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Charles the Bold

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Not to be confused with Charles the Bald.

Charles the Bold
Charles the Bold in about 1460, wearing the collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece, painted by Rogier van der Weyden
Duke of Burgundy
Reign15 June 1467 – 5 January 1477
PredecessorPhilip the Good
SuccessorMary the Rich
Born10 November 1433
Dijon, Burgundy
Died5 January 1477(1477-01-05) (aged 43)
Nancy, Lorraine
Burial
Church of Our Lady, Bruges
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1440; d. 1446)​
​
​
(m. 1454; d. 1465)​
​
(m. 1468)​
IssueMary the Rich
Names
Charles Martin
HouseValois-Burgundy
FatherPhilip the Good
MotherIsabella of Portugal
ReligionRoman Catholicism
SignatureCharles the Bold's signature

Charles Martin (10 November 1433 – 5 January 1477), called the Bold,[a] was the last duke of Burgundy from the House of Valois-Burgundy, ruling from 1467 to 1477. He was the only legitimate son of Philip the Good and his third wife, Isabella of Portugal. As heir and as ruler, Charles vied for power and influence with rivals such as his overlord, King Louis XI of France. In 1465 Charles led a successful revolt of Louis's vassals in the War of the Public Weal.

After becoming the Duke of Burgundy in 1467, Charles pursued his ambitions for a kingdom independent from France, stretching contiguously from the North Sea in the north to the borders of Savoy in the south. For this purpose, he acquired Guelders and Upper Alsace; sought the title King of the Romans; and gradually became an enemy of the Germans. Charles married Margaret of York for an English alliance. He arranged the betrothal between his sole child, Mary, with Maximilian of Austria.

A passionate musician and patron of the arts, Charles supported the production of illuminated manuscripts and music. His court was famously known as a centre of arts, chivalry and etiquette. He was obsessed with order and regulation and wrote many ordinances throughout his rule, dictating military matters, legislation, and diplomacy to the smallest detail. Charles was religious and his patron saint was Saint George. He turned down multiple requests from the pope and the Venetians to undertake a crusade against the Ottoman Turks.

Towards the end of his life, Charles became engaged in a multi-national conflict called the Burgundian Wars (1474–1477), where he fought to retain ownership of Upper Alsace against an alliance of Swiss, German, and Alsatian polities called the Lower League. After his unsuccessful siege of Neuss, he was defeated by the Swiss in the battles of Grandson and Morat. Charles was killed during the Battle of Nancy on 5 January 1477, fighting against Duke René II of Lorraine and his Swiss army. His death triggered the War of the Burgundian Succession and ended the Burgundian State. Charles's daughter, Mary, was the last of Charles's dynasty. Mary's son, Philip of Austria, inherited the Burgundian Netherlands.

Early life

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Childhood

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Charles Martin (second forename)[3] was born on 10 November 1433 in the city of Dijon. He was the third child of Philip the Good with Isabella of Portugal and the only one to survive past infancy. His mother, fearing that she would lose another child, consecrated the infant to the Blessed Sacrament within days from his birth. Philip the Good arrived in Dijon in late November to celebrate the birth and made his son a knight of the Golden Fleece, a knightly order created by him in 1430.[4] The infant also became the count of Charolais, a title given to the heirs of the dukes of Burgundy.[5] He was baptised on 20 November, with Count Charles I of Nevers and Antoine I de Croÿ as his sponsors; he was named after the count of Nevers, who was Philip the Good's stepson from his second wife, Bonne of Artois.[6]

La Duchesse de Bourgogne arrêtée aux portes de Bruges by Sophie Frémiet. 19th-century depiction of the arrest of Isabella of Portugal, her son Charles, and their entourage at the gates of Bruges

In early spring 1434, Isabella and the young Charles moved to the mountain fortress of Talant, in fear of multiple outbreaks of plague in Burgundy.[7] The Duchess and her son descended the mountains in April 1435, after the plague had receded. Afterwards, they travelled to Paris to join Philip the Good.[4] En route, they passed through Bruges, where a rebellion against Philip the Good was brewing. In 1436, when Isabella and her entourage were to leave the city, rebels forcefully stopped and arrested them near the city gate.[8] The rebellion was suppressed in 1438, when Philip the Good blockaded the city and forced the rebels to surrender.[9]

During infancy, Charles was described as a robust child.[10] He showed an interest in martial matters and military operations early in his life; by the age of two, he was instructed on horsemanship while training on a wooden steed.[11] Philip the Good assigned many tutors for the young Charles, the most important among them being Antoine Haneron, professor of rhetoric in the University of Louvain.[12] Like his father, Charles developed a fondness for reading histories, chronicles and historical romances.[12] Charles aspired to become a conqueror like Alexander the Great. The fact that both he and Alexander had fathers named Philip stimulated his imagination and further enhanced his ambition.[13]

In 1435, with the Treaty of Arras, Philip the Good reconciled with Charles VII, King of France, marking the end of the Armagnac–Burgundian Civil War, a conflict between the members of the Valois royal family and its branches.[14] As a sign of good faith in his new ally, Charles VII also allowed a marriage between one of his daughters and Philip's heir. Charles sent his daughters to Burgundy; Philip chose Catherine, the king's ten-year-old daughter, to marry the six-year-old Charles.[15] The two were married on 11 June 1439, during a ceremony accompanied by concerts, jousts and banquets in the city of Saint-Omer.[16] The wedded children were put under the care of a governess, according to the wedding accounts, and were often separated from each other to spend their time with hobbies in tune with their age.[17]

Until the age of six, Charles was brought up by his cousins, John and Agnes of Cleves, who both were the children of Mary of Burgundy, the daughter of John the Fearless. Of the two, Agnes was more prominent in Charles's early education. Agatha and Charles were constantly in his mother's company.[18] In 1441, Philip the Good appointed Jean d'Auxy, seigneur of Auxi-le-Château, as the eight-year-old Charles's guardian. D'Auxy later served as Charles's chamberlain from 1456 to 1468.[19] At the age of 12, Charles began to participate in the public affairs of his father's duchy. In 1445, he accompanied his father on a rare state visit to Holland and Zealand. According to Olivier de la Marche, the inhabitants were delighted to see their count—the young Charles—in their land.[20]

Youth

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Philip the Good, dressed in black, wearing chaperon, and beside him is Charles, bareheaded and wearing the collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece
Charles, aged 12 or 13, standing beside his father, Philip, Duke of Burgundy; Jean Wauquelin presenting his 'Chroniques de Hainaut' to Philip the Good, 1447

Charles became fast friends with his wife, Catherine.[21] They gave gifts to each other; in 1440, the countess bought a harp for Charles, who was interested in music.[22] In February 1446, Catherine became bedridden with cold, high fever and persistent coughing. By March, she was too pale, lethargic and had no appetite.[21] From the start of her illness, Charles and his mother stayed close by Catherine's side. Charles urged the physicians sent by the King to do everything they could for his young wife. He visited her regularly and played music for her on the harp that she had gifted to him.[23] In April the three of them were forced to journey to Arras, on Philip the Good's orders to join him in watching a tourney in that city. Wanting to please his father, Charles began anticipating the tourney instead of worrying over his wife.[24] During the tourney, Catherine's general state deteriorated, to the point when she was overwhelmed by coughing and had to return to bed soon after the tourney had started. When she was well enough to travel, Catherine and her mother-in-law, Isabella journeyed to Coudenberg, the princess' favourite place. She eventually died on 30 July 1446, and her death was deeply mourned by the court of Burgundy.[23]

When Charles was seventeen, he participated in his first joust in a practice tourney in Brussels. He jousted against Jacques de Lalaing, the renowned knight of Burgundy. In the first round, Charles struck Jacques on the shield and shattered his own lance.[25] Philip the Good accused de Lalaing of holding back to let Charles win and demanded that the knight put up a real fight. During the second tilt, both lances were broken. The spectacle excited Philip the Good but caused Isabella of Portugal to worry for her son's safety.[26] During the actual tourney, Charles broke sixteen or eighteen lances and received prizes from two princesses. In his honour, heralds cried the well-known French battle cry, "Montjoie Saint Denis!" (which was also the motto of the Kingdom of France).[27]

