Berengaria of Navarre

Berengaria of Navarre was a daughter of Sancho VI of Navarre and Sancha of Castile. Her marriage to Richard I of England was arranged while Richard was already on crusade. She travelled with Eleanor of Aquitaine toward the Mediterranean and married Richard at Limassol in Cyprus in May 1191, becoming queen consort while the Third Crusade was under way.

Berengaria spent little time with Richard during their marriage, which was repeatedly disrupted by campaigning, travel and his captivity after the crusade. After Richard’s death in 1199 she lived chiefly in continental Europe and spent years asserting her financial rights as queen dowager before establishing herself at Le Mans.

In Carol McGrath’s The Lost Queen, Berengaria is the central historical figure, and her journey, marriage to Richard I and experience of crusade and royal politics are placed at the centre of the narrative.