Treaty of Troyes
Encyclopedia
The Treaty of Troyes was an agreement that Henry V of England
and his heirs would inherit the throne of France
upon the death of King Charles VI of France
. It was signed in the French city of Troyes
on 21 May 1420 in the aftermath of the Battle of Agincourt
. It forms a part of the backdrop of the latter phase of the Hundred Years' War
, in which various English Kings tried to establish their claims to the French throne
.
to Henry V of England
, who was made regent of France and acknowledged (along with his future sons) as successor to the French throne. The Dauphin Charles
was disinherited from the succession. The Estates-General
of France ratified the agreement later that year after Henry V entered Paris. (See main article:The Dual-Monarchy of England and France)
. In 1418, John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy
, whose political and economic interests favoured an agreement with the English, occupied Paris. One year later he was murdered by his Armagnac
opponents on the bridge at Montereau. His son Philip the Good formed an alliance with the English and negotiated the treaty with the English King.
Isabeau of Bavaria
, Charles VI's queen, whose participation in the negotiations was merely formal, agreed to the treaty disinheriting her son, hoping that if the dynasties were joined through Henry V the war could be ended and leave France in the hands of a vigorous and able king.
The disinheriting of the Dauphin was supported by earlier rumours that the Queen had an affair with her brother-in-law Louis, Duke of Orléans. These rumours were gladly taken up by Louis' main rival, John the Fearless, who had the Duke of Orléans assassinated in 1407.
Charles' disinheritance received further legal sanction when he declared himself regent for Charles VI in rivalry to the regency declared by Henry V. The dauphin was summoned to a lit-de justice (legal hearing) in 1420 on charges of lèse-majesté. When he failed to appear, a Parisian court in 1421 found Charles the dauphin guilty of treason and sentenced him to disinheritance and banishment from the Kingdom of France, losing all privileges to land and titles. This was an important aftermath to the Treaty of Troyes.
became King of both England and France, but the Dauphin Charles also claimed the throne of France upon the death of his father. He was crowned King of France on 17 July 1429 in Reims Cathedral
. He ruled a region of France centred around Bourges and was derisively referred to as the "King of Bourges" by his opponents.
The terms of the Treaty of Troyes were later confirmed once again at the Treaty of Amiens (1423)
, when Burgundy and Brittany confirmed the recognition of Henry VI as King of France and agreed to form a triple-defensive alliance against the Dauphin Charles.
The military victory of Charles VII
over both the French and English supporters of the claims of Henry VI to be king of France rendered the treaty moot. The Kings of England continued to claim the crown of France until the claim was abandoned after the Act of Union
in 1800/1801 merged the Kingdoms of Great Britain
and Ireland
.
Henry V of England
Henry V was King of England from 1413 until his death at the age of 35 in 1422. He was the second monarch belonging to the House of Lancaster....
and his heirs would inherit the throne of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
upon the death of King Charles VI of France
Charles VI of France
Charles VI , called the Beloved and the Mad , was the King of France from 1380 to 1422, as a member of the House of Valois. His bouts with madness, which seem to have begun in 1392, led to quarrels among the French royal family, which were exploited by the neighbouring powers of England and Burgundy...
. It was signed in the French city of Troyes
Troyes
Troyes is a commune and the capital of the Aube department in north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about southeast of Paris. Many half-timbered houses survive in the old town...
on 21 May 1420 in the aftermath of 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...
. It forms a part of the backdrop of the latter phase of the Hundred Years' War
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War was a series of separate wars waged from 1337 to 1453 by the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known as the House of Anjou, for the French throne, which had become vacant upon the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings...
, in which various English Kings tried to establish their claims to the French throne
English claims to the French throne
The English claims to the French throne have a long and complex history between the 1340s and the 19th century.From 1340 to 1801, with only brief intervals in 1360-1369 and 1420–1422, the kings and queens of England, and after the Acts of Union in 1707 the kings and queens of Great Britain, also...
.
Terms
The treaty arranged for the marriage of Charles VI's daughter CatherineCatherine of Valois
Catherine of France was the Queen consort of England from 1420 until 1422. She was the daughter of King Charles VI of France, wife of Henry V of Monmouth, King of England, mother of Henry VI, King of England and King of France, and through her secret marriage with Owen Tudor, the grandmother of...
to Henry V of England
Henry V of England
Henry V was King of England from 1413 until his death at the age of 35 in 1422. He was the second monarch belonging to the House of Lancaster....
