Chapter 29 - The Duchy of Burgundy from 1507 to 1510
Chapter 29 - The Duchy of Burgundy from 1507 to 1510
If there was one thing that the past year had showed Grand Duke Philip, it was that his half-nephew Charles had proven to be the most steadfast of allies and a key part in the defence against France. Since taking back Burgundy would require the continuation of the alliance between the Low Countries and Lorraine, he decided to renewed it in 1507. John of Lorraine, heir to Charles had been betrothed to Cecily of England since 1500. Philip’s youngest daughter Cecilia of Brabant had instead been considered for the heir to Savoy rather than Lorraine, but the invasion from France had shifted priorities. Thus, he tasked his son, Jean with the mission of binding Lorraine to the cause of Brabant. The next duchess would be his sister, Cecilia instead. A letter was sent to his half-sister, the dowager duchess Mary, for her to speak in Cecilia’s favour. While the age difference between John and Cecilia was bigger then Cecily, the alliance with Brabant had a much stronger value for Lorraine and Charles himself then England. The negotiations between Philip and Charles took place during the spring and summer of 1507 while armies were mustered and sneaky ducal envoys scurried from Burgundy to Nancy, to Nevers and Malines.
The marriage between Marguerite of Saint-Pol and Thomas of York took place in Amiens Cathedral in Picardy in a splendid June day. The young countess of Boulogne was present at the celebration, to show off the next Princess of Wales for the English nobles. Grand Duke Philip had placed young Anne in the care of the dowager duchess Marie of Luxembourg as the County of Saint Pol were just next to Boulogne. Bedford would serve as regent for Anne in the county until Prince Richard came of age and married her. The marriage to Marguerite would serve as another link in the chain that made up the alliance between the Low Countries and England. The bride and groom would prove to be a tumultuous match as Thomas was a severe and practical duke, while Marguerite had a proud bearing and seemed to prefer her urban and cultured Flemish-French world to all things english, whom she viewed as provincial. The eldest daughter of the late Count of Saint-Pol also resented being married to a third son of an english king, as she wished for a higher match as the niece of Grand Duke Philip. The duchess of Bedford would become disliked in the Yorkist court and she only visited the kingdom a few times in her life. In spite of that, she maintained strong links with the local nobilities in Boulogne and Brabant to ensure its good will until the inevitable would happen. Her proud personality would clash with Thomas, who resented his dependence on his wife’s natal connections to hold Boulogne. Marguerite favoured her own family to the english and she was widely believed to have encouraged Anne of Boulogne to make the decision she would do in 1514 that would cause a scandal in England.
Marguerite of Saint-Pol, Duchess of Bedford
In late July the betrothal between Cecilia of Brabant and John of Lorraine became agreed upon. And after that, the armies of both duchies started marching towards Burgundy and Nevers. Philippa of Guelders had been left as regent in the Low Countries, while Elizabeth of Austria managed Lorraine in her spouse’s absence. Philippe, Count of Namur had left his wife Beatrijs in Flanders along with their two daughters. Jean of Brabant remained in the Palatinate of Burgundy to hold their rear and to manage reinforcement. His wife, Marie d’Albret had not been happy with Charles claiming Nevers, as she herself had a stronger claim to the County as her grandfather had been John II of Nevers. However, they could not risk a conflict with Charles right now, as they needed him to take Burgundy back. Thus, Marie held her tongue.
The fighting began on the first days in August between the ducal forces and the French loyalists in Chatillon, Dijon and Chalon. Charles of Lorraine fought his way to Autun, crushing a minor army on the 23rd. His army broke into Nevers over a week later, setting the stage for his conquest of the county. Over two months later Charles entered the capital city of Nevers as a victorious conqueror at the head of a glittering army and was granted the keys to the city itself by the estates.
By the same time, Philip had made his own entourage into Dijon, where he was greeted by the open gates of the Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy and the attending citizens who had put on their finery in order to welcome their liege back home once more. A call had gone out to the Estates of Burgundy to assemble in the palace to settle all disputes and to make sure Philip would achieve a firm grasp on his now reconquered duchy. The Count of Namur would be attending as his father’s right hand and heir and be sworn in as ducal heir. Shortly after, Philippe left to Chatillon where a growing rebellion had emerged. Philip remained in Dijon, where disputes between him and the estates emerged daily.
The fighting died down in the middle of October, as the harvests and the winter season took priority. Philip improved his standing even more with his critics by made frequent visits to poor areas, ensured frequent shipments of grains and other foodstuffs, and cracked down on corrupt French officials in the duchy.
Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy
By December, an armistice seemed to have emerged in the majority of Burgundy. Smaller rebellions would erupt from time to time and Chatillon would remain a rebellious focal point for decades, but on the whole, Burgundy seemed to have taken their duke back with mostly open arms. Philip would remain in the duchy until late summer of 1508, when he returned to the Low Countries. Philippe would remain in Burgundy as governor and heir to the duchy. Beatrijs joined her husband in July, leaving her two daughters in their grandmother’s care. It had been almost one and a half year since Philippa of Brabant’s birth and it was high time for them to try for a son. Plus, the symbolism of an heir being born in the newly reclaimed Burgundy would be of crucial importance to reunite the duchy with the rest of the holdings.
For Beatrijs leaving the Low Countries was somewhat bittersweet. On one hand she had to leave her daughters behind, especially Pippa, who had started to toddle around in the nursery. On the other, she had a chance to step out of her mother-in law’s shadow and to establish herself as the first lady of Burgundy with a bigger household and court then in Brabant. Beatrijs had also been granted the dowry towns of Beaune and Chalon-sur-Saône by Philip. The increased income delighted her, as she could enlarge her patronage and personal wealth in Burgundy. While Beatrijs were not an irresponsible spendthrift, she knew the value of appearances and delighted in the new clothes and jewellery available. Burgundy also provided distance from her sister-in law. The countess of Namur and the duchess of Bedford did not get well along as Marguerite considered her too english and Beatrijs viewed the other lady as too haughty.
Beatrijs gave birth to her third child in late May of 1509 in Dijon. Three days afterwards, little Jean of Burgundy would be christened in great splendour at the Cathedral of Saint Benignus of Dijon with the attendance of the greatest lords and ladies in the duchy.
Two months afterwards, she would receive the nine-year-old Cecilia of Brabant at the palace. The future duchess of Lorraine would be continuing her education in Burgundy as it was nearer to her future husband’s duchy. Beatrijs would thus be responsible for the rest of her upbringing until she turned fifteen.
Beatrijs of England, Countess of Namur
One month afterwards she also saw her younger sister again. Cecily of England had been engaged to Charles of Lorraine’s son until 1507 when she had been jilted in favour of Cecilia and had thus been in need of a new groom. Beatrijs had worked in unison with Queen Catherine of England and Juana of Castile, Duchess of Savoy in order to soothe the english indignation and to make Cecily the new Princess of Piedmont. Philibert had elevated his son to the title in order to give the heir of Savoy a title more in line with the heirs of England, Castile and Aragon. Since Philippe Adriano was two years away from marrying age, it had been determined that Cecily should spend them in her sister’s court to finish her education. When Beatrijs had left England in 1503 Cecily had been a cheerful seven-year-old who enjoyed nothing more than laughter and playing music. To her shock, the fourteen-year-old entering the great hall of the palace was not the same sister she had last seen. Unlike the practical and bright Cecilia, Cecily had become a sullen and melancholic young woman. The sudden jilting from Lorraine seemed to have affected her greatly and she was not happy with her Savoy match, as it did not compare to the matches of her sisters, who had married into Scotland, Brittany and Brabant. Anne of York, the youngest of the sisters did not yet have a match, but it was believed that she would marry a duke as well as her sisters had.
Cecilia greeted her sister-in law warmly, likely hoping to make a friend, but Cecily rejected her friendship constantly. Most likely she saw Cecilia as the interloper who had stolen her Lorraine match and began to find fault with everything the younger girl did. The subtle bullying confused Cecilia who tried even harder to be accommodating to the elder girl. It got so bad Beatrijs had to intervene and give her sister a telling off. Cecily got a new governess in order to straighten her harsh edges out before she left for Savoy, a nun from the nearby Chartreuse de la Sainte-Trinité de Champmol named Jeanne. The experienced and educated nun had a motherly air to her and it was perhaps not difficult to understand why the sullen Cecily seemed to become attuned to her shortly after. Either way, the bullying soon stopped and while Cecily did not become a more cheerful person, her harsh moods were pacified by Jeanne’s tutelage. The nun would leave for Savoy along with Cecily in 1512 when Philippe Adriano turned fifteen years old. Jeanne would be one of Cecily’s main attendants until her death in 1522 and one of the few people she would trust completely in the world.
Cecily of England, Princess of Piedmont
For the rest of the Grand Duchy of Brabant and Burgundy, the years from 1508 to 1510 would pass in relative peace, as the rebuilding from the French invasion in 1507 were in full swing.
To France however, these years would not be marked by either peace or prosperity.
Author's Note: I didn't want to wait until the seventh with this update. I'll be away for the day and it has been a week since the last update. It has been a long time since we were back in Burgundy and now its back in its rightful hands! I hope you like the Duchess of Bedford, the english sure as hell don't! The next two chapters will be in France where everything will be sunshine and roses.Just kidding, it will be hell on earth. Poor Toulouse.
