The
Burgundian Wars were a conflict between the
Dukes of BurgundyThe Duchy of Burgundy was a feudal territory in Medieval Europe. It roughly conforms to the modern Bourgogne, although it grew to have considerable possessions in the Low Countries as well...
and the
Kings of FranceThe House of Valois The House of Valois The House of Valois ( was a cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty, succeeding the House of Capet (or 'Direct Capetians') as kings of France from 1328 to 1589...
, later involving the
Old Swiss ConfederacyThe Old Swiss Confederacy was the precursor of modern-day Switzerland. The Swiss Eidgenossenschaft, as the Confederacy was called, was a loose federation of largely independent small states called cantons that existed from the late 13th century until 1798, when it was invaded by the French...
, which would play a decisive role. Open war broke out in 1474, and in the following years, the
Duke of BurgundyDuke of Burgundy was a title borne by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, a small portion of traditional lands of Burgundians west of river Saône which in 843 was allotted to Charles the Bald's kingdom of West Franks.-Bosonid dynasty:...
, Charles the Bold, was defeated thrice on the battlefield and killed in the
Battle of NancyThe Battle of Nancy was the final and decisive battle of the Burgundian Wars, fought outside the walls of Nancy on 5 January 1477 between Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, and René, Duke of Lorraine...
. The
Duchy of BurgundyThe Duchy of Burgundy was a feudal territory in Medieval Europe. It roughly conforms to the modern Bourgogne, although it grew to have considerable possessions in the Low Countries as well...
and several other Burgundian lands then became part of
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
, while the
Burgundian NetherlandsIn the history of the Low Countries, the Burgundian Netherlands refers to the period when the dukes of Burgundy ruled the area, as well as Luxembourg and parts of northern France, from 1384 to 1530.-Dynastic:...
and the Franche Comté were inherited by Charles's daughter
Mary of BurgundyMargaret, Duchess of Savoy|house=House of Valois-Burgundy|father=Charles the Bold|mother=Isabella of Bourbon|date of birth=13 February 1457|place of birth=Brussels, Brabant|date of death=|place of death=Castle of Wijnendale, Flanders...
, and eventually passed to the House of Habsburg upon her death because of her marriage to
Maximilian I, Holy Roman EmperorMaximilian I of Habsburg was King of the Romans from 1493 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death, but had ruled jointly with his father for the last ten years of his father's reign, from circa 1483...
.
The general situation
The dukes of Burgundy had succeeded, over a period of about 100 years, in establishing their rule as a strong force between the
Holy Roman EmpireThe Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period under a Holy Roman Emperor. The first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire was Otto I, crowned in 962. The last was Francis II, who abdicated and dissolved the Empire in 1806 during...
and
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
. Their possessions included, besides their homelands of the
Franche-ComtéFranche-Comté the former "Free County" of Burgundy, as distinct from the neighbouring Duchy, is an administrative region and a traditional province of eastern France...
and the
Duchy of BurgundyDuke of Burgundy was a title borne by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, a small portion of traditional lands of Burgundians west of river Saône which in 843 was allotted to Charles the Bald's kingdom of West Franks.-Bosonid dynasty:...
, the economically strong regions of
FlandersFlanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France, and the Netherlands...
and Brabant, and also
LuxembourgLuxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a small, landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany...
.
The dukes of Burgundy generally pursued an aggressive expansionist politics, especially in
AlsaceAlsace is the fourth-smallest of the 26 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the sixth-most densely populated region in France , with 222 inhabitants per km²...
and
LorraineLorraine is a historical area in present-day northeast France. Some of the main cities are Metz, Nancy and Verdun.-Lotharingia:Lorraine was originally an independent kingdom. It was created in 843, when the Carolingian empire was divided between the three sons of Louis the Pious...
, seeking to geographically unite their northern and southern possessions. Having already been in conflict with the French king (Burgundy had sided with the
EnglishEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in the
Hundred Years' WarThe Hundred Years' War was a prolonged conflict lasting from 1337 to 1453 between two royal houses for the French throne, which was vacant with the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings. The two primary contenders were the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known...
), Charles' advances along the Rhine brought him in conflict with the Habsburgs and especially emperor
Frederick IIIFrederick or Friedrich of Habsburg was Duke of Austria as Frederick V since 1424, successor of Albert II as German King as Frederick IV since 1440, and Holy Roman Emperor as Frederick III since 1452...
.
