The great thing is that there are more marriage partners for everybody, rather then the hapsburgs being absolutly everywhere.
The Grand Duchy of the West - A Valois-Burgundian TL
- Thread starter BlueFlowwer
- Start date
Lmao, yes. But I make my little plots and plans to give fresh blood into some royal houses anyway.
When I post a new chapter after like five-six weeks of absence and gets 16 likes I know you guys are the real ones.
Chapter 34 – Brabant from 1510 to 1514
Chapter 34 - Brabant from 1510 to 1514
It was difficult to comprehend the sheer damage that the Orléans feud had caused France in just three years’ time. A bloodbath in the south, the Anjou-Breton invasion in Alencon and Perche, the death of Charles, Duke of Angouleme and the capture of the new duke, François. Charles of Alencon had lost an eye and sustained permanent damage to his lower belly and groin as result of his fight with Infante Ferdinand the elder. The Albrets had been declared enemies of France and the whole of the kingdom loathed them with a raging fury. Toulouse had been savaged and burned, a episode that would later be know to history as The rape of Toulouse. Jean d'Armagnac, Duke of Nemours had been killed in combat by Gaston of Foix. His brother, Louis d'Armagnac had been taken prisoner by Nicholas, Duke of Anjou while defending his brother’s realms. Louis of Orléans was disgraced completely in the eyes of many, his sole salvation being his valiant defence of Dunois and Vendóme.
The Duchy of Burgundy had returned to Grand Duke Philip. The County of Nevers had been lost to Charles of Lorraine, the Scourge of France. To add further insult to injury, the english had taken the opportunity to seize three of the ports of Normandy. Dieppe, Cherbourg and Caen had all been taken by force. The english had captured many of the ships in the ports and after looting the mercantile goods, taking them back to England. Nearly a quarter of France’s navy had been lost to these raids and many shipyards had been burned to prevent quick rebuilding. Merchants had been abducted as well, and would be freed whenever a ransom had been paid.
Pierre Terrail, the Marshal of France had been defeated in combat and taken prisoner. Miraculously he had survived in spite of heavy injuries and Ferdinand the elder ordered his own physicians to tend to him after being taken off the battlefield. Once Pierre had been strong enough to be moved, he had been transported to Castile, first to Burgos and then to Segovia, where he was comfortable incarcerated in the Alcazar of the city.
This was the France Charles IX returned to in early February of 1510.
One of the first victims of his rage would be his very own mother, Isabelle of Burgundy, who had been very relived to have her only son back from her brother’s captivity. The joy of seeing Charles again soon turned to immense shock as his treatment of her were akin to a enemy. Charles soon deprived his mother of her ladies, and refused to have her presence at court. Her jewels were confiscated, and letters opened and read by the king’s ministers, who’s pretext was to ensure that the queen dowager did not attempt to communicate with her brother or any other Brabantian official. Months after his return, Charles exiled his mother from the royal court, and ordered her household to be moved to Hotel Saint Pol in Paris. Originally built by Charles V of France, the building had become old and fallen into ruin when Isabelle arrived there. Her household had been very reduced and the king’s wrath had left her with only a few allies, but a couple of bishops supported her with money in order to sustain her with somewhat of a royal standing. Isabelle’s situation continued until 1515, where she made the dramatic choice to flee from France and return to her homeland in the low countries. She remained in the ducal court until her brother’s death two years later, whereupon she was granted the ownership of her mother’s palace in Malines. Her flight from France shocked the whole kingdom, but many people felt like her son had treated her with horrible contempt and her actions would be viewed by many as sympathetic.
To king Charles, one stroke of fortune had prevailed. Alain of Albret had been captured in December and brought to Blois. In March the trial of Albret began, where charges against him were stacked on top of each other’s. Treason, conspiracy, enabling the destruction of crown lands and many others was laid at his feet and the king fiercely wanted him dead, preferable hanged, drawn and quartered in the public. Alain stood in his own defence at the trial and argued that he had only sought to protect his rights as a nobleman and that Orléans and Bourbon, whom had not been dragged before a trial, had committed the same acts against the crown. However, unlike the others Albret had deliberately called on foreign powers to attack France for his own sake and that, more than anything damned him at the end.