In 1449, the wealthy city of Ghent rebelled against Burgundian rule in response to new taxes on salt.[28] Charles took part in the fighting; however, to keep him out of danger, Philip the Good falsely told Charles that his mother Isabella was seriously ill in Lille. Charles left shortly before the decisive Battle of Gavere in 1453.[26] In Lille, his mother honoured him with a feast, and to everyone's surprise, encouraged him to return to the battlefield and fight for his inheritance. By that time, Philip the Good had won the battle and defeated the rebellious burghers.[29]

Charles remained a widower for eight years until he married Isabella of Bourbon in 1454.[30] Isabella was the daughter of Agnes of Burgundy, and Philip the Good's niece. Her father, Charles I, Duke of Bourbon, sent her as a child to the Burgundian court as a ward of Isabella of Portugal. A shy and pliant young woman, Isabella was adored by Philip the Good, who saw an opportunity to renew the Treaty of Arras (which had been broken by the death of Catherine of France) by marrying his niece to his son.[31] Charles was not aware of his father's intention until the night before his marriage on 31 October; he did not resist the match.[32] With his marriage, the town of Chinon was incorporated into Philip the Good's realm, as part of Isabella's dowry.[33]

Struggle for power

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Disputes with Philip the Good

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Portraits of Philip the Good and Charles the Bold, folio from the Recueil d'Arras, c. 1535–1573

Throughout the decade 1454–1464, Charles was excluded from power, the ducal council, and the Burgundian court by his father.[34] In 1454 Philip the Good appointed him as "governor and lieutenant-general in absence" while he attended the imperial diet in Regensburg.[35] Philip the Good hoped to meet Frederick III and attach the emperor to his aspiring crusade in order to retake Constantinople from the Ottomans. However, the emperor did not show up.[36] Even as the regent, Charles held little to no power compared to his mother, the duchess, and his father.[35] Nevertheless, Charles still was able to issue documents in his own name. His regency was short-lived, for Philip the Good returned to Burgundy on 7 or 9 August of the same year, and Charles returned to his former powerless position.[35]

Charles was on bad terms with his father due to his exclusion from power, and their bad relations climaxed in 1457, when Charles wanted to appoint Antoin Rolin, the seigneur of Aymeries, as his chamberlain. Antoin was the son of Nicolas Rolin, Philip the Good's chancellor. The Duke, wary of the power his chancellor might get with this appointment, refused his son's request and instead proposed Philip de Croÿ, who was high bailiff of Hainault and a member of the influential House of Croÿ, as his chamberlain.[37][38] Charles distrusted de Croÿ, because he suspected that he accepted money from Charles VII to undermine Philip the Good.[39] Charles refused his father's proposal. Philip was so furious that his mother feared for Charles's life and had Charles removed from the court. Charles fled to Dendermonde and Philip got lost in the forests of Soignies trying to find his son. Through the mediation of Isabella of Bourbon, who was pregnant with Charles's child, Philip and his son reached a truce.[40]

When Charles's daughter, Mary, was born on 13 February 1457, neither Charles nor his father attended her baptism, for both wanted to avoid each other.[41] Nicolas Rolin was removed from the chancellery, and Rolin's close ally, Jean Chevrot, was removed from the ducal council. De Croÿ became more powerful.[5] Charles left the court for his personal estate at Le Quesnoy in Hainaut. There, he was entrusted with minor tasks regarding the Flemish subjects of his father. He also constructed the Blue Tower castle in Gorinchem as his personal seat in 1461. He attempted to formalise his status as the heir to the Burgundian State, which in turn prompted his father to cut off his allowance.[5] Charles was deprived of any money to pay his staff or even keep his estate afloat, so in 1463, according to Georges Chastellain, he turned to his employees and asked those who could pay for themselves to stay with him, and those who could not to leave him until he could afford to pay them. His staff replied that they would live and die with him. They offered him a share of their money so that the state could function normally. Charles had tears in his eyes and expressed his gratitude to his staff.[42] Although this account is quite dramatic, there is no reason not to believe it, as such acts of altruism were typical of that time.[43]

In 1462, Charles survived a poisoning attempt on his life by Jehan Coustain, premier valet de chambre. Coustain was executed in Rupelmonde. Charles blamed de Croÿ for the assassination attempt, while de Croÿ came to believe that Charles staged this attempt to fuel their feud.[44] By the end of 1463, the disputes between Charles and his father caused the States General of the Burgundian Netherlands to intervene. In 5 February 1464, Charles made a speech to the deputies assembled in Ghent, spending more time attacking de Croÿ's family than his father.[45] At the end, Charles and Philip the Good reconciled in June 1464, after they met in Lille, although de Croÿ kept a hold on power.[34] Later that year, Charles assumed full power by arguing that Philip the Good was becoming too senile. Charles put pressure on de Croÿ, but Philip protected de Croÿ by threatening Charles.[46] Ten days later, the States General gave Charles full power by appointing him lieutenant général.[46] His first act was to confiscate de Croÿ's estates; they were banished to France, where to their surprise, their French patron, Louis XI, gave them no support.[47]

Rivalry with Louis XI

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Miniature painting, a feast with Louis and Philip sitting next to each other
The Duke of Burgundy providing a sumptuous feast for Louis, Dauphin of France, by Job, 1905

In 1457, Louis XI—then Dauphin of France—the heir of Charles VII, had suddenly arrived at Philip the Good's court at Brussels.[48] Philip the Good saw his guest as an opportunity to mend his relations with the crown and took the dauphin in, indulging him with kindness, showing humility and refused all the king's request to send the dauphin back. At Philip's expense, Louis lived in Genappe, where he led a comfortable life.[48] Charles VII attempted to regain his son but all his attempts failed. He reportedly said: "My cousin Burgundy is feeding a fox who will eat up all his chickens".[49] Dauphin Louis would go on to become Philip the Good's favourite after the quarrel between him and his son, Charles.[50]

In contrast to his relationship with Philip, Louis and Charles disliked each other.[51] However, Charles asked the dauphin to be the godfather of his daughter, Mary.[41] Charles's hatred for Louis festered when he ascended to the French throne after the death of his father on 22 July 1461.[51] Louis was crowned king on 31 August in Reims under the regnal name Louis XI. Philip the Good personally put the crown on his head.[52] While the duke thought that the hostilities between France and Burgundy were ended, the new king at his coronation ceremony refused to participate in the feast sponsored by Philip in his honour. The latter thus returned to his realm disappointed.[53] Charles feared Louis' intentions to demolish the Burgundian defensive system in Picardy, and he was furious when a crisis occurred in autumn 1463 regarding his father's lands in the Somme.[54] de Croÿ persuaded Philip the Good to agree to amend the Treaty of Arras, which had given him cities such as Saint-Quentin, Abbeville, Amiens, Péronne and Montdidier. Philip agreed to accept 400,000 gold écus from Louis to return those cities to the crown domains.[55] When Charles was chosen as lieutenant général in 1464, he provoked war against Louis by forming the League of the Public Weal.[56]

The League of the Public Weal was a confederation of prominent French Princes — Charles of Berry, the king's brother, Francis II, Duke of Brittany, John II, Duke of Bourbon and Jacques and John d'Armagnac — formed to act against Louis' authority.[56] They declared Charles of Berry the regent of France and appointed Francis II as the captain general of the army.[57] With the threat of rebellion looming, Louis XI offered to pardon all the dukes and lords. Minor lords accepted the pardon, but the dukes persisted with their demands.[57] The members of the league chose Charles of Charolais as their leader and began amassing their army.[57] The League of the Public Weal became the most dangerous of a series of princely revolts against the French crown; one chronicle recorded the number of the participants to be seven dukes, twelve counts, two lords, one marshal and 51,000 men-at-arms against Louis XI.[58]