If there was one thing that the past year had showed Grand Duke Philip, it was that his half-nephew Charles had proven to be the most steadfast of allies and a key part in the defence against France. Since taking back Burgundy would require the continuation of the alliance between the Low Countries and Lorraine, he decided to renewed it in 1507. John of Lorraine, heir to Charles had been betrothed to Cecily of England since 1500. Philip’s youngest daughter Cecilia of Brabant had instead been considered for the heir to Savoy rather than Lorraine, but the invasion from France had shifted priorities. Thus, he tasked his son, Jean with the mission of binding Lorraine to the cause of Brabant. The next duchess would be his sister, Cecilia instead. A letter was sent to his half-sister, the dowager duchess Mary, for her to speak in Cecilia’s favour. While the age difference between John and Cecilia was bigger then Cecily, the alliance with Brabant had a much stronger value for Lorraine and Charles himself then England. The negotiations between Philip and Charles took place during the spring and summer of 1507 while armies were mustered and sneaky ducal envoys scurried from Burgundy to Nancy, to Nevers and Malines.
The marriage between Marguerite of Saint-Pol and Thomas of York took place in Amiens Cathedral in Picardy in a splendid June day. The young countess of Boulogne was present at the celebration, to show off the next Princess of Wales for the English nobles. Grand Duke Philip had placed young Anne in the care of the dowager duchess Marie of Luxembourg as the County of Saint Pol were just next to Boulogne. Bedford would serve as regent for Anne in the county until Prince Richard came of age and married her. The marriage to Marguerite would serve as another link in the chain that made up the alliance between the Low Countries and England. The bride and groom would prove to be a tumultuous match as Thomas was a severe and practical duke, while Marguerite had a proud bearing and seemed to prefer her urban and cultured Flemish-French world to all things english, whom she viewed as provincial. The eldest daughter of the late Count of Saint-Pol also resented being married to a third son of an english king, as she wished for a higher match as the niece of Grand Duke Philip. The duchess of Bedford would become disliked in the Yorkist court and she only visited the kingdom a few times in her life. In spite of that, she maintained strong links with the local nobilities in Boulogne and Brabant to ensure its good will until the inevitable would happen. Her proud personality would clash with Thomas, who resented his dependence on his wife’s natal connections to hold Boulogne. Marguerite favoured her own family to the english and she was widely believed to have encouraged Anne of Boulogne to make the decision she would do in 1514 that would cause a scandal in England.
Marguerite of Saint-Pol, Duchess of Bedford
In late July the betrothal between Cecilia of Brabant and John of Lorraine became agreed upon. And after that, the armies of both duchies started marching towards Burgundy and Nevers. Philippa of Guelders had been left as regent in the Low Countries, while Elizabeth of Austria managed Lorraine in her spouse’s absence. Philippe, Count of Namur had left his wife Beatrijs in Flanders along with their two daughters. Jean of Brabant remained in the Palatinate of Burgundy to hold their rear and to manage reinforcement. His wife, Marie d’Albret had not been happy with Charles claiming Nevers, as she herself had a stronger claim to the County as her grandfather had been John II of Nevers. However, they could not risk a conflict with Charles right now, as they needed him to take Burgundy back. Thus, Marie held her tongue.
The fighting began on the first days in August between the ducal forces and the French loyalists in Chatillon, Dijon and Chalon. Charles of Lorraine fought his way to Autun, crushing a minor army on the 23rd. His army broke into Nevers over a week later, setting the stage for his conquest of the county. Over two months later Charles entered the capital city of Nevers as a victorious conqueror at the head of a glittering army and was granted the keys to the city itself by the estates.
By the same time, Philip had made his own entourage into Dijon, where he was greeted by the open gates of the Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy and the attending citizens who had put on their finery in order to welcome their liege back home once more. A call had gone out to the Estates of Burgundy to assemble in the palace to settle all disputes and to make sure Philip would achieve a firm grasp on his now reconquered duchy. The Count of Namur would be attending as his father’s right hand and heir and be sworn in as ducal heir. Shortly after, Philippe left to Chatillon where a growing rebellion had emerged. Philip remained in Dijon, where disputes between him and the estates emerged daily.
The fighting died down in the middle of October, as the harvests and the winter season took priority. Philip improved his standing even more with his critics by made frequent visits to poor areas, ensured frequent shipments of grains and other foodstuffs, and cracked down on corrupt French officials in the duchy.
Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy
By December, an armistice seemed to have emerged in the majority of Burgundy. Smaller rebellions would erupt from time to time and Chatillon would remain a rebellious focal point for decades, but on the whole, Burgundy seemed to have taken their duke back with mostly open arms. Philip would remain in the duchy until late summer of 1508, when he returned to the Low Countries. Philippe would remain in Burgundy as governor and heir to the duchy. Beatrijs joined her husband in July, leaving her two daughters in their grandmother’s care. It had been almost one and a half year since Philippa of Brabant’s birth and it was high time for them to try for a son. Plus, the symbolism of an heir being born in the newly reclaimed Burgundy would be of crucial importance to reunite the duchy with the rest of the holdings.
For Beatrijs leaving the Low Countries was somewhat bittersweet. On one hand she had to leave her daughters behind, especially Pippa, who had started to toddle around in the nursery. On the other, she had a chance to step out of her mother-in law’s shadow and to establish herself as the first lady of Burgundy with a bigger household and court then in Brabant. Beatrijs had also been granted the dowry towns of Beaune and Chalon-sur-Saône by Philip. The increased income delighted her, as she could enlarge her patronage and personal wealth in Burgundy. While Beatrijs were not an irresponsible spendthrift, she knew the value of appearances and delighted in the new clothes and jewellery available. Burgundy also provided distance from her sister-in law. The countess of Namur and the duchess of Bedford did not get well along as Marguerite considered her too english and Beatrijs viewed the other lady as too haughty.
Beatrijs gave birth to her third child in late May of 1509 in Dijon. Three days afterwards, little Jean of Burgundy would be christened in great splendour at the Cathedral of Saint Benignus of Dijon with the attendance of the greatest lords and ladies in the duchy.
Two months afterwards, she would receive the nine-year-old Cecilia of Brabant at the palace. The future duchess of Lorraine would be continuing her education in Burgundy as it was nearer to her future husband’s duchy. Beatrijs would thus be responsible for the rest of her upbringing until she turned fifteen.
Beatrijs of England, Countess of Namur
One month afterwards she also saw her younger sister again. Cecily of England had been engaged to Charles of Lorraine’s son until 1507 when she had been jilted in favour of Cecilia and had thus been in need of a new groom. Beatrijs had worked in unison with Queen Catherine of England and Juana of Castile, Duchess of Savoy in order to soothe the english indignation and to make Cecily the new Princess of Piedmont. Philibert had elevated his son to the title in order to give the heir of Savoy a title more in line with the heirs of England, Castile and Aragon. Since Philippe Adriano was two years away from marrying age, it had been determined that Cecily should spend them in her sister’s court to finish her education. When Beatrijs had left England in 1503 Cecily had been a cheerful seven-year-old who enjoyed nothing more than laughter and playing music. To her shock, the fourteen-year-old entering the great hall of the palace was not the same sister she had last seen. Unlike the practical and bright Cecilia, Cecily had become a sullen and melancholic young woman. The sudden jilting from Lorraine seemed to have affected her greatly and she was not happy with her Savoy match, as it did not compare to the matches of her sisters, who had married into Scotland, Brittany and Brabant. Anne of York, the youngest of the sisters did not yet have a match, but it was believed that she would marry a duke as well as her sisters had.
Cecilia greeted her sister-in law warmly, likely hoping to make a friend, but Cecily rejected her friendship constantly. Most likely she saw Cecilia as the interloper who had stolen her Lorraine match and began to find fault with everything the younger girl did. The subtle bullying confused Cecilia who tried even harder to be accommodating to the elder girl. It got so bad Beatrijs had to intervene and give her sister a telling off. Cecily got a new governess in order to straighten her harsh edges out before she left for Savoy, a nun from the nearby Chartreuse de la Sainte-Trinité de Champmol named Jeanne. The experienced and educated nun had a motherly air to her and it was perhaps not difficult to understand why the sullen Cecily seemed to become attuned to her shortly after. Either way, the bullying soon stopped and while Cecily did not become a more cheerful person, her harsh moods were pacified by Jeanne’s tutelage. The nun would leave for Savoy along with Cecily in 1512 when Philippe Adriano turned fifteen years old. Jeanne would be one of Cecily’s main attendants until her death in 1522 and one of the few people she would trust completely in the world.
Cecily of England, Princess of Piedmont
For the rest of the Grand Duchy of Brabant and Burgundy, the years from 1508 to 1510 would pass in relative peace, as the rebuilding from the French invasion in 1507 were in full swing.
To France however, these years would not be marked by either peace or prosperity.
Author's Note: I didn't want to wait until the seventh with this update. I'll be away for the day and it has been a week since the last update. It has been a long time since we were back in Burgundy and now its back in its rightful hands! I hope you like the Duchess of Bedford, the english sure as hell don't! The next two chapters will be in France where everything will be sunshine and roses.
Last edited:
