The Treaty of Brétigny was a
treaty
A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal per ...
, drafted on 8 May 1360 and ratified on 24 October 1360, between Kings
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 ...
and
John II of France. In retrospect, it is seen as having marked the end of
the first phase 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 Plantagen ...
(1337–1453) as well as the height of English power on the
European continent.
It was signed at
Brétigny, a village near
Chartres
Chartres () is the prefecture of the Eure-et-Loir department in the Centre-Val de Loire region in France. It is located about southwest of Paris. At the 2019 census, there were 170,763 inhabitants in the metropolitan area of Chartres (as def ...
, and was later ratified as the Treaty of Calais on 24 October 1360.
Background
King
John II of France, taken as a
prisoner of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold prisoners of ...
at the
Battle of Poitiers (19 September 1356), worked with King
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 ...
to write out the
Treaty of London. The treaty was condemned by the
French Estates-General
In France under the Ancien Régime, the Estates General (french: États généraux ) or States-General was a legislative and consultative assembly of the different classes (or estates) of French subjects. It had a separate assembly for each of ...
, who advised the Dauphin Charles to reject it.
In response, Edward, who wished to yield few of the advantages claimed in the abortive
Treaty of London the year before, besieged Rheims. The siege lasted until January and with supplies running low, Edward withdrew to Burgundy. After the English army attempted a futile siege of Paris, Edward marched to Chartres, and discussion of terms began in early April.
Terms
The Treaty of Brétigny was ratified on 10 May 1360, by Dauphin Charles and six English knights at the Hôtel de Sens. On 14 June 1360, John II, a prisoner in England, ratified the treaty at a banquet attend by Edward III, Prince of Wales, and the other French prisoners from the battle of Poitiers. The finalization of the treaty would occur in Calais on 24 October 1360.
By virtue of this treaty, Edward III obtained, besides
Guyenne and
Gascony
Gascony (; french: Gascogne ; oc, Gasconha ; eu, Gaskoinia) was a province of the southwestern Kingdom of France that succeeded the Duchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until the French Revolution (1789–1799), it was part ...
,
Poitou,
Saintonge
Saintonge may refer to:
*County of Saintonge, a historical province of France on the Atlantic coast
*Saintonge (region), a region of France corresponding to the historical province
Places
* Saint-Genis-de-Saintonge, a commune in the Charente-Mar ...
and
Aunis,
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 ...
,
Périgord,
Limousin,
Quercy,
Bigorre
Bigorre ({{IPA-fr, biɡɔʁ; Gascon: ''Bigòrra'') is a region in southwest France, historically an independent county and later a French province, located in the upper watershed of the Adour, on the northern slopes of the Pyrenees, part of th ...
, the countship of
Gauré
Gauré (; oc, Gaure) is a commune in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern France.
Population
The inhabitants of the commune are known as Gauréens
See also
*Communes of the Haute-Garonne department
The following is a list of the 58 ...
,
Angoumois
Angoumois (), historically the County of Angoulême, was a county and province of France, originally inferior to the parent duchy of Aquitaine, similar to the Périgord to its east but lower and generally less forested, equally with occasional ...
,
Rouergue,
Montreuil-sur-Mer,
Ponthieu,
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 ...
,
Sangatte,
Ham and the
countship of
Guînes. The king of England was to hold these free and clear, without doing
homage
Homage (Old English) or Hommage (French) may refer to:
History
*Homage (feudal) /ˈhɒmɪdʒ/, the medieval oath of allegiance
*Commendation ceremony, medieval homage ceremony Arts
*Homage (arts) /oʊˈmɑʒ/, an allusion or imitation by one arti ...
for them. Furthermore, the treaty established that title to '
all the islands that the King of England now holds' would no longer be under the
suzerainty
Suzerainty () is the rights and obligations of a person, state or other polity who controls the foreign policy and relations of a tributary state, while allowing the tributary state to have internal autonomy. While the subordinate party is ca ...
of the King of France. The title Duke of Aquitaine was abandoned in favour of Lord of Aquitaine.
On his side, the King of England renounced all claims to the French throne. The terms of Brétigny were meant to untangle the feudal responsibilities that had caused so much conflict, and, as far as the English were concerned, would concentrate English territories in an expanded version of
Aquitaine. England also restored the rights of the
Bishop of Coutances
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Coutances (–Avranches) (Latin: ''Dioecesis Constantiensis (–Abrincensis)''; French: ''Diocèse de Coutances (–Avranches)'') is a diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in France. Its mother church is the Cathe ...
to
Alderney, which had been stripped from them by the King of England in 1228.
John II had to pay three million
écus for his ransom, and would be released after he paid one million. The occasion was the first minting of the
franc, equivalent to one
livre tournois (twenty
sous
The Sous region (also spelt Sus, Suss, Souss or Sousse) ( ar, سوس, sūs, shi, ⵙⵓⵙ, sus) is an area in mid-southern Morocco. Geologically, it is the alluvial basin of the Sous River (''Asif n Sus''), separated from the Sahara desert b ...
). As a guarantee for the payment of his ransom, John gave as hostages two of his sons,
Louis I, Duke of Anjou and
John, Duke of Berry, several princes and nobles, four inhabitants of Paris, and two citizens from each of the nineteen principal towns of France.
Breakdown
While the hostages were held, John returned to France to try to raise funds to pay the ransom. In 1362, John's son,
Louis of Anjou, a hostage in English-held Calais, escaped captivity. Thus, with his stand-in hostage gone, John felt honour-bound to return to captivity in England.
He died in captivity in 1364 and was succeeded by his son,
Charles V. In 1369, on the pretext that Edward III had failed to observe the terms of the treaty, the king of France declared war once again.
By the time of the 1376 death of Edward III, English forces had been pushed back into their territories in the southwest, around
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectu ...
.
Legacy
The treaty did not lead to lasting peace, but procured nine years' respite from the Hundred Years' War. In the following years, French forces were involved in battles against the Anglo-Navarrese (
Bertrand du Guesclin's victory at
Cocherel
Cocherel () is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.
History
Cocherel and Crépoil (Cocherellium, Crispolium) formed two distinct parishes before 1790 and until 1842 two distinct com ...
on 16 May 1364) and the
Bretons.
See also
*
List of treaties
This list of treaties contains known agreements, pacts, peaces, and major contracts between states, armies, governments, and tribal groups.
Before 1200 CE
1200–1299
1300–1399
1400–1499
1500–1599
1600–1699
1700–1799
...
*
Treaty of Troyes
Notes
References
Sources
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Treaty Of Bretigny
Bretigny, Treaty of
Eure-et-Loir
1360s in France
Bretigny
Treaties of medieval England
Treaties of the Kingdom of France
1360 in England
History of Centre-Val de Loire
Edward III of England