James I of Bourbon (1319 – 6 April 1362), was a French ''
prince du sang'', and the son of
Louis I, Duke of Bourbon and
Mary of Avesnes. He was
Count of Ponthieu from 1351 to 1360, and
Count of La Marche from 1341 to his death.
Hundred Years War
He took part in several campaigns of the
Hundred Years War
The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagene ...
.
In June 1347 he commanded an army on the
Flemish
Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...
border together with the
Marshal
Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...
. They marched to
Béthune, the chief city of north-eastern
Artois, which was still in French hands, though the countryside had been overrun by the Flemish. There they gathered together most of the French border forces including the Béthune garrison,
Charles de Montmorency (1325-1381) from the sector around
Lille
Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the No ...
and
Charles de la Cerda with most of the men from
Aire and
Saint-Omer. On 13 June they attacked the Flemish camp at night. However the Flemings managed to regroup and launch a counter-attack before slipping across the border.
In 1349, he was created Captain-General of
Languedoc
The Province of Languedoc (; , ; oc, Lengadòc ) is a former province of France.
Most of its territory is now contained in the modern-day region of Occitanie in Southern France. Its capital city was Toulouse. It had an area of approximately ...
. Following the fall of
Calais
Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's prefecture is its third-largest city of Arras. Th ...
in 1347 a truce had been concluded, but in 1349 open warfare broke out again, the most conspicuous event of that year being
Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster's raid deep into Languedoc to the walls of
Toulouse
Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and fr ...
. In early 1350 James was given command of an army mustering at
Moissac on the borders of
Agenais
Agenais (), or Agenois (), was an ancient region that became a county ( Old French: ''conté'' or ''cunté'') of France, south of Périgord.Mish, Frederick C., Editor in Chief. "Agenais". '' Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary''. 9th ed. Sp ...
. This he did 22 February. There, he almost immediately entered into negotiations with Lancaster with two papal legates acting as mediators. The result was a truce, at first limited to Languedoc and the other provinces where James was Lieutenant, but in April it was extended to the rest of France.
Navarre joins the war
In 1354 he was appointed
Constable of France
The Constable of France (french: Connétable de France, from Latin for 'count of the stables') was lieutenant to the King of France, the first of the original five Great Officers of the Crown (along with seneschal, chamberlain, butler, and ...
. In January and February 1355 as Constable, he took part in planning the resumption of the war with England. However the war soon became a matter of secondary importance as the French government became embroiled in the intrigues of
Charles II of Navarre. In May 1355 it became apparent that open war was about to begin between the King of France and a King of Navarre allied to England. James belonged to the party fronted by the dowager queens,
Jeanne and
Blanche d'Évreux, who lobbied John on Charles's behalf. In the end, John gave way and on 31 May agreed to pardon Charles.
However, by the time John II's letters reached
Pamplona
Pamplona (; eu, Iruña or ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. It is also the third-largest city in the greater Basque cultural region.
Lying at near above ...
, the capital of Navarre, Charles and his army had already embarked with a course for the
Cotentin Peninsula in
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
. When the news reached Paris on 4 June it therefore became necessary to prepare the defences of Normandy. Two armies were formed. The largest, of which the Constable was given command, was to be stationed at
Caen
Caen (, ; nrf, Kaem) is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the department of Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inhabitants (), while its functional urban area has 470,000,[Cherbourg
Cherbourg (; , , ), nrf, Chèrbourg, ) is a former commune and subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French department of Manche. It was merged into the commune of Cherbourg-Octeville on 28 Febr ...]
5 July and the negotiations opened soon after. The result was the
Treaty of Valognes
The Treaty of Valognes was a treaty signed on 10 September 1355 between Charles II of Navarre and John II of France. It was designed to unite the two kings against Edward III of England in preparation for a continuation of the Hundred Years' War. ...
sealed on 10 September. Included among the provisions of the treaty was that seven of Charles' walled towns and castles in Normandy should be nominally surrendered to the Constable.
War in Toulouse
In autumn 1355 the Constable was in the south where he, together with
John I, Count of Armagnac
John I of Armagnac (French: Jean d’Armagnac; 1311 – 16 May 1373), son of Bernard VI and Cecilia Rodez, was Count of Armagnac from 1319 to 1373. In addition to Armagnac he controlled territory in Quercy, Rouergue and Gévaudan. He was the co ...
, who commanded an army of local troops, and the Marshal
Jean de Clermont were to defend against the expected invasion of the
Edward, Prince of Wales. When the Prince of Wales struck in October it was further south than expected, in the
County of Armagnac, rather than the
Garonne
The Garonne (, also , ; Occitan, Catalan, Basque, and es, Garona, ; la, Garumna
or ) is a river of southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux – ...
valley. The three French commanders hurried south to Toulouse, where they prepared themselves for a siege. On 28 October the Prince crossed the Garonne and the
Ariège, at places never before forded by horses, and marched north to within a few miles of Toulouse. Thinking the English might attempt to invest the city from both sides, the Constable left for
Montauban
Montauban (, ; oc, Montalban ) is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department, region of Occitania, Southern France. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse. Montauban is the most populated town in Tarn-et-Garonne, ...
to hold the crossings of the
Tarn and the Garonne. Instead, the Prince continued eastward into lands previously untouched by the war and largely undefended. On 8 November he took
Narbonne
Narbonne (, also , ; oc, Narbona ; la, Narbo ; Late Latin:) is a commune in Southern France in the Occitanie region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. It is located about from the shores of the ...
