Catherine of Vendôme (r. 1374–1412)
Catherine of Vendôme (r. 1374–1412)
Countess of Vendôme. Name variations: Vendome. Born before 1360 in Vendôme; died in 1412 in Vendôme; daughter of Bouchard VI, count of Vendôme, and Jeanne de Castile (r. 1366–1374); sister of Bouchard VII; married Jean I, duke of Bourbon, before 1374 (d. 1393); children: Louis (c. 1376–1346), later count of Bourbon (who married Jeanne de Montfort-Laval).
Daughter of the noble house of Vendôme, Catherine was betrothed and married to the French noble Jean, duke of Bourbon, to seal an alliance between Bourbon and Vendôme. She resided at the court of Bourbon until 1374, bearing only one surviving child, Louis. Upon the death of her brother Bouchard VII in 1374, Catherine was her father's only living child, and she succeeded her brother as ruler of Vendôme. She governed for 38 years, until her death in 1412. Catherine was succeeded by her son Louis.