Jan van Beaumont also Jan van Blois or Jan van Henegouwen or John of Hainault (* 1288, † 11 March 1356) was a younger brother of Count Willem I of Holland, Zeeland and Hainaut, who was married to Jeanne de Valois a cousin of Isabella and sister of the later Philippe VI of France. He led the expeditionary army which, on the initiative of Isabella and Mortimer, set out from his brother’s territory for England in 1326 to overthrow the Despensers.
Edward II
In Marlowe he has the name John of Hainault, after the French/English name for Hainault. In he offers the desperate Isabella and her followers Hainault as a safe place to stay as well as support in the fight against the Despensers. In Marlowe’s play, this initiative comes from Hainault because the French king abandons his sister Isabella. Contrary to historical fact, this suggests that France is not involved in Isabella and Mortimer’s fight at all.
Hainault is later present in the scenes [15] and [16] during the fighting in England.
