Joan of France, Duchess of Bourbon (; 4 May 1435 – 1482), also known as Joan of Valois, was the seventh child and fourth surviving daughter of Charles VII of France and Marie of Anjou. She was the original owner of the book of hours of Joan of France, now held in the Bibliothèque nationale de France, which is classified as a national treasure of France.
Book of hours of Joan of France The book of hours, known by medieval scholars as livre d'heures de Jeanne de France, was given by King Charles VII to his daughter Joan to celebrate the occasion of her marriage to John II, Duke of Bourbon in 1452. The coat of arms of Joan of France appears on seven pages (including the cover) within the tome, alongside miniatures and decorations in the margins.
Life Born into the House of Valois, a Cadet branch of the Capetian Dynasty, Joan of France was the second daughter of King Charles VII of France and Marie of Anjou.Debris, Cyrille (2005). "Tu Felix Austria, nube" la dynastie de Habsbourg et sa politique matrimoniale à la fin du Moyen Age (XIIIe–XVIe siècles) (in French). Brepols. Her parents were second cousins and both great-grandchildren of King John II of France.Ashdown-Hill, John (2016). The Private Life of Edward IV. Amberley Publishing. OL 28605946M.
Joan's paternal grandfather was King Charles VI of France, referred as "Charles the Mad" due to his history of psychotic episodes.Earenfight, Theresa (2013). Queenship in Medieval Europe. Palgrave Macmillan.
Joan's maternal grandmother was Yolande of Aragon, Duchess of Anjou, who played a significant role in the power struggles between England and France. Most notably, she influenced the financing of Joan of Arc's army in 1429 which helped tip the balance in favour of the French.Rohr, Zita Eva (2016). Yolande of Aragon (1381-1442). Family and Power: The Reverse of the Tapestry. Palgrave Macmillan.
In 1447, she married John II, Duke of Bourbon, at Château de Moulins; however they had no surviving children.
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Further reading Media related to Heures de Jeanne de France - BNF NAL3244 at Wikimedia Commons. Digitisation of the entire book.