23 chapters
9 hour read
Selected Chapters
23 chapters
LAST DUKE OF BURGUNDY
LAST DUKE OF BURGUNDY
[plate 1] CHARLES THE BOLD, DUKE OF BURGUNDY The admission of Charles, Duke of Burgundy into the series of Heroes of the Nations, is justified by his relation to events rather than by his national or his heroic qualities. "Il n'avait pas assez de sens ni de malice pour conduire ses entreprises," is one phrase of Philip de Commines in regard to the master he had once served. Render sens by genius and malice by diplomacy and the words are not far wrong. Yet in spite of the failure to obtain either
3 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER I
CHAPTER I
On St. Andrew's Eve, in the year 1433, the good people of Dijon were abroad, eager to catch what glimpses they might of certain stately functions to be formally celebrated by the Duke of Burgundy. The mere presence of the sovereign in the capital of his duchy was in itself a gala event from its rarity. Various cities of the dominions agglomerated under his sway claimed his attentions successively. His residence was now here and now there, without long tarrying anywhere. His coming was usually ve
25 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER II
CHAPTER II
The heir of Burgundy was still in very tender years when he began to take official part in public affairs, sometimes associated with one parent, sometimes with the other. There was a practical advantage in bringing the boy to the fore by which the duke was glad to profit. With his own manifold interests, it was impossible for him to be present in his various capitals as often as was demanded by the usage of the diverse individual seigniories. It was politic, therefore, to magnify the representat
24 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER III
CHAPTER III
After the fatigues of this contest with Ghent, followed a period of relaxation for the Burgundian nobles at Lille, where a notable round of gay festivities was enjoyed by the court. Adolph of Cleves inaugurated the series with an entertainment where, among other things, he delighted his friends by a representation of the tale of the miraculous swan, 1 famous in the annals of his house for bringing the opportune knight down the Rhine to wed the forlorn heiress. When his satisfied guests took thei
25 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER IV
CHAPTER IV
The duke's journey failed in accomplishing its object, but it proved an important factor in the development of the character of Charles of Burgundy. The opportunity to administer the government in his father's absence changed him from a youth to a man, and the manner of man he was, was plain to see. His character was built on singularly simple lines. Vigorous of body, intense of purpose, inclined to melancholy, he was profoundly convinced of his own importance as heir to the greatest duke in Chr
21 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER V
CHAPTER V
The picture of the Burgundian court rejoicing in happy unison over the advent of an heiress to carry on the Burgundian traditions, with the dauphin participating in the family joy, shows the tranquil side of the first months of the long visit. Before Mary's birth, however, an incident had occurred, betraying the fact that the dauphin and Charles VII. were not the only father and son between whom relations were strained, and that a moment had arrived when the attitude of the Count of Charolais to
26 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER VI
CHAPTER VI
The era of good feeling between Louis XI. and his Burgundian kinsmen was of short duration, and no wonder. The rich rewards confidently expected as fitting recompense for five years' kindness more than cousinly, towards a penniless refugee were not forthcoming. The king was lavish in fine words, and not chary in certain ostentatious recognition towards his late host, but the fairly munificent pension, together with the charge of Normandy settled upon the Count of Charolais, proved only a periodi
23 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER VII
CHAPTER VII
"When we have finished here we shall make a fine beginning against those villains the Liegeois." Thus wrote the count's secretary on October 18th. 1 Charles had no desire to rest on the laurels won before Paris. To another city he now turned his attention, to Liege which owed nothing whatsoever to Burgundy. Before the days when the buried treasures of the soil filled the air with smoke, the valley where Liege lies was a lovely spot. 2 Tradition tells how, in the sixth century, Monulphe, Bishop o
27 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER VIII
CHAPTER VIII
The Good Duke's journey to Bouvignes where he witnessed the manner in which his authority was vindicated was his last effort. In the early summer following, on Friday, June 10th, Philip, then at Bruges, was taken ill and died on the following Monday, June 13th, between nine and ten in the evening. 1 Charles was summoned on the Sunday, and it seemed as though his horse's hoofs hardly struck the pavement as he rode, so swift was his course on the way to Bruges. When he reached the house where his
17 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER IX
CHAPTER IX
After the dauphin was crowned at Rheims, he was monarch over all his domains. Charles of Burgundy, on the other hand, had a series of ceremonies to perform before he was properly invested with the various titles worn by his father. Each duchy, countship, seigniory had to be taken in turn. Ghent was the first capital visited. Then he had to exchange pledges of fidelity with his Flemish subjects before receiving recognition as Count of Flanders. According to the custom of his predecessors, Charles
14 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER X
CHAPTER X
For many months before Philip's death there had been negotiations concerning Charles's marriage with Margaret of York. Always feeling a closer bond with his mother than with his father, Charles's sympathy had ever been towards the Lancastrian party in England, the family to whom Isabella of Portugal was closely related. Only the necessity for making a strong alliance against Louis XI. turned him to seek a bride from the House of York. It was on this business that La Marche and the great Bastard
16 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XI
CHAPTER XI
