She married King Philip on 28 April 1180 at Bapaume and brought as her
dowry the
county of Artois. The marriage was arranged by her maternal uncle
Philip, Count of Flanders, who was advisor to the King.
[3]
Isabella was crowned Queen of France at
Saint Denis on 28 May 1180. As Baldwin V rightly claimed to be a descendant of
Charlemagne, the chroniclers of the time saw in this marriage a union of the
Carolingian and
Capetian dynasties.
The wedding did not please the
queen dowager, since it had meant the rejection of her nephew and the lessening of influence for her kinsmen. Though Isabella received extravagant praise from certain
annalists, she failed to win Philip's affections due to her inability to provide him with an heir, though she was only 14 years old at the time.
[4] Meanwhile, King Philip in 1184, was waging war against
Flanders, and angered at seeing his wife's father, Baldwin, support his enemies, he called a
council at Sens for the purpose of repudiating her. According to
Gislebert of Mons, Isabella then appeared barefooted and dressed as a
penitent in the town's churches and thus gained the sympathy of the people. Her appeals angered them so much that they went to the palace and started shouting loud enough to be heard inside.
[5]
Robert, the king's uncle, successfully interposed and no repudiation followed as repudiating her would also have meant the loss of Artois to the French crown.
[6]