As Queen of Cyprus, Charlotte introduced a cultural revival on the island, based on her education and French upbringing.

She is one of my maternal 14 x great-grandmothers.

She was born in 1388, in France. She is the daughter of Jean de Bourbon, Count of Marche and Vendôme, and his wife Catherine, Countess of Vendôme and Castres¹.

Titles

As wife of King Janus, she held the title of Queen Consort of Cyprus and Armenia².

Family

On 2 August 1409 she married King Janus of Cyprus by proxy in the Cathedral of Melun³. The wedding took place in person in Nicosia’s St Sophia church on 25 August 1411^{4 5}.

Janus and Charlotte had six children of their own⁶:

• James of Lusignan, who died before 1416.
• John, who became King John II of Cyprus.
• Anne of Lusignan, who married the Duke of Savoy.
• Mary of Lusignan, who died in 1437.
• Twins, born on 7 November 1415 but there is no record of their name.

Notable events

One source names Charlotte as being the god-daughter of French King Charles VI⁷.

Her arrival in Cyprus is a cornerstone of French culture and life in Cyprus⁸. Her 60-strong retinue included musicians, performers and composers⁹. As a well-educated French lady, Charlotte must have been aware of the value of patronage on the arts which must have influenced the evolution of culture on the island.

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Representations in art

In 1417, her father immortalised her in the stained glass window of Chartres’ cathedral’s chapel of Vendôme.

In 1421, her husband ordered the construction of the royal chapel of St Catherine in the village of Pyrga, Cyprus¹⁰. He and Charlotte kneel before the Crucifixion in a fresco painted on the east wall of the chapel¹¹. The painting contains lots of imagery related to the royal house of Lusignan¹².

Death

She died on 15 January 1422^{13 14}. She died of the plague^{15 16}. Her family buried her in the Dominican church, Nicosia^{17 18}.

References

1. Cawley, C. (2025). CYPRUS. [online] Available at: https://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/CYPRUS.htm [Accessed 8 Feb. 2025][↩]
2. Royaltombs.dk. (2024). CYPRUS. [online] Available at: http://www.royaltombs.dk/cyprus.html[↩]
3. Simard, A.G. (2021). The Manuscript Torino J.II.9: A Late Medieval Perspective on Musical Life and Culture at the Court of the Lusignan Kings at Nicosia. [online] Ohiolink.edu. Available at: https://etd.ohiolink.edu/acprod/odb_etd/etd/r/1501/10?clear=10&p10_accession_num=akron1135006861[↩]
4. Cawley, C. (2025). CYPRUS. [online] Available at: https://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/CYPRUS.htm [Accessed 8 Feb. 2025][↩]
5. Simard, A.G. (2021). The Manuscript Torino J.II.9: A Late Medieval Perspective on Musical Life and Culture at the Court of the Lusignan Kings at Nicosia. [online] Ohiolink.edu. Available at: https://etd.ohiolink.edu/acprod/odb_etd/etd/r/1501/10?clear=10&p10_accession_num=akron1135006861[↩]
6. Cawley, C. (2025). CYPRUS. [online] Available at: https://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/CYPRUS.htm [Accessed 8 Feb. 2025][↩]
7. Cawley, C. (2025). VENDÔME. [online] Available at: https://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/vendome.htm [Accessed 8 Feb. 2025][↩]
8. Simard, A.G. (2021). The Manuscript Torino J.II.9: A Late Medieval Perspective on Musical Life and Culture at the Court of the Lusignan Kings at Nicosia. [online] Ohiolink.edu. Available at: https://etd.ohiolink.edu/acprod/odb_etd/etd/r/1501/10?clear=10&p10_accession_num=akron1135006861[↩]
9. Simard, A.G. (2021). The Manuscript Torino J.II.9: A Late Medieval Perspective on Musical Life and Culture at the Court of the Lusignan Kings at Nicosia. [online] Ohiolink.edu. Available at: https://etd.ohiolink.edu/acprod/odb_etd/etd/r/1501/10?clear=10&p10_accession_num=akron1135006861[↩]
10. dom.com.cy. (n.d.). Gothic architecture in Cyprus. [online] Available at: https://dom.com.cy/en/live/blog/cyprus-gothic-style/[↩]
11. dom.com.cy. (n.d.). Gothic architecture in Cyprus. [online] Available at: https://dom.com.cy/en/live/blog/cyprus-gothic-style/[↩]
12. dom.com.cy. (n.d.). Gothic architecture in Cyprus. [online] Available at: https://dom.com.cy/en/live/blog/cyprus-gothic-style/[↩]
13. Cawley, C. (2025). CYPRUS. [online] Available at: https://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/CYPRUS.htm [Accessed 8 Feb. 2025][↩]
14. Royaltombs.dk. (2024). CYPRUS. [online] Available at: http://www.royaltombs.dk/cyprus.html[↩]
15. Cawley, C. (2025). CYPRUS. [online] Available at: https://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/CYPRUS.htm [Accessed 8 Feb. 2025][↩]
16. Royaltombs.dk. (2024). CYPRUS. [online] Available at: http://www.royaltombs.dk/cyprus.html[↩]
17. Cawley, C. (2025). CYPRUS. [online] Available at: https://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/CYPRUS.htm [Accessed 8 Feb. 2025][↩]
18. Royaltombs.dk. (2024). CYPRUS. [online] Available at: http://www.royaltombs.dk/cyprus.html[↩]