Only the intersession of Jean, his eldest son, whom had been held captive alongside the king in Ghent kept Alain from the cruellest of executions and on the 5th of June he was publicly beheaded in Blois with a sharp sword. Jean had to surrender the bulk of the Albret lands to the crown as punishment; the County of Périgord as well as the Viscounty of Limoges and the Armagnac lands. Jean kept the lands in Albret, Tartas, Graves and Castres and stayed loyal to the king for the rest of his life. Despite the king’s vengeance on Alain, Jean retained Charles’s favour and frequently served as a trusted courtier. His siblings avoided the wrath their father had brought on their house as well.
To Philip of Brabant, the state of France did not bother him much. He had Burgundy back and the control of Cleves, Mark and Utrecht had been solidified since 1506. His daughter Katelijne was due to leave for her marriage in Brittany at the next year. Beatrijs, Countess of Namur were due with her fourth child and little Marguerite, Philippa and baby Jean thrived. His eldest daughter Margaretha had recently been delivered of her second child, little John (Hans in Danish), and three-year-old Philippa of Denmark adored her baby brother. In Saint-Pol his nephew Peter and niece Jacquetta had turned fifteen and eleven respectively. Anne of Boulogne had turned twelve and were thus at the age of marriage, but as the Prince of Wales was still seven years old, she had to wait another seven years before he was old enough. In the meanwhile, Anne divided her time between the court of Brabant and her own county of Boulogne to finish her education as future queen of England. Growing up, Anne had become a sharply intelligent and beautiful girl. She had also begun to display a will of iron and regal demeanour, winning her the favour of her Boulogne subjects. Thomas of York wrote to his brother that Anne was an excellent match for his son, but warned him that her sense of independent might need to be tempered if Boulogne would pass safely into English hands. And in 1514 she did indeed prove to be fiercer and more independent than he had estimated, leaving the matter of Boulogne in chaos. The marriage Anne made would not only take the county away from England, but unite it with another one, creating a great County between the Low Countries and the French and ultimately lead to the loss of Calais for her english betrothed and the horrific death of Thomas of York.
In 1512, Grand Duke Philip set his eyes on Frisia itself, as the region had long been a goal for him to claim. But first he needed to secure the allies necessary to conquer it. Though his wife, Philippa of Guelders, Philip had a strong claim on Frisia himself, but an endeavour like this required more allies. His son in law, Crown Prince Christian of Denmark, his son Arnold, heir to Julich-Bergh and the HRE all were important players. After two decades of strengthening the Northen Brabant, and the ducal presence in Guelders, Utrecht and Cleves, the groundwork had been properly prepared for a campaign up north.
Philip sent a navy of twelve ships up towards West Frisia in April to cut off any seaside reinforcement and began to gather his army in Guelders, with men arriving from Breda and Limburg amongst others. The Grand Duke took full advantage of his wife’s Egmont family in the Guelders area, including the old Count John III of Egmont, who’s son, Jean had a prominent place in the ducal household. Floris van Egmont also played an important part in the military campaigns, being one of Philip’s closest friends and counsellor. The Count of Buren and Leerdam served as Stadtholder of Guelders from 1500 and onwards, and was thus the man who oversaw the levy of men during the campaign, which he joined as one of the key commanders during that spring.
The Frisian resistance had no actual leader at this time and was weakened by internal squabbles. One prominent member was Pier Gerlofs Donia, a farmer hailing from Kimswerd, also known as Grutte Pier or Big Pier. Donia was known to be strong as an ox and a charismatic man to the peasants. A bunch of petty lords and others had joined against the invading Brabantians. To crush them quickly, Philip decided to unleash one of his most aggressive commanders, Maarten van Rossum on the battlefield. Rossum was a brilliant tactician who had a long association with Charles of Guelders, but he also was a ruthless and feared man with a reputation for brutality. Philip used him sparingly, especially in areas that resisted ducal control.
