He was born in the castle of Angers, and was the second son of Louis II of Anjou, king of Sicily, and of Yolande of Aragon. He was the brother of Marie d'Anjou, who married the future Charles VII of France and became Queen of France. Agnès Sorel, the future mistress of Charles VII was holding a position in René's household when Charles met her.
He spent 8 years in Naples, and later spent his time between his castles in Angers, Tarascon and Aix-en-Provence.
He died in Aix-en-Provence. He was buried in the cathedral of Angers.
Marriages and issue
René married:
Isabelle de Lorraine (1410– February 28, 1453) in 1420
Jeanne de Laval, on September 10, 1454, , at the Abbey of St. Nicholas in Angers
Children (from Isabelle):
Louis (1427–1443)
Yolande (1428–1483)
Duke John II of Lorraine
Marguerite (1429–1482), who became Queen consort of Henry VI of England.
Miscellaneous
He appears as "Reignier" in the history play of William Shakespeare, Henry VI, part 1.
Geoffrey III of Anjou, called le Barbu (the Bearded), was the eldest son of Ermenegarde, the daughter of Fulk III of Anjou, and of the count of Gâtinais.
Geoffrey of Anjou Geoffrey V (August 24, 1113 – September 7, 1151), Count of Anjou and Maine, and later Duke of Normandy, called Le Bel (The Fair) or Geoffrey Plantagenet, was the father of King Henry II of England, and thus the forefather of the Plantagenet dynasty of English kings.
On 16 December 1325, Charles died, leaving Anjou to his eldest son Philip of Valois, on whose recognition as king of France (Philip VI) on 1 April 1328, the countship of Anjou was again united to the crown.
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