Securing Beatrice

The agreement was made in 1245 between several powerful individuals that Beatrice of Provence (heir to the counties of Provence and Forcalquier, pictured here) would marry Charles of Anjou. Part of the deal was that Pope Innocent IV would endorse the marriage if Charles' brother, King Louis IX of France, would offer Innocent military support against Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II (who wanted Beatrice to marry one of his sons).Another part of the agreement was that, if Charles and Beatrice had no heirs, her counties would go to the king of Aragon, currently James I, whose army currently surrounded Beatrice's residence at Aix-en-Provence, and who had made claims to Provence previously.Not everyone was happy about this.The mother of Beatrice, Beatrice of Savoy, had not long before arranged for a loan of 4000 marks from Henry III of England for her husband, Ramon Berenguer V. Some castles in Provence had been put up as collateral. Henry felt he should have been part of the negotiations,…