To the Frisian peasants Rossum seemed to be the Hound from Hell itself. While the campaign carried on until late summer that year, any potential strong movement to fight of the Brabantians had been ground into dust by Rossum and Floris von Egmont and while resistance popped up from time to time, West Frisia started to be absorbed into the grand duchy slowly during starting in winter and the following year. Philip stayed for several months up in the North of Holland and regularly travelled from Guelders to Groningen and further into Frisia. Imposing ducal authority on the region was badly needed as the quarrels between the two fractions in Frisia, named the Vetkopers and Schieringers, or Fetkeapers en Skieringers as their frisian names was, had caused trouble for decades. The first party supported self-goverment, while the latter belived that allying with the Grand Duke was the more sensible option. The icy winter between 1512 and 1513 kept the ducal entourage from traveling back to Flanders until March, and Philippa acted as regent for her husband during his absence. Philip took measures as to end the strife by installing a strong stadtholder to manage the region. One troublesome leader for Frisian independence remained the nobleman Jancko Douwama, who would get captured by Charles in 1519 and died in prison.
The west Frisian campaign was over in autumn of 1512.
Edzard I, Count of East Frisia
The following year Philip turned to the East of Frisia, who would be harder to take. That required the alliance of the dukes of Saxony and the Holy Roman Empire. One key person in the campaign was Edzard I, Count of East Frisia, whom had no interest in surrendering his county to Philip. East Frisia laid near the province of Groningen, a realm Philip was determined to take, as his marriage to Philippa of Guelders had provided the legitimate claims. He also sent an emissary to the court of Emperor Maximilian, reminding him that he had sworn to support him in taking Frisia, but the emperor, concerned about the reaction of German princes if the grand duke were to encroach further near Saxon territory, refused. He reached out to his son in law as well, the newly coronated Christian II of Denmark, whom were willing to offer him support if the duke held gave him the promise of naval support to strengthen his rule on North Frisia. In the late autumn of 1513, Philip withdrew his plans to conquer East Frisia and focused his effort on Groningen instead. Count Edzard had planned to expand his influence in the province, but that would mean to cross the grand duke who held a far stronger claim. Edzard decided that the best option for him was to settle this in a peaceful manner, and thus sent an envoy to Philip, who was residing in west Frisia. He offered rather good terms:
-Edzard would relinquish his claim towards Groningen for himself and his lineage to the Grand Duchy of Brabant.
-In return, Philip would pay him a sum as repatriations for the damages towards the cities in East Frisia
-Edzard would become an ally of Brabant and give support if needed.
After weeks of negotiations, Philip accepted the terms offered by Edzard and Groningen passed peacefully into the Brabantian’s hands as planned. The sum given to Edzard was waster than he had expected and he was able to successfully persuade Maria of Jever to wed his son, Enno in 1520 as it was planned. Philip returned to the Low Countries in May of 1514 having successfully ensured that East Frisia and Groningen would become part of his son’s inheritance. The campaigning also seemed to have affected Philip’s health, as the colder months of the years had been marked by icy winds and chilly rains. Back home in the warmer south, carefully attended by his moorish physicians, Philip recovered most of his strength by the summer, but he still suffered from occasional bouts of harsh coughing and fevers.
The years in Frisia would be the last expansion of the Grand Duchy during his lifetime. At summer’s end, another event would rock the duchy and it would require the duke’s full attention. In the center of all of it was Anne, Countess of Boulogne, the intended Princess of Wales and the next Queen of England to be.
Anne, Countess of Boulogne or The Lioness of Boulogne as she would be known to history.
Author's Note: I was gonna post it on Wednesday, but i decided to give it as a late Sunday gift instead. The long awaited Frisian conquest is finally here! The last conquest of Grand Duke Philip of Brabant. And some foreshadowing over what will happen in Brabant, Spain and England in a few years time.
It was difficult to comprehend the sheer damage that the Orléans feud had caused France in just three years’ time. A bloodbath in the south, the Anjou-Breton invasion in Alencon and Perche, the death of Charles, Duke of Angouleme and the capture of the new duke, François. Charles of Alencon had lost an eye and sustained permanent damage to his lower belly and groin as result of his fight with Infante Ferdinand the elder. The Albrets had been declared enemies of France and the whole of the kingdom loathed them with a raging fury. Toulouse had been savaged and burned, a episode that would later be know to history as The rape of Toulouse. Jean d'Armagnac, Duke of Nemours had been killed in combat by Gaston of Foix. His brother, Louis d'Armagnac had been taken prisoner by Nicholas, Duke of Anjou while defending his brother’s realms. Louis of Orléans was disgraced completely in the eyes of many, his sole salvation being his valiant defence of Dunois and Vendóme.
