Why Are There Queens On Playing Cards And Who Are They Said To Be?

Publish date: 2024-04-19

Both The Guardian and Playing Card Decks suggest the previous queen of France, Isobel of Bavaria (shown above entering Paris), as the inspiration for Judith, Queen of Clubs. She was the wife of King Charles VI and mother of Charles VII. Also known as Isabeau or Isabella, she was a controversial figure. Her husband was insane, and she ruled in his stead, but with many noblemen opposing her. One, Duke Louis of Orleans, became her lover, causing a scandal. She also signed the unpopular Treaty of Troyes, ceding the throne of France to the English king Henry V (this would later be invalidated) (via Encyclopedia.com).

More in line with the name of the Queen of Clubs, Holy Roman Empress Judith has also been suggested. She, too, was embroiled in power struggles during her time, as she fought for her son to become the next emperor. She, like Isobel, was from Bavaria, Germany, per Encyclopedia.com.

The third theory is that Queen Judith is the Biblical Judith, who saves Israel from being invaded by the Assyrians by killing an Assyrian general, Holofernes. The Book of Judith is deuterocanonical, being included in Catholic and Orthodox versions of the Old Testament, but not in Protestant or Jewish versions (via New World Encyclopedia). Whatever the original sources of the names, the theories show how much Biblical, mythological, and historical figures have influenced Western culture.

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