I can't do western pistol duels, how about a jousting or fencing match instead?
Walking on the Silver Line: A Valois-Bourgogne TL
- Thread starter Liminia1
- Start date
We'll soon be wrapping up Charles the Absolutes' reign very soon and we'll write a bibliography based on this TL not on OTL unfortunately.
Chapter 9.5 Braided with gold
May 12, 1475, Reims, Champagne
Philip paced around in his regalia, straightening it while looking through the mirror. Charles rested his hand on his son's shoulder, to calm him as his company arrived. Charles told his son, "Rest easy, Anne would not be pleased if you were acting like this. Now get on your horse." Philip nodded and got onto the horse. Charles paced around his son, correcting the minor things with his regalia. Once Charles was pleased with the results he then joined his son on the horse, riding beside him with 12 knights in full armour and regalia behind him. The Burgundian company rode incredibly slowly while their courtiers and servants were already in Reims, decorating and preparing the city and its cathedral for Philip's arrival.
Philip slowly rode towards to the city in with 12 knights surrounding him and his father, while he was dressed richly he also waved to the crowd who at this point were cheering on to their new count, the people didn't have a count in over a 100 years. The knights who had pins showing the various domains of the Burgundian state only marched in silence, while Charles joined in with his son and continued to wave at the crowd. The company arrived at the cathedral where Philip and Charles dismounted with the 12 knights remaining and the courtiers rushed to Charles and Philip in order to prepare them for the wedding and ensure that the wedding and later festivities were completed. Charles was excused by Philip as he rushed to deal with other matters of the wedding while the remaining courtiers added on a couple of final finishing touches to his clothing. "My count, you are ready. Every girl here would be jealous of Anne." One courtier replied, Philip gave a weak smile and nodded dismissing the courtiers. The priest, the archbishop of Reims only smiled at him, "It is a special day to marry the first count of Champagne in over 100 years you know. Stop getting nervous about this." Philip took another deep breath to calm his nerves.
King Louis XI was in his carriage with his reunited daughter, Anne of Champagne. They didn't speak much on the ride towards the cathedral, much like Philip, Anne looked out towards the crowd cheering at her, waving all the way. King Louis looked at his daughter, he smiled, it reminded him so much of his youth and his time with the people. The carriage was a former royal carriage used by his father Charles VII but Charles and Margaret agreed it needed a remodel and decorated it richly with jewels and gold. Anne herself was richly dressed to both Margaret and Charlotte's joy. Her hair was braided with thin gold while her silken white dress was mixed with purple stripes extending down the length of the dress. The carriage would come to a halt and the 14 French courtiers which surrounded and escorted the carriage would stand in formation and escort both the king and Anne down the steps of the carriage. Anne would take Louis' hand as they both walked towards the cathedral. Anne would look on as the 12 Burgundian knights that escorted Philip stood in perfect order with their swords pointing to the ground and their heads tilted downward. Anne would enter the cathedral with the doors opening by the order of a Burgundian courtier.
The announcement of Anne's arrival would begin the elaborate wedding ceremony, as 12 bridesmaids would begin their last fixes of the wedding dress. King Louis would also be touched on once more by 12 groomsmen in order to fix anything that was ruined during the carriage ride. When both of these touchups were completed, father and daughter were both reunited as would head down the aisle handing over Anne to Philip. Before Philip was given to Anne, however Philip would kiss the ring of Louis, thanking him to allow the marriage between himself and Anne per the wedding ceremony. Louis would stand opposite from Charles in the first bench of the cathedral, Charles would be standing on the first right bench while Louis would sit at the first left bench. Anne and Philip would hold each others hands and would stare into each other until the next step of the ceremony began.
Margaret and Charlotte of Savoy would arrive in their full regalia as Queen of France and Duchess of Burgundy. Both would be holding flowers and would arrive in front of Philip and Anne, speaking encouraging words Charlotte would place a flower in Anne's ear while Margaret would place another flower in Philip's front pocket. The two mothers would separate and stand beside on their husband's right. Immediately afterwards the Burgundian courtiers and French Courtiers would take their seats in their respective sides. However, all of them would remain standing, the other guests would slowly start to arrive such as the English, Aragonese, Castilian, Portugese and Austrian. All evenly split up, with the remaining delagates arriving. The 24 knights and courtiers entered and closed the door, they would pair up in one knight to one courtier and they would stand surrounding the entire cathedral.
The Maid of Honour stood up and the best man joined, it would be Joan, sister to Anne and Charles former heir to Guelders. They would give their respective groom and bride their rings. The archbishop of Reims began the ceremony exchanging rings and vows. Philip per the ceremony kissed Anne slowly and chastely. The short actual marriage ceremony would be followed by the departure. The archbishop backed by all the other priestly guests rose and left the ceremony by the side. Philip and Anne would leave together in hand towards the front. The elaborate departure of all the guests would follow as the delegations left in specific order in pairs, Philip would escort Anne into the same carriage that Anne rode in but with one last change which was the changing of horses, to the ones Philip and Charles rode into the cathedral. Surrounded by 12 knights, 6 Burgundian and 6 French they began to ride back to the great hall of Reims, Philip much like his stepmother would conduct a Joyous Entry to the city, hearing the resounding cheers of the merchants and peasantry. The entire procession was incredibly long with both King and Duke partaking in it. The various delegates joined in as representatives waving their respective banners most importantly, the banners of both Anne and Philip were prominently displayed.
The entire city of Reims was transformed as Burgundy spent the spring months to increase the extravagance of the city with sculpted fountains sprouting wine, artificial pelicans on artificial trees, with the bridge crossing to the great hall, was lit with torches with the river below overflowing with blossoms. This extraordinary amount of splendour and wealth was designed to show off the wealth and splendour of Burgundy and to promise to the citizens of Champagne that their fortunes would improve under Philip, most importantly, Philip and Anne continued to be showered with cheers and affection throughout the ride there. Once they arrived, the two marshals of Burgundy and France stood before them and escorted them into the great hall where two thrones sat.
There were a lot of thrones in the great hall by the most extravagant in this new court would be the Count and Countess' throne of Champagne. As the delegation sat into their respective seats with an elaborate order designed by Charles and his court, it ensured that the new Count and Countess were the main characters of this great feast. The feast was incredibly luxurious with high amounts of bread broken, wine drunk, and meat eaten. The amount of socializing and partying that occurred would keep the celebratory mood within this court for a while. Again, the return of the various delegations to their various chateaus in Reims were deliberate and elaborate with the exact time and place selected specifically along with the amount of people returning.
The next couple of days would continue along the celebrations as the various delegates presented their gifts to the newly wed. Anne would be particularly pleased with these gifts. The newlyweds would watch plays, listen to music and would finally end with a tournament designed to honour the bride. Philip would finally be crowned by the archbishop of Reims along with his new wife Anne as Count and Countess of Champagne in an even more elaborate and even stricter etiquette, finally within a week of the actual wedding the delegations finally returned back to their respective homes. Ironically, Philip and Anne would not stay in Champagne and return to Burgundy within a couple of weeks after the wedding and yet this famous event would still be replayed in Reims every 5 years.
Philip paced around in his regalia, straightening it while looking through the mirror. Charles rested his hand on his son's shoulder, to calm him as his company arrived. Charles told his son, "Rest easy, Anne would not be pleased if you were acting like this. Now get on your horse." Philip nodded and got onto the horse. Charles paced around his son, correcting the minor things with his regalia. Once Charles was pleased with the results he then joined his son on the horse, riding beside him with 12 knights in full armour and regalia behind him. The Burgundian company rode incredibly slowly while their courtiers and servants were already in Reims, decorating and preparing the city and its cathedral for Philip's arrival.
Philip slowly rode towards to the city in with 12 knights surrounding him and his father, while he was dressed richly he also waved to the crowd who at this point were cheering on to their new count, the people didn't have a count in over a 100 years. The knights who had pins showing the various domains of the Burgundian state only marched in silence, while Charles joined in with his son and continued to wave at the crowd. The company arrived at the cathedral where Philip and Charles dismounted with the 12 knights remaining and the courtiers rushed to Charles and Philip in order to prepare them for the wedding and ensure that the wedding and later festivities were completed. Charles was excused by Philip as he rushed to deal with other matters of the wedding while the remaining courtiers added on a couple of final finishing touches to his clothing. "My count, you are ready. Every girl here would be jealous of Anne." One courtier replied, Philip gave a weak smile and nodded dismissing the courtiers. The priest, the archbishop of Reims only smiled at him, "It is a special day to marry the first count of Champagne in over 100 years you know. Stop getting nervous about this." Philip took another deep breath to calm his nerves.
King Louis XI was in his carriage with his reunited daughter, Anne of Champagne. They didn't speak much on the ride towards the cathedral, much like Philip, Anne looked out towards the crowd cheering at her, waving all the way. King Louis looked at his daughter, he smiled, it reminded him so much of his youth and his time with the people. The carriage was a former royal carriage used by his father Charles VII but Charles and Margaret agreed it needed a remodel and decorated it richly with jewels and gold. Anne herself was richly dressed to both Margaret and Charlotte's joy. Her hair was braided with thin gold while her silken white dress was mixed with purple stripes extending down the length of the dress. The carriage would come to a halt and the 14 French courtiers which surrounded and escorted the carriage would stand in formation and escort both the king and Anne down the steps of the carriage. Anne would take Louis' hand as they both walked towards the cathedral. Anne would look on as the 12 Burgundian knights that escorted Philip stood in perfect order with their swords pointing to the ground and their heads tilted downward. Anne would enter the cathedral with the doors opening by the order of a Burgundian courtier.
The announcement of Anne's arrival would begin the elaborate wedding ceremony, as 12 bridesmaids would begin their last fixes of the wedding dress. King Louis would also be touched on once more by 12 groomsmen in order to fix anything that was ruined during the carriage ride. When both of these touchups were completed, father and daughter were both reunited as would head down the aisle handing over Anne to Philip. Before Philip was given to Anne, however Philip would kiss the ring of Louis, thanking him to allow the marriage between himself and Anne per the wedding ceremony. Louis would stand opposite from Charles in the first bench of the cathedral, Charles would be standing on the first right bench while Louis would sit at the first left bench. Anne and Philip would hold each others hands and would stare into each other until the next step of the ceremony began.
Margaret and Charlotte of Savoy would arrive in their full regalia as Queen of France and Duchess of Burgundy. Both would be holding flowers and would arrive in front of Philip and Anne, speaking encouraging words Charlotte would place a flower in Anne's ear while Margaret would place another flower in Philip's front pocket. The two mothers would separate and stand beside on their husband's right. Immediately afterwards the Burgundian courtiers and French Courtiers would take their seats in their respective sides. However, all of them would remain standing, the other guests would slowly start to arrive such as the English, Aragonese, Castilian, Portugese and Austrian. All evenly split up, with the remaining delagates arriving. The 24 knights and courtiers entered and closed the door, they would pair up in one knight to one courtier and they would stand surrounding the entire cathedral.
The Maid of Honour stood up and the best man joined, it would be Joan, sister to Anne and Charles former heir to Guelders. They would give their respective groom and bride their rings. The archbishop of Reims began the ceremony exchanging rings and vows. Philip per the ceremony kissed Anne slowly and chastely. The short actual marriage ceremony would be followed by the departure. The archbishop backed by all the other priestly guests rose and left the ceremony by the side. Philip and Anne would leave together in hand towards the front. The elaborate departure of all the guests would follow as the delegations left in specific order in pairs, Philip would escort Anne into the same carriage that Anne rode in but with one last change which was the changing of horses, to the ones Philip and Charles rode into the cathedral. Surrounded by 12 knights, 6 Burgundian and 6 French they began to ride back to the great hall of Reims, Philip much like his stepmother would conduct a Joyous Entry to the city, hearing the resounding cheers of the merchants and peasantry. The entire procession was incredibly long with both King and Duke partaking in it. The various delegates joined in as representatives waving their respective banners most importantly, the banners of both Anne and Philip were prominently displayed.
The entire city of Reims was transformed as Burgundy spent the spring months to increase the extravagance of the city with sculpted fountains sprouting wine, artificial pelicans on artificial trees, with the bridge crossing to the great hall, was lit with torches with the river below overflowing with blossoms. This extraordinary amount of splendour and wealth was designed to show off the wealth and splendour of Burgundy and to promise to the citizens of Champagne that their fortunes would improve under Philip, most importantly, Philip and Anne continued to be showered with cheers and affection throughout the ride there. Once they arrived, the two marshals of Burgundy and France stood before them and escorted them into the great hall where two thrones sat.
There were a lot of thrones in the great hall by the most extravagant in this new court would be the Count and Countess' throne of Champagne. As the delegation sat into their respective seats with an elaborate order designed by Charles and his court, it ensured that the new Count and Countess were the main characters of this great feast. The feast was incredibly luxurious with high amounts of bread broken, wine drunk, and meat eaten. The amount of socializing and partying that occurred would keep the celebratory mood within this court for a while. Again, the return of the various delegations to their various chateaus in Reims were deliberate and elaborate with the exact time and place selected specifically along with the amount of people returning.
The next couple of days would continue along the celebrations as the various delegates presented their gifts to the newly wed. Anne would be particularly pleased with these gifts. The newlyweds would watch plays, listen to music and would finally end with a tournament designed to honour the bride. Philip would finally be crowned by the archbishop of Reims along with his new wife Anne as Count and Countess of Champagne in an even more elaborate and even stricter etiquette, finally within a week of the actual wedding the delegations finally returned back to their respective homes. Ironically, Philip and Anne would not stay in Champagne and return to Burgundy within a couple of weeks after the wedding and yet this famous event would still be replayed in Reims every 5 years.
Philip and Anne are SO cute together! May they have a great marriage and tenure!
Chapter 10: Delusions of a great city 1475-1477
The greatest enemy of Charles the Absolute would always be the urban cities, the revolts of Ghent and Liege in the early years of his reign would be harbinger towards this misfortune as soon Cologne, Neuss, Strasbourg and Bern would all join in. The destruction of the centralizing force that is Charles would be the goal of every city in mind, historians often accredit Louis XI as the true enemy to Burgundy but time and time again, it would be the cities that would offer the most effective amount of resistance. Bern in particular would be the most successful and famous of these anti-Burgundian and anti-Charles efforts.
The war of Lorraine while a quick affair would divert Burgundian attention away from Savoy and Alsace, which gave Bern time and opportunity to finally crush the Savoyards and seize the Vaud, cementing Bern and Swiss confederation dominance in the region. These efforts would be focused on Savoy, as their baron: Jacques de Savoie had taken service of Charles the Absolute, this cementing of Savoyard vassalage to Burgundy would trigger Bern's fear of Burgundian ambitions towards Bern itself, which was justified as Charles the Absolute and later Philip the Rich had designs on the rich urban lands to incorporate them into Burgundy itself. Charles the Absolute however, refusing to be distracted from his plans in Lorraine would send Antoine in the autumn of 1475 to try to mediate peace between Bern and Savoy in particular the baron of Vaud, Jacques de Savoie. This would be a pretext however, as Bern and Frisbourg would invade mainly due to economic and military reasons as Bern wished to expand westward and threaten the rich Burgundian free county. The continuous influx The Swiss led by Bern would see absolute success by the end of 1475 occupying the entirety of the Vaud and threatening Geneva.
The capture and conquest of Lorraine would further augment the strength of Bern who now restored the age old League of Constance. The reunion between Basel, Strasbourg and Bern would form a formidable league against Charles, although Frederick's neutrality and the withdrawal of the Austrians would serve as a counterbalance. Mediations between the two sides would continue throughout under the elector palatine but hostilities would only further escalate as Bern and Frisbourg would occupy the site where they nearly killed Charles: Grandson. Charles however, would pull his classic Burgundian diplomacy removing the emperor entirely from intervening by forming an alliance with the emperor in the autumn of 1475, while his armies assembled in Bescanon. In France, with the marriage of Philip and Anne about to occur, Louis would strike a bargain with Charles who abandoned the Swiss once again. Sigismund of Austria however would go back on his word and rejoin the league who promised the return of Upper Alsace for his support but importantly to Charles, he was alone and didn't have imperial backing like he did in 1474.
The arrival of Charles and his Burgundian army into Grandson the sight of his near death would spell the end of Swiss campaigns in the Vaud as Charles easily took the fortified town unconditionally. Ironically his near death here a year ago would make him even more cautious as his armies set up camp at Grandson with the usual Burgundian companies and scouts out to hunt down any armies near Bern. The Swiss army would arrive near Grandson with lightning speed against Charles' well fortified camp, the Burgundian scouts who informed him of an army but the speed and composition of that army was unknown by the time Charles saw this band of Swiss pikemen across from his line. Charles would not make the same mistake that he made in 1474 and ordered an opening salvo of Burgundian cannon fire which devastated the Swiss pikemen who were rushing forward towards the Burgundian line. The Burgundians who already made adjustments to his tactics back in 1474, annihilated the Swiss force. This victory combined with reports from the Burgundian scouts that no army would be able to reach them and the sense of Fear throughout Bern, had his forces march towards Bern and laid siege to the city.
The siege of Bern would end pretty quickly by negotiation as the Burgundians who were there to ostensibly protect their Savoyard allies but also to disspate any last remaining bad will towards Burgundy from Peter von Hagenbach would negotiate a truce of the status quo, recognizing Savoy's control over the Vaud and Burgundian control over Alsace. This peace by Charles could be argued as a continuation of Philip's policy of peace towards the Swiss but ironically Philip himself was displeased with the peace as Charles would march up north to deal with the situation over Cleves and Cologne. The marriage between Anne and Philip would bring Champagne into the Burgundian sphere but it would also bring a return to the shadow war between France and Burgundy, this time over Champagne. The new count and countess would play it incredibly well keeping Champagne separate from the Burgundian state as a whole, not even laying the groundwork to integrate at all. King Louis however would continuously pressure the integration in order to augment and create a new pro-French faction, these efforts would fail but would inflate Louis' pride as Philip arrived to pay homage and swear his loyalty to the king. Champagne was by all extents still ruled by the King as royalist officers staffed it and very few revenues went to Philip himself as count. Arguably the dowry was merely a prestige boost for the Burgundians as they would continuously fight over expenses and royal rights, Philip would refuse to pay the royalist officers arguing that since they directly served the king and could not be dismissed by the duke, they could not be paid by the duke but instead the king. Philip would gain some power over the county and would merely use it to lay a competent staff to run Champagne but never introduced or integrated them into Burgundy.
Rene II, former Duke of Lorraine would attack Lorraine in the hopes of reclaiming his duchy and inheritance marched towards Nancy in 1476 in the middle of negotations this would break down the negotiations and Charles would return to the south this time sieging the key city of Bern after defeating the Lower Union in Morat. A second siege of Bern would place even more pressure on the Lower Union who would later sue for a separate peace finally agreeing to the status quo given by Charles in 1475. Rene who was now firmly backed by French finances, Lorrainian soldiers and the house of Valois-Anjou under Rene would grant further support. Philip who was in Champagne at the time would finally arrive at the head of an army with the assistance of his bastard uncle, Antoine would capture and defeat the Lorrainians forcing Rene to accept the Estates granting his father the two duchies of Bar and Lorraine. The peace of Nancy would finally end the Burgundian wars, giving Bar and Lorraine to Charles, and finally uniting de facto Burgundy and the Burgundian Netherlands. It would also be a harbinger of the end of the Swiss confederation as now Burgundy who gave placating peace, would under Philip the Rich and Henry the Fortunate would finally subjugate and conquer the urbanized and powerful Swiss west of the Aare river.
The Burgundian wars were not only a showcase of Burgundian ambitions of uniting their vast realms into one continuous state but it would also show importantly Burgundian policy towards Italy. The near vassalage of Savoy from these wars under Yolande of Savoy, would be a key reason for Charles VIII to start his war against the Italians especially after the extinction of the house of Valois-Anjou. The reluctance of Milan to assist Savoy and Burgundy instead only providing mercenaries to Burgundy would prove to be fatal to Milan as it would eventually fall under Louis XII with their claim from the Visconti line against the Sforza. The most important thing was the complete de facto vassalage of Savoy, Burgundy would place Yolande of Savoy securely as regent for her lifetime although, Charles was quite angry at Yolande's incompetence in running the Vaud region. This would be the last affair in Burgundy's southern territories under Charles' reign, but it would not be the last affair for Charles as in the North, war was brewing for Burgundy and Charles' final attempt at state building would arrive.
The war of Lorraine while a quick affair would divert Burgundian attention away from Savoy and Alsace, which gave Bern time and opportunity to finally crush the Savoyards and seize the Vaud, cementing Bern and Swiss confederation dominance in the region. These efforts would be focused on Savoy, as their baron: Jacques de Savoie had taken service of Charles the Absolute, this cementing of Savoyard vassalage to Burgundy would trigger Bern's fear of Burgundian ambitions towards Bern itself, which was justified as Charles the Absolute and later Philip the Rich had designs on the rich urban lands to incorporate them into Burgundy itself. Charles the Absolute however, refusing to be distracted from his plans in Lorraine would send Antoine in the autumn of 1475 to try to mediate peace between Bern and Savoy in particular the baron of Vaud, Jacques de Savoie. This would be a pretext however, as Bern and Frisbourg would invade mainly due to economic and military reasons as Bern wished to expand westward and threaten the rich Burgundian free county. The continuous influx The Swiss led by Bern would see absolute success by the end of 1475 occupying the entirety of the Vaud and threatening Geneva.