, but was now far away from home territory. The Constable and Armagnac followed him east and taking up camp at the town of
Homps on the river
Aude
Aude (; ) is a department in Southern France, located in the Occitanie region and named after the river Aude. The departmental council also calls it " Cathar Country" (French: ''Pays cathare'') after a group of religious dissidents active ...
seem first to have intended to cut off retreat and force him to battle on their own terms. In the end, no battle took place, as the French commanders decided to withdraw west towards Toulouse.
During the English return westward serious disagreements over strategy broke out in Toulouse. During the whole campaign Armagnac had insisted on avoiding battle at all cost, concentrating on defending the principal cities and river crossings, thus abandoning the countryside to the English. This was deeply frustrating to the people of Languedoc and also resented by James who longed for action. The last opportunity to stop the English was made at the river
Save, but after watching the enemy for several days Armagnac on 21 November broke the bridges across the river and withdrew north. The Prince of Wales crossed the river the next day and on 28 November was back in English held territory. The French conduct of the defence was deeply unpopular in the south and although the Constable had not agreed to Armagnac's strategy and gave the King his own eye-witness account he could not escape the blame directed against the three commanders.
On 12 November 1355, the day following
Edward III of England
Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring ...
's return to Calais, after a largely fruitless raid into
Picardy
Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France.
Hist ...
, James and the Marshal
Arnoul d'Audrehem
Arnoul d'Audrehem (c. 1305 – 1370) was a Marshal of France, who fought in the Hundred Years' War.
Biography
He was born at Audrehem, in the present arrondissement of Saint-Omer, in the ''département'' of Pas-de-Calais. Nothing is known of hi ...
were behind an abortive proposal to settle the war in single combat between the two kings.
Battle of Poitiers
Weary of political intrigues, he resigned the constableship in May 1356, but fought at the
Battle of Poitiers that year where was taken prisoner by the English. His ransom was sold by
Jean III de Grailly, captal de Buch
Jean III de Grailly (aka. John De Grailly, died 7 September 1376), Captal de Buch, , was a Gascon nobleman and a military leader in the Hundred Years' War, who was praised by the chronicler Jean Froissart as an ideal of chivalry.
Biography
H ...
and five of his companions for 25,000 écus to the Prince of Wales. James was released by the
Treaty of Brétigny
The Treaty of Brétigny was a treaty, drafted on 8 May 1360 and ratified on 24 October 1360, between Kings Edward III of England and John II of France. In retrospect, it is seen as having marked the end of the first phase of the Hundred Years ...
. The same treaty surrendered
Ponthieu to the English; but he had succeeded his brother Duke
Peter of
La Marche after the latter's death at Poitiers.
Death
Moreover, the peace promised by the treaty proved illusory. While the English were at peace with France, the discharged mercenary companies found new employment by ravaging the countryside and holding whole cities to ransom. Soon after his return from captivity,
King John II commissioned James and
Jean de Tancarville to raise an army to put down the "Free Companies" under the informal leadership of Petit Meschin before they could overrun
Burgundy
Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The ...
. Bourbon and Tancarville gathered their army at
Brignais
Brignais () is a commune of the Rhône department in eastern France.
History
During the Hundred Years War, was the scene of the Battle of Brignais in April 1362 between the royal army of John II and an amalgamation of mercenary companies Tar ...
. Never dreaming that the companies would dare challenge them in the open they took few steps to secure their camp and when the companies attacked that morning of 6 April 1362 they were taken completely by surprise. In the
battle
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and for ...
that followed the governmental army was routed and James and his oldest son were mortally wounded.
Marriage and children
In 1335, he married Jeanne of Châtillon, daughter of Hugh of Châtillon, Lord of Leuze.
Their children:
* Isabelle (1340–1371), married Louis II, Viscount of
Beaumont-au-Maine, in
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...
(1362); married Bouchard VII,
Count of Vendôme (1364);
*
Pierre II, Count of La Marche (1342–1362)
*
Jean I, Count of La Marche (1344–1393), married Catherine of Vendome
* , Baron de Thury (1346–1417), married (c. 1385) Marguerite, dame de Preaux, de Dangu and de Thury.
References
Sources
*
*
*
*
*
Further reading
* Sumption, Jonathan, ''The Hundred Years War II: Trial by Fire'', University of Pennsylvania Press, October 2001,
{{DEFAULTSORT:James of Bourbon, Count of La Marche
People of the Hundred Years' War
Counts of La Marche
Counts of Ponthieu
House of Bourbon
French military personnel killed in action
1319 births
1362 deaths
14th-century peers of France
French prisoners of war in the Hundred Years' War
Constables of France