The Duchy of Burgundy had returned to Grand Duke Philip. The County of Nevers had been lost to Charles of Lorraine, the Scourge of France. To add further insult to injury, the english had taken the opportunity to seize three of the ports of Normandy. Dieppe, Cherbourg and Caen had all been taken by force. The english had captured many of the ships in the ports and after looting the mercantile goods, taking them back to England. Nearly a quarter of France’s navy had been lost to these raids and many shipyards had been burned to prevent quick rebuilding. Merchants had been abducted as well, and would be freed whenever a ransom had been paid.
Pierre Terrail, the Marshal of France had been defeated in combat and taken prisoner. Miraculously he had survived in spite of heavy injuries and Ferdinand the elder ordered his own physicians to tend to him after being taken off the battlefield. Once Pierre had been strong enough to be moved, he had been transported to Castile, first to Burgos and then to Segovia, where he was comfortable incarcerated in the Alcazar of the city.
This was the France Charles IX returned to in early February of 1510.
One of the first victims of his rage would be his very own mother, Isabelle of Burgundy, who had been very relived to have her only son back from her brother’s captivity. The joy of seeing Charles again soon turned to immense shock as his treatment of her were akin to a enemy. Charles soon deprived his mother of her ladies, and refused to have her presence at court. Her jewels were confiscated, and letters opened and read by the king’s ministers, who’s pretext was to ensure that the queen dowager did not attempt to communicate with her brother or any other Brabantian official. Months after his return, Charles exiled his mother from the royal court, and ordered her household to be moved to Hotel Saint Pol in Paris. Originally built by Charles V of France, the building had become old and fallen into ruin when Isabelle arrived there. Her household had been very reduced and the king’s wrath had left her with only a few allies, but a couple of bishops supported her with money in order to sustain her with somewhat of a royal standing. Isabelle’s situation continued until 1515, where she made the dramatic choice to flee from France and return to her homeland in the low countries. She remained in the ducal court until her brother’s death two years later, whereupon she was granted the ownership of her mother’s palace in Malines. Her flight from France shocked the whole kingdom, but many people felt like her son had treated her with horrible contempt and her actions would be viewed by many as sympathetic.
To king Charles, one stroke of fortune had prevailed. Alain of Albret had been captured in December and brought to Blois. In March the trial of Albret began, where charges against him were stacked on top of each other’s. Treason, conspiracy, enabling the destruction of crown lands and many others was laid at his feet and the king fiercely wanted him dead, preferable hanged, drawn and quartered in the public. Alain stood in his own defence at the trial and argued that he had only sought to protect his rights as a nobleman and that Orléans and Bourbon, whom had not been dragged before a trial, had committed the same acts against the crown. However, unlike the others Albret had deliberately called on foreign powers to attack France for his own sake and that, more than anything damned him at the end.
Only the intersession of Jean, his eldest son, whom had been held captive alongside the king in Ghent kept Alain from the cruellest of executions and on the 5th of June he was publicly beheaded in Blois with a sharp sword. Jean had to surrender the bulk of the Albret lands to the crown as punishment; the County of Périgord as well as the Viscounty of Limoges and the Armagnac lands. Jean kept the lands in Albret, Tartas, Graves and Castres and stayed loyal to the king for the rest of his life. Despite the king’s vengeance on Alain, Jean retained Charles’s favour and frequently served as a trusted courtier. His siblings avoided the wrath their father had brought on their house as well.