The capture and conquest of Lorraine would further augment the strength of Bern who now restored the age old League of Constance. The reunion between Basel, Strasbourg and Bern would form a formidable league against Charles, although Frederick's neutrality and the withdrawal of the Austrians would serve as a counterbalance. Mediations between the two sides would continue throughout under the elector palatine but hostilities would only further escalate as Bern and Frisbourg would occupy the site where they nearly killed Charles: Grandson. Charles however, would pull his classic Burgundian diplomacy removing the emperor entirely from intervening by forming an alliance with the emperor in the autumn of 1475, while his armies assembled in Bescanon. In France, with the marriage of Philip and Anne about to occur, Louis would strike a bargain with Charles who abandoned the Swiss once again. Sigismund of Austria however would go back on his word and rejoin the league who promised the return of Upper Alsace for his support but importantly to Charles, he was alone and didn't have imperial backing like he did in 1474.
The arrival of Charles and his Burgundian army into Grandson the sight of his near death would spell the end of Swiss campaigns in the Vaud as Charles easily took the fortified town unconditionally. Ironically his near death here a year ago would make him even more cautious as his armies set up camp at Grandson with the usual Burgundian companies and scouts out to hunt down any armies near Bern. The Swiss army would arrive near Grandson with lightning speed against Charles' well fortified camp, the Burgundian scouts who informed him of an army but the speed and composition of that army was unknown by the time Charles saw this band of Swiss pikemen across from his line. Charles would not make the same mistake that he made in 1474 and ordered an opening salvo of Burgundian cannon fire which devastated the Swiss pikemen who were rushing forward towards the Burgundian line. The Burgundians who already made adjustments to his tactics back in 1474, annihilated the Swiss force. This victory combined with reports from the Burgundian scouts that no army would be able to reach them and the sense of Fear throughout Bern, had his forces march towards Bern and laid siege to the city.
The siege of Bern would end pretty quickly by negotiation as the Burgundians who were there to ostensibly protect their Savoyard allies but also to disspate any last remaining bad will towards Burgundy from Peter von Hagenbach would negotiate a truce of the status quo, recognizing Savoy's control over the Vaud and Burgundian control over Alsace. This peace by Charles could be argued as a continuation of Philip's policy of peace towards the Swiss but ironically Philip himself was displeased with the peace as Charles would march up north to deal with the situation over Cleves and Cologne. The marriage between Anne and Philip would bring Champagne into the Burgundian sphere but it would also bring a return to the shadow war between France and Burgundy, this time over Champagne. The new count and countess would play it incredibly well keeping Champagne separate from the Burgundian state as a whole, not even laying the groundwork to integrate at all. King Louis however would continuously pressure the integration in order to augment and create a new pro-French faction, these efforts would fail but would inflate Louis' pride as Philip arrived to pay homage and swear his loyalty to the king. Champagne was by all extents still ruled by the King as royalist officers staffed it and very few revenues went to Philip himself as count. Arguably the dowry was merely a prestige boost for the Burgundians as they would continuously fight over expenses and royal rights, Philip would refuse to pay the royalist officers arguing that since they directly served the king and could not be dismissed by the duke, they could not be paid by the duke but instead the king. Philip would gain some power over the county and would merely use it to lay a competent staff to run Champagne but never introduced or integrated them into Burgundy.
Rene II, former Duke of Lorraine would attack Lorraine in the hopes of reclaiming his duchy and inheritance marched towards Nancy in 1476 in the middle of negotations this would break down the negotiations and Charles would return to the south this time sieging the key city of Bern after defeating the Lower Union in Morat. A second siege of Bern would place even more pressure on the Lower Union who would later sue for a separate peace finally agreeing to the status quo given by Charles in 1475. Rene who was now firmly backed by French finances, Lorrainian soldiers and the house of Valois-Anjou under Rene would grant further support. Philip who was in Champagne at the time would finally arrive at the head of an army with the assistance of his bastard uncle, Antoine would capture and defeat the Lorrainians forcing Rene to accept the Estates granting his father the two duchies of Bar and Lorraine. The peace of Nancy would finally end the Burgundian wars, giving Bar and Lorraine to Charles, and finally uniting de facto Burgundy and the Burgundian Netherlands. It would also be a harbinger of the end of the Swiss confederation as now Burgundy who gave placating peace, would under Philip the Rich and Henry the Fortunate would finally subjugate and conquer the urbanized and powerful Swiss west of the Aare river.
The Burgundian wars were not only a showcase of Burgundian ambitions of uniting their vast realms into one continuous state but it would also show importantly Burgundian policy towards Italy. The near vassalage of Savoy from these wars under Yolande of Savoy, would be a key reason for Charles VIII to start his war against the Italians especially after the extinction of the house of Valois-Anjou. The reluctance of Milan to assist Savoy and Burgundy instead only providing mercenaries to Burgundy would prove to be fatal to Milan as it would eventually fall under Louis XII with their claim from the Visconti line against the Sforza. The most important thing was the complete de facto vassalage of Savoy, Burgundy would place Yolande of Savoy securely as regent for her lifetime although, Charles was quite angry at Yolande's incompetence in running the Vaud region. This would be the last affair in Burgundy's southern territories under Charles' reign, but it would not be the last affair for Charles as in the North, war was brewing for Burgundy and Charles' final attempt at state building would arrive.
Chapter 11: The intricacies of succession 1475 - 1480
John I of Cleves would be the last independent Duke of Cleves, and would trade stability of his family in exchange for greater power concentrated in himself. In 1468, during the negotiations of the treaty of Peronne he would give up his wife's inheritance in exchange for greater monetary benefit and being appointed as stadholder of Brabant. This move would be considered by contemporaries as a great move by John as the monetary benefit outweighed the estates his wife would receive with John II of Nevers' death. This monetary benefit was actually hereditary and was essentially a bribe and pension for John and his heirs. Burgundy however would continuously strengthen their control over Cleves, appointing John as a knight of the Golden Fleece in 1451, and forcing his assistance in Charles' conquest of Guelders in 1473. The estates were bribed by Charles and later Philip in order to confirm that any move made by Cleves would be approved by Burgundy and finally in 1477, Burgundy would pay a fief rent to Cleves thereby cementing Cleves into the Burgundian sphere.
The lightning siege of Neuss and the subsequent capture of Hermann of Hesse would not quell the resistance of the city against the archbishop of Cologne and in fact it would cause the rebels to fight even hard for control over the electorate freeing Hermann in Neuss by 1476. The appointment and creation of the free city of Cologne in 1475 would further strengthen the rebellion as now the archbishop could not invade the free city for invoking the emperor's wrath. It would be in this situation with the archbishop in control of only two towns that Charles and his army would arrive in. The papal and imperial mediation would force him not to directly intervene in the situation instead Charles would do his best to mediate the conflict but as the situation continued, Charles began with imperial backing invaded Cologne, reoccupying Neuss in the autumn of 1477. Philip the Rich who at this point was assigned as regent of Burgundy in Charles' stead would provide Charles with a clear line of supply and communication.
The war fought by Charles would be a disaster for the Burgundians as while they continued to achieve victory in battle after battle, they would fail to make progress in major sieges with both Hesse, the papacy and to some extent the empire assisting. While Frederick signed an alliance with Charles, he would not resist bottling up Charles and his energies into Cologne, finally a peace was settled in 1478. In which Rupercht was recognized as archbishop with Hermann as his next bishop as the estates already elected him. Importantly for Charles, Burgundy, the Emperor and the Pope would ensure this peace. This peace would actually prove to a detriment to Charles, with the Archbishop's death in 1480, shortly after his own death, as when Hermann IV of Hesse would assume the archbishopric, he would finally stabilize the realm and would prove to be a capable politician playing off both the emperor and the Burgundians and securing Cologne from external influence throughout his lifetime. This peace would also shatter the notion of Burgundian invincibility that was given in 1475, after the conquest of Lorraine as the humiliation of playing town whack-a-mole would humiliate Burgundian prestige.
The Austro-Hungarian war of 1477-1490 would be the key outlet for Burgundian soft power during this era. Frederick III was unable to convince the electors to gain support in the war but Burgundy seeing an opportunity to gain further benefits decided to assist the Habsburgs in this war. Philip, now lieutenant/regent of all Burgundy greeted Maximilian, future Holy Roman Emperor and began to negotiate over his assistance. Frederick III at this point desperate for aid seeing the Black Army ravage Austria would also oversee negotiations. Philip saw that allowing such an aggressive Hungary into the empire as Holy Roman Emperor no less would doom Burgundian ambitions, he then asked for a Burgundian version of the privilegium Maius for Burgundy. This granted an independent legistature, jurisdiction with no right to appeal to Imperial courts and importantly inseparability of the territory. The privilege was quite limited in scope, uniting Brabant, Hainaut, Holland, Zeeland, Namur, Luxembourg, and Limburg together. This very limited agreement in exchange for Burgundian men at arms along with Burgundian funds was granted in the treaty of Mulhouse. Maximilian would return at the head of a professional standing Burgundian army to fight against the black army of Matthias Corvinus. This treaty of Mulhouse would be the beginning of Burgundian meddling into electoral and imperial politics, and would be a harbinger to the diarchy of the empire under the reign of Philip the Rich.
The death of Charles, count of Maine would trigger the succession crisis of 1481. Rene II, former Duke of Lorraine was imprisoned in Burgundy although a guest would be accurate as when Rene of Anjou passed away his will left Anjou to his nephew, Charles of Maine and Provence to Rene. The only reason why this will was respected by Louis XI was Charles the Absolute agreed to pay homage as Duke of Bar to Louis, and agreed that Anjou and Maine would return to Louis after Charles, Duke of Anjou's death, and importantly to Louis, the claims of the kingdom of Naples would return to Louis. However, in 1481 with Charles of Maine would die bequeathing his lands to the King. Ironically it would be this last shadow play in which Louis would finally best Charles bribing him with the agreement of not having to pay homage or send soldiers to assist the king in any war as duke of Bar in exchange for Rene being handed over in 1479. The king would charge him with treason as he went to war with Burgundy against the truce of 1474 signed by his suzerain. Rene II would be executed summarily. Philip would protest this move, as he saw Louis seize Provence afterwards. The end of the independence of Provence would be the completion of Louis' absolutist project. He summarily failed in trying to reign in Burgundy, arguably it would be Philip who ruined this completely with the marriage of his eldest daughter to him and his victories against the royalists in Nevers.