To counteract the rebels, Louis XI amassed an army and sent it southwards to central France to defeat John II of Bourbon. Charles of Charolais soon mustered an army of 25,000 men and marched towards Paris.[57] Louis and his army hastily returned to Paris to defend the city against Charles's army.[59] On 15 July, Charles reached the village of Montlhéry; in search of his allies' armies, Charles discovered that the royal army was camped in Arpajon, a few miles south.[60] On learning Charles's position, Louis moved to fight him.[59]

Two armies, one with the banners of Louis XI and one with the banners of the Duchy of Burgundy, fighting a pitched battle against each other
Battle of Montlhéry, early-16th-century miniature illustrating Philippe de Commines

On 16 July, the two armies met and fought in the outskirts of Montlhéry.[59] Charles placed himself next to the defensively positioned Burgundian vanguard, led by Louis of Saint-Pol. He attacked into the French left flank led by Charles IV, Count of Maine. Charles pursued the fleeing count and his army, when the French vanguard counterattacked.[59] Charles was thrown into battle with the French army and took a wound to his throat. He evaded capture and returned to his lines.[59] After his return, Charles ordered his gunners to shoot at the king's army; by his account, 1,200–1,400 men and a large number of horses were killed.[61] In the late evening, Louis XI retreated eastwards to Paris.[60]

While each side claimed victory at the Battle of Montlhéry, neither side achieved their full objectives.[59] Charles could not capture Louis in the battlefield, and Louis could not prevent Charles from joining his allies.[60] In spite of his ability to form his battle troops in a coherent battle order, Charles had yet to become an able tactician.[62] The rebel armies joined in the town of Étampes and began marching towards Paris on 31 July.[61] The rebels laid siege on Paris in 1465, during which Charles directed his gunfire at the city's walls.[63] The rebels successfully entered the city when a nobleman named Charles de Melun opened Saint-Antoine gate for them.[64] Louis XI was forced to negotiate.[59] The parties signed the Treaty of Conflans, which ceded the rule of Normandy to Charles, Duke of Berry and returned the Somme lands to Burgundy.[65]

Ascension

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On 12 June 1467, Philip the Good suddenly fell ill.[66] In the next few days, he could hardly breathe and constantly vomited. Charles was summoned from Ghent to immediately come to his father.[67] By the time he arrived, Philip had fallen unconscious and was struggling to breathe, and died on 15 June.[67] Charles arranged the funeral for his father in the St. Donatian's Cathedral, attended by 1200 persons from both Charles's and Philip's households and courtiers. The cathedral was lit by 1400 candles which heated up the inside of the church so much that holes had to be made in the windows to cool the air.[68] Charles showed extreme emotions during his father's funeral: he shook; trembled; pulled his hair, and kept shouting and crying. The Court Chronicler, Georges Chastellain, doubted the sincerity of Charles's distress, expressing astonishment that he could show such emotions.[69]

Portrait of Charles the Bold depicted as Caesar during his Joyous Entry

Fourteen days later, Charles officially became the Duke of Burgundy. In celebration, he paraded into the city of Ghent on 28 June 1467, emulating Caesar.[70] This Joyous Entry caused an uproar in the city.[71] The people demanded an end to the humiliating penalties imposed on them after the revolt in 1449.[72] Charles left the city with his daughter, the ten-year-old Mary, and the treasure kept by Philip the Good in the Prinsenhof of Ghent.[73] In the following January, he coerced the mayors of Ghent to ask for his pardon. Then, he abolished their governmental rights and announced that only he could appoint the government in the town, contrary to Philip IV's constitution in 1301.[74]

Duke of Burgundy

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The third marriage

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On 26 September 1465, Charles's wife, Isabella of Bourbon, died of tuberculosis at the age of 31. Court Chronicles recorded laconically the long months of her illness.[30] The most important part of her life for these chronicles was her marriage to Charles—of which she had only brought him one daughter and no male heirs—and the fact that she and Charles fell in love after the initially political marriage.[30] Charles, busy with the political negotiations after the War of the Public Weal, could not attend her funeral.[30][b]

Within weeks of Isabella of Bourbon's death, Charles's mother sought an English marriage for her son. She sent Guillaume de Clugny, one of Charles's close advisors, to London to negotiate with Edward IV for a marriage between his sister, Margaret of York, and Charles.[75] To prevent an English-Burgundian alliance, Louis XI proposed the hand of his daughter, the four-year-old Anne, to Charles in marriage. Charles refused this proposal.[75] In the Spring of 1466, an embassy led by Edward Woodville, Edward IV's brother-in-law, arrived in Burgundy to propose two marriages between the English royal family and the Burgundians: one between Margaret of York and Charles, and the other between Mary, Charles's daughter, and George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence, Edward IV's younger brother.[75] Woodville's visit failed, as Charles was not interested in marrying his young daughter to the Duke of Clarence.[76]

In October 1467, Edward IV publicly ratified the marriage between Charles and his sister, and Margaret of York appeared before the Magnum Concilium of Kingston upon Thames and formally gave her consent to the marriage.[77] Charles welcomed the English delegation—led by Edward and Anthony Woodville—to Burgundy, and then had her mother accompany him to negotiate the final marriage treaty.[78] The marriage treaty and the alliance was signed and ratified in February 1468, while the marriage ceremony was delayed to eight months later.[79] Since Charles and Margaret were fourth-degree cousins, they needed a Papal dispensation to legitimise their marriage.[80] As the dispensation was the groom's duty, Charles sent a delegation to Rome. The delegation took until May 1469 to win the dispensation.[80] Edward IV announced the marriage of his sister to Charles and dubbed him as 'a mighty Prince who bears no crown'.[80]

Crown of Margaret of York, worn at her wedding, then donated to a church in Aachen, now Aachen Cathedral Treasury

Charles and Margaret were married on 3 July at Damme, a town three miles from Bruges.[81] For their wedding ceremony, Charles prepared nine receptions each ending with a joust match. He wished to outdo his father's famous Feast of the Pheasant.[82] The wedding displayed the power and wealth of the dukedom.[83] At the end of the wedding, Charles left his wife alone to catch up on sleep; the two did not spend their wedding night together.[84]

Charles and Margaret never had children.[85] They spent little time together: only three weeks during the first six months after their marriage; one-quarter of the time during the years 1469 and 1470, and only three weeks throughout 1473.[86] According to contemporary jurist, Filips Wielant, Charles housed Margaret far away from him because he did not want women to hamper his court.[87]

Territorial expansions

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Like his father, Charles pursued expansionism; however, whereas Philip the Good realised this policy by peaceful means, Charles vied for territory by war and conflict.[88] In the Netherlands, he sought to expand his realm to the north-east: the Duchy of Guelders.[89] Although it was never a part of the Burgundian lands, the duchy was dependent on Burgundian trade.[90] In 1463, Adolf of Egmond rebelled against his father, the ruling duke, Arnold. With Philip the Good's support, Adolf usurped the duchy and imprisoned his father in 1465.[91] Adolf's treatment of his father caused a scandal that resonated as far as Rome, where the Pope sought a mediator to end the conflict in Guelders. In 1471, Charles was appointed as the mediator; he marched into Guelders and restored Arnold to power.[92] Adolf was placed under house arrest, and then to prison after a failed escape attempt.[93] To retain Burgundian assistance, Arnold made Charles the Regent of Guelders; when Arnold died in February 1473, having left no heirs but his imprisoned son, he bequeathed the duchy to Charles.[94]

Territories of France (green) and Burgundy (vanilla) in 1477, Cambridge Modern History Atlas, 1912

However, Charles's inheritance caused opposition. The Estates of Guelders, and the towns of Nijmegen, Arnhem, and Zutphen rejected Arnold's will, and Louis XI asked Frederick III, the Holy Roman Empire, to confiscate the duchy.[95] Frederick III was diplomatically close to Charles and did not intervene. Charles subdued the rebelling cities and the nobles of Guelders with force.[96] On 9 June 1473, with a sizeable army, he entered the city of Maastricht without resistance. Roermond and Venlo quickly surrendered. Moers, whose count, Vincent von Moers, was the leader of the resistance, yielded to Charles's artillery.[97] The only serious conflict was the siege of Nijmegen, which only surrendered after inflicting severe losses on the Burgundian army. After the successful conquest of Guelders, Charles imposed heavy taxes and changed the aldermen in the region. Charles gave more powers to the ducal judicial officers to control the rebellious cities and to impose a centralised administration.[93]

