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Duchy of Burgundy
The Duchy of Burgundy was a medieval and early modern feudal polity in north-western regions of historical Burgundy. It was a duchy, ruled by dukes of Burgundy. The Duchy belonged to the Kingdom of France, and was initially bordering the Kingdom of Burgundy to the east and south, thus being distinct from the neighboring Free County of Burgundy (modern region of Franche-Comté). The first duke of Burgundy (Latin: dux Burgundiae), attested in sources by that title, was Richard the Justiciar in 918.
In 1004, prince Henry of France, a son of king Robert II of France, inherited the Duchy, but later ceded it to his younger brother Robert in 1032. Robert became the ancestor of the ducal House of Burgundy, a cadet branch of the royal Capet dynasty, ruling over a territory that roughly conformed to the borders and territories of the modern region of Burgundy (Bourgogne). Upon the extinction of the Burgundian male line with the death of Duke Philip I in 1361, the duchy reverted to King John II of France and the royal House of Valois. The Burgundian duchy was absorbed in a larger territorial complex after 1363, when King John II ceded the duchy to his younger son Philip. With his marriage with Countess Margaret III of Flanders, he laid the foundation for a Burgundian State which expanded further north in the Low Countries collectively known as the Burgundian Netherlands. Upon further acquisitions of the County of Burgundy, Holland, and Luxemburg, the House of Valois-Burgundy came into possession of numerous French and imperial fiefs stretching from the western Alps to the North Sea, in some ways reminiscent of the Middle Frankish realm of Lotharingia.
The Burgundian State, in its own right, was one of the largest ducal territories that existed at the time of the emergence of Early Modern Europe. After just over one hundred years of Valois-Burgundy rule, however, the last duke, Charles the Bold, rushed to the Burgundian Wars and was killed in the 1477 Battle of Nancy. The extinction of the dynasty led to the absorption of the duchy itself into the French crown lands by King Louis XI, while the bulk of the Burgundian possessions in the Low Countries passed to Charles' daughter, Mary, and her Habsburg descendants.
The Duchy of Burgundy was a successor of the earlier Kingdom of the Burgundians, which evolved out of territories ruled by the Burgundians, an East Germanic tribe that arrived in Gaul in the 5th century. The Burgundians settled in the area around Dijon, Chalon-sur-Saône, Mâcon, Autun and Châtillon-sur-Seine, and gave the name to the region. The Kingdom of the Burgundians was annexed by the Merovingian King of the Franks, Childebert I, in 534, following their defeat by the Franks. It was recreated, however, on several occasions when Frankish territories were redivided between the sons on the death of a Frankish king.
As part of the Kingdom of the Franks, Burgundy maintained a semi-autonomous existence, with the Burgundians maintaining their own law code, the Loi Gombette. However, southern Burgundy was pillaged by the Saracen invasion of the 8th century. When Charles Martel drove the invaders out, he divided Burgundy into four commands: Arles-Burgundy, Vienne-Burgundy, Alamanic Burgundy and Frankish Burgundy. He appointed his brother Childebrand governor of Frankish Burgundy.
Under the Carolingians, Burgundian separatism lessened and Burgundy became a mainly geographical term, referring only to the area of the counties of the former Burgundy. Both the later Duchy of Burgundy and the Free County of Burgundy emerged from these counties, aided by the collapse of Carolingian centralism and frequent divisions of the Frankish domains during the 9th century. Already in 839, emperor Louis the Pious decided to divide Burgundian counties between his sons, by awarding most to Lothair I, and the rest to Charles the Bald (Geneva, Lyons, Chalon, Amous, Oscheret, Langres, Toul), but that initial division had to be renegotiated after emperors death in 840.
In the midst of emerging conflicts between Louis' successors, count Guerin of Provence attached himself to king Charles of the Western Franks, and aided him in the Battle of Fontenay (841) against Charles's eldest brother, the new Emperor Lothair I. When the Carolingian Empire was divided by the Partition of Verdun in 843, most of Burgundian counties were awarded to the Middle Francia, while the remaining counties, to the northwest of river Saône, became part of the West Frankish Realm. Thus, a lasting political division of geographical Burgundy was created. Count Guerin was rewarded for his services to the West Frankish king by being granted the administration of the counties of Chalon and Nevers, in which he was by custom expected to appoint viscounts to rule as his deputies. As a vital military defender of the West Frankish border, Guerin was sometimes known by the Latin term for "leader" – dux or "duke".
Later creation of distinctive realms in the neighboring regions further to the south and east, first in Lower Burgundy (879), and then in Upper Burgundy (888), did not affect the northwestern Burgundian counties, that belonged to the West Frankish Kingdom since 843, and remained under the rule of Charles the Bald's successors, in spite of a very brief attempt of Guy III of Spoleto to impose himself as ruler in those regions by being crowned king at Langres in March 888.