The king would also extinguish Armagnac, Alencon, Berry and weaken Orleans, Bourbon and Foix. The birth of Catherine of Navarre and the betrothal between her and Juan the Sickly of Spain would give the entirety of their French fiefs to king Louis in order to approve the marriage as the King would not allow another Normandy or Burgundy situation. The neutering of Orleans by marrying Joan his daughter to Louis of Orleans would ensure Orleans return to the crown after his death and Brittany was already quite weak with the birth of Anne of Brittany. King Louis was now hoping that he could repudiate the marriage between his heir Charles and Isabella in order to have him married to Anne in order to unite France with Brittany.
The debacle of Charles' marriage would come into question as the dual treaties of Picquigny eventually settling on the English, with a formal betrothal between Elizabeth of York and Charles, dauphin of France taking place. Edward IV however, would not allow Elizabeth to travel to France until she was of 19 years of age. Richard, Duke of Gloucester was quite furious with the betrothal as he believed Elizabeth was better off married to John, second son of Charles the Absolute. However, more importantly for Philip, Isabella who was now 4 years and quite healthy was now no longer betrothed and Philip began to look for a match. The Austro-hungarian war would demolish any chance at Maximilian's marriage as Christina of Saxony's betrothal would be broken in 1477 and Philip seizing an opportunity would marry Isabella to Maximilian. This marriage would seal the Austro-Burgundian alliance of 1479 and would plant firm pro-Burgundian ideas in Maximilian's head who was fascinated by the extravagant Burgundian court. Importantly for Philip, Isabella would remain in Burgundy until the time of marriage which would occur in 1488.
Charles final campaign into Friesland in order to seize the wayward county was planned all the way back in 1476 with the alliance between the emperor and Burgundy sealed there was no one who would assist the free republic of Frisia. Charles however would have a host of allies, his vassals of Cleves and Julich-Berg, financial support from Munster and Cologne, imperial neutrality and most importantly a joint invasion with Denmark who invaded north Frisia. However, delays such as the Angevin inheritance debacle and the Austro-Hungarian war would keep Charles in Burgundy until the early spring of 1480. Charles' forces would march north towards Friesland in the summer months slowly conquering their way through town after town. This would be the epitome of Charles' anti-urban policies and his centralization efforts. His armies were split up by multiple effective captains sieging and bribing their way into fully conquering the realm, the East Frisians already united under a count would lead into battle only to be decisively defeated at Leeuwarden. However, Charles would develop a fever in this campaign and the fever would grow worse during this campaign. Charles would live to see his forces take the city after a month long siege but on December 17, 1480. Charles the Absolute, or Charles I of Burgundy would pass away.
The lightning siege of Neuss and the subsequent capture of Hermann of Hesse would not quell the resistance of the city against the archbishop of Cologne and in fact it would cause the rebels to fight even hard for control over the electorate freeing Hermann in Neuss by 1476. The appointment and creation of the free city of Cologne in 1475 would further strengthen the rebellion as now the archbishop could not invade the free city for invoking the emperor's wrath. It would be in this situation with the archbishop in control of only two towns that Charles and his army would arrive in. The papal and imperial mediation would force him not to directly intervene in the situation instead Charles would do his best to mediate the conflict but as the situation continued, Charles began with imperial backing invaded Cologne, reoccupying Neuss in the autumn of 1477. Philip the Rich who at this point was assigned as regent of Burgundy in Charles' stead would provide Charles with a clear line of supply and communication.
The war fought by Charles would be a disaster for the Burgundians as while they continued to achieve victory in battle after battle, they would fail to make progress in major sieges with both Hesse, the papacy and to some extent the empire assisting. While Frederick signed an alliance with Charles, he would not resist bottling up Charles and his energies into Cologne, finally a peace was settled in 1478. In which Rupercht was recognized as archbishop with Hermann as his next bishop as the estates already elected him. Importantly for Charles, Burgundy, the Emperor and the Pope would ensure this peace. This peace would actually prove to a detriment to Charles, with the Archbishop's death in 1480, shortly after his own death, as when Hermann IV of Hesse would assume the archbishopric, he would finally stabilize the realm and would prove to be a capable politician playing off both the emperor and the Burgundians and securing Cologne from external influence throughout his lifetime. This peace would also shatter the notion of Burgundian invincibility that was given in 1475, after the conquest of Lorraine as the humiliation of playing town whack-a-mole would humiliate Burgundian prestige.
The Austro-Hungarian war of 1477-1490 would be the key outlet for Burgundian soft power during this era. Frederick III was unable to convince the electors to gain support in the war but Burgundy seeing an opportunity to gain further benefits decided to assist the Habsburgs in this war. Philip, now lieutenant/regent of all Burgundy greeted Maximilian, future Holy Roman Emperor and began to negotiate over his assistance. Frederick III at this point desperate for aid seeing the Black Army ravage Austria would also oversee negotiations. Philip saw that allowing such an aggressive Hungary into the empire as Holy Roman Emperor no less would doom Burgundian ambitions, he then asked for a Burgundian version of the privilegium Maius for Burgundy. This granted an independent legistature, jurisdiction with no right to appeal to Imperial courts and importantly inseparability of the territory. The privilege was quite limited in scope, uniting Brabant, Hainaut, Holland, Zeeland, Namur, Luxembourg, and Limburg together. This very limited agreement in exchange for Burgundian men at arms along with Burgundian funds was granted in the treaty of Mulhouse. Maximilian would return at the head of a professional standing Burgundian army to fight against the black army of Matthias Corvinus. This treaty of Mulhouse would be the beginning of Burgundian meddling into electoral and imperial politics, and would be a harbinger to the diarchy of the empire under the reign of Philip the Rich.
The death of Charles, count of Maine would trigger the succession crisis of 1481. Rene II, former Duke of Lorraine was imprisoned in Burgundy although a guest would be accurate as when Rene of Anjou passed away his will left Anjou to his nephew, Charles of Maine and Provence to Rene. The only reason why this will was respected by Louis XI was Charles the Absolute agreed to pay homage as Duke of Bar to Louis, and agreed that Anjou and Maine would return to Louis after Charles, Duke of Anjou's death, and importantly to Louis, the claims of the kingdom of Naples would return to Louis. However, in 1481 with Charles of Maine would die bequeathing his lands to the King. Ironically it would be this last shadow play in which Louis would finally best Charles bribing him with the agreement of not having to pay homage or send soldiers to assist the king in any war as duke of Bar in exchange for Rene being handed over in 1479. The king would charge him with treason as he went to war with Burgundy against the truce of 1474 signed by his suzerain. Rene II would be executed summarily. Philip would protest this move, as he saw Louis seize Provence afterwards. The end of the independence of Provence would be the completion of Louis' absolutist project. He summarily failed in trying to reign in Burgundy, arguably it would be Philip who ruined this completely with the marriage of his eldest daughter to him and his victories against the royalists in Nevers.
The king would also extinguish Armagnac, Alencon, Berry and weaken Orleans, Bourbon and Foix. The birth of Catherine of Navarre and the betrothal between her and Juan the Sickly of Spain would give the entirety of their French fiefs to king Louis in order to approve the marriage as the King would not allow another Normandy or Burgundy situation. The neutering of Orleans by marrying Joan his daughter to Louis of Orleans would ensure Orleans return to the crown after his death and Brittany was already quite weak with the birth of Anne of Brittany. King Louis was now hoping that he could repudiate the marriage between his heir Charles and Isabella in order to have him married to Anne in order to unite France with Brittany.
The debacle of Charles' marriage would come into question as the dual treaties of Picquigny eventually settling on the English, with a formal betrothal between Elizabeth of York and Charles, dauphin of France taking place. Edward IV however, would not allow Elizabeth to travel to France until she was of 19 years of age. Richard, Duke of Gloucester was quite furious with the betrothal as he believed Elizabeth was better off married to John, second son of Charles the Absolute. However, more importantly for Philip, Isabella who was now 4 years and quite healthy was now no longer betrothed and Philip began to look for a match. The Austro-hungarian war would demolish any chance at Maximilian's marriage as Christina of Saxony's betrothal would be broken in 1477 and Philip seizing an opportunity would marry Isabella to Maximilian. This marriage would seal the Austro-Burgundian alliance of 1479 and would plant firm pro-Burgundian ideas in Maximilian's head who was fascinated by the extravagant Burgundian court. Importantly for Philip, Isabella would remain in Burgundy until the time of marriage which would occur in 1488.
Charles final campaign into Friesland in order to seize the wayward county was planned all the way back in 1476 with the alliance between the emperor and Burgundy sealed there was no one who would assist the free republic of Frisia. Charles however would have a host of allies, his vassals of Cleves and Julich-Berg, financial support from Munster and Cologne, imperial neutrality and most importantly a joint invasion with Denmark who invaded north Frisia. However, delays such as the Angevin inheritance debacle and the Austro-Hungarian war would keep Charles in Burgundy until the early spring of 1480. Charles' forces would march north towards Friesland in the summer months slowly conquering their way through town after town. This would be the epitome of Charles' anti-urban policies and his centralization efforts. His armies were split up by multiple effective captains sieging and bribing their way into fully conquering the realm, the East Frisians already united under a count would lead into battle only to be decisively defeated at Leeuwarden. However, Charles would develop a fever in this campaign and the fever would grow worse during this campaign. Charles would live to see his forces take the city after a month long siege but on December 17, 1480. Charles the Absolute, or Charles I of Burgundy would pass away.
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RIP Charles the Absolute! Long live Philip the Rich.Alright I'll be back writing another biography of Charles the Absolute, hopefully I can throw Isabella of Portugal there
And can't wait For max to get his burgundian bride.
And please tell me Juan Will live to secure the Trastamaras with sons
Chapter 11.5: A generational project 1457 - 1480
Charles the Absolute was a product of his time, not as famous as his father Philip the Good, but considerably more successful and to many historians, one of the best Burgundian dukes of the era. His mother, Isabella of Portugal would shape Charles considerably, arguably his notions of chivalry, love of war, and his diplomatic skills came from his mother. Isabella of Portugal was one of the most prominent Burgundian Duchesses along side Margaret of York and Anne of Champagne. Her negotiations over the treaty of Arras would be the lynchpin of Burgundian policy towards France for the entirety of Charles' reign. Isabella of Portugal would pursue instead of a policy of withdrawal like her husband would push for a policy of defensive neutrality towards France, fighting tooth and nail to secure all the gains made in the treaty of Arras.
