Episode 71: The Boiling Point

From Le Crotoy on the Somme to Macon on the Saone, an Iron Curtain has descended across the Kingdom; a Cold War is being waged between King Charles VII of France and Duke Philip the Good of Burgundy. The Peace of Arras seems as fragile as is has ever been. Time Period Covered: 1459-1461Notable People: Philip the Good, Charles the Bold, Charles VII, Louis XI, Antoine Lord of Croy, Francesco Sforza, Prospero da Camogli, Edward IV of EnglandNotable Events/Developments: Dauphin Louis' money troubles, Rising conflict between Charles Count of Charolais and the Croy, Diplomatic Summit at Montbazon (1459), Diplomatic Summit at Dijon (1459), Edward IV declares himself King of England, Death of Charles VII

The arrival of Dauphin Louis at the Burgundian Court has only caused the already heightened tensions between France and Burgundy to heighten further. As Philip plays host to the King's son, his own is finding himself ever more alienated, meanwhile the King is preparing to strike a blow against the power of the French magnates.Time Period Covered:  1457-1458Notable People:  Philip the Good, Charles the Bold, Charles VII, Louis XI, Laudislaus the Posthumous, John II Duke of AlenconNotable Events/Developments:  Charles Count of Charolais in Holland, Dispute about the Somme Towns, French ambitions in Luxembourg, Charles VII's Anti-Burgundian Allies, Treason of the Duke of Alencon, Trial of the Duke of Alencon

The House of Croy had a dramatic rise over the course of the 15th Century. Beginning as Banneret Lords in Picardy, through their closeness with the Dukes of Burgundy, they gained immense riches, vast lands, and significant power. As Philip the Good aged, the Croy only grew more influential and more acquisitive, and the more they gained the more enemies they made.Time Period Covered: 1400-1457Notable People: Philip the Good, Jean I de Croy, Antoine de Croy, Jean II de Croy, Philippe de Croy Lord of Renty, Philippe de Croy Lord of Sempy, Louis of Luxembourg Count of Saint-Pol, Isabella of Portugal, Charles the Bold, Louis XINotable Events/Developments: Rise of the House of Croy, Excommunication of Jean II de Croy, Marriage of Jacqueline of Luxembourg and Philippe de Croy Lord of Renty, Fallout between Louis of Luxembourg and Philip the Good, Dispute over Charles the Bold's chamberlain, Philip the Good gets lost in the woods

In the 1440s, the Burgundian Court began to be rocked by a question: should Burgundy align itself with England or France?Time Period Covered: 1444-1454Notable People: Philip the Good, Isabella of Portugal, Charles the Bold, King Charles VII, Isabella of Bourbon Countess of Charolais, Charles I Duke of Bourbon, Richard Duke of York, Edmund Beaufort Duke of Somerset, Margaret of Anjou Queen of France, King Henry VINotable Events/Developments: Factions at the Burgundian Court, Changing Relations with France, Madness of Henry VI, Beginning of the Wars of the Roses, Relations between the Burgundians and the Yorkists, Charles the Bold's Childhood, Marriage of Charles the Bold and Isabella of Bourbon

Charles VII and his son Louis had a strained relationship to say the very least, and the Dauphin was eager to escape his father's court and head to Dauphine. Distance would not mend things between father and son, and before long, the Prince was fleeing to Burgundian territory, complicating the already complicated relationship between Philip the Good and Charles VII.Time Period Covered: 1445-1456Notable People: Philip the Good, Louis XI, Charles Duke of Orleans, Charles I Duke of Bourbon, Charles Count of Nevers, John of Nevers Count of Etampes, Louis of Luxembourg Count of Saint-Pol, Pierre de Breze, Agnes Sorel, Rene of Anjou, Charles of Anjou Count of Maine, Antoine de Chabannes Count of Dammartin, Francesco SforzaNotable Events/Developments: Turmoil at Charles VII's Court, The Provocations of the Paris Parlement, Louis of Luxembourg's Dual Loyalties, Dauphin Louis' Exile in Dauphine, Dauphin Louis arrives at the Burgundian Court