"My brother, I beseech you in the name of our affection and of our alliance, come to my aid, come as speedily as you can, come without delay. Written by the own hand of your brother. "FRANCIS." Such were the concluding sentences of a fervent appeal from the Duke of Brittany that followed Charles into Holland, whither he had hastened after the completion of the nuptial festivities. The titular Duke of Normandy found that his royal brother was in no wise inclined to fulfil the solemn pledges made
34 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XII
CHAPTER XII
It was in the midst of heavy rains that the journey was made to Namur and then on to the environs of Liege. Grim was the weather, befitting, in all probability, Charles's own mood. The king's escort was confined to very few besides the Scottish guard, but a body of three hundred troopers was permitted to follow him at a distance, while the faithful Dammartin across the border kept himself closely informed of every incident connected with the march that his scouts could gather, and in readiness t
19 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XIII
CHAPTER XIII
This successful expedition against Liege carried Charles of Burgundy to the very crest of his prosperity. His self-esteem was moreover gratified by the regard shown to him at home and abroad. A man who could force a royal neighbour into playing the pitiful rôle enacted by Louis XI. at Peronne was assuredly a man to be respected if not loved. And messages of admiration and respect couched in various terms were despatched from many quarters to the duke as soon as he was at Brussels to receive them
18 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XIV
CHAPTER XIV
In order to follow out the extension of Burgundian jurisdiction in one direction, the course of events in the duke's life has been anticipated a little. The thread of the story now returns to 1469, when Charles and Sigismund separated at St. Omer both well pleased with their bargain. Charles tarried for a time at Ghent and Bruges and then proceeded to Zealand and Holland, where his sojourn had been interrupted in 1468 by his alarm about French duplicity. In the glow caused by his past achievemen
36 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XV
CHAPTER XV
All work had ceased at Paris for three days by the king's command, while praise was chanted to God, to the Virgin, and to all saints male and female, for the victory won by Henry of Lancaster, in 1470, over the base usurper Edward de la Marche. From Amboise, Louis made a special pilgrimage to Notre Dame de Celles at Poitiers to breathe in pious solitude his own prayers of thanksgiving for the happy event. The battle of Tewkesbury stemmed the course of this abundant stream of gratitude, and there
34 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XVI
CHAPTER XVI
The affairs of the little duchy of Guelders were among the matters urgently demanding the attention of the Duke of Burgundy at the close of his campaign in France. The circumstances of the long-standing quarrel between Duke Arnold and his unscrupulous son Adolf were a scandal throughout Europe. In 1463, a seeming reconciliation of the parties had not only been effected but celebrated in the town of Grave by a pleasant family festival, from whose gaieties the elder duke, fatigued, retired at an e
20 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XVII
CHAPTER XVII
On Wednesday, September 28th, Emperor Frederic made his entry into the old Roman city on the dancing Moselle. Two days later, the Duke of Burgundy arrived and was welcomed most pompously outside of Trèves, by his suzerain. After the first greetings, ensued an argument about the etiquette proper for the occasion, an argument similar to those which had absorbed the punctilious in the Burgundian court, when the dauphin made his famous visit to Duke Philip. For thirty minutes, the emperor argued wit
24 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XVIII
CHAPTER XVIII
Late as it was in November, the weather was still very mild, and as the emperor and duke travelled in opposite directions, neither the former as he went down to Cologne, nor the latter as he passed up the valley of the Moselle to that of the Ell, was hindered by autumn storms. The summer of 1473 had been marked by unprecedented heat and a prolonged drouth. 1 Forest fires raged unchecked on account of the dearth of water and, for the same reason, the mills stood still. The grape crops, indeed, we
19 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XIX
CHAPTER XIX
"Who is this that cometh, this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength?" These words in Latin, on scrolls fluttering from the hands of living angels, met the eyes of Charles of Burgundy at his retarded arrival in Dijon. And the confident duke had no wish to disclaim the subtle flattery of the implied comparison between him and the subject of the words of the prophet. 1 The traveller had slept at Périgny, about a league from the capital of Burgundy, so as to m
21 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XX
CHAPTER XX
"Monseigneur the chancellor, I do not know what to write to you of the English, for thus far they have done nothing but dance at St. Omer and we are not sure whether the King of England has landed. If he has, it must be with so small a force that it makes no noise, nor do the prisoners captured at Abbeville know anything, nor do they believe that there will be any English here in XL days. Tell the news to Monsg. de Comminge, and recommend my interests to him as I have confidence in him, and in M
29 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXI
CHAPTER XXI
It was manifestly impossible for Charles to attempt to retrieve his fortunes without having large sums of ready money at his command. He therefore proceeded to appeal to the guardians of each and every treasury in his various states. Flanders and Burgundy were, however, the only quarters whence succour was in the least probable. The Estates of the latter duchy met, deliberated, and resolved to make no pretence nor to "yield anything contrary to the duty which every one owes to his country." 1 A
39 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
BIBLIOGRAPHY
BIBLIOGRAPHY
There is an enormous mass of literature bearing upon the later years of Philip of Burgundy and the brief career of Charles the Bold. Fairly adequate bibliographies can be found in Pirenne and Molinier (see list). The following list contains the full titles of the chief works to which direct reference is made in the text but falls far short of a complete description of the matter, contemporaneous or critical, which has coloured the treatment of the subject. When extracts have been taken from matt
9 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter