Everything about Philip Iii Duke Of Burgundy totally explained
Philip the Good (
French:
Philippe le Bon), also
Philip III, Duke of Burgundy (
July 31,
1396 –
June 15,
1467) was
Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death. He was a member of a
cadet line of the
Valois dynasty (the then Royal family of
France). During his reign
Burgundy reached the height of its prosperity and prestige and became a leading center of the arts. Philip is known in history for his administrative reforms, patronage of Flemish artists such as
Jan van Eyck, and the capture of
Joan of Arc. During his reign he alternated between English and French alliances in an attempt to improve his dynasty's position.
Family and early life
Born in
Dijon, he was the son of
John the Fearless and
Margaret of Bavaria-Straubing. On the
28 January,
1405, he was named
Count of Charolais in
appanage of his father and probably on the same day he was engaged to
Michele of Valois (1395–1422), daughter of
Charles VI of France and
Isabeau of Bavaria. They were married in June of 1409.
Philip subsequently married Bonne of Artois (1393–1425), daughter of
Philip of Artois, Count of Eu, and also the widow of his uncle,
Philip II, Count of Nevers, in
Moulins-les-Engelbert on
November 30,
1424. The latter is sometimes confused with Philip's biological aunt, also named Bonne (sister of John the Fearless, lived 1379 - 1399), in part due to the Papal Dispensation required for the marriage which made no distinction between a marital aunt and a biological aunt.
His third marriage, in
Bruges on
January 7,
1430 with
Isabella of Portugal (1397 - December 17, 1471), daughter of
John I of Portugal and
Philippa of Lancaster, produced three sons:
- Antoine (September 30, 1430, Brussels – February 5, 1432, Brussels), Count of Charolais
- Joseph (April 24, 1432 – aft. May 6, 1432), Count of Charolais
- Charles (1433–1477), Count of Charolais and Philip's successor as Duke, called "Charles the Bold" or "Charles the Rash"
Philip also had some eighteen illegitimate children, including
Antoine, bastard of Burgundy, by twenty four documented mistresses
(External Link
). Another, Philip of Burgundy (1464-1524), bishop of Utrecht, was a fine amateur artist, and the subject of a biography in 1529.
Early rule and alliance with England
Philip became duke of Burgundy, count of
Flanders,
Artois and
Franche Comté when his father was
assassinated in 1419. Philip accused
Charles, the
Dauphin of
France and Philip's brother-in-law of planning the murder of his father which had taken place during a meeting between the two at
Montereau, and so he continued to prosecute the
civil war between the
Burgundians and
Armagnacs. In 1420 Philip allied himself with
Henry V of England under the
Treaty of Troyes. In 1423 the alliance was strengthened by the marriage of his sister Anne to
John, Duke of Bedford, regent for
Henry VI of England.
In 1430 Philip's troops captured
Joan of Arc at
Compiègne and later handed her over to the English who orchestrated a
heresy trial against her, conducted by pro-Burgundian clerics. Despite this action against Joan of Arc, Philip's alliance with England was broken in 1435 when Philip signed the
Treaty of Arras (which completely revoked the Treaty of Troyes) and thus recognised Charles VII as king of France. Philip signed for a variety of reasons, one of which may have been a desire to be recognised as the Premier Duke in France. Philip then attacked
Calais, but this alliance with Charles was broken in 1439, with Philip supporting the revolt of the French nobles
the following year (an event known as
the Praguerie) and sheltering the Dauphin
Louis.
Geographic expansion
Philip generally was preoccupied with matters in his own territories and seldom was directly involved in the
Hundred Years' War, although he did play a role during a number of periods such as the campaign against Compiegne during which his troops captured Joan of Arc. He incorporated
Namur into Burgundian territory in 1429 (March 1, by purchase from
John III, Marquis of Namur),
Hainault and
Holland,
Frisia and
Zealand in 1432 (with the defeat of
Countess Jacqueline in the last episode of the
Hook and Cod wars); inherited the duchy of
Brabant and Limburg and the margrave of
Antwerp in 1430 (on the death of his cousin
Philip of Saint-Pol); and purchased
Luxembourg in 1443 from
Elisabeth of Bohemia, Duchess of Luxembourg. Philip also managed to ensure his illegitimate son,
David, was elected
Bishop of Utrecht in 1456. It isn't surprising that in 1435, Philip began to style himself "Grand Duke of the West".