The childhood of Charles the Absolute was well documented in Burgundian manuscripts, he was raised in the ideals of chivalry and was a very passionate warrior and speaker. Philip would continuously display concern over Charles who wished to lead armies and joust himself. His engagement with Catherine of France was considered the first tragedy in his life and arguably one of the reasons he would remain incredibly faithful to his wives, as Charles and Catherine were quite fond of each other, if Catherine lived perhaps Charles would not be as hostile towards Louis and France but it was not meant to be with Catherine dying in 1446. This marriage was part of the Treaty of Arras agreeing to their betrothal in order to solidify peace.
Charles' second marriage however, Isabella would push for the marriage with Anne of York to solidify Burgundy's ties to England. Philip would overrule her and have Charles married to Isabella of Bourbon. Her marriage would be quiet and happy one, Philip who wanted Isabella to solidify Charles' attitude to France would watch this scheme backfire due to both Isabella's agreeing that France under Charles VII and Louis XI would not be friendly towards Burgundy. Isabella of Bourbon could be argued to promote her family of Bourbon's interests who already revolted against Charles VII in the Praguerie, but it was more likely Isabella of Portugal, who was actively caring and raising the boy influenced his interests to a complete anti-French attitude due to years of Charles VII not enforcing the terms of Arras. This divide between Charles and Philip would continue to his son's birth which would fundamentally change Charles' status within court.
The birth of Philip the Rich, would increase Charles' prestige in court and arguably forced Philip to look at Charles' as his heir and a man of his own right, the immediate shift in Charles' running affairs such as giving him the stadholder position and have him negotiate in Paris as Philip's ambassador would no doubt shape the young duke. It would be his time at governing that revealed the mindset of the absolutist duke. His speeches given fervently in Holland, were always with an authoritarian stint and he would be quite easily angered when insults would fly. However, he was fervent and strong willed in terms of governing and yet terribly indecisive, coming up with detailed plans every single day but scrapping them the day after coming up with even more elaborate plans. Philip who at this point was watching over quite attentively in how he governed sought to fix this indecisiveness and Charles would spend his time in Holland learning to govern with conviction. Charles' success in governing Holland was greatly attested to however, because of his increasing absolutist ideas, Holland's government would be simplified, united and streamlined much to the local nobility and merchants' anger. However, the winning over the populace by an increase in overall wealth would keep them Charles' approach happy. The minor revolts that happened in Holland however would also show his diplomatic prowess and approach, he would isolate his enemies from any potential allies and crush them with overwhelming force and friends. This manipulation of the balance of power would be something even Machiavelli would approve of. Charles the Absolute however would always have some hostility and some unpopularity especially amongst the merchants but it was his policies of centralization and united economic planning and growth that would fill the pockets of a new generation of merchants and nobles.
Louis XI of France could be argued as the main rival of Charles the Absolute, arguably that would be false as the majority of Charles' wars were against urban cities not kings. It can not be disputed that Charles imitated Louis' approach to governance. Oliver de La Marche would attest to this, as his chronicles of Louis' time of ruling Dauphiné, Charles would study during his time in Holland. Historians would still debate whether it was Louis himself shaping Charles' into an absolutist mindset from his time spent interacting with the young duke or Charles witnessing the various urban revolts under the reign of Philip the Good that his armies had to crush or even Charles' furthering his beliefs in being a noble duke in which he gained absolute power by God. Charles' would definitely enjoy the fruits and results of his time in governing Holland as during his reign of Burgundy, he would be force of will and arms unite the vast and various domains of the Burgundian dukes. He would see to it to start small and build up, finishing the half-completed projects under Philip the Bold, John the Fearless and Philip the Good in uniting both duchy and county of Burgundy, the border between those two would be practically demolished at this point while his efforts in centralizing the various domains further north would be even further decentralized. He would forcibly weaken the various privileges of the cities to give up further authority to their estates while continuously strengthening the various courts and eventually the parlament of Malines. This would cause various minor rebellions against the duke to arise but would always be put down by Charles' armies.
His financial reforms would be possibly the most successful policies of Charles. His belief in using the general estates of the Burgundian Netherlands and later on Burgundy to discuss and later implement economic policy was quite sound. The majority of his taxes that were raised were quite high but importantly standardized throughout the realm removing the various privileges in shrinking taxes to the duke himself, who would spend these taxes quite wisely in further economic development within Burgundy establishing the Burgundian network, a series of medieval roads that would fuel a population and urban growth. Historians would argue whether or not this Burgundian network was the beginning of the Burgundian Banana, a term describing the population density of the land between the Seine and Rhine rivers of which the majority of land would be part of Burgundy today. However, ironically the majority of the unrest towards the taxation was due to the various indemnities and fines levied against the cities for rebelling. This extraordinary taxation that was justified would further help him in his use of foreign expenses as Burgundy would use their wealth to fund their extravagant court and create various pro-Burgundian factions within the Holy Roman Empire and France.
Was the economic warfare prescribed by Charles to fight the various cities of the Holy Roman Empire successful? Probably not, Charles would seize various French merchant's goods in wars fought against France. Meanwhile, the fight over control of the wine trade in the Rhine region would have no real long term consequences as the following peaces signed between the cities and Burgundy would reopen trade between them keeping a slightly favourable status quo for Burgundy. Modern historians would argue that at the time Burgundy was a net exporter for the cities of the Rhine, and Burgundy would suffer more with the loss of the trade. The return of French goods after the various treaties of Conflans, Beaune, and Senlis would just have the goods returned to the dispossessed French merchants costing Burgundy time and arguably money as French trade under these merchants would decrease over time, and increase in price. These slight failures in economic warfare would not necessarily doom the Burgundian state in terms of being able to gain credit as under Charles credit was just as readily available for the Burgundian state as it was under Philip the Good with especially Florentine bankers provide small but consistent sums of credit to Charles to pay off usually diplomatic expenses.
His relation with the church would be quite difficult to describe as while Charles would consolidate the various churches under his state into one in terms of finance and administration, it would undoubtedly give the local clergy anger towards the energetic duke, but these reforms were already under way in both France and in Burgundy itself. Philip the Good under the guidance of Charles the Absolute would introduce the idea of the church tax for purchases of land for the church. This would take effect during the eve of Charles' ascension to Lorraine but at this point for Burgundy many of the local clergy would reluctantly accept this. The political appointments of bishops, deans, and archbishops would further increase Burgundian influence in both the prince-bishoprics and in the curia itself as Rome under Charles would consistently favour the Burgundians over the French. Interestingly enough Charles would take after Henry V of England in his approach of the church, as he would use the church to paint himself and his state in a positive light, thereby giving much needed popular support to Charles, and importantly to him diplomatic prestige.
His military reforms were both useful but could have been disastrous for Burgundian military strength. Charles would lay the groundwork for a professional military force adopting the popularity of pike warfare and heavily armoured knights of the French, but his increasing reliance of mercenaries especially Italian ones would be concerning especially to Philip. Arguably the lack of discipline and morale would be crush the Burgundian army, by the time of Philip's reign but historians agree that there was very little Charles could do to fix the issue of defence as he was unpopular and the urban centres at the time focused primarily on wealth rather than soldiers. Importantly for Charles the training and reorganization of the Burgundian military apparatus would allow during the later years of his reign, would allow Philip the Rich to reorganize and build up a fully Burgundian army. Were these military reforms effective on the battlefield? Arguably not, Charles' military strategy was he would only enter a battle if the war was already won, the mistake he suffered at Grandson would reflect that in himself nearly being killed. Charles would only fight wars in which his enemy was isolated diplomatically and his focus was not split. The defeat at Grandson would also show for all the splendour of Charles' army it would still fail, the minor victories were all militarily impossible to lose.
The diplomatic maneuvering of Charles the Absolute was on par with Louis XI and every single time, they would play each other Charles would best him. In the war of the Public Weal, Charles was incredibly lucky in blindsiding his opponent and formed a superstate to take down France from both the inside and the outside. If Charles continued this war of the public weal, undoubtedly the French crown would shatter completely. Charles would adopt his mother's stance in terms of diplomatic goals, to completely secure the Burgundian state from threats but to never overextend or overstretch as Philip's policy of withdrawal etched itself into both Charles and Isabella's mind. Arguably the war of the public weal, could be seen through Charles' as the only way to secure the treaty of Arras. However what was consistent with the pattern of Burgundian conquest was influence and isolation, the conquest of Alsace, Guelders, and Lorraine would prove direct proof of this. Sigismund of Austria was isolated of allies and could only turn to Charles for help arguably the attempts to constantly dissolve the coalition of the lower union was the failure of this policy, but it can be argued that it was merely a fault of character specifically Peter von Hagenbach. The conquest of Guelders and Lorraine would be better examples of this, specifically Lorraine as it was part of a three pronged offensive into Burgundy, but Charles' diplomatic acumen would remove both Frederick and Louis from this attack and force Rene out of Lorraine entirely.
Marriage policy under Charles would be entirely focused on diplomatic bargaining as well. His marriage of Margaret of York would be the first sign of this as Charles would seek a realignment and reconciliation with England which would be further strengthened in the betrothal of his second son John to Elizabeth of York. The betrothal of Isabella, youngest child of Charles to Maximilian would be perhaps the genius marriage move by Charles. He would gain in one fellow swoop, the support of the current emperor in exchange for money and soldiers which Charles would happily provide. This move would also make sense politically as Matthias Corvinus was perhaps the only one powerful enough to enter into imperial circles, the papacy was blocked and regelated to regional Italian politics, the Kalmar Union was going through tumult thanks to the nobility while France had a large Burgundy stopping its way. Matthias was already allegedly the king of Bohemia and Burgundy who was the most powerful state in the empire besides the emperor would not allow a foreign power to hold the electoral dignity before itself.
Philip and Anne's marriage however would be both confusing to historians but also the epitome of Charles' diplomatic acumen. The marriage proposal was sent to Charles back in 1463 when Louis wanted to use that marriage to enforce the treaty of Arras as the previous marriage between Catherine and Charles failed, Louis hoped a marriage between Anne and Philip would succeed in bringing Charles to kneel before the king. Arguably it would be the dowry of Champagne that would keep this marriage afloat. It was increasingly confusing in what Louis was trying to do with the marriage, whether it was to not give Champagne but instead bind Philip to Anne who would further French factionalism in Burgundy could be argued but Louis made no effort to pay the 1.2 million crowns needed for the dowry. The independence of Burgundy would not change this fact, and Philip's ascension as Count would perhaps be the best reason for Louis' choice of marrying his daughter off as Philip paid homage to him within days of his ascension. It seemed out of character for Louis to believe that as soon as his death occurred this scheme would fail completely, history would prove true as Champagne would proclaim independence in 1492. The other side of the coin was that Charles would force Louis to give up Champagne, due to the near impossible amount that was originally offered in 1465, Charles would agree to it by a forced treaty in Conflans, and the subsequent treaties of Peronne and Beaune would enforce this. In fact outright in the treaty of Senlis, Charles would cancel the dowry in exchange for Louis granting the county to Anne as soon as her marriage in 1476. A consensus formed that Louis believed this marriage would entrap Burgundy to France and Charles believed that this was a peaceful expansion effort, but this marriage would not provide peace between the two nations.