The Burgundian state under Charles was divided into two separate areas, the Duchy of Burgundy in the south and Flanders in the north.[98] To unify them, Charles needed the Duchy of Lorraine and Alsace.[99] On 21 March 1469, he received Sigismund, Archduke of Austria to his court to negotiate the purchase of his lands in Upper Alsace.[100] Sigismund was in a desperate financial situation and eagerly agreed to sell the lands.[101] With this purchase, Charles acquired a claim on the city of Ferrette, close to Swiss borders, alarming the Swiss Confederacy.[91] Charles's rights and income from his new territories were severely limited because most of the land rights were mortgaged to local nobles.[102] Charles's deputy in the area, Peter von Hagenbach, imposed harsh taxes on the people.[103] Soon, several towns of Alsace formed a league to unite against Hagenbach.[99] Charles ignored the area.[104]

Meeting the Emperor in Trier

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Engraving of two horsemen, one the Emperor and the other the Duke of Burgundy, with their respective entourage
Meeting of Charles the Bold and Frederick III in Trier, 1473

Charles greatly desired to transform the Duchy of Burgundy into a kingdom, free from the limitations of vassalage to the French crown, to further his personal glory.[105][106] The only way for Charles to realise such a state was through the framework of the Holy Roman Empire.[107] At Charles's request, Sigismund of Austria proposed Charles to be the next king of the Romans, the title of the successor of the emperor, with the marriage between the Emperor's son and the Charles's daughter as an inducement.[108] As one of the richest men in the Europe, and also an ally of the rebellious princes in the empire, the Hungarians and the Bohemians, Charles was a coveted ally for Emperor Frederick III,[109] who agreed to have an audience with him in Trier.[110]

In October 1473, both parties reached Trier; the Emperor with his son Maximilian and 2,500 horsemen, while the Burgundy entourage consisted of 13,000 men at arms (including artillery), Burgundian nobility, bishops, and treasures and relics.[105][c] Despite all the grandeur, Frederick III was disappointed that Charles had not brought his daughter,[111] amidst rumours spread by Habsburg adversaries alleging that Mary was physically defective.[112] Charles wished to become the king of the Romans and to succeed Frederick as emperor. In return, Maximilian would inherit the Burgundian State, and later on become emperor.[113][d] In addition, Charles wanted to become a prince-elector, taking the Bohemian seat in the Electoral College, and be recognised as the duke of Guelders.[115]

Although Charles received recognition for the Duchy of Guelders, he still was not recognised as the king of the Romans. In part, Frederick III was convinced that the prince-electors would not vote for Charles to receive the title.[116] During the conference, Charles ignored and alienated the prince-electors.[117] When he realised how much he needed their support, Charles tried to impress them with displays of his wealth, but the Germans were not swayed.[118] Charles's decision to only interact with the Emperor and not the prince-electors was a fatal mistake, showing an utter ignorance of German political norms.[119]

As an alternative, Frederick III proposed to elevate the Duchy of Burgundy into a kingdom; Charles accepted.[120] The two parties planned for Frederick III to crown Charles in the Trier Cathedral in a coronation on 25 November.[121] However, the next day, the Emperor secretly departed from Trier, embarking on the Moselle at dawn.[122] Charles became enraged, locked himself in his room and smashed the furniture to small pieces. But he did not break the betrothal between Maximilian and Mary, hoping that he could still become a king.[123]

Policies

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Legislation

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Assembly of forty four gentlemen dressed in scarlet red in the Parliament of Mechelen, with Charles the Bold sitting in the centre, presiding the event
Solemn opening session of the Parliament of Mechelen under Charles the Bold, Jan Coessaet, 1587, Museum Hof van Busleyden [nl]

Upon ascension as duke in 1468, Charles sought to dismantle the jurisdiction of the Parlement of Paris as the highest juridical power within his country. The cities and institutions in Burgundy relied on the parlement for challenging legal decisions. This irritated the Dukes of Burgundy who detested any reliance on France. Philip the Good established an itinerant court of justice that travelled all across the country (which was still not as powerful as the Paris Parliament).[124] Charles established of a central sovereign court in Mechelen in his 1473 ordinance of Thionville. The city would house the new Court of Auditors, who previously resided in Lille and Brussels. The language of this parliament was French, with two-thirds of its personnel being Burgundian.[125] The Mechelen parliament only held authority in the Low Countries. In the Burgundian mainlands, Charles established another parliament whose headquarters moved from Beaune and Dole.[126]

In Charles's own words, the proper administration of justice was "the soul and the spirit of the public entity."[127] He was recognised as the first sovereign to make serious effort to impose peace and justice upon the Low Countries, and he was regarded as "a prince of Justice" by historian Andreas van Haul a century after his death.[128] However, Georges Chastellain criticized Charles for his lack of mercy while imposing justice.[129] He damaged his relations with his people by inspecting and regulating every aspect of their life, and was unnecessarily harsh .[130] Charles wanted to reduce the influence of the local aldermen, who were viewed by the commoners as the local court, and he undermined the Mechelen parliament.[128] To both increase his grip on the seats of justice and to fill up his treasury, Charles dismissed the aldermen and sold their offices to the highest bidders; only the wealthiest subjects came to hold those positions.[128] Many institutions protested against these practices, but Charles persisted because he constantly needed to fund his armies.[131]

Religion

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Charles wears a cloth of gold and Saint George stands behind him, wearing an armour
Charles the Bold presented by Saint George, Lieven van Lathem, opening of the Prayer Book of Charles the Bold, c. 1471

Charles the Bold was religious, and regarded himself more devout and pious than any ruler of his day.[132] He considered his sovereignty bestowed upon him by God and thus owed his power to God alone.[133] From a young age, Charles chose Saint George as his patron saint.[134] He kept an alleged sword of Saint George in his treasury and showed reverence to other warrior saints like Saint Michael as well.[135] He commissioned a prayer book from Lieven van Lathem which was completed in 1469.[136] The opening diptych of the manuscript as well as two other pieces each demonstrate Charles's devotion to Saint George.[134] In Margaret of York's copy of La Vie de Sainte Colette, she and Charles are shown as devotees of Saint Anne. Multiple modern scholars, such as Jeffrey Chipps Smith, have drawn a connection between the saint and the duke for the fact that both were married three times. According to Prof. Nancy Bradley Warren, the portrayal of Charles and Saint Anne may have been a means to legitimise his marriage to Margaret by reassuring those who were dubious about an alliance with England.[137]

Throughout his reign, Charles faced multiple requests to pledge his men to a crusade against the Ottoman Empire.[138] Pope Sixtus IV sent three instructions to the papal legate in the Burgundian court, Lucas de Tollentis, directing him to encourage Charles to undertake a crusade against the Ottomans.[139] Tollentis, reported to the Pope on 23 June 1472 that Charles was 'resolved in our favour,' and the welfare of Christendom was never far from his mind.[140] Charles may have considered an expedition to the east as the climax of his life's work; however, during his lifetime, he never undertook a crusade nor did he make preparations for it like his father did.[141] Only for a short time between late 1475 and early 1476 did he seriously consider a crusade and that was only after a meeting with Andreas Palaiologos, the deposed Despot of the Morea, who agreed to cede his claim as the Emperor of Trebizond and Constantinople to Charles.[142][143][e]

Diplomacy

[edit]
Charles the Bold ordering Louis IX to sign the Treaty of Péronne; 1913; Histoire de France et notions d'Histoire Générale by Gustave Hervé, illustrated by Valéry Müller

Charles the Bold pursued a risky and aggressive foreign policy.[144] Trying to have as many allies as possible, he considered everyone, aside from Louis XI, as his ally.[145] In 1471, he made a list of his nineteen allies. He increased the number to twenty-four by the next year and had twenty-six allies in 1473, in contrast to Louis XI's fifteen allies.[145] Some of these relations, like with Scotland, were only formalities. Kings of Scotland and Denmark would sign treaties with Louis XI and appear on his list of allies.[146]

