John II of Alençon
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Argentan
Argentan is a commune, and the seat of two cantons and of an arrondissement in the Orne department in north-western France.Argentan is located NE of Rennes, ENE of the Mont Saint-Michel, SE of Cherbourg, SSE of Caen, SW of Rouen and N of Le Mans....
– 8 September 1476, Paris) was the son of John I of Alençon
John I of Alençon
John I of Alençon, called the Sage , was the son of Peter II of Alençon and Marie de Chamaillard. In 1404, he succeeded his father as Count of Alençon and Perche. He was made Duke of Alençon in 1414.He commanded the second division of the French army at the Battle of Agincourt...
and Marie of Brittany. He succeeded his father as Duke of Alençon and Count of Perche as a minor in 1415, after the latter's death at the Battle of Agincourt
Battle of Agincourt
The Battle of Agincourt was a major English victory against a numerically superior French army in the Hundred Years' War. The battle occurred on Friday, 25 October 1415 , near modern-day Azincourt, in northern France...
.
He saw action as a young man at the Battle of Verneuil
Battle of Verneuil
The Battle of Verneuil was a battle of the Hundred Years' War, fought on 17 August 1424 near Verneuil in Normandy and was a significant English victory.-The black time:...
on 17 August 1424, and was captured by the English. He was held prisoner until 1429, when he was released after payment of a large ransom, which left him impoverished, and the English in control of his duchy. Before his capture at Verneuil, he had married in 1424, at Blois
Blois
Blois is the capital of Loir-et-Cher department in central France, situated on the banks of the lower river Loire between Orléans and Tours.-History:...
, Jeanne of Valois, daughter of Charles, duc d'Orléans
Charles, duc d'Orléans
Charles of Valois was Duke of Orléans from 1407, following the murder of his father, Louis I, Duke of Orléans, on the orders of John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy...
and Isabella of Valois, but she died in 1432.
Shortly after his release, he met Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc
Saint Joan of Arc, nicknamed "The Maid of Orléans" , is a national heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint. A peasant girl born in eastern France who claimed divine guidance, she led the French army to several important victories during the Hundred Years' War, which paved the way for the...
and joined her in the fighting through the Loire Valley
Loire Valley
The Loire Valley , spanning , is located in the middle stretch of the Loire River in central France. Its area comprises approximately . It is referred to as the Cradle of the French Language, and the Garden of France due to the abundance of vineyards, fruit orchards, and artichoke, asparagus, and...
, becoming her most prominent supporter among the princes of the blood. He left to fight elsewhere after the end of the campaign in September 1429, preferring to attack the English around his own domains in Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
. On 30 April 1437, at the Chateau L'Isle-Jourdain
L'Isle-Jourdain
L'Isle-Jourdain may refer to:*Lordship of L'Isle-Jourdain, centred on L'Isle-Jourdain, Gers*communes in France:** L'Isle-Jourdain, Gers, in the Gers department** L'Isle-Jourdain, Vienne in the Vienne department...
, he married Marie of Armagnac (c. 1420 – 25 July 1473, Cloister Mortagne-au-Perche
Mortagne-au-Perche
Mortagne-au-Perche is a commune in the Orne department in north-western France.-Heraldry:-Demographic evolution:* 1962: 3909* 1968: 4322* 1975: 4877* 1982: 4851* 1990: 4584* 1999: 45131962 population without double counting-People:...
), daughter of Jean IV of Armagnac.
John was discontented with the Treaty of Arras, having hoped to make good his poverty through the spoliation of the Burgundians. He fell out with Charles VII
Charles VII of France
Charles VII , called the Victorious or the Well-Served , was King of France from 1422 to his death, though he was initially opposed by Henry VI of England, whose Regent, the Duke of Bedford, ruled much of France including the capital, Paris...
, and took part in a revolt in 1439–40, (the Praguerie) but was forgiven. He took part in the invasion of Normandy in 1449, but he had unwisely entered into correspondence with the English since 1440. (He had also accepted the Order of the Golden Fleece
Order of the Golden Fleece
The Order of the Golden Fleece is an order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip III, Duke of Burgundy in 1430, to celebrate his marriage to the Portuguese princess Infanta Isabella of Portugal, daughter of King John I of Portugal. It evolved as one of the most prestigious orders in Europe...
at this time.) Shortly after testifying at the "rehabilitation trial" of Joan of Arc in 1456, he was arrested by Jean de Dunois
Jean de Dunois
John of Orléans, Count of Dunois was the illegitimate son of Louis d'Orléans by Mariette d'Enghien.The term "Bastard of Orléans" John of Orléans, Count of Dunois (French born "Jean Levieux Valois des Orléans" better known as Jean d'Orléans, comte de Dunois, also known as John of Orléans and...
and imprisoned at Aigues-Mortes
Aigues-Mortes
Aigues-Mortes is a commune in the Gard department in southern France.The medieval city walls surrounding the city are well preserved.-History:...
. In 1458, he was convicted of lèse-majesté and sentenced to death, but the sentence was commuted and he was imprisoned at Loches
Loches
Loches is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France.It is situated southeast of Tours by railway, on the left bank of the Indre River.-History:...
. He was released by Louis XI
Louis XI of France
Louis XI , called the Prudent , was the King of France from 1461 to 1483. He was the son of Charles VII of France and Mary of Anjou, a member of the House of Valois....
upon terms at his accession in 1461, but he refused to keep them and was imprisoned again. He was tried a second time before the Parlement of Paris and sentenced to death again on 18 July 1474, and his Duchy was confiscated. However, the sentence was not carried out, and he died in prison in the Louvre
Louvre
The Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...
in 1476.
He had two children by his second wife, Marie:
- Catherine (1452–1505), married 1461 in ToursToursTours is a city in central France, the capital of the Indre-et-Loire department.It is located on the lower reaches of the river Loire, between Orléans and the Atlantic coast. Touraine, the region around Tours, is known for its wines, the alleged perfection of its local spoken French, and for the...
François Guy XIV de Montmorency, Count of Laval (d. 1500) - René of AlençonRené of AlençonRené of Alençon , was the son of John II of Alençon and Marie of Armagnac.-Restoration of title:...
(1454–1492)
He also had several illegitimate children:
- John (living 1483)
- Robert (living 1489)
- Jeanne (d. aft. 4 December 1481), Countess of Beaumont-le-RogerBeaumont-le-RogerBeaumont-le-Roger is a commune in the department of Eure in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Geography:The commune is located in the valley of the Risle on the edge of the forest with which it shares its name. It is crossed by the Paris-Cherbourg railway line...
, married in 1470 Guy de Maulmont - Madeleine, married Henri de Breuil