Episode 25: The League of Gien

The ruins of Chateau Bicetre. The castle was owned by the Duke of Berry and was the site of a peace deal between the Duke of Burgundy and the League of Gien. The Peace of Bicetre would go down in history as a phony peace, and would be one of many over the next few years.

When John the Fearless left Paris for Liege in 1408, his position was shaky, but his return as a conquering hero quickly established his dominance over the capital. However, his enemies and rivals are beginning to unify, and the League of Gien poses a significant threat to his continued mastery of France.

Time Period Covered: 1408 – 1410

Notable People: John the Fearless, John Duke of Berry, Queen Isabeau, Valentina Visconti, Charles Duke of Orleans, John V Duke of Brittany, Louis II Duke of Anjou, Jean de Montagu, Charles d’Albret Constable of France, Bernard VII Count of Armagnac, Charles III King of Navarre,

Notable Events/Developments: Formation of the League of Gien, Reconciliation at Chartres, Peace of Bicetre, Burgundian Armagnac Civil War

Left – The Reconciliation at Chartres Cathedral in 1409. Right – Charles III King of Navarre, one of John the Fearless’ few allies among the princes in the years after Othee.

Sources

John the Fearless by Richard Vaughan

The Hundred Years War: Cursed Kings by Jonathan Sumption

The Chronicles of Enguerrand De Monstrelet

Royal Intrigue Crisis at the Court of Charles VI 1392-1420 by R.C. Famiglietti

John the Fearless’ Way of War by Kelly DeVries

The Golden Age of Burgundy by Joseph Calmette

The Life and Afterlife of Isabeau of Bavaria by Tracy Adams

Wise and Foolish Kings by Anne Denieul-Cormier

The Promised Lands by Wim Blockmans and Walter Prevenier

Medieval Flanders by David Nicholas

2 thoughts on “Episode 25: The League of Gien”

Alexander Turner says:

November 19, 2024 at 6:50 pm

Hi, I’m writing an essay and I’m thinking of writing about the Burgundian-Armagnac War. Can you point me in the direction of where I might find the speech for the Reconciliation at Chartres Cathedral?

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1. Josh Zucker says:
  
  November 19, 2024 at 8:48 pm
  
  Engeurrand de Monstrelet gives an account in his chronicles. You can find a copy here where it’s on page 130 https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Chronicles_of_Enguerrand_de_Monstrel/40NOAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1
  
  For secondary sources on the event I used Richard Vaughan’s biography on John the Fearless, Jonathan Sumption’s Hundred Years War Volume 4, and R. C. Famiglietti’s book Royal Intrigue
  
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