Philippa Roet

Philippa de Roet (also known as Philippa Pan or Philippa Chaucer; – c. 1387) was an English courtier, the sister of Katherine Swynford (third wife of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster – a son of King Edward III) and the wife of the poet Geoffrey Chaucer.

Early life Roet was the daughter of Sir Gilles de Roet, who was a herald and, later, a knight of Hainault and accompanied Queen Philippa to England. He later became the Guienne King of Arms. There is no history of her mother, but it is thought that Philippa had two sisters and a brother: Katherine, Elizabeth, and Walter.

It was her father's relationship with royalty that gave Philippa and her family high status and a reputation among the upper class, who took Philippa in as a 'domicella', or lady-in-waiting. These associations proved to be valuable, as Philippa began to receive annuities from Edward III, Richard II, and John of Gaunt, Costanza's husband.

Philippa is believed to have picked up the nickname "Philippa Pan" while working at Elizabeth of Ulster's household. There are records from 1357 to 1359 from the house of Elizabeth of Ulster which mention "a lady designated as Philippa Pan". "Pan" may have been an abbreviation of "Panetaria", meaning mistress of the pantry, which is most likely where Philippa worked in the Ulster household. It was apparently tradition for domicellas and esquire who worked in the same household to marry.

Once married, although granddaughter Philippa of Eltham was grown, it was decided they would continue working for her and the king. Many scholars, including almost all modern Chaucerians have argued against this theory; H. A. Kelly, for example, has effectively demonstrated that this belief is likely false as John of Gaunt having sexual relations with two sisters would have been considered incest and would have required additional papal dispensation for him to marry Katherine. Samantha Katz Seal argues that literary critics deliberately encouraged the idea of a "harlot" Philippa for the same reason that earlier critics had believed in a "shrewish" Philippa, namely that alienating Chaucer from his wife and domestic circles allowed these critics to imagine a more masculine Chaucer, and to claim that they, his critics, understood Chaucer better than anyone else ever had, especially his wife. which leads historians to believe that she was their daughter. It has been suggested that she was named after Elizabeth of Ulster, however it is worth remembering that Philippa had an elder sister, named Elizabeth/Isabel.

Thomas, the eldest son and most well known, might have been born around 1367 judging from the dates he entered the military; it has been suggested, primarily by Russell Kraus, that he was the son of John of Gaunt, whom he served under and received favours from; however, as stated previously, this parentage is unlikely. A strong relationship with Philippa has been suggested due to an assumption that Thomas chose to bear her coat of arms over Chaucer's. However, in the Special Collections of the Harvard Library is a deed with the name and seal of Thomas Chaucer using the arms of his father Geoffrey and there is no known example of Thomas Chaucer ever using a seal with the arms of his mother. Confusion over this has likely come about because the tomb of him and his wife, constructed by their daughter, Alice Chaucer, Duchess of Suffolk, uses Roet rather than Chaucer arms.

Very little is known of Lewis and Agnes, the second son and younger daughter. However, it is recorded that Lewis was born in 1381 and sent to the school at Oxford at age 10; it is also known that Chaucer's Treatise on the Astrolabe was written for Lewis. Agnes, who is believed to be his second daughter, was a lady-in-waiting at Henry IV's coronation in 1399.

Death Although there is no precise evidence, Philippa is thought to have died in 1387, due to her last recorded pension being on 18 June 1387. This is evidenced by Chaucer's last recorded overseas journey, which was in the same year. It is also suggested that he may have fallen out of favor with the court following her presumed death.

There is a tomb in the church of St Mary, East Worldham in Hampshire, that is thought to be Philippa's.