fascinating aspect that I want to point out in this post is the interconnectedness of the saints. Looking back through the posts for the last year you will note the many mother/daughter or mother/son relationships. The importance of mothers teaching their children to love God and love their fellow man cannot be stressed too much. How blessed we are to have the stories of Blanche and Isabelle.  

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^[1] Mostly popularized by her great-grandmother, Queen Eleanor of England. See post on September 22, 2020.  https://mylordkatie.wordpress.com/2020/09/22/christian-women-in-the-medieval-era-part-28/

^[2] There will be a post on Clare of Assisi in a few weeks!