Initially, Charles was hesitant about an alliance with Matthias Corvinus, King of Hungary.[147] However, the mutual friendship with the Kingdom of Naples pushed Burgundy and Hungary to each other, and in his pursuit to ally with Frederick III's opponents, Charles made contacts with Matthias.[148] Charles hoped that by supporting Matthias' claim to the Kingdom of Bohemia, Matthias would back him in the electoral college.[149] The two successfully concluded a treaty in November 1474, in which they agreed to partition the Holy Roman Empire between themselves, with Charles becoming the King of Romans and having the lands along the Rhine under his authority while Matthias would acquire Breslau and Bohemia.[150] In 1473, through negotiations with the new Duke of Lorraine, René II, he obtained the right to pass his armies through his lands, and assign Burgundian captains to important fortifications in Lorraine, essentially turning the duchy into a Burgundian protectorate.[151] Among Charles's other allies were Amadeus IX, Duke of Savoy, whose wife, Yolande of Valois, Louis XI's sister, drove the duchy into an alliance with Burgundy on the basis of their shared dismay for Louis XI.[152]

The intense rivalry between Louis XI and Charles the Bold kept both rulers always prepared for an eventual war.[153] The suspicious death of Charles of Valois, Duke of Berry, the king's brother, in 1472, prompted Charles to raise arms to avenge his former ally's death, stating he has been poisoned by Louis.[154] After a small conflict, the two ceased their fighting in the winter 1473 without any talks of peace. Neither would declare war on the other for the rest of their reigns.[90] In 1468, Charles and Louis tried to make peace, which caused astonishment throughout France.[155] Their talks of peace soon turned into hostility once Charles learned that Louis had his hands in a recent rebellion in Liége.[156] Afterwards, Charles imprisoned Louis in the city of Péronne and coerced him to sign a treaty favourable to Burgundy with conditions such as forfeiting the Duke of Burgundy from paying homage, guarantying Charles's sovereignty of Picardy, and abolishing French jurisdiction on Burgundian subjects.[157] Louis reluctantly agreed to all the demands and signed the Treaty of Péronne.[158] However, the crown did not abide by the treaty terms and Franco-Burgundian relations remained negative.[159]

Italian nations

[edit]
King Ferdinand is wearing a long red robe and chaperon
King Ferdinand I of Naples depicted as a knight of the Oder of the Golden Fleece in Statuts, Ordonnances et Armorial by Gilles Gobet, the Toison d'or King of Arms, 1473

At the start of Louis XI's reign, Italy's triple alliance between the Duchy of Milan, the Republic of Florence and the Kingdom of Naples, allowed the influence of France grow in the peninsula, for Milan and Florence were long-standing allies of Louis XI.[160] To remedy this, Charles enlarged Burgundy's sphere of influence in Italy to dwarf that of France.[161] The first Burgundian alliance with an Italian ruler was with King Ferdinand I of Naples, a ruler admired by both Charles and Louis XI.[162]

Ferdinand was the legitimised bastard of Alfonso I, and the Pope did not recognize his claim to the throne.[163] Meanwhile, René of Anjou, the deposed King of Naples, persistently sought his title back. In the constant fear of an invasion from René or his heirs with the support of Louis XI, Ferdinand allied himself with Charles, who made him a member of the Order of the Golden Fleece in 1473.[164] Charles constantly toyed with the idea of marrying his daughter, Mary, to Ferdinand's second son, Frederick of Naples, who visited the Burgundian court in 1469 and 1470.[165] In 1474, when a war with Louis XI was on the horizon, Ferdinand's participation was dependent on his son's marriage with Mary. Charles hinted at his willingness to give his daughter's hand to Frederick, and Ferdinand dispatched his son to Burgundy on 24 October 1474.[166] Although Frederick became a lieutenant and close military advisor to Charles, he failed in his ultimate mission in marrying Mary.[167]

The Duchy of Milan was France's most important ally in the Italian peninsula, whose ruler, Galeazzo Maria Sforza was attached to the King of France through his marriage with Louis' niece, Bona of Savoy.[168] Charles tried to form an alliance with Milan. In 1470, he offered Galeazzo membership in the Order of the Golden Fleece, on the premise of an alliance, but was rejected.[169] One time he even included Milan in one of his lists of allies, which caused Galeazzo to protest.[145] To bring about Galeazzo to his circle of allies, Charles started a rumour that he wished to conquer Milan.[170] Concerns about a probable war and Charles's diplomatic pressure by isolating Milan from France persuaded Galeazzo to sign a treaty on 30 January 1475 at Moncalieri in the form of an alliance between Savoy, Burgundy and Milan.[171] As a result of this treaty, diplomatic relations between the two duchies were established, and Galeazzo sent Giovanni Pietro Panigarola as his envoy to Burgundy.[172]

Charles's relation with the Republic of Venice was based on his willingness to launch a crusade against the Turks.[173] With Ferdinand of Naples' insistence, the senate of Venice agreed to a treaty against the King of France on 20 March 1472.[174] From then on, Venice constantly urged Charles to uphold his part of the bargain and support them in their war with the Ottomans.[175] Charles's inaction caused gradual estrangement from Venice.[176] For instance, when he wanted to recruit the Venetian condottiero, Bartolomeo Colleoni to his ranks, (who would have brought with himself 10,000 men at arms) the Venetian government did not allow him to go. Charles spent two years negotiating with the Venetian ambassadors, but at the end, was unsuccessful in convincing them.[177] By 1475, the alliance between Venice and Burgundy did not liken a genuine union anymore.[178]

The Italian peninsula saw a shift in its sphere of influence after the Treaty of Moncalieri in 1475. Charles the Bold triumphantly replaced Louis XI as the dominant influence on the Italian politics, with three of four major secular powers in the region—Milan, Naples and Venice—all aligning towards him.[179] Only Florence remained a French ally, though they offered a stance of neutrality to Charles on the basis of their mutual alliance with Venice.[180] Charles successfully eliminated any possible support from Italy for France, and now could count on the support of his Italian allies if a war with France ensued,[179] However, from 1472, relations with France became a constant truce, and remained as such during rest of Charles's reign.[181]

Arts

[edit]
A kneeling man presents his book to Charles who is seated on his throne
Vasco de Lucena presenting his translation of Quintus Curtius Rufus' Histories of Alexander the Great to Charles the Bold. Folio from Le Jardin de vertueuse consolation by an anonymous master, between 1470 and 1475

The Burgundian court under Charles the Bold was famous and magnificent.[182] It was seen as a place to learn arts and etiquette and where chivalry and courtly life was more intact than the rest of the Europe. For this reason, the Burgundian court was the host to many young noblemen and princes from all across the continent.[183] Even future generations admired Charles's court. Philip II, for instance, on the urging of his father, Charles V, introduced the "ceremonial of the court of Burgundy" into Spain using Olivier de la Marche's account of Charles the Bold's court.[184] Charles's Burgundian court thus became the idealized courtly life that sparked inspirations throughout 17th century Spain.[185] While Charles's court did not differ much from his contemporaries, certain special features increased the court's appeal: the number of knights of nobles, the sacred image of the ruler who was distant from other courtiers, and the splendour of the court.[186] Charles, like his predecessors, displayed his glamour through extravagant patronage of the arts.[187]

During Charles's reign, the production of illuminated manuscripts flourished and thrived.[188] After his ascension in 1467, Charles provided considerable budget for projects left incomplete after his father's death and commissioned new projects as well.[189] As a patron of Renaissance humanism, he commissioned the translation of Quintus Curtius Rufus' Histories of Alexander the Great into French to replace the inadequate Roman d'Alexandre en prose. He commissioned the Portuguese Vasco de Lucena and Jehan de Chesne to respectively translate Xenophon's Cyropaedia and Caesar's De bello Gallico into French.[190] In 1468, he commissioned Guillaume Fillastre to compose a "didactic chronicle" called Histoire de Toison d'Or containing moral and didactic stories of Jason, Jacob, Gideon, Mesha, Job and David, the Golden Fleeces.[191] He employed the finest calligraphers and illuminators to document his ordinances; the Ordinance of 1469 was illuminated by Nicolas Spierinc and was distributed among Charles's courtiers.[192] His prayer book illuminated by Lieven van Lathem is considered a masterpiece of Flemish illumination that influenced great illuminators such as the Master of Mary of Burgundy.[193] Charles and his wife Margaret were patrons of Simon Marmion, who illuminated a breviary and a panel painting for them.[194]