The conflict
Initially in 1469, Duke
Sigismund of HabsburgSigismund of Austria, Duke, then Archduke of Further Austria was a Habsburg archduke of Austria and ruler of Tirol from 1446 to 1490....
of Austria assigned his possessions in the
AlsaceAlsace is the fourth-smallest of the 26 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the sixth-most densely populated region in France , with 222 inhabitants per km²...
as a fiefdom to the
Duke of BurgundyDuke of Burgundy was a title borne by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, a small portion of traditional lands of Burgundians west of river Saône which in 843 was allotted to Charles the Bald's kingdom of West Franks.-Bosonid dynasty:...
, Charles the Bold, to have them protected better against the expansion of the
EidgenossenEidgenossenschaft is a German word meaning confederation. The term literally translates as "oath fellowship". An Eidgenossenschaft is a confederacy of equal partners, which can be individuals or groups such as states, formed by a pact sealed by a solemn oath. Such an alliance could be either...
. Charles' involvement west of the Rhine gave him no reason to attack the confederates as Sigismund had wanted, but his embargo politics against the cities of
BaselBasel is Switzerland's third most populous city . With 830000 inhabitants in the tri-national metropolitan area , Basel is Switzerland's second-largest urban area....
,
StrasbourgStrasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in north-eastern France. With 702,412 inhabitants in 2007, its metropolitan area is the ninth largest in France...
, and
MulhouseMulhouse is a city and commune in eastern France, close to the Swiss and German borders. With 271,000 inhabitants in the metropolitan area in 2007 it is the largest city in the Haut-Rhin department, and the second largest in the Alsace region after Strasbourg...
, directed by his reeve
Peter von HagenbachPeter von Hagenbach was born into a Alsace-Bourgogne family. They were originally from Hagenbach and owned a castle there....
, prompted these to turn to
BerneThe city of Bern or Berne is the Bundesstadt of Switzerland, and, with 122,658 people, the fourth most populous city in Switzerland. The Bern agglomeration, which includes 43 municipalities, has a population of 343,600...
for help. Charles' expansionist strategy suffered a first setback in his politics when his attack on the
Archbishopric of CologneThe Electorate of Cologne was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire and existed from the 10th to the early 19th century. It consisted of the temporal possessions of the Archbishop of Cologne . It was ruled by the Archbishop in his function as prince-elector of the empire. The...
failed after the unsuccessful
Siege of NeussThe Siege of Neuss, from 1474–1475, was part of the Burgundian Wars. The siege, led by Charles the Bold against the Holy Roman Empire city of Neuss, was unsuccessful...
(1473–1474).
In a second phase, Sigismund sought to achieve a peace agreement with the Swiss confederates, which eventually was concluded in
KonstanzKonstanz is a university town of around 80,000 inhabitants at the western end of Lake Constance in the south-west corner of Germany, bordering Switzerland.-Location:...
in 1474 (later called the
Ewige Richtung). He wanted to buy back his Alsace possessions from Charles, which the latter refused. Shortly afterwards, von Hagenbach was captured and executed by decapitation in Alsace, and the Swiss, united with the Alsace cities and Sigismund of Habsburg in an "anti-Burgundian league", conquered part of the Burgundian Jura (
Franche-ComtéFranche-Comté the former "Free County" of Burgundy, as distinct from the neighbouring Duchy, is an administrative region and a traditional province of eastern France...
) when they won the
Battle of HéricourtThe Battle of Héricourt, fought in November 1474, was part of the Burgundian Wars, and resulted in a defeat for Burgundy and its allies....
in November 1474. The next year, Bernese forces conquered and ravaged
VaudVaud is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland and is located in Romandy, the southwestern part of the country. The capital is Lausanne. The name of the Canton in Switzerland's other languages are Vaud in Italian , Waadt in German and Vad in Romansh.-History:Along the lakes, Vaud was inhabited in...
, which belonged to the
Duchy of SavoyFrom 1416 to 1714, the territories of the House of Savoy were known as the Duchy of Savoy . The Duchy was a state in the northern part of the Italian Peninsula, with some territories that are now in France...
, which was allied with Charles the Bold. In the
ValaisThe Valais is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland in the southwestern part of the country, around the valley of the Rhône from its headwaters to Lake Geneva, separating the Pennine Alps from the Bernese Alps. The canton is one of the drier parts of Switzerland in its central Rhône valley...
, the independent republics of the
Sieben Zenden, with the help of Bernese and other confederate forces, drove the Savoyards out of the lower Valais after a victory in the
Battle on the PlantaThe Battle on the Planta, fought in November 1475, was part of the Burgundian Wars....
in November 1475. In 1476, Charles retaliated and marched to
GrandsonGrandson is a municipality in the district of Grandson in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland.During the Burgundian Wars, Charles the Bold was defeated near here in the Battle of Grandson on 2 March 1476.-Geography:...
