On Dec. 22, 1476, Isabel Neville, the Duchess of Clarence, died of consumption or childbed fever. The death would lead to George, Duke of Clarence's mental health deteriorating and eventually, his execution. But what exactly led to her death?
Consumption or Childbed Fever?
Historians can't decide whether Isobel died of consumption or childbed fever, and this is partially due to the lack of information surrounding her death. Despite being a close member of the royal family (sister-in-law of the king), not much was documented about her.
Two and a half months before her death, she'd given birth to her fourth and last child, Richard. That baby would just outlive his mother by a little more than two weeks so the two would be buried together. It's certainly possible with the time frame that Isabel died of childbed fever.
However, consumption was one of the most common causes of death at the time. Her body would have been weakened from the birth of her son so she would have been more prone to infections.
George's beliefs about her death
One of the biggest reasons there's no exact known cause of death is because of George's actions after. He believed that Isabel had been killed due to witchcraft and that one of her ladies-in-waiting had been the culprit.
Ankarette Twynyho was illegally tried and executed for her supposed actions, something that King Edward VI would need to offer a posthumous apology for. However, it was just the start of George's final downfall, although his mental health had always been questionable.
With Isabel's death and George's downfall and later execution, their two surviving children were in the care of the king. This should have been fine, except that a few years later, Edward died, Richard usurped the throne, and Henry Tudor later won at the Battle of Bosworth.
Image courtesy of STARZ, acquired via STARZ Media Room
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