Charles was a patron of music and was a capable musician.[195] In his 1469 ordinance, Charles gave a clear view of what his musical entourage should be: a concert band, ceremonial trumpeters, chamber musicians, an organist and the chapel musicians, who had more variety than Philip the Good's chapel.[196] He brought his chapel with himself on his campaigns and had them sing a new song to him every night in his chambers.[197] Charles was a patron of the composer Antoine Busnois, who became his choirmaster;[198] his court musicians also included Hayne van Ghizeghem and Robert Morton.[199] His favourite song was L'homme armé, a song that may have been written for him.[200] Charles composed a motet that was sung in the Cambrai Cathedral, presumably in the presence of Guillaume Du Fay, one of the most well-known composers of his era.[201] Among his other works were chansons and secular songs.[202] Although no pieces from his motet or chansons remain, two songs are attributed to him: Del ducha di borghogna (of the Duke of Burgundy) and Dux Carlus (Duke Charles), both are from Italian songbooks wherein no name of the composers is mentioned, nevertheless, the songs have uncanny similarities to each other: in voice ranges; in their use of pitch C; their musical form, rondeau; and both songs start with the phrase Ma dame. According to the musicologist David Fallows, with such similar traits, the songs are most likely both composed by Charles in 1460s.[203] Charles also liked to sing, however he did not have a good singing voice.[204]

Military

[edit]
Military Ordinance of Charles the Bold, Master of Fitzwilliam 268, c. 1475

When Charles became the Duke of Burgundy, his army functioned under a feudalistic system, with most of its men either recruited through summons or hired by contracts. The majority of his army ranks were occupied by French nobles and English archers, and the army suffered from the inefficient distribution of resources and slow movement.[205] Having lived through a period of peace under Philip the Good, the army scarcely trained and was unprepared. Furthermore, in comparison to other armies of Europe, their structure was old and dated.[206] To remedy these problems, Charles issued a series of military ordinances between 1468 and 1473, that not only would revolutionise the Burgundian army, but also would influence every European army in the 16th century.[207] The first of these ordinances, addressed to the Marshal of Burgundy, contains instructions on who could be recruited to the army and describes the personnel of the artillery, namely, masons, assistants, cannoneers, and carpenters.[208] The second ordinance, issued at Abbeville in 1471, proclaimed the formation of a standing army called Compagnie d'ordonnance, made up of 1250 lances fournies, who were accompanied by 1200 crossbows, 1250 handgunners and 1250 pikemen, under the ratio of 1:1:1.[209] A squad of these troops contained a man-at-arms, a mounted page, a mounted swordsman, three horse archers, a crossbowmen and a pikeman. Charles designed a uniform for each of the companies (Cross of Burgundy inscribed on the ducal colours).[210] He also designed an overlapping military hierarchy, that sought to cease the infighting between captains and their subordinates that would arise in a pyramidal hierarchy.[211]

A knight mounting a horse, who has an adorned armour
Armour of Charles the Bold in The Vinkhuijzen collection of military uniforms, 1910, kept at New York Public Library

The last of these ordinances, issued at Thionville, marked the culmination of Charles's martial administration. The organisation of a squad was categorised to the merest detail; specific battle marches were created to keep order between the men; a soldier's equipment were explained in detail and discipline among the ranks was regarded with utmost importance.[212] Charles forbade individual soldiers to have a camp follower, instead, he permitted each company of 900 to have 30 women in their ranks who would attend to them.[210] He set brutal rules against defaulters and deserters. In 1476, he appointed Jehan de Dadizele to arrest deserters. Those guilty of encouraging soldiers to desert were to be executed and the deserters were to return to the army.[213] Charles intended for his soldiers to tutor their compatriots about these new conditions in private settings without a disciplinarian presiding over them.[211] Charles's erratic pace to write new detailed reforms every few years was too much for his captains and men-at-arms to sufficiently implement.[214]

Charles's ordinances were mostly inspired by Xenophon's Cyropaedia.[215] After observing how Cyrus the Great achieved the willing obedience of his subjects, Charles became obsessed with discipline and order among his men-at-arms.[216] He applied Xenophon's comments in the Abbeville ordinance, thus ensuring that through a complex chain of command, his soldiers would both command and obey.[211] The influence of Vegetius' De re militari is also quite apparent in Charles's writings. Vegetius suggested that soldiers were to be recruited from men offering themselves to a martial life; afterwards, they would swear an oath to stay loyal to the duke. Charles adapted both ideas in his 1471 ordinance.[217] Charles's 1473 ordinance included exercises from Vegetius for soldiers to keep them prepared and disciplined.[218]

The Burgundian standing army struggled with recruitment.[219] Although the Burgundian army had enough men-at-arms, pikemen and mounted archers, the they lacked culverins and foot archers.[220] To solve this problem, Charles diversified his army and recruited from other nationalities.[221] Italian mercenaries were his favourite and by 1476, filled up most of his ranks.[222] Despite the constant warning from military authors of the past against the recruitment of mercenaries, contemporary chronicler Jean Molinet praised Charles for his brilliant solution, staying that he was favoured by both heaven and earth and thus above the 'commandments of philosophers'.[223]

Burgundian Wars

[edit]

League of Constance

[edit]
Trial of Peter von Hagenbach, 1474

Over the span of five years, Charle's deputy in Upper Alsace, Peter von Hagenbach, alienated his Alsatian subjects; antagonized the neighbouring Swiss Confederacy, who felt threatened by his rule; and showed aggressive intentions towards the city of Mulhouse. As a result, the Swiss sought alliances with German towns and Louis XI.[220] By February 1473, a handful of free cities coordinated to end Burgundian rule in Alsace.[224]

The cities Strasbourg, Colmar, Basel and Sélestat offered money to Sigismund of Austria to buy back Alsace from Charles. But Charles refused to sell Alsace and was determined to keep it.[225] To emphasize his claim, Charles toured the province around Christmas 1473, reportedly with an army.[226] He tried to make peace with the Swiss, who questioned his sincerity.[227] Charles's threats prompted the Swiss to ally themselves with their former enemy, Sigismund.[225]

The rebelling Alsatian cities and the Swiss formed the League of Constance in April 1474 to drive Charles and Peter von Hagenbach from Alsace.[227] Rebellion quickly broke out in Alsace.[99] The league overthrew Hagenbach, put him on trial, and on 9 May executed him.[225] Upon hearing this news, Charles threw a tantrum. In August, he sent an army led by Peter's brother, Stefan von Hagenbach, into Alsace.[228] After Charles refused again to give up control of Alsace, the League of Constance officially declared war on him.[229] Hagenbach's death might be considered the catalyst to the conflict now called the "Burgundian Wars".[228]

Siege of Neuss

[edit]

When Alsace rose up against Burgundian authority, Charles was already preoccupied with another campaign in Cologne.[229] Charles aided the Archbishop of Cologne, Ruprecht against a rebellion, hoping to turn the electorate into a Burgundian protectorate.[230] He held peace talks in Maastricht on 14 May 1474, which failed. From 22 June, he planned to siege Colognian cities and force Ruprecht's conditions on his subjects.[231] The first of his targets was the city of Neuss, which Charles needed to control in order to guarantee Burgundian supply lines for an attack on Cologne. Neuss was expected to fall within a few days, and many contemporary historians feared its fall would open up Germany to the Burgundians.[231]

Painting of the encampment of Charles the Bold's army outside of the walls of Neuss
Siege of Neuss by Charles the Bold in 1475, Adriaen Van den Houte

