Isabella inherited the estates of her husband, William de Fortibus in 1260 at the age of 23. Two years later her brother, Baldwin de Redvers, died and she inherited his lands in the Isle of Wight, Hampshire and Devon. This meant that by her 26th birthday she had become one of the great landowners in England of her day. It was unusual at that time for a woman to hold such great power and in order to maintain and enforce her rights Isabella became fiercely litigious. Many or her records…
