Isabel of Portugal, Queen of Castile and León, is still often referred to as "The Mad Queen." But as Taylor Swift would say, "no one likes a mad woman/ you made her like that." And in Isabel's case, the people who made her like that included her husband, her husband's EVIL advisor, and her stepson. Like, if you lock a woman in psychological distress in a ghost tower for literal years and then call her "mad" that's kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy, right?

Recommend history resource: instagram.com/emalineandthem

Recommended books: bookshop.org/lists/vulgar-history-recommends

Patreon: patreon.com/annfosterwriter

Merch: teespring.com/stores/vulgarhistory

Vulgar History is an affiliate of Bookshop.org, which means that a small percentage of any books you click through and purchase will come back to Vulgar History as a commission.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Women Trapped in Towers, part 3: The Mad Queen Who Lived With Ghosts