Charles' advancements towards the court of Burgundy were nothing of particular noteworthiness. In fact, one can describe the adjustments made by Charles as purely militaristic as various chivalric and military style etiquette was introduced. Charles however would strengthen and support any change to the court itself thereby maintaining the rigid etiquette of the Burgundian court. His contributions towards Burgundian manuscripts, patronage and artwork was mostly done through the advice of his wife Margaret of York however, importantly the introduction of various Italian manuscripts, artists and elements into Burgundian patronage would be noteworthy as Charles would rightfully realize the spotlight moving towards Italy in the form of the renaissance. Charles' obsession over chivalric values would also prove to be attractive for people to enter the Burgundian court as Charles was unlike his father remaining faithful throughout his life, his marriage with Catherine was tragic, Isabella was even more so, but his marriage with Margaret would provide him with a form of love but arguably not one that was particularly romantic or passionate.
Charles' raising Philip would perhaps be the best component of his legacy. Margaret of York, is well documented as the primary caretaker of Philip the Rich. Isabella of Bourbon's time raising young Philip would prove to give him his talents in public speaking. Margaret of York would shape the boy into a brilliant administrator, negotiator and court patron. Charles would immediately take the now 16 year old Philip and push him militarily, while Philip would not particularly enjoy his time doing military service he would recognize the value of Burgundian captains and would lead the shift towards rulers not commanding their armies personally and instead agreeing with the advice of military captains. Charles' death would leave Philip a string of nearly completed projects of centralization, an incredibly wealthy state with only a minor war it was about to win anyway. Importantly for Philip, his succession would be secure with the increasingly questioning support of Louis XI, Edward IV and the complete support of Frederick III and Maximilian.
There is a reason why Charles the Absolute was considered one of the most powerful dukes of his time and in historians mind. The financial and judicial reforms conducted under him were rivalling Louis XI and arguably was a lot harder to do since his realm was divided in full independence and nominal rule by the Holy Roman Emperor. His diplomatic acumen was nearly unmatched with the Privilegium Burgundiae would be disputed between Philip the Rich and Charles the Absolute on who got credit for this. The complete conquest of Guelders, Lorraine, Alsace and later on Friesland were completely secure through nominal military means but mostly through diplomatic and administrative reforms. Charles would be the precursor of the Burgundian golden age under Philip and would finally complete the long awaited Burgundian project that was first undertaken by Philip the Bold, which was to unite Burgundy to Flanders geographically. And yet, Charles would fail in his goals such as the imperial vicariate, and the complete neutralization of France as a threat, or even the complete subjugation of the Rhine. Could it be argued that Charles was merely too limited in his ambitions? Yes but Philip would remark in his own manuscripts, "My father would prioritize internal stability over geographic expansion."
The childhood of Charles the Absolute was well documented in Burgundian manuscripts, he was raised in the ideals of chivalry and was a very passionate warrior and speaker. Philip would continuously display concern over Charles who wished to lead armies and joust himself. His engagement with Catherine of France was considered the first tragedy in his life and arguably one of the reasons he would remain incredibly faithful to his wives, as Charles and Catherine were quite fond of each other, if Catherine lived perhaps Charles would not be as hostile towards Louis and France but it was not meant to be with Catherine dying in 1446. This marriage was part of the Treaty of Arras agreeing to their betrothal in order to solidify peace.
Charles' second marriage however, Isabella would push for the marriage with Anne of York to solidify Burgundy's ties to England. Philip would overrule her and have Charles married to Isabella of Bourbon. Her marriage would be quiet and happy one, Philip who wanted Isabella to solidify Charles' attitude to France would watch this scheme backfire due to both Isabella's agreeing that France under Charles VII and Louis XI would not be friendly towards Burgundy. Isabella of Bourbon could be argued to promote her family of Bourbon's interests who already revolted against Charles VII in the Praguerie, but it was more likely Isabella of Portugal, who was actively caring and raising the boy influenced his interests to a complete anti-French attitude due to years of Charles VII not enforcing the terms of Arras. This divide between Charles and Philip would continue to his son's birth which would fundamentally change Charles' status within court.
The birth of Philip the Rich, would increase Charles' prestige in court and arguably forced Philip to look at Charles' as his heir and a man of his own right, the immediate shift in Charles' running affairs such as giving him the stadholder position and have him negotiate in Paris as Philip's ambassador would no doubt shape the young duke. It would be his time at governing that revealed the mindset of the absolutist duke. His speeches given fervently in Holland, were always with an authoritarian stint and he would be quite easily angered when insults would fly. However, he was fervent and strong willed in terms of governing and yet terribly indecisive, coming up with detailed plans every single day but scrapping them the day after coming up with even more elaborate plans. Philip who at this point was watching over quite attentively in how he governed sought to fix this indecisiveness and Charles would spend his time in Holland learning to govern with conviction. Charles' success in governing Holland was greatly attested to however, because of his increasing absolutist ideas, Holland's government would be simplified, united and streamlined much to the local nobility and merchants' anger. However, the winning over the populace by an increase in overall wealth would keep them Charles' approach happy. The minor revolts that happened in Holland however would also show his diplomatic prowess and approach, he would isolate his enemies from any potential allies and crush them with overwhelming force and friends. This manipulation of the balance of power would be something even Machiavelli would approve of. Charles the Absolute however would always have some hostility and some unpopularity especially amongst the merchants but it was his policies of centralization and united economic planning and growth that would fill the pockets of a new generation of merchants and nobles.
Louis XI of France could be argued as the main rival of Charles the Absolute, arguably that would be false as the majority of Charles' wars were against urban cities not kings. It can not be disputed that Charles imitated Louis' approach to governance. Oliver de La Marche would attest to this, as his chronicles of Louis' time of ruling Dauphiné, Charles would study during his time in Holland. Historians would still debate whether it was Louis himself shaping Charles' into an absolutist mindset from his time spent interacting with the young duke or Charles witnessing the various urban revolts under the reign of Philip the Good that his armies had to crush or even Charles' furthering his beliefs in being a noble duke in which he gained absolute power by God. Charles' would definitely enjoy the fruits and results of his time in governing Holland as during his reign of Burgundy, he would be force of will and arms unite the vast and various domains of the Burgundian dukes. He would see to it to start small and build up, finishing the half-completed projects under Philip the Bold, John the Fearless and Philip the Good in uniting both duchy and county of Burgundy, the border between those two would be practically demolished at this point while his efforts in centralizing the various domains further north would be even further decentralized. He would forcibly weaken the various privileges of the cities to give up further authority to their estates while continuously strengthening the various courts and eventually the parlament of Malines. This would cause various minor rebellions against the duke to arise but would always be put down by Charles' armies.
His financial reforms would be possibly the most successful policies of Charles. His belief in using the general estates of the Burgundian Netherlands and later on Burgundy to discuss and later implement economic policy was quite sound. The majority of his taxes that were raised were quite high but importantly standardized throughout the realm removing the various privileges in shrinking taxes to the duke himself, who would spend these taxes quite wisely in further economic development within Burgundy establishing the Burgundian network, a series of medieval roads that would fuel a population and urban growth. Historians would argue whether or not this Burgundian network was the beginning of the Burgundian Banana, a term describing the population density of the land between the Seine and Rhine rivers of which the majority of land would be part of Burgundy today. However, ironically the majority of the unrest towards the taxation was due to the various indemnities and fines levied against the cities for rebelling. This extraordinary taxation that was justified would further help him in his use of foreign expenses as Burgundy would use their wealth to fund their extravagant court and create various pro-Burgundian factions within the Holy Roman Empire and France.
Was the economic warfare prescribed by Charles to fight the various cities of the Holy Roman Empire successful? Probably not, Charles would seize various French merchant's goods in wars fought against France. Meanwhile, the fight over control of the wine trade in the Rhine region would have no real long term consequences as the following peaces signed between the cities and Burgundy would reopen trade between them keeping a slightly favourable status quo for Burgundy. Modern historians would argue that at the time Burgundy was a net exporter for the cities of the Rhine, and Burgundy would suffer more with the loss of the trade. The return of French goods after the various treaties of Conflans, Beaune, and Senlis would just have the goods returned to the dispossessed French merchants costing Burgundy time and arguably money as French trade under these merchants would decrease over time, and increase in price. These slight failures in economic warfare would not necessarily doom the Burgundian state in terms of being able to gain credit as under Charles credit was just as readily available for the Burgundian state as it was under Philip the Good with especially Florentine bankers provide small but consistent sums of credit to Charles to pay off usually diplomatic expenses.
His relation with the church would be quite difficult to describe as while Charles would consolidate the various churches under his state into one in terms of finance and administration, it would undoubtedly give the local clergy anger towards the energetic duke, but these reforms were already under way in both France and in Burgundy itself. Philip the Good under the guidance of Charles the Absolute would introduce the idea of the church tax for purchases of land for the church. This would take effect during the eve of Charles' ascension to Lorraine but at this point for Burgundy many of the local clergy would reluctantly accept this. The political appointments of bishops, deans, and archbishops would further increase Burgundian influence in both the prince-bishoprics and in the curia itself as Rome under Charles would consistently favour the Burgundians over the French. Interestingly enough Charles would take after Henry V of England in his approach of the church, as he would use the church to paint himself and his state in a positive light, thereby giving much needed popular support to Charles, and importantly to him diplomatic prestige.
His military reforms were both useful but could have been disastrous for Burgundian military strength. Charles would lay the groundwork for a professional military force adopting the popularity of pike warfare and heavily armoured knights of the French, but his increasing reliance of mercenaries especially Italian ones would be concerning especially to Philip. Arguably the lack of discipline and morale would be crush the Burgundian army, by the time of Philip's reign but historians agree that there was very little Charles could do to fix the issue of defence as he was unpopular and the urban centres at the time focused primarily on wealth rather than soldiers. Importantly for Charles the training and reorganization of the Burgundian military apparatus would allow during the later years of his reign, would allow Philip the Rich to reorganize and build up a fully Burgundian army. Were these military reforms effective on the battlefield? Arguably not, Charles' military strategy was he would only enter a battle if the war was already won, the mistake he suffered at Grandson would reflect that in himself nearly being killed. Charles would only fight wars in which his enemy was isolated diplomatically and his focus was not split. The defeat at Grandson would also show for all the splendour of Charles' army it would still fail, the minor victories were all militarily impossible to lose.
