Belleperche was a castle, now destroyed, located in the current town of Bagneux (Allier). It was the seat of one of the castellany of

Bourbonnais The Bourbonnais (; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Borbonés'') was a Provinces of France, historic province in the centre of France that corresponds to the modern ''département in France, département'' of Allier, along with part of the ''dépar ...

. Belleperche was the scene of an important episode of the

Hundred Years War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of England and France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy of Aquitaine and was triggered by a c ...

, when

Louis II, Duke of Bourbon Louis de Bourbon, called the Good ( – 1410), was the third Duke of Bourbon. He was also the Count of Clermont-en-Beauvaisis and Lord of Beaujeu. Life Louis was the son of Peter de Bourbon and Isabella de Valois. His mother was the siste ...

, sieged the fortress to try to deliver his mother, Isabelle de Valois, held captive by a company of Gascon

brigands Brigandage is the life and practice of highway robbery and plunder. It is practiced by a brigand, a person who is typically part of a gang and lives by pillage and robbery.Oxford English Dictionary second edition, 1989. "Brigand.2" first record ...

and

mercenaries A mercenary is a private individual who joins an War, armed conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any other official military. Mercenaries fight for money or other forms of payment rath ...

History

The Siege of Belleperche (1369-1370)

During the summer or autumn of 1369, a small group of about 30 Gascon "Free Company" mercenaries in the employ of the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

, managed to seize the castle by trickery, where the

dowager A dowager is a widow or widower who holds a title or property – a "dower" – derived from her or his deceased spouse. As an adjective, ''dowager'' usually appears in association with monarchical and aristocratic titles. In popular usage, the n ...

duchess Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they a ...

Bourbon Bourbon may refer to: Food and drink * Bourbon whiskey, an American whiskey made using a corn-based mash * Bourbon, a beer produced by Brasseries de Bourbon * Bourbon biscuit, a chocolate sandwich biscuit * Bourbon coffee, a type of coffee ma ...

Isabella of Valois, Duchess of Bourbon Isabella of Valois (1313 – 26 July 1383) was duchess of Bourbon by marriage to Peter I, Duke of Bourbon. Following her husband's death at Poiters, she took the veil. Isabella died 26 July 1383, aged seventy. Life Isabella was the daughter of ...

, lived. "Free Company" units at this time were mercenaries who when not employed took to

brigand Brigandage is the life and practice of highway robbery and plunder. It is practiced by a brigand, a person who is typically part of a gang and lives by pillage and robbery.Oxford English Dictionary second edition, 1989. "Brigand.2" first record ...

ry. Her son-in-law, Louis II, who was then at the court, hastened, assembled troops, and laid siege to Belleperche. The siege lasted three months; the Duke had four great

siege engine A siege engine is a device that is designed to break or circumvent heavy castle doors, thick city walls and other fortifications in siege warfare. Some are immobile, constructed in place to attack enemy fortifications from a distance, while othe ...

s put in, which sent stones night and day to the fortress, doing great damage. Frossart tells us that the siege redoubt was "''as strong and as well fortified as a good town might have been''". But a troop of

Poitiers Poitiers is a city on the river Clain in west-central France. It is a commune in France, commune, the capital of the Vienne (department), Vienne department and the historical center of Poitou, Poitou Province. In 2021, it had a population of 9 ...

and

Aquitaine Aquitaine (, ; ; ; ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne (), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former Regions of France, administrative region. Since 1 January 2016 it has been part of the administ ...

"Free Company" roadmen commanded by two English princes, the

Earl of Cambridge The title of Earl of Cambridge was created several times in the Peerage of England, and since 1362 the title has been closely associated with the Royal family (see also Duke of Cambridge, Marquess of Cambridge). The first Earl of the fourth cre ...

, son of

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...

, and the

Earl of Pembroke Earl of Pembroke is a title in the Peerage of England that was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title, which is associated with Pembroke, Pembrokeshire in West Wales, has been recreated ten times from its origin ...

came to the aid of the besieged and delayed the capture of the castle. Louis II finally succeeded in taking Belleperche, but could not prevent the truckers, Bernardon de la Salle, Bernard de Wisk and Hortingo de la Salle from escaping by taking the duchess hostage; she was not released until two years later for ransom. This episode greatly contributed to the glory of the duke.The case of Belleperche is told by John Froissart, in his Chronicles.

References

{{coord missing, France Ruined castles in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Buildings and structures in Allier