On 28 July 1474, Charles's army reached the southern gate of Neuss.[232] The artillery immediately began bombardment to breach the walls.[233] To isolate the city, Charles assigned men to every gate, blockaded the river across Neuss with fifty boats, and secured the two isles neighbouring the city.[234] Despite all attempts, communications between Neuss and the outside world continued.[235] In September, the Burgundian night watch caught a man swimming through the river with a letter detailing Emperor Frederick's intention to attack the Burgundian besiegers.[236] Upon learning Frederick's plan, Charles intensified the barrage, and attempted to dry out the city's moat by diverting the River Erft and sinking overloaded barges into the Rhine.[236]

Residents of Neuss endured the constant bombardments, and refused to surrender even though their food had reduced from cows to snails and weeds.[237] Their resistance brought admiration from all the contemporary chronicles.[238] Emperor Frederick was slow to amass an army. When he had gathered 20,000 German forces in Spring 1475, he took seventeen days to march from Cologne to Zons, their encampment.[239] Charles was constantly petitioned by his brother-in-law, Edward IV of England, to leave the siege and join him in fighting the French. But in the face of the Emperor's forces, Charles did not want to lose his pride and withdraw.[240] The Emperor had no desire to fight the Burgundians and kept the conflict to a few skirmishes.[241] The conflict came to a rapid end when an emissary from the Pope threatened both sides with excommunication, and all parties signed a peace treaty on 29 May 1475.[242]

Charles left Neuss on 27 June.[243] The city had been so badly damaged that it was on the verge of surrender.[242] His propagandists presented him as the Caesar of their age who had brought a humiliating defeat on the German forces. After signing the peace treaty, hundreds of German soldiers lined up to see him. According to one chronicle, many of them threw themselves at Charles and worshipped him.[244] However, the Siege of Neuss cost Burgundy dearly in army strength and strategic opportunities.[243] Besides the number of men and equipment lost, this siege also cost Charles a chance to destroy Louis XI and France. Edward IV, after seeing no support from his ally, agreed to sign the Treaty of Picquigny with Louis XI, causing a seven-year truce and a marriage alliance between the two kingdoms.[242] Charles had to sign a treaty with Louis as well, so that he would be free to march south and deal with the League of Constance, whose members now also included René II of Lorraine.[245]

Battle of Grandson

[edit]
Main article: Battle of Grandson
battle scene, over two pages
Battle of Grandson, miniature of 1515 by Diebold Schilling the Younger in the Lucerne chronicle

Charles commenced his full-fledged invasion on the Swiss and their allies immediately after signing the peace treaty with Louis XI. Splitting his army into two parts, he advanced through Lorraine with no resistance and captured the capital city of Nancy.[246] At the beginning of 1476, Charles besieged the recently captured castle of Grandson which was fortified by a garrison from Bern.[247] Despite the many relief forces sent to defeat the Burgundians, the Swiss were unable to relieve the city from the siege and Charles recaptured Grandson, executing all of the Bernese garrison as retaliation for Swiss brutality in Burgundian towns.[248] On 1 March, Charles, expecting the Swiss army to march towards him for a battle, decided to leave Grandson northwards for a mountain pass north of the town of Concise. As he had foreseen, the Swiss army marched from Neuchâtel, with their vanguard made up of eight thousand men several hours ahead of the rest. The vanguard reached the mountain pass first and surprised the Burgundian army.[249]

Charles quickly rallied his troops, ordered his artillery to fire at the enemy lines and then launched an attack.[247] Meanwhile, the Swiss had knelt down to pray, which the Burgundians may have mistaken for submission, motivating them more for the attack.[250] The initial charge, commanded by Louis de Châlon-Arlay [fr], Lord of Grandson, failed to penetrate the Swiss defensive line, with Louis himself killed in the process.[250] Charles then made a second attack. In order to lure the enemy further down the valley to give his artillery a better target, Charles soon retreated.[251]

However, the rest of his army mistook his tactical retreat for a complete withdrawal. Around this time, the rest of the Swiss army had reached the valley, announcing their arrival by bellowing their horns. The Burgundians panicked and abandoned their positions, ignoring Charles's pleas to stay in line.[252] The panicking army even forsook their camp at Grandson, leaving it open for the Swiss to capture.[247][253] The Battle of Grandson became a humiliating defeat for Charles the Bold, as his army's cowardice had caused him the loss of many valuable treasures and all of his artillery and supplies.[254] For two or three days after the battle, Charles refused any food or drinks. By 4 March, he began to reorganize his army in hopes of entering the battlefield two weeks later.[255]

Battle of Morat

[edit]
Charles the Bold and his men fleeting on horses
The flight of Charles the Bold after the Battle of Morat by Eugène Burnand, 1894, now in the Eugène Burnand Museum, Moudon

Charles retreated to Lausanne, where he reorganised his army. He demanded more artillery and men-at-arms from his lands; in Dijon, anything made of metals were melted to make canons; in occupied Lorraine, he confiscated all artillery.[256][f] He received funds from all his allies and men from Italy, Germany, England and Poland came to join his army.[257] At the end of May, he had amassed 20,000 men in Lausanne, outnumbering the local population.[258] He trained these men from 14 to 26 May while he himself grew sicker by day, resulting in stagnation among his troops. With the supply lines delayed, and the payment long overdue, Charles's army cut costs. Many horse archers went on foot instead. The army, though luxurious on display, was incoherent and destabilised.[259]

On 27 May, Charles and his army began their slow march towards the fortress of Morat. His main objective was the city of Bern, and to eliminate all supports to the city, he first needed to conquer Morat.[257] He arrived at Morat at 9 June and immediately began besieging the fortress. By 19 June, after several assaults on the fortress and with several of its walls destroyed, Morat sent a message to Bern, asking for help.[260] On 20 June, the Eidgenossen (oath companion[g]) arrived at Morat.[263] The forces were larger than the army at Grandson; the Swiss commanders estimated themselves to be 30,000 men, while recent historians believe it was 24,000.[264] Charles expected a decisive battle at the wake of 21 June but no attack came.[263] The Swiss instead attacked the following day on 22 June, a holy day attributed to the Ten thousand martyrs, catching the slumbering Burgundians unexpected.[265] Charles was too slow in organizing his troops for a counterattack; he himself tarried in putting up his armour, and before his men finished taking their positions, the Swiss army had already reached them.[266] The Burgundian army soon abandoned their posts and fled for their lives.[267]

The battle was a total victory for the Swiss and a mass slaughter of the fleeing Burgundian army. Many retreated into Lake Morat, and either drowned or died swimming in the process. Some climbed the walnut trees, and were shot dead by the arquebuses and hand cannons. The Swiss showed no mercy to men who surrendered. They killed knights, soldiers, and high officials alike.[268] Charles himself fled with his men and rode for days until he reached Gex, Ain.[269] The Milanese ambassador, Panigarola, reported that Charles laughed and made jokes after his defeat at Morat. He refused to believe he was defeated and continued to think God was on his side.[270]

Death

[edit]

Battle of Nancy

[edit]
Main article: Battle of Nancy
The naked corpse of Charles the Bold found after the Battle of Nancy
Charles's corpse found after the Battle of Nancy, Auguste Feyen-Perrin, 1865, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Nancy

While Charles may have wanted to continue the war against the Swiss, his plans changed drastically when Nancy was reconquered by René II on 6 October.[270] In need of money, Charles took a large loan from the Medici bank with which he assembled 10,000 hastily gathered men.[271] The rest of his army consisted of the Italian mercenaries under the command of the Count of Campobasso [fr]; the Burgundian garrison in Nancy, and 8,000 reinforcements from the Netherlands.[272] He arrived in Nancy at 11 October and by 22 October began bombarding the city walls. The siege continued throughout the harsh winter.[273] Charles was hoping that he could enter the city before any of Rene's allies came to relieve the siege.[274]

Meanwhile, René spent November and December negotiating with the Swiss to hire an army of mercenaries and with Louis XI to pay the Swiss. He was eventually successful with both and marched towards Nancy from Basel on 26 December with 9,000 Swiss mercenaries.[275] Between 31 December and 3 January 1477, the Count of Campobasso and his Italian mercenaries deserted the Burgundians.[276][277] They joined René and fought the Burgundians in the forthcoming battle.[277][h]