To Philip of Brabant, the state of France did not bother him much. He had Burgundy back and the control of Cleves, Mark and Utrecht had been solidified since 1506. His daughter Katelijne was due to leave for her marriage in Brittany at the next year. Beatrijs, Countess of Namur were due with her fourth child and little Marguerite, Philippa and baby Jean thrived. His eldest daughter Margaretha had recently been delivered of her second child, little John (Hans in Danish), and three-year-old Philippa of Denmark adored her baby brother. In Saint-Pol his nephew Peter and niece Jacquetta had turned fifteen and eleven respectively. Anne of Boulogne had turned twelve and were thus at the age of marriage, but as the Prince of Wales was still seven years old, she had to wait another seven years before he was old enough. In the meanwhile, Anne divided her time between the court of Brabant and her own county of Boulogne to finish her education as future queen of England. Growing up, Anne had become a sharply intelligent and beautiful girl. She had also begun to display a will of iron and regal demeanour, winning her the favour of her Boulogne subjects. Thomas of York wrote to his brother that Anne was an excellent match for his son, but warned him that her sense of independent might need to be tempered if Boulogne would pass safely into English hands. And in 1514 she did indeed prove to be fiercer and more independent than he had estimated, leaving the matter of Boulogne in chaos. The marriage Anne made would not only take the county away from England, but unite it with another one, creating a great County between the Low Countries and the French and ultimately lead to the loss of Calais for her english betrothed and the horrific death of Thomas of York.
In 1512, Grand Duke Philip set his eyes on Frisia itself, as the region had long been a goal for him to claim. But first he needed to secure the allies necessary to conquer it. Though his wife, Philippa of Guelders, Philip had a strong claim on Frisia himself, but an endeavour like this required more allies. His son in law, Crown Prince Christian of Denmark, his son Arnold, heir to Julich-Bergh and the HRE all were important players. After two decades of strengthening the Northen Brabant, and the ducal presence in Guelders, Utrecht and Cleves, the groundwork had been properly prepared for a campaign up north.
Philip sent a navy of twelve ships up towards West Frisia in April to cut off any seaside reinforcement and began to gather his army in Guelders, with men arriving from Breda and Limburg amongst others. The Grand Duke took full advantage of his wife’s Egmont family in the Guelders area, including the old Count John III of Egmont, who’s son, Jean had a prominent place in the ducal household. Floris van Egmont also played an important part in the military campaigns, being one of Philip’s closest friends and counsellor. The Count of Buren and Leerdam served as Stadtholder of Guelders from 1500 and onwards, and was thus the man who oversaw the levy of men during the campaign, which he joined as one of the key commanders during that spring.
The Frisian resistance had no actual leader at this time and was weakened by internal squabbles. One prominent member was Pier Gerlofs Donia, a farmer hailing from Kimswerd, also known as Grutte Pier or Big Pier. Donia was known to be strong as an ox and a charismatic man to the peasants. A bunch of petty lords and others had joined against the invading Brabantians. To crush them quickly, Philip decided to unleash one of his most aggressive commanders, Maarten van Rossum on the battlefield. Rossum was a brilliant tactician who had a long association with Charles of Guelders, but he also was a ruthless and feared man with a reputation for brutality. Philip used him sparingly, especially in areas that resisted ducal control.
To the Frisian peasants Rossum seemed to be the Hound from Hell itself. While the campaign carried on until late summer that year, any potential strong movement to fight of the Brabantians had been ground into dust by Rossum and Floris von Egmont and while resistance popped up from time to time, West Frisia started to be absorbed into the grand duchy slowly during starting in winter and the following year. Philip stayed for several months up in the North of Holland and regularly travelled from Guelders to Groningen and further into Frisia. Imposing ducal authority on the region was badly needed as the quarrels between the two fractions in Frisia, named the Vetkopers and Schieringers, or Fetkeapers en Skieringers as their frisian names was, had caused trouble for decades. The first party supported self-goverment, while the latter belived that allying with the Grand Duke was the more sensible option. The icy winter between 1512 and 1513 kept the ducal entourage from traveling back to Flanders until March, and Philippa acted as regent for her husband during his absence. Philip took measures as to end the strife by installing a strong stadtholder to manage the region. One troublesome leader for Frisian independence remained the nobleman Jancko Douwama, who would get captured by Charles in 1519 and died in prison.
The west Frisian campaign was over in autumn of 1512.