, which belonged to Pierre de Romont of Savoy, but which had recently been taken by the Swiss, where he had the garrison hanged or drowned in the lake despite their capitulation. When the Swiss confederate forces arrived a few days later, his army suffered a devastating defeat in the
Battle of GrandsonThe Battle of Grandson, took place on 2 March 1476, was part of the Burgundian Wars, and resulted in a major defeat for Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy.- Siege of Grandson, February 1476 :...
, and he was forced to flee the battlefield, leaving behind his artillery and many provisions and valuables. Having rallied a new army, he was again defeated by the confederates in the
Battle of MoratThe Battle of Morat was a battle in the Burgundian Wars fought June 22, 1476 between Charles I, Duke of Burgundy and a Swiss army at Murten , about 30 kilometers from Bern.-Background:...
. Charles the Bold fell in the
Battle of NancyThe Battle of Nancy was the final and decisive battle of the Burgundian Wars, fought outside the walls of Nancy on 5 January 1477 between Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, and René, Duke of Lorraine...
in 1477, where the Swiss fought alongside an army of
René IIRené II was Count of Vaudémont from 1470, Duke of Lorraine from 1473, and Duke of Bar from 1483 to 1508. He claimed the crown of the Kingdom of Naples and the County of Provence as the Duke of Calabria 1480–1493 and as King of Naples and Jerusalem 1493–1508...
, Duke of Lorraine.
Effects
With the death of Charles the Bold, the dynasty of the
dukes of BurgundyDuke of Burgundy was a title borne by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, a small portion of traditional lands of Burgundians west of river Saône which in 843 was allotted to Charles the Bald's kingdom of West Franks.-Bosonid dynasty:...
died out. The
FlemishFlanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France, and the Netherlands...
territories of the Dukes of Burgundy subsequently became a possession of the Habsburgs, when
Archduke Maximilian of AustriaMaximilian I of Habsburg was King of the Romans from 1493 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death, but had ruled jointly with his father for the last ten years of his father's reign, from circa 1483...
, who would later become
Holy Roman EmperorThe Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a Middle Ages ruler, who as German King had in addition received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope of the Holy Roman Church, and after the 16th century, the elected monarch governing the Holy Roman Empire, a Central...
, married Charles' only daughter
Mary of BurgundyMargaret, Duchess of Savoy|house=House of Valois-Burgundy|father=Charles the Bold|mother=Isabella of Bourbon|date of birth=13 February 1457|place of birth=Brussels, Brabant|date of death=|place of death=Castle of Wijnendale, Flanders...
. The duchy of
BurgundyThe Duchy of Burgundy was a feudal territory in Medieval Europe. It roughly conforms to the modern Bourgogne, although it grew to have considerable possessions in the Low Countries as well...
reverted to the crown of
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
under king
Louis XILouis XI , called the Prudent and the Universal Spider or the Spider King, was the King of France from 1461 to 1483...
. The Franche-Comté initially also became French, but was ceded to Maximilian's son
PhilipPhilip I , known as the Handsome or the Fair, was the son of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor...
in 1493 by the French king
Charles VIIICharles VIII, called the Affable, , was King of France from 1483 to his death. Charles was a member of the House of Valois...
in the
treaty of SenlisThe Treaty of Senlis concerning the Burgundian succession was signed at Senlis, Oise in May of 1493 between Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor and King Charles VIII of France....
, in an attempt to bribe the Emperor to remain neutral during Charles's planned invasion of
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
.
The victories of the
Eidgenossen (Swiss Confederation) over one of the most powerful military forces in Europe at the time gained them a reputation of near invincibility, and the Burgundian Wars marked the beginning of the rise of
Swiss mercenariesSwiss mercenaries were soldiers notable for their service in foreign armies, especially the armies of the Kings of France, throughout the Early Modern period of European history, from the Later Middle Ages into the Age of the European Enlightenment...
on the battlefields of Europe. Inside the Confederacy itself, however, the outcome of the war did lead to internal conflict when the city cantons insisted on having the lion's share of the proceeds since they had supplied the most troops. The country cantons resented this and the Dreizehn Orte disputes almost led to war. They were settled by the
Stanser VerkommnisIn the Stanser Verkommnis of 1481 the Tagsatzung solved the latent conflict between the rural and urban cantons of the Old Swiss Confederacy, averting the breaking of the Confederacy, and triggering its further expansion from 8 to 13 members until 1513.The tensions between the cantons had arisen...
of 1481.
Further reading
- Richard Vaughan, Charles the Bold: The Last Valois Duke of Burgundy. London, Longman Group Ltd., 1973. ISBN
- Florens Deuchler, Die Burgunderbeute: Inventar der Beutestücke aus den Schlachten von Grandson, Murten und Nancy 1476/1477, Verlag Stämpfli & Cie, Bern 1963.