, who was made regent of France and acknowledged (along with his future sons) as successor to the French throne. The Dauphin Charles
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...
was disinherited from the succession. The Estates-General
French States-General
In France under the Old Regime, the States-General or Estates-General , was a legislative assembly of the different classes of French subjects. It had a separate assembly for each of the three estates, which were called and dismissed by the king...
of France ratified the agreement later that year after Henry V entered Paris. (See main article:The Dual-Monarchy of England and France)
Background
The French king Charles VI suffered bouts of insanity through much of his reign. Henry V had invaded France in 1415 and delivered a crushing defeat to the French at AgincourtBattle 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...
. In 1418, John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy
Duke of Burgundy
Duke 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...
, whose political and economic interests favoured an agreement with the English, occupied Paris. One year later he was murdered by his Armagnac
Armagnac (party)
The Armagnac party was prominent in French politics and warfare during the Hundred Years' War. It was allied with the supporters of Charles, Duke of Orléans against John the Fearless after Charles' father Louis of Orléans was killed at the orders of the Duke of Burgundy in 1407...
opponents on the bridge at Montereau. His son Philip the Good formed an alliance with the English and negotiated the treaty with the English King.
Isabeau of Bavaria
Isabeau of Bavaria
Isabeau of Bavaria was Queen consort of France as spouse of King Charles VI of France, a member of the Valois Dynasty...
, Charles VI's queen, whose participation in the negotiations was merely formal, agreed to the treaty disinheriting her son, hoping that if the dynasties were joined through Henry V the war could be ended and leave France in the hands of a vigorous and able king.
The disinheriting of the Dauphin was supported by earlier rumours that the Queen had an affair with her brother-in-law Louis, Duke of Orléans. These rumours were gladly taken up by Louis' main rival, John the Fearless, who had the Duke of Orléans assassinated in 1407.
Charles' disinheritance received further legal sanction when he declared himself regent for Charles VI in rivalry to the regency declared by Henry V. The dauphin was summoned to a lit-de justice (legal hearing) in 1420 on charges of lèse-majesté. When he failed to appear, a Parisian court in 1421 found Charles the dauphin guilty of treason and sentenced him to disinheritance and banishment from the Kingdom of France, losing all privileges to land and titles. This was an important aftermath to the Treaty of Troyes.
Aftermath
The treaty was undermined by the deaths of both Charles VI and Henry V within two months of each other in 1422. The infant Henry VI of EnglandHenry VI of England
Henry VI was King of England from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. Until 1437, his realm was governed by regents. Contemporaneous accounts described him as peaceful and pious, not suited for the violent dynastic civil wars, known as the Wars...
became King of both England and France, but the Dauphin Charles also claimed the throne of France upon the death of his father. He was crowned King of France on 17 July 1429 in Reims Cathedral
Reims Cathedral
Notre-Dame de Reims is the Roman Catholic cathedral of Reims, where the kings of France were once crowned. It replaces an older church, destroyed by a fire in 1211, which was built on the site of the basilica where Clovis was baptized by Saint Remi, bishop of Reims, in AD 496. That original...
. He ruled a region of France centred around Bourges and was derisively referred to as the "King of Bourges" by his opponents.
The terms of the Treaty of Troyes were later confirmed once again at the Treaty of Amiens (1423)
Treaty of Amiens (1423)
The Treaty of Amiens was a defensive agreement between John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford, Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy and Arthur III, Earl of Richmond and Duke of Brittany, in which the three dukes acknowledged Henry VI of England as King of France, and agreed to aid each other against...
, when Burgundy and Brittany confirmed the recognition of Henry VI as King of France and agreed to form a triple-defensive alliance against the Dauphin Charles.
The military victory of 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...
over both the French and English supporters of the claims of Henry VI to be king of France rendered the treaty moot. The Kings of England continued to claim the crown of France until the claim was abandoned after the Act of Union
Act of Union 1800
The Acts of Union 1800 describe two complementary Acts, namely:* the Union with Ireland Act 1800 , an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain, and...
in 1800/1801 merged the Kingdoms of Great Britain
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
and Ireland
Kingdom of Ireland
The Kingdom of Ireland refers to the country of Ireland in the period between the proclamation of Henry VIII as King of Ireland by the Crown of Ireland Act 1542 and the Act of Union in 1800. It replaced the Lordship of Ireland, which had been created in 1171...
.