The diplomatic maneuvering of Charles the Absolute was on par with Louis XI and every single time, they would play each other Charles would best him. In the war of the Public Weal, Charles was incredibly lucky in blindsiding his opponent and formed a superstate to take down France from both the inside and the outside. If Charles continued this war of the public weal, undoubtedly the French crown would shatter completely. Charles would adopt his mother's stance in terms of diplomatic goals, to completely secure the Burgundian state from threats but to never overextend or overstretch as Philip's policy of withdrawal etched itself into both Charles and Isabella's mind. Arguably the war of the public weal, could be seen through Charles' as the only way to secure the treaty of Arras. However what was consistent with the pattern of Burgundian conquest was influence and isolation, the conquest of Alsace, Guelders, and Lorraine would prove direct proof of this. Sigismund of Austria was isolated of allies and could only turn to Charles for help arguably the attempts to constantly dissolve the coalition of the lower union was the failure of this policy, but it can be argued that it was merely a fault of character specifically Peter von Hagenbach. The conquest of Guelders and Lorraine would be better examples of this, specifically Lorraine as it was part of a three pronged offensive into Burgundy, but Charles' diplomatic acumen would remove both Frederick and Louis from this attack and force Rene out of Lorraine entirely.
Marriage policy under Charles would be entirely focused on diplomatic bargaining as well. His marriage of Margaret of York would be the first sign of this as Charles would seek a realignment and reconciliation with England which would be further strengthened in the betrothal of his second son John to Elizabeth of York. The betrothal of Isabella, youngest child of Charles to Maximilian would be perhaps the genius marriage move by Charles. He would gain in one fellow swoop, the support of the current emperor in exchange for money and soldiers which Charles would happily provide. This move would also make sense politically as Matthias Corvinus was perhaps the only one powerful enough to enter into imperial circles, the papacy was blocked and regelated to regional Italian politics, the Kalmar Union was going through tumult thanks to the nobility while France had a large Burgundy stopping its way. Matthias was already allegedly the king of Bohemia and Burgundy who was the most powerful state in the empire besides the emperor would not allow a foreign power to hold the electoral dignity before itself.
Philip and Anne's marriage however would be both confusing to historians but also the epitome of Charles' diplomatic acumen. The marriage proposal was sent to Charles back in 1463 when Louis wanted to use that marriage to enforce the treaty of Arras as the previous marriage between Catherine and Charles failed, Louis hoped a marriage between Anne and Philip would succeed in bringing Charles to kneel before the king. Arguably it would be the dowry of Champagne that would keep this marriage afloat. It was increasingly confusing in what Louis was trying to do with the marriage, whether it was to not give Champagne but instead bind Philip to Anne who would further French factionalism in Burgundy could be argued but Louis made no effort to pay the 1.2 million crowns needed for the dowry. The independence of Burgundy would not change this fact, and Philip's ascension as Count would perhaps be the best reason for Louis' choice of marrying his daughter off as Philip paid homage to him within days of his ascension. It seemed out of character for Louis to believe that as soon as his death occurred this scheme would fail completely, history would prove true as Champagne would proclaim independence in 1492. The other side of the coin was that Charles would force Louis to give up Champagne, due to the near impossible amount that was originally offered in 1465, Charles would agree to it by a forced treaty in Conflans, and the subsequent treaties of Peronne and Beaune would enforce this. In fact outright in the treaty of Senlis, Charles would cancel the dowry in exchange for Louis granting the county to Anne as soon as her marriage in 1476. A consensus formed that Louis believed this marriage would entrap Burgundy to France and Charles believed that this was a peaceful expansion effort, but this marriage would not provide peace between the two nations.
Charles' advancements towards the court of Burgundy were nothing of particular noteworthiness. In fact, one can describe the adjustments made by Charles as purely militaristic as various chivalric and military style etiquette was introduced. Charles however would strengthen and support any change to the court itself thereby maintaining the rigid etiquette of the Burgundian court. His contributions towards Burgundian manuscripts, patronage and artwork was mostly done through the advice of his wife Margaret of York however, importantly the introduction of various Italian manuscripts, artists and elements into Burgundian patronage would be noteworthy as Charles would rightfully realize the spotlight moving towards Italy in the form of the renaissance. Charles' obsession over chivalric values would also prove to be attractive for people to enter the Burgundian court as Charles was unlike his father remaining faithful throughout his life, his marriage with Catherine was tragic, Isabella was even more so, but his marriage with Margaret would provide him with a form of love but arguably not one that was particularly romantic or passionate.
Charles' raising Philip would perhaps be the best component of his legacy. Margaret of York, is well documented as the primary caretaker of Philip the Rich. Isabella of Bourbon's time raising young Philip would prove to give him his talents in public speaking. Margaret of York would shape the boy into a brilliant administrator, negotiator and court patron. Charles would immediately take the now 16 year old Philip and push him militarily, while Philip would not particularly enjoy his time doing military service he would recognize the value of Burgundian captains and would lead the shift towards rulers not commanding their armies personally and instead agreeing with the advice of military captains. Charles' death would leave Philip a string of nearly completed projects of centralization, an incredibly wealthy state with only a minor war it was about to win anyway. Importantly for Philip, his succession would be secure with the increasingly questioning support of Louis XI, Edward IV and the complete support of Frederick III and Maximilian.
There is a reason why Charles the Absolute was considered one of the most powerful dukes of his time and in historians mind. The financial and judicial reforms conducted under him were rivalling Louis XI and arguably was a lot harder to do since his realm was divided in full independence and nominal rule by the Holy Roman Emperor. His diplomatic acumen was nearly unmatched with the Privilegium Burgundiae would be disputed between Philip the Rich and Charles the Absolute on who got credit for this. The complete conquest of Guelders, Lorraine, Alsace and later on Friesland were completely secure through nominal military means but mostly through diplomatic and administrative reforms. Charles would be the precursor of the Burgundian golden age under Philip and would finally complete the long awaited Burgundian project that was first undertaken by Philip the Bold, which was to unite Burgundy to Flanders geographically. And yet, Charles would fail in his goals such as the imperial vicariate, and the complete neutralization of France as a threat, or even the complete subjugation of the Rhine. Could it be argued that Charles was merely too limited in his ambitions? Yes but Philip would remark in his own manuscripts, "My father would prioritize internal stability over geographic expansion."
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Chapter 12: Across the Rhine 1475 - 1483
The first project of Philip the Rich was the expansion to the Rhine, which would be his greatest legacy. Already in 1476 in the treaty of Mulhouse, Burgundy annexed the Alsace region that was mortgaged to them in 1476 gave them a firm hand over the region of Alsace which would be further augmented by Philip the Rich with appointment of a Burgundian partisan to the Bishopric of Strasbourg, Albert of Palatine-Mosbach in 1478 who would eagerly use Burgundian funds to strengthen his estate and buying back mortgaged lands within the Alsace region. The treaty of Nancy in 1477 would further Burgundian interests in Alsace and the Vaud region. The servitude of the baron of Vaud and the de facto vassalage of Savoy would serve as an incredibly strong buffer against the nascent Swiss confederation. The petty wars of Alsace of 1482-1483 would see only slight expansion by Burgundy and while the lands of Rappolstein, Murbach, Colmar, Selestat, the free city of Strasbourg itself, Basel and Dasburg would not be directly owned by the energetic duke, the treaties signed which were collectively known as the Alsatian peace accords would turn the entire region into a Burgundian protective. Philip would pursue a relentless policy of redeeming privileges and lands in Alsace and by the end of 1485 this process would be complete with the sale of Sausenberg to Burgundy thereby finally uniting Ferrette and Sundgau.
The death of Frederick the Victorious and ascension of Philip the Upright as elector palatine would not change the dynamic of Burgundian-Palatine relations as Burgundy would firmly place those lands in Burgundian influence under Philip who would use Burgundian money to secure himself the role of de facto backer of the elector against the Bavarians. In 1481 with the ascension of Philip the Rich as Duke of Burgundy a formal defensive alliance would be formed between the two Philips. This alliance would be key in the war of the Bavarian succession and the rise of a reunited Bavaria later in Philip's reign. This would not be the only elector in Philip's pocket, as during his time in Trier in 1473, he would meet and later influence John II of Baden, the archbishop of Trier. Trier was the closest elector and the one most easily influenced ever since the sale and subsequent seizure of Luxembourg to Philip the Good, while Philip the Good did not necessarily sought to influence the archbishop, Charles his heir would exercise huge amounts of effort in influencing the archbishop, while not entirely successful he was able to sign various economic treaties with the electorate which eventually culminated in the imperial conference of 1473 hosted at Trier. Charles would relentlessly pursue in placing the archbishop firmly in his pocket and would succeed by the marriage between Philip and Anne, in which the archbishop asked to officiate the wedding itself, obviously King Louis rejected this offer but Charles was none the less pleased with the news as John II of Baden, archbishop of Trier seemed to be a new firm Burgundian ally.
In Mainz, Burgundy would find less success as the appointment of a Saxon archbishop, Adelbart III and the subsequent appointment of a reformist and electoral strengthener of Berthold von Henneberg. This would begin a growing trend amongst the Rhine electors as they struggled between Burgundy and the other electors for control. Cologne would be a perfect example, already the incredibly unpopular Rupercht of the Palatine would die and be succeeded by the anti-Burgundian elector of Hermann IV of Hesse who with the assistance of the Landgrave of Hesse, Henry III would systematically remove pillars of Burgundian support, while Burgundy under Philip would still maintain economic influence over Cologne but never any political influence until Hermann's death.
Perhaps the greatest expansion efforts of Burgundy would be under the free cities specifically the former lower union of free cities as Charles' war against them in 1478 would give him control over all the various cities except Bern, and yet imperial law would keep them nominally independent. Philip the Rich would act as the chains to keep these cities completely loyal through mostly trade directing the influx of trade through Burgundian lands and keeping them only prosperous if Burgundy was friendly towards them. The free city of Cologne would be a good example of this as in 1482, Philip would visit the city briefly and impress the city magnates and merchants with profit schemes for them that the free city would be in firm Burgundian influence throughout Philip's lifetime.
Philip would further strengthen his grip over Utrecht and Liege, both David and Louis would swear their loyalty to Philip as the new duke. Liege would not actually revolt even with Charles' death and Philip would visit both Utrecht and Liege in 1482 thereby confirming Burgundian influence there, and through agreements with their respective estates both of these bishoprics would be content as subjects of Burgundy trading political freedom for economic prosperity. A similar story would shared in Cambrai, Tournai, Metz, Verdun and Toul. This project of centralization of ecclesiastical states would be finished with the appointment of a crown cardinal in 1485.