Edzard I, Count of East Frisia
The following year Philip turned to the East of Frisia, who would be harder to take. That required the alliance of the dukes of Saxony and the Holy Roman Empire. One key person in the campaign was Edzard I, Count of East Frisia, whom had no interest in surrendering his county to Philip. East Frisia laid near the province of Groningen, a realm Philip was determined to take, as his marriage to Philippa of Guelders had provided the legitimate claims. He also sent an emissary to the court of Emperor Maximilian, reminding him that he had sworn to support him in taking Frisia, but the emperor, concerned about the reaction of German princes if the grand duke were to encroach further near Saxon territory, refused. He reached out to his son in law as well, the newly coronated Christian II of Denmark, whom were willing to offer him support if the duke held gave him the promise of naval support to strengthen his rule on North Frisia. In the late autumn of 1513, Philip withdrew his plans to conquer East Frisia and focused his effort on Groningen instead. Count Edzard had planned to expand his influence in the province, but that would mean to cross the grand duke who held a far stronger claim. Edzard decided that the best option for him was to settle this in a peaceful manner, and thus sent an envoy to Philip, who was residing in west Frisia. He offered rather good terms:
-Edzard would relinquish his claim towards Groningen for himself and his lineage to the Grand Duchy of Brabant.
-In return, Philip would pay him a sum as repatriations for the damages towards the cities in East Frisia
-Edzard would become an ally of Brabant and give support if needed.
After weeks of negotiations, Philip accepted the terms offered by Edzard and Groningen passed peacefully into the Brabantian’s hands as planned. The sum given to Edzard was waster than he had expected and he was able to successfully persuade Maria of Jever to wed his son, Enno in 1520 as it was planned. Philip returned to the Low Countries in May of 1514 having successfully ensured that East Frisia and Groningen would become part of his son’s inheritance. The campaigning also seemed to have affected Philip’s health, as the colder months of the years had been marked by icy winds and chilly rains. Back home in the warmer south, carefully attended by his moorish physicians, Philip recovered most of his strength by the summer, but he still suffered from occasional bouts of harsh coughing and fevers.
The years in Frisia would be the last expansion of the Grand Duchy during his lifetime. At summer’s end, another event would rock the duchy and it would require the duke’s full attention. In the center of all of it was Anne, Countess of Boulogne, the intended Princess of Wales and the next Queen of England to be.
Anne, Countess of Boulogne or The Lioness of Boulogne as she would be known to history.
Author's Note: I was gonna post it on Wednesday, but i decided to give it as a late Sunday gift instead. The long awaited Frisian conquest is finally here! The last conquest of Grand Duke Philip of Brabant. And some foreshadowing over what will happen in Brabant, Spain and England in a few years time.
Last edited:
Thank you
Battles in chapters are the worst to write so this chapter was a millstone for many weeks.Philip is rather awesome, I have to agree. As regarding for his health, he's only got a little over three years left. So while he's rather okay at most times, its gonna go downhill for him after a while.
Now that it's done with its much better right?Thank you
Philip is rather awesome, I have to agree. As regarding for his health, he's only got a little over three years left. So while he's rather okay at most times, its gonna go downhill for him after a while.
He's doing mostly fine, but the effects on the Frisian campaigns is gonna be lasting. I picture him having some sort of marsh fever/pneumonia symptoms. He would be fine with modern antibiotics and medicine, but this is the 16th century we're in. He's far from death yet.
Lmao, I'm just very tired from work.
I'm not planning to give him a horrible death. I'm reserving that for the Duke of Bedford.
Got it, gonna brace myself.Thank you
Philip is rather awesome, I have to agree. As regarding for his health, he's only got a little over three years left. So while he's rather okay at most times, its gonna go downhill for him after a while.
Better brace yourself for that as well as the Boulogne issue. Has anyone figured out who Anne of Boulogne is gonna wed yet?
I think I need to brace myself for that one as well. It's not the easiest to put to paper. I'm gonna be interested in seeing if anyone has cottoned on to the bridegroom for Anne I have in mind. So far there has been no takers.
Ooh the Duke of Burgundy solidifies his hold even more, very interesting and perhaps it may be a colonial power one day too..
Philip is definitely consolidating the many realms he's holding into something more permanent. He's gonna become known as the father of the flemish nation at this point. Colonial shenanigans is gonna start in the reign of his son.