On 5 January, under heavy snow, René and his army marched towards the Burgundian position.[280] The snow obscured their movements, and they outflanked the Burgundian army by marching around towards the front of the Burgundians, where Charles had not placed pickets.[281] Around noon they attacked the Burgundians, whose artillery was too slow to engage with the quickly approaching army.[282] Charles tried to rally his men, but to no avail, for the Burgundians were already fleeing from the battlefield.[283] Meanwhile, the Alsatian and Swiss infantry encircled Charles and his horsemen. In the River Meurthe he fell from his horse, and was struck on his head with a halberd, which pierced his helmet and went into his skull.[283] Half of the Burgundian army died during the battle or while retreating.[283] Only those who escaped fifty kilometers to Metz survived.[282]

Burial

[edit]
Rene II standing before the body of Charles the Bold, who wears a golden crown
Duke René II of Lorraine holding the hands of the corpse of Charles the Bold, Chronique scandaleuse by Jean de Roye

The corpse of Charles the Bold was found three days after the battle, when it was found lying on the river, with half of his head frozen.[283] It took a group consisting of Charles's Roman valet, his Portuguese personal physician, his chaplain, Olivier de la Marche, and two of his bastard brothers to identify the corpse through a missing tooth, ingrown toenail, and long fingernails.[284] His body was moved to Nancy with full honours, where it was displayed for five days.[283] René buried him in the Saint-George collegiate church of Nancy.[285] In Artois, people refused to believe he was dead; they believed he had escaped to Germany to undergo seven years of penance, and would reappear again.[284]

Margaret of York, Charles's wife, requested the return of his body, but René refused.[285] Over 70 years after Charles's death, on 22 September 1550, Charles V exhumed the body and brought it to Luxembourg to strengthen his claim over Burgundy. Three years later, Charles's bones were again exhumed to their final resting place, the Church of Our Lady, Bruges, beside his daughter, Mary of Burgundy.[285] In 1559, Philip II ordered the construction of a monument over the tomb of Charles, which was completed in 1563.[285] Philip would hold masses for the repose of the soul of Charles and commemorated the date of his death, 5 January.[286]

Aftermath

[edit]
Main article: War of the Burgundian Succession

Louis XI learned of Charles's death even before it reached Burgundy; he took advantage of the lack of leadership to invade Burgundy through Picardy, Artois and Mâcon only three weeks after the Battle of Nancy.[287] Ghent rose in rebellion, executing two of Charles's closest collaborators, William Hugonet and Guy of Brimeu.[288] Charles's former conquests, Liége and Guelders, rapidly sought their independence, and in Luxembourg, a struggle broke out on whether to recognize Mary of Burgundy as Charles's successor.[287] Sigismund of Austria and the Swiss vied for Franche-Comté; Holland, Zeeland, Frisia and Hainault were claimed by the Count Palatine and the Duke of Bavaria.[289]

Mary, the sole child of Charles, and Margaret of York, his widow, confronted a crisis. To secure her legitimacy as ruler, Mary signed the Great Privilege on 11 February 1477 and restored powers to the States General in Flanders, Brabant, Hainaut, and Holland.[290] To secure an alliance with the Habsburgs, Mary married Maximilian, son of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III, in August 1477.[288] Maximilian used a combination of diplomacy and military strength to defend and regain territories from Louis XI, though France kept the geographic Duchy of Burgundy; he also quelled several internal revolts to preserve a great deal of the Burgundian State.[287] Mary died on 27 March 1482, and passed her lands and the title Duke of Burgundy to her son and heir, Philip.[291]

Historiography and legacy

[edit]

Charles the Bold's untimely death directly caused the sudden collapse of the Burgundian State.[292] He had no legitimate male heir to succeed him and he did not provide a capable husband for his daughter that he could train and prepare for succession.[292] He was obsessed over uniting the "lands over there" (Low Countries) and the "lands over here" (Burgundy proper) through Lorraine,[131] and sought to forge a national identity independent from that of the French.[293] He spent his short years as the Duke of Burgundy on securing a crown and forging a new kingdom to unite his subjects, and to raise his own glory.[106] However, his efforts inadvertently united his German enemies under the banner of a "German nation" opposing Charles, whom they called "The Grand Turk of the West".[294]

Charles's death marks a significant moment in the modern history of Lorraine;[295] in Nancy, the victory of René II is still remembered fondly.[296] The Swiss victory at Morat was a confirmation to their national identity, a sign of pride and a preservation of their independence. The Battle of Morat contributed to the decline of feudalism and heralded the end to the concept of chivalry.[297] German-language historiography treats him ambivalently; he is seen both as a tragic representation of the fall of the Middle Ages, and as an immoral and flawed prince. Until recently, Swiss literature generally presented Charles negatively.[298]

Charles' death and the crisis of 1477 was an inspiration to two authors, Olivier de La Marche and Anthonis de Roovere [nl], who wrote Le chevalier délibéré and Den droom van Rouere op die doot van hertoge Kaerle van Borgonnyen saleger gedachten[i] respectively about his death.[300] The hatred between Charles the Bold and Louis XI was an inspiration in the 17th-century French moralistic dialogues by authors such as François Fénelon who in his Dialogues of the dead, portrays Charles and Louis reconciling by drinking from the River Styx.[301]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ According to Bart van Loo, Charles's epithet, le Téméraire, was given to him by his contemporaries.[1] Richard Vaughan argues that the nickname is a 19th-century invention and a misnomer.[2] The English translation, Charles the Bold, suggests that he was named after the progenitor of his family, Philip the Bold. While Philip's epithet, le Hardi can be translated as "bold", Charles' epithet in French means "foolhardy" and "reckless".[1]
  2. ^ According to the German historian, Christian Kiening, the narrative of their love may be fictitious and created by the authors of the time.[30]
  3. ^ This encounter showcased the economical and cultural differences between Christendom's richer west and poorer east, with the Germans amazed by the wealth of the Burgundy and the Burgundians shocked by their poor equipment.[105]
  4. ^ Maximilian's eventual succession reinforced the continuity of the emperorship in the Hapsburg dynasty, which appealed to Frederick III's attachment to his house.[114]
  5. ^ Andreas inherited the claims to the Byzantine and Trebizond empires with the death of the main claimants from the empires' dynasties, Palaiologos and Komnenos respectively.[142]
  6. ^ Philippe de Commines, the Burgundian chronicler, reported that in his official decree to all of his realm, Charles ordered "Der Meyer zu Lockie an den Grafen zu Aarburg" (all the world to come to him with all (its) cannon and all (its) manpower).[256]
  7. ^ The word Eidgenossen is literary translated as 'oath companion', and was a synonym for Swiss, referring to the members of the Old Swiss Confederacy.[261] Until the Siege on Morat, most of the confederacy had not declared war on Burgundy, because Charles had yet to invade a territory officially part of one of its members. But during the siege, Charles attacked a bridge which was a part of Bernese territory, thus obligating the confederacy to join Bern in their campaign against Burgundy.[262]
  8. ^ It is not clear what was Campobasso's position during the battle. One Neapolitan account reports that Charles found himself engaged in a duel with Campobasso during the battle.[278] According to Angelo de Tummmulilis, Charles had Campobasso in his mercy but spared him and told him to flee.[279]
  9. ^ Translation: De Roovere's dream about the death of the late Charles of Burgundy.[299]

References

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Charles the Bold
Cadet branch of the House of Valois
Born: 10 November 1433 Died: 5 January 1477
Regnal titles
Preceded by Duke of Burgundy, Brabant,
Limburg, Lothier and Luxemburg;
Margrave of Namur;
Count of Artois, Flanders,
Hainaut, Holland and Zeeland;
Count Palatine of Burgundy
15 July 1467 – 5 January 1477 		Succeeded by
Count of Charolais
August 1433 – 5 January 1477
Preceded by Duke of Guelders
Count of Zutphen
23 February 1473 – 5 January 1477
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