In 1463 Philip returned some of his territory to Louis XI. That year he also created an
Estates-General based on the French model. The first meeting of the Estates-General was to obtain a loan for a war against France and to ensure support for the succession of his son,
Charles I, to his dominions. Philip died in Bruges in 1467.
Court life and patron of the arts
Philip's court can only be described as extravagant. Despite the flourishing
bourgeois culture of Burgundy, which the court kept in close touch with, he and the aristocrats who formed most of his inner circle retained a world-view dominated by knightly
chivalry. He declined membership in the English
Order of the Garter in 1422, which could have been considered an act of treason against the King of France, his feudal overlord. Instead in 1430 he created his own
Order of the Golden Fleece, based on the
Knights of the Round Table. He had no fixed capital and moved the court between various palaces, the main urban ones being
Brussels,
Bruges, or
Lille. He held grand feasts and other festivities, and the
knights of his Order frequently travelled throughout his territory participating in
tournaments. In 1454 Philip planned a
crusade against the
Ottoman Empire, launching it at the
Feast of the Pheasant, but this plan never materialized. In a period from 1444-6 he's estimated to have spent a sum equivalent to 2% of Burgundy's main tax income over the period, the
recette génerale, with a single Italian supplier of
silk and
cloth of gold, Giovanni di Arrigo
Arnolfini.
His court was regarded as the most splendid in Europe, and became the accepted leader of taste and fashion, which probably helped the Burgundian economy considerably, as Burgundian (usually Netherlandish) luxury products became sought by the elites of other parts of Europe. During his reign, for example, the richest English commissioners of
illuminated manuscripts moved away from English and Parisian products to those of the Netherlands, as did other foreign buyers. Philip himself is estimated to have added six hundred manuscripts to the ducal collection, making him by a considerable margin the most important patron of the period.
Philip was also a considerable patron of other arts, commissioning many
tapestries (which he tended to prefer over paintings), pieces from goldsmiths, jewellery, and other works of art. It was during his reign that the Burgundian chapel became the musical center of Europe, with the activity of the
Burgundian School of composers and singers.
Gilles Binchois,
Robert Morton, and later
Guillaume Dufay, the most famous composer of the 15th century, were all part of Philip's court chapel.
In
1428 Jan van Eyck traveled to
Portugal to paint
King John I's daughter
Infanta Isabel for Philip in advance of their marriage. With help from more experienced Portuguese shipbuilders Philip established a shipyard in Bruges.
Roger van der Weyden painted his portrait twice on panel, of which only copies survive, wearing the collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece. The only original van der Weyden of Philip to survive is a superb miniature from a manuscript (above right).
. The painter
Hugo van der Goes, of the Flemish school, is credited with creating paintings for the church where Philip's funeral was held.
Ancestors
Titles
28 January 1405–January 1431, 5 February 1432–April 1432, August 1432–November 1432: Count of Charolais as Philip II
10 September 1419–15 July 1467: Duke of Burgundy as Philip III
10 September 1419–15 July 1467: Count of Artois as Philip V
10 September 1419–15 July 1467: Count Palatine of Burgundy as Philip V
10 September 1419–15 July 1467: Count of Flanders as Philip III
1 March 1429–15 July 1467: Margrave of Namur as Philip IV
4 August 1430–15 June 1467: Duke of Brabant as Philip II
4 August 1430–15 June 1467: Duke of Lothier as Philip II
4 August 1430–15 June 1467: Duke of Limburg as Philip II
April 1432–15 June 1467: Count of Hainault as Philip I
April 1432–15 June 1467: Count of Holland as Philip I
April 1432–15 June 1467: Count of Zeeland as Philip I
1443–15 June 1467: Duke of Luxemburg as Philip I
In popular culture
Philip appears as an unplayable character in Koei's video game, in which he's the right-hand man of Joan of ArcFurther Information
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