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Duchy of Burgundy AI simulator
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Duchy of Burgundy
The Duchy of Burgundy was a medieval and early modern feudal polity in north-western regions of historical Burgundy. It was a duchy, ruled by dukes of Burgundy. The Duchy belonged to the Kingdom of France, and was initially bordering the Kingdom of Burgundy to the east and south, thus being distinct from the neighboring Free County of Burgundy (modern region of Franche-Comté). The first duke of Burgundy (Latin: dux Burgundiae), attested in sources by that title, was Richard the Justiciar in 918.
In 1004, prince Henry of France, a son of king Robert II of France, inherited the Duchy, but later ceded it to his younger brother Robert in 1032. Robert became the ancestor of the ducal House of Burgundy, a cadet branch of the royal Capet dynasty, ruling over a territory that roughly conformed to the borders and territories of the modern region of Burgundy (Bourgogne). Upon the extinction of the Burgundian male line with the death of Duke Philip I in 1361, the duchy reverted to King John II of France and the royal House of Valois. The Burgundian duchy was absorbed in a larger territorial complex after 1363, when King John II ceded the duchy to his younger son Philip. With his marriage with Countess Margaret III of Flanders, he laid the foundation for a Burgundian State which expanded further north in the Low Countries collectively known as the Burgundian Netherlands. Upon further acquisitions of the County of Burgundy, Holland, and Luxemburg, the House of Valois-Burgundy came into possession of numerous French and imperial fiefs stretching from the western Alps to the North Sea, in some ways reminiscent of the Middle Frankish realm of Lotharingia.
The Burgundian State, in its own right, was one of the largest ducal territories that existed at the time of the emergence of Early Modern Europe. After just over one hundred years of Valois-Burgundy rule, however, the last duke, Charles the Bold, rushed to the Burgundian Wars and was killed in the 1477 Battle of Nancy. The extinction of the dynasty led to the absorption of the duchy itself into the French crown lands by King Louis XI, while the bulk of the Burgundian possessions in the Low Countries passed to Charles' daughter, Mary, and her Habsburg descendants.
The Duchy of Burgundy was a successor of the earlier Kingdom of the Burgundians, which evolved out of territories ruled by the Burgundians, an East Germanic tribe that arrived in Gaul in the 5th century. The Burgundians settled in the area around Dijon, Chalon-sur-Saône, Mâcon, Autun and Châtillon-sur-Seine, and gave the name to the region. The Kingdom of the Burgundians was annexed by the Merovingian King of the Franks, Childebert I, in 534, following their defeat by the Franks. It was recreated, however, on several occasions when Frankish territories were redivided between the sons on the death of a Frankish king.
As part of the Kingdom of the Franks, Burgundy maintained a semi-autonomous existence, with the Burgundians maintaining their own law code, the Loi Gombette. However, southern Burgundy was pillaged by the Saracen invasion of the 8th century. When Charles Martel drove the invaders out, he divided Burgundy into four commands: Arles-Burgundy, Vienne-Burgundy, Alamanic Burgundy and Frankish Burgundy. He appointed his brother Childebrand governor of Frankish Burgundy.
Under the Carolingians, Burgundian separatism lessened and Burgundy became a mainly geographical term, referring only to the area of the counties of the former Burgundy. Both the later Duchy of Burgundy and the Free County of Burgundy emerged from these counties, aided by the collapse of Carolingian centralism and frequent divisions of the Frankish domains during the 9th century. Already in 839, emperor Louis the Pious decided to divide Burgundian counties between his sons, by awarding most to Lothair I, and the rest to Charles the Bald (Geneva, Lyons, Chalon, Amous, Oscheret, Langres, Toul), but that initial division had to be renegotiated after emperors death in 840.
In the midst of emerging conflicts between Louis' successors, count Guerin of Provence attached himself to king Charles of the Western Franks, and aided him in the Battle of Fontenay (841) against Charles's eldest brother, the new Emperor Lothair I. When the Carolingian Empire was divided by the Partition of Verdun in 843, most of Burgundian counties were awarded to the Middle Francia, while the remaining counties, to the northwest of river Saône, became part of the West Frankish Realm. Thus, a lasting political division of geographical Burgundy was created. Count Guerin was rewarded for his services to the West Frankish king by being granted the administration of the counties of Chalon and Nevers, in which he was by custom expected to appoint viscounts to rule as his deputies. As a vital military defender of the West Frankish border, Guerin was sometimes known by the Latin term for "leader" – dux or "duke".
Later creation of distinctive realms in the neighboring regions further to the south and east, first in Lower Burgundy (879), and then in Upper Burgundy (888), did not affect the northwestern Burgundian counties, that belonged to the West Frankish Kingdom since 843, and remained under the rule of Charles the Bald's successors, in spite of a very brief attempt of Guy III of Spoleto to impose himself as ruler in those regions by being crowned king at Langres in March 888.