Cultural depictions of Isabella of France explained

Isabella of France (1295 – 22 August 1358) was Queen of England and the daughter of Philip IV of France. Sometimes called the "She-Wolf of France", she was a key figure in the rebellion which deposed her husband, Edward II of England, in favor of their eldest son Edward III. This event, as well as Isabella's affair with Roger Mortimer and Edward II's relationships with Piers Gaveston and Hugh Despenser the Younger, have prompted Isabella's portrayal multiple times in literature and visual media.

Theatre and poetry

• Edward II (c. 1592), play by Christopher Marlowe^[1]
• Mortimer His Fall (1641), an unfinished play by Ben Jonson^[2]
• The Bard (1757), poem by Thomas Gray^[3]
• L'assedio di Calais (The Siege of Calais) (1836), opera in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti^[4]
• The Life of Edward II of England (1923), play by Bertolt Brecht based on Marlowe's play^[3]
• Edward II (1995), ballet in two acts based on Marlowe's play, directed by David Bintley with music by John McCabe^[5]

Novels

• Les Rois maudits (The Accursed Kings), a French historical novel series by Maurice Druon, in particular:
  • Le Roi de fer (The Iron King) (1955)^{[6] [7] [8]}
  • La Louve de France (The She-Wolf of France) (1959)^{[8] [9]}
  • Le Lys et le lion (The Lily and the Lion) (1960)^[8]
• Isabel the Fair (1957) by Margaret Campbell Barnes^[10]
• Harlot Queen (1970) by Hilda Lewis^[10]
• Lord of Misrule (1972) by Eve Trevaskis^{[10] [11]}
• The Queen and Mortimer (1974) by Brenda Honeyman^[10]
• The King's Minions (1974) by Brenda Honeyman (prequel to The Queen and Mortimer)^[10]
• She-Wolf (1975) by Pamela Bennetts^[10]
• Where Nobles Tread (1975) by Janet Kilbourne^[10]
• King's Wake (1977) by Eve Trevaskis^[10]
• Brittle Glory (1977) by Jean Evans^[10]
• A Love So Bold (1978) historical romance by Annelise Kamada^[10]
• The Follies of the King (1980) by Jean Plaidy (Book 8 in the Plantagenet series)^[10]
• The Gascon (1984) by John Colin Penford^[10]
• Isabella, the She-Wolf (1985) by Maureen Peters^[10]
• Gaveston (1992) by Chris Hunt^[10]
• Letter from Poitou (2004) by Michael Eardley^[10]
• The Traitor's Wife: A Novel of the Reign of Edward II (2005) by Susan Higginbotham^{[10] [12]}
• Mathilde of Westminster, an historical mystery series by Paul C. Doherty:
  • The Cup of Ghosts (2005)^[10]
  • The Poison Maiden (2007)^[10]
  • The Darkening Glass (2009)^[10]
• Queen of Shadows (2006) by Edith Felber^[10]
• Knights Templar Mysteries, a series by Michael Jecks, in particular:
  • The Templar, the Queen and Her Lover (2007)^[10]
  • The Oath (2010)^[10]
  • King’s Gold (2011)^[10]
• The Ruling Passion (2008) by David Pownall^{[13] [14]}
• The King's Mistress (2010) by Emma Campion^[10]
• Isabella: Braveheart of France (2013) by Colin Falconer^[10]
• Gate of the Dead (2016) by David Gilman
• To Calais, in Ordinary Time (2019) by James Meek.^[15]

Television, film and radio

• Edward II (1970), BBC TV adaptation of Marlowe's play directed by Richard Marquand and Tony Robertson; Isabella is portrayed by Diane Fletcher^[16]
• Les Rois maudits (1972), French miniseries adaptation of the Druon novels directed by Claude Barma; Isabella is portrayed by ^[17]
• Edward II (1982), French TV film adaptation Marlowe's play directed by Bernard Sobel; Isabella is portrayed by Hélène Vincent^[18]
• Edward II (1991), film based on Marlowe's play and directed by Derek Jarman; Isabella is portrayed by Tilda Swinton^[19]
• Braveheart (1995), film directed by Mel Gibson; Isabella is portrayed by Sophie Marceau^{[20] [21]}
• Les Rois maudits (2005), French miniseries adaptation of the Druon novels directed by Josée Dayan; Isabella is portrayed by Julie Gayet^{[22] [23]}
• The Ruling Passion (2008), audio presentation of Pownall's novel in 10 episodes of the BBC Radio 4 programme Book at Bedtime, read by David Horovitz^[24]
• World Without End (2012), miniseries directed by Michael Caton-Jones; Isabella is portrayed by Aure Atika (the miniseries is based on the 2007 Ken Follett novel of the same name in which Isabella does not appear)^[25]
• Knightfall (2017), television series about the Knights Templar; Isabella is portrayed by Sabrina Bartlett as a main character in season one,^[26] and by Genevieve Gaunt as a recurring character in season two.