Guelders would prove to be another obstacle for Burgundy after Charles' death as the imprisoned Adolf who was sent out to fight on behalf of Charles would die too shortly after the siege of Leeuwarden. This would cause a rebellion lead by Catherine of Guelders, which undid the majority of the progress made in the Frisian campaign in 1480, and instead lock Guelders and Frisia in a war of dominance which was discreetly funded by the French and the Habsburgs, the legendary Catherine of Guelders would lead this protracted guerrilla-esque war. A combined effort would lead to the overthrow of David of Burgundy from the county of Oversticht, a land of the bishopric of Utrecht and would be directly annexed by Guelders in 1482. Philip however would not spend the his major energies dealing with this war as it would be on the back of his mind for Burgundy's attention was focused on France and England. Margaret of York however would spend the majority of her energies behind it leading a brutal campaign and defeating the rebellious duchy and completely annexing Frisia and East Frisia by 1486.
The neighbouring duchies of Cleves and Julich-Berg would begin to slowly detach themselves from Burgundian influence, the ascension of William IV of Julich-Berg would not change the situation with Burgundy as Charles practically bullied his way into de facto subjugating the young duke but the remarriage of William IV to a daughter of the elector of Brandenburg would prove to be an issue for Charles and later Philip both fearing further imperial influence as Brandenburg was a staunch imperial ally. Cleves would prove to be even more troubling as the birth of Engelbert who Elizabeth of Nevers passed on her claim to Nevers, Rethel and Eu to would prove dangerous to Philip as Elizabeth had a far stronger claim to the counties than him, while technically the peace at Beaune forced the inheritance to passed to Charles and his heir, Philip knew neither Cleves nor France would be keen on upholding the treaty, he also rightfully feared further intervention by the Holy Roman Emperor who always wished to limit Burgundian expansion and the rich county of Nevers would allow the French to serve as a distraction to remove the "King without a crown" Philip the Rich from his imperial holdings.
The invasion of Frisia which was a disaster that was a near success for the Burgundians. Charles' unfortunate death caused the complete revolt of Guelders lead by the fearsome Catherine of Guelders. The catasrophe would force Oliver to sacrifice his gains in Frisia and fight a slow devastating retreat to Holland. The war would be primarily fought by Oliver but fiercely funded by Margaret, arguably her involvement was the grief suffered to Charles' death and she blamed it on Frisia. Oliver would spend the remainder of 1481-1482 learning various guerrilla tactics and suffering defeat after defeat such as the ambush at Meppel and the sacking of The Hague. Margaret would not give up however, and would eventually defeated the combined Frisian-Guelder force just outside the city of Utrecht itself. The decisive victory at Utrecht would lead to a painfully slow reconquest of Guelders in 1484-1485 but by the time Oliver arrived at Frisia, the war was practically over as Friesland and East Frisia was spent fighting a near 5 year long war. While some historians would argue that Philip's absence from this crucial campaign delayed it unnecessarily and caused significant damage to Burgundy many historians agree that Philip's time dedicated to the unfolding situation in France and England was far more important for the young duke.
Lorraine and Bar would be another sign of the blurring of imperial and Burgundian borders again as while Bar was technically subject to the King of France as per the treaties of Bruges in 1301. Rene II of Lorraine would seek to unite both duchy and county during his brief time as Duke of Lorraine and Heir to Bar. Philip would continue this task in 1480 with the death of Rene of Anjou, even though he was de jure Duke of Bar, Charles had already conquered the land by 1475, and with Rene's death a new agreement signed between the two estates of Bar and Lorraine would unite the two domains and would remain inseparable by 1480 under Philip's supervision. It would be this agreement that would start a firestorm of French hostility as Louis rightfully believed in the fact that Bar would be under imperial jurisdiction and not under French however, through various Burgundian lawyers and agreements the treaty of Bar would reaffirm French suzerainty over the lands west of Meuse river.
The death of Frederick the Victorious and ascension of Philip the Upright as elector palatine would not change the dynamic of Burgundian-Palatine relations as Burgundy would firmly place those lands in Burgundian influence under Philip who would use Burgundian money to secure himself the role of de facto backer of the elector against the Bavarians. In 1481 with the ascension of Philip the Rich as Duke of Burgundy a formal defensive alliance would be formed between the two Philips. This alliance would be key in the war of the Bavarian succession and the rise of a reunited Bavaria later in Philip's reign. This would not be the only elector in Philip's pocket, as during his time in Trier in 1473, he would meet and later influence John II of Baden, the archbishop of Trier. Trier was the closest elector and the one most easily influenced ever since the sale and subsequent seizure of Luxembourg to Philip the Good, while Philip the Good did not necessarily sought to influence the archbishop, Charles his heir would exercise huge amounts of effort in influencing the archbishop, while not entirely successful he was able to sign various economic treaties with the electorate which eventually culminated in the imperial conference of 1473 hosted at Trier. Charles would relentlessly pursue in placing the archbishop firmly in his pocket and would succeed by the marriage between Philip and Anne, in which the archbishop asked to officiate the wedding itself, obviously King Louis rejected this offer but Charles was none the less pleased with the news as John II of Baden, archbishop of Trier seemed to be a new firm Burgundian ally.
In Mainz, Burgundy would find less success as the appointment of a Saxon archbishop, Adelbart III and the subsequent appointment of a reformist and electoral strengthener of Berthold von Henneberg. This would begin a growing trend amongst the Rhine electors as they struggled between Burgundy and the other electors for control. Cologne would be a perfect example, already the incredibly unpopular Rupercht of the Palatine would die and be succeeded by the anti-Burgundian elector of Hermann IV of Hesse who with the assistance of the Landgrave of Hesse, Henry III would systematically remove pillars of Burgundian support, while Burgundy under Philip would still maintain economic influence over Cologne but never any political influence until Hermann's death.
Perhaps the greatest expansion efforts of Burgundy would be under the free cities specifically the former lower union of free cities as Charles' war against them in 1478 would give him control over all the various cities except Bern, and yet imperial law would keep them nominally independent. Philip the Rich would act as the chains to keep these cities completely loyal through mostly trade directing the influx of trade through Burgundian lands and keeping them only prosperous if Burgundy was friendly towards them. The free city of Cologne would be a good example of this as in 1482, Philip would visit the city briefly and impress the city magnates and merchants with profit schemes for them that the free city would be in firm Burgundian influence throughout Philip's lifetime.
Philip would further strengthen his grip over Utrecht and Liege, both David and Louis would swear their loyalty to Philip as the new duke. Liege would not actually revolt even with Charles' death and Philip would visit both Utrecht and Liege in 1482 thereby confirming Burgundian influence there, and through agreements with their respective estates both of these bishoprics would be content as subjects of Burgundy trading political freedom for economic prosperity. A similar story would shared in Cambrai, Tournai, Metz, Verdun and Toul. This project of centralization of ecclesiastical states would be finished with the appointment of a crown cardinal in 1485.
Guelders would prove to be another obstacle for Burgundy after Charles' death as the imprisoned Adolf who was sent out to fight on behalf of Charles would die too shortly after the siege of Leeuwarden. This would cause a rebellion lead by Catherine of Guelders, which undid the majority of the progress made in the Frisian campaign in 1480, and instead lock Guelders and Frisia in a war of dominance which was discreetly funded by the French and the Habsburgs, the legendary Catherine of Guelders would lead this protracted guerrilla-esque war. A combined effort would lead to the overthrow of David of Burgundy from the county of Oversticht, a land of the bishopric of Utrecht and would be directly annexed by Guelders in 1482. Philip however would not spend the his major energies dealing with this war as it would be on the back of his mind for Burgundy's attention was focused on France and England. Margaret of York however would spend the majority of her energies behind it leading a brutal campaign and defeating the rebellious duchy and completely annexing Frisia and East Frisia by 1486.
The neighbouring duchies of Cleves and Julich-Berg would begin to slowly detach themselves from Burgundian influence, the ascension of William IV of Julich-Berg would not change the situation with Burgundy as Charles practically bullied his way into de facto subjugating the young duke but the remarriage of William IV to a daughter of the elector of Brandenburg would prove to be an issue for Charles and later Philip both fearing further imperial influence as Brandenburg was a staunch imperial ally. Cleves would prove to be even more troubling as the birth of Engelbert who Elizabeth of Nevers passed on her claim to Nevers, Rethel and Eu to would prove dangerous to Philip as Elizabeth had a far stronger claim to the counties than him, while technically the peace at Beaune forced the inheritance to passed to Charles and his heir, Philip knew neither Cleves nor France would be keen on upholding the treaty, he also rightfully feared further intervention by the Holy Roman Emperor who always wished to limit Burgundian expansion and the rich county of Nevers would allow the French to serve as a distraction to remove the "King without a crown" Philip the Rich from his imperial holdings.
The invasion of Frisia which was a disaster that was a near success for the Burgundians. Charles' unfortunate death caused the complete revolt of Guelders lead by the fearsome Catherine of Guelders. The catasrophe would force Oliver to sacrifice his gains in Frisia and fight a slow devastating retreat to Holland. The war would be primarily fought by Oliver but fiercely funded by Margaret, arguably her involvement was the grief suffered to Charles' death and she blamed it on Frisia. Oliver would spend the remainder of 1481-1482 learning various guerrilla tactics and suffering defeat after defeat such as the ambush at Meppel and the sacking of The Hague. Margaret would not give up however, and would eventually defeated the combined Frisian-Guelder force just outside the city of Utrecht itself. The decisive victory at Utrecht would lead to a painfully slow reconquest of Guelders in 1484-1485 but by the time Oliver arrived at Frisia, the war was practically over as Friesland and East Frisia was spent fighting a near 5 year long war. While some historians would argue that Philip's absence from this crucial campaign delayed it unnecessarily and caused significant damage to Burgundy many historians agree that Philip's time dedicated to the unfolding situation in France and England was far more important for the young duke.
Lorraine and Bar would be another sign of the blurring of imperial and Burgundian borders again as while Bar was technically subject to the King of France as per the treaties of Bruges in 1301. Rene II of Lorraine would seek to unite both duchy and county during his brief time as Duke of Lorraine and Heir to Bar. Philip would continue this task in 1480 with the death of Rene of Anjou, even though he was de jure Duke of Bar, Charles had already conquered the land by 1475, and with Rene's death a new agreement signed between the two estates of Bar and Lorraine would unite the two domains and would remain inseparable by 1480 under Philip's supervision. It would be this agreement that would start a firestorm of French hostility as Louis rightfully believed in the fact that Bar would be under imperial jurisdiction and not under French however, through various Burgundian lawyers and agreements the treaty of Bar would reaffirm French suzerainty over the lands west of Meuse river.
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