Louis, Duke of Guyenne
Louis of Guyenne | |
---|---|
Dauphin of Viennois, Duke of Guyenne | |
Saint Denis Basilica | |
Spouse | Margaret of Nevers |
House | Valois |
Father | Charles VI of France |
Mother | Isabeau of Bavaria |
Louis (22 January 1397 – 18 December 1415) was the eighth of twelve children of King
Louis was born between the eighth and ninth hours of the evening in the royal
In his mother's household
The first years of Louis's life were spent in the care of his mother. Only after the death of his elder brother Charles on 13 January 1401 did he take on a political importance by inheriting the Dauphiné. On 14 January, King Charles formally invested Louis with the Duchy of Guyenne, which was also raised into a
On 26 April 1403, Charles decreed that if Louis inherited the throne while still a minor, he would not be under the traditional regency, but the queen mother, the duke of Orléans and the dukes of Bourbon, Burgundy and Berry would guide him. On 28 April, the king agreed to the marriage of Louis and Margaret, daughter of John, Count of Nevers, and granddaughter of the duke of Burgundy, who had previously been betrothed to the Dauphin Charles in 1395. On 4 July, another royal ordinance confirmed the revenues of Guyenne to the duke of Berry for the rest of his life, to revert to Louis on the duke's death. On 30 January 1404, the king ordered the establishment of a household (hôtel) and treasury separate from Isabeau's for the seven-year-old Louis.[2]
Having his own household
Although Louis's marriage contract had been signed before a great council of the realm on 5 May 1403, the Duke of Orléans, who had hoped his daughter would marry the dauphin, absented himself. The marriage of Louis's sister Michelle to Margaret's brother Philip, Count of Charolais, was also finalised at this council. Since Louis and Margaret were related to within the prohibited degree, a papal dispensation had to be obtained. As a consequence, the couple was not married until 30 August 1404 in the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris.[2]
As Charles VI descended into madness, influence over and control of Louis became of increasing importance to the parties which sought to control royal policy. In 1404, Louis's father-in-law succeeded as duke of Burgundy. In 1405, the duke of Orléans, in cooperation with the queen, perpetrated the "first kidnapping of the Dauphin" in order to separate Louis from the influence of his father-in-law. As the duke of Burgundy approached Paris on a royal summons, the duke of Orléans and the queen left the city and sent for Louis to accompany them. The dauphin was ill, but was brought by boat and then by litter to
In 1409, Jean de Nielles, already chancellor to the queen and a knight known for his loyalty to the Burgundian duke, was made Louis's chancellor also. The duke of Burgundy also appointed Pierre de Fontenay, Louis's maître d'hôtel, while the duke of Orléans chose his chamberlains, alternating between the lords of Blaru and Offemont. The influence of the dukes is apparent even in Louis's buying habits: he frequented the merchants who were the suppliers of Burgundy and Orléans.[2]
War and death
During
Louis was not present at the
In literature and film
Louis was probably the original recipient of the Chateauroux Breviary. It was also for him that Christine de Pizan wrote her Livre du corps de policie (1406–07) and Livre de paix (1412–13) as instructions for a young ruler.
Louis appears as the Dauphin in William Shakespeare's Henry V. He has been represented in film by Max Adrian in 1944, Keith Drinkel in 1979, Michael Maloney in 1989, Edward Akrout in 2012 and most recently Robert Pattinson in The King (2019).
Notes
- ^ Lebailly 2005, pp. 357.
- ^ a b c d e f g Lebailly 2005, pp. 357–59.
- ^ Vaughan 2009, p. 209.
- ISBN 978-0-7123-4978-9.
Sources
- Autrand, Françoise. Charles VI le roi fou. Fayard, 1986. ISBN 2-213-01703-4
- Famiglietti, Richard Carl. The French Monarchy in Crisis, 1392–1415, and the Political Role of the Dauphin, Louis of France, Duke of Guyenne. PhD diss. City University of New York, 1982.
- Famiglietti, Richard Carl. Royal Intrigue: Crisis at the Court of Charles VI, 1392–1420. New York, 1986.
- Kennedy, Angus J. "Christine de Pizan, Blasphemy, and the Dauphin, Louis de Guyenne", Medium Aevum 83, 1 (2014): 104–20.
- Lebailly, Emilie (2005). "Le dauphin Louis, duc de Guyenne, et les arts précieux (1409–1415)". Bulletin Monumental (in French). 163, 4 (4): 357–74. .
- Vaughan, Richard (2009). John the Fearless. The Boydell Press.