Notes and References

1. Book: Bloom, Harold . Christopher Marlowe . Harold Bloom . List of Characters in Edward II . https://books.google.com/books?id=2VRDKyjMc5kC&pg=PA94 . 2002 . . 94–96. 9781438116402 .
2. Book: Ribner, Irving . The English History Play in the Age of Shakespeare . registration . . . 1957 . 292.
3. Book: Weir, Alison . Alison Weir . 2006 . Queen Isabella: She-Wolf of France, Queen of England . London . . 978-0-7126-4194-4 . 2.
4. Web site: The Siege of Calais, Gaetano Donizetti . ItalianOpera.org . 24 October 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160305010341/http://www.italianopera.org/e/donizetti/opere47.html . 5 March 2016 . dead .
5. Web site: John McCabe: Edward II (1995) . MusicSalesClassical.com . 24 October 2015.
6. Web site: The Iron King by Maurice Druon . . 20 January 2013 . 5 August 2015.
7. Web site: Book Review: The Iron King (The Accursed Kings, Book 1) . . Julian . White . 7 December 2012 . 5 July 2015.
8. Web site: Imagining the Last Capetians: Maurice Druon, The Accursed Kings . Sarah . Hanley . Film and Fiction for French Historians: A Cultural Bulletin . 20 March 2014 . 15 October 2015.
9. Web site: The Original Game of Thrones . . Allan . Massie . 27 March 2015 . 5 July 2015.
10. Web site: Novels of the Late 13th, 14th and 15th Centuries in Europe . HistoricalNovels.info . 22 October 2015.
11. Web site: Reviews of Obscure Books: Eve Trevaskis, The Lord of Misrule . Sarah . Johnson . Reading the Past . 10 April 2006 . 23 October 2015.
12. Web site: Review: The Traitor's Wife: A Novel of the Reign of Edward II by Susan Higginbotham . Margaret . Donsbach . HistoricalNovels.info . 22 October 2015.
13. Web site: The Ruling Passion - David Pownall . Bristol Review of Books . Sue . Dawson . 25 May 2012 . 23 October 2015.
14. Web site: Book Review: The Ruling Passion by David Pownall . Kathryn . Warner . 17 February 2011 . 23 October 2015.
15. Book: Meek, James. To Calais, In Ordinary Time. Canongate. 2019. Edinburgh. 223–236.
16. Web site: Edward II (6 August 1970) . 6 August 1970 . . 24 October 2015.
17. Web site: The First Accursed Kings on History . Le Figaro. Bertrand . Guyard . 11 July 2013 . 15 October 2015. fr.
18. Book: Christopher Marlowe in Context . Emily C. . Bartels . Emma . Smith . xxv . . 2013 . 9781107016255 . 24 October 2015.
19. Book: Rutter, Tom . The Cambridge Introduction to Christopher Marlowe . . 2012 . 125 . 978-0-521-19634-5 . 22 October 2015.
20. Web site: Film Review: Braveheart (1995) . Caryn . James . 24 May 1995 . . 22 October 2015.
21. Braveheart . Peter . Travers . 24 May 1995 . . 22 October 2015.
22. Web site: Official website: Les Rois maudits (2005 miniseries) . https://web.archive.org/web/20090815115847/http://les-rois-maudits.france2.fr/ . French . 2005 . 25 July 2015 . 15 August 2009.
23. Web site: Les Rois maudits: Casting de la saison 1 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141219202458/http://www.allocine.fr/series/ficheserie-545/casting/saison-1659/ . French . AlloCiné . 2005 . 25 July 2015 . 19 December 2014.
24. Web site: Book at Bedtime: The Ruling Passion . . Fall 2008 . 23 October 2015.
25. Web site: World Without End: TV Review . . David . Rooney . 19 October 2012 . 24 October 2015.
26. Web site: Knightfall: History Sets Cast for Jeremy Renner-Produced Drama Series . . Nellie . Andreeva . 14 June 2016 . 21 June 2016.