Isabel Bruce (Isabella de Brus orIsobail a Brus, orIsabella Robertsdotter Brus) (c. 1272–1358) wasQueen of Norway as the wife ofKing Eric II.^[1]

Isabel was born inCarrick, Scotland. Her parents wereRobert de Brus, 6th Lord of Annandale andMarjorie, Countess of Carrick. Her brothers includedRobert the Bruce, future King of Scots, andEdward Bruce who would beHigh King of Ireland briefly. In 1293 at the age of 21, she traveled to Norway with her father and was married at Bergen to King Eric. Her dowry for the marriage was recorded at the time by Norwegian noblemanAudun Hugleiksson who noted she brought: precious clothes, 2 golden boiler, 24 silver plate, 4 silver salt cellars and 12 two-handled soup bowls (scyphus) to the marriage.^[2][3]

Isabel was king Erik's second wife, he having previously been married to the daughter of KingAlexander III of Scotland,Margaret of Scotland, who died in childbirth in 1283. Upon the death of King Alexander three years later, his granddaughter, Eric's daughterMargaret, Maid of Norway became heir to the throne of Scotland. King Eric arranged the marriage of his daughter to the English KingEdward I's sonEdward, which became moot upon the child's death in 1290. The death of Queen Margaret left Scotland without a monarch, and at the mercy of Edward I of England.^[4]

Soon,John Balliol tried to take the Scottish crown with the aid ofJohn Comyn, the Red Comyn. The Bruce family captured strongholds in Galloway, and fighting in the name of the Maid of Norway (Margaret), suppressed the rebellion with many important families like the Stewards supporting them. At the time of Isabel's marriage in 1293, her brother was one of the claimants to the Scottish throne. The Bruces were aligned with King Edward against King John Balliol and his Comyn allies. In 1306, Robert the Bruce was chosen to be King of Scotland. Scottish historianG.W.S. Barrow observed that King Eric's renewed contacts with Scotland "increased the ties of friendship which bound him to the English king."^[5]

Isabel was widowed, at age 26, at the death of King Eric in 1299. Erik was succeeded by his brother, KingHaakon V of Norway who reigned until his own death in 1319. Isabel never remarried, despite surviving her husband by 59 years. Their marriage did not produce a male heir, though it did produce a daughter,Ingeborg Eriksdottir of Norway, who, having firstly been engaged toJon II, Earl of Orkney, marriedValdemar Magnusson ofSweden,Duke of Finland, in 1312. Isabel herself arranged both engagements.

She did not return to Scotland, but lived inBergen, Norway, the rest of her life, and died there. As a queen consort, there is little information about her life, but her life as a queen dowager is better documented. Queen Isabel participated in many official events and ceremonies and did not lack influence. She was present with the royal couple at the inauguration in 1305 of Bishop Arne Sigurdssön, the new Bishop of Bergen. She had a good relationship with the clerical powers in Bergen, made donations and in 1324, received several houses from the church. It has been suggested, that she participated as a mediator in the negotiations between Norway and Scotland regardingOrkney andShetland during 1312 under which theTreaty of Perth was reaffirmed. In 1339, the king pardoned a prisoner at her request. She exchanged letters with her sisterChristina Bruce and sent soldiers in her support. In 1357, she was one of the heirs of her daughter Ingebjorg, Duchess of Uppland, Öland and Finland.^[6][7]

• Blakely, Ruth Margaret (2005)The Brus Family in England and Scotland, 1100-1295 (Boydell Press)ISBN 978-1-84383-152-5
• Penman, Michael (2014)Robert the Bruce: King of the Scots (Yale University Press)ISBN 978-0-30014-872-5

• Norwegian royal consorts
• House of Bruce
• House of Sverre
• Fairhair dynasty
• 1270s births
• 1358 deaths
• 13th-century Norwegian people
• 14th-century Norwegian people
• 13th-century Norwegian women
• 14th-century Norwegian women
• 13th-century Scottish people
• 14th-century Scottish people
• 13th-century Scottish women
• 14th-century Scottish women
• Norwegian people of Scottish descent

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• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use dmy dates from April 2022