Throughout the reigns of all the Burgundian Dukes so far, they have been constantly trying to expand their influence over the Church in the Low Countries. In the mid-1450s, Philip the Good would take that project as far as it had ever gone by placing Burgundians on the Episcopal thrones of Utrecht and Liege.Time Period Covered: 1455-1460Notable People: Philip the Good, David of Burgundy Bishop of Utrecht, Louis of Bourbon Bishop of Liege, Gijsbrecht van Brederode, Reinoud van Brederode, Duke Arnold of Guelders, Catherine of Cleves Duchess of Guelders, Jean de Lannoy Stadtholder of Holland, Rudolph von Diepholz Bishop of Utrecht, John of Heinsberg Bishop of LiegeNotable Events/Developments: Death of Rudolph von Diepholz, Election of Gijsbrecht van Brederode, Siege of Deventer (1456), David of Burgundy becomes Bishop of Utrecht, Louis of Bourbon becomes Bishop of Liege

All his life, Philip the Good dreamed of going on Crusade, and all his life other things kept getting in the way. But even though the Duke of Burgundy never made it on Crusade, the Crusading Ideal still played a large part in the Duke's reign, image, and stature as a Prince.Time Period Covered: 1421-1456Notable People: Philip the Good, Gilbert de Lannoy, Bertrandon de la Broquiere, Geoffroy de Thoisy, Waleran de Wavrin, Olivier de la Marche, Pope Pius II, Alphonso V of Aragon and Naples, Louis the Rich Duke of BavariaNotable Events/Developments: Travels of Gilbert de Lannoy, Travels of Bertrandon de la Broquiere, Crusade of Varna, Fall of Constantinople, The Feast of the Pheasant, The Diet of Regensburg (1454)

The Dukes of Burgundy presided over one of the great flowerings of Art and Culture in the Later Middle Ages. While the Northern Renaissance was not a purely Burgundian phenomenon, the Burgundian Court and the Cities of the Burgundian Low Countries were at the Center of advances in Painting, Music, Building and more.The Duke of Burgundy, the Burgundian Nobility, and the rising Bourgeoisie, all commissioned art at a greater scale than ever before and they cultivated some of the best artists of the age in the process.Time Period Covered: 1400sPainters: Jan van Eyck, Rogier van Der Weyden, Robert CampinComposers: Guillaume Dufay, Gilles Binchois, Antoine BusnoisWriters: Georges Chastellain, Michaut Taillevent, Jean Molinet, Antoine de la Salle, Olivier de la Marche, Philippe de CommynesArtistic Movements: Early Netherlandish Painting, Brabantine Gothic Architecture, Burgundian/Franco-Flemish School of Music, Grands Rhetoriquers

Tournaments were more than an excuse for knights to whack each other with sticks, they were elaborate court events filled with splendor, ritual, and the careful exercise of violence. Perhaps nobody in Burgundy exemplified the Tournament as much as Jacques de Lalaing; through his skill in the lists, Jacques won fame on par with modern star athletes.Time Period Covered: 1430-1453Notable People: Jacques de Lalaing, Philip the Good, Rene of Anjou, Pierre de Bauffremont Count of Charny, Philippe de Ternant, Jean de Boniface, Juan de Merlo, Galeotto BalthazarNotable Events/Developments: Rise of Pas d'Armes, Pas of Charlemagne's Tree (1443), Tournament of Nancy (1444), Pas of the Fountain of Tears (1449-1450)

Susan Abernethy, who you might also know as the Freelance History Writer, has recently put out her second book, The Formidable Women Who Shaped Medieval Europe, which dives into the biographies of over 40 women whose lives intersected with Burgundy in some way or another and adds rich context to the Burgundian Story.The Formidable Women Who Shaped Medieval Europe is out now, and I highly recommend checking it out. It is available through the publisher, Pen and Sword, and is also on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Blackwell's and more.