Margaret of Brittany

Who was Margaret of Brittany?

Margaret of Brittany was the elder of the two daughters of Francis I, Duke of Brittany, by his second wife, Isabella of Scotland, and hence granddaughter of James I of Scotland.

Since the Breton War of Succession, Brittany had been understood to operate according to semi-Salic Law–women could only inherit if the male line had died out. As expected from the provision of the Treaty of Guérande, which ended the war, neither Margaret nor her younger sister, Marie, were recognized as heirs of the duchy. After her father's death, her uncle Peter II succeeded as Duke of Brittany. He was also childless and to avoid any subsequent dispute, he arranged the marriage of Margaret to Francis of Étampes, the second in the order of succession and the last male left of the Breton House of Montfort, and the younger Marie to John II, Viscount of Rohan, the most powerful noble in Brittany.

In 13 or 16 November 1455, she was married to her cousin Francis of Étampes at the Château de l'Hermine, Vannes. She became Duchess of Brittany upon his accession as Francis II, Duke of Brittany in 1458. Their only son John, Count of Montfort, died at a young age.