Philip II the Bold was Duke of Burgundy and jure uxoris Count of Flanders, Artois and Burgundy. He was the fourth and youngest son of King John II of France and Bonne of Luxembourg.
Charles Martin, called the Bold, was the last duke of Burgundy from the House of Valois-Burgundy, ruling from 1467 to 1477. He was the only legitimate son of Philip the Good and his third wife, Isabella of Portugal. As heir and as ruler, Charles vied for power and influence with rivals such as his overlord, King Louis XI of France. In 1465 Charles led a successful revolt of Louis's vassals in the War of the Public Weal.
Philip III the Good ruled as Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death in 1467. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonged. During his reign, the Burgundian State reached the apex of its prosperity and prestige, and became a leading centre of the arts.
John I was a scion of the French royal family who ruled the Burgundian State from 1404 until his assassination in 1419. He played a key role in French national affairs during the early 15th century, particularly in the struggles to rule the country for the mentally ill King Charles VI, his cousin, and the Hundred Years' War with England. A rash, ruthless and unscrupulous politician, John murdered the king's brother, the Duke of Orléans, in an attempt to gain control of the government, which led to the eruption of the Armagnac–Burgundian Civil War in France and in turn culminated in his own assassination in 1419.
The Battle of Cravant was fought on 31 July 1423, during the Hundred Years' War between English and French forces at the village of Cravant in Burgundy, at a bridge and ford on the banks of the river Yonne, a left-bank tributary of the Seine, southeast of Auxerre. The battle ended in a victory for the English and their Burgundian allies.
Jacques de Lalaing (1421–1453), perhaps the most renowned knight of Burgundy in the 15th century, was reportedly one of the best medieval tournament fighters of all time. A Walloon knight, he began his military career in the service of Adolph I, Duke of Cleves, but was quickly noticed by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy by whom he was knighted and whom he went on to serve. Jacques, known as the "Bon Chevalier" due to his military prowess in tournaments and battles, became the most famous Burgundian knight of his time, and was well known throughout Europe as one of the best medieval tournament fighters. Jacques was inducted into the prestigious Burgundian chivalric order, the Order of the Golden Fleece, in 1451. Jacques' deeds in tournaments and battles were recorded in the Livre des Faits de Jacques Lalaing attributed mainly to the Burgundian chroniclers Jean Le Fevre de Saint-Remy, Georges Chastellain, and the herald Charolais. Throughout his life, Jacques was entrusted by the Duke of Burgundy to serve in delegations to the King of France and the Pope, as well as with the suppression of the Revolt of Ghent in 1453.
The Battle of Héricourt was fought on 13 November 1474 near Héricourt, Burgundy, as part of the Burgundian Wars. It resulted in victory for the Swiss Confederacy and its allies over the Burgundian State.
Louis II, also known as Louis of Male, a member of the House of Dampierre, was Count of Flanders, Nevers and Rethel from 1346 as well as Count of Artois and Burgundy from 1382 until his death.
The Battle of Brouwershaven was fought on 13 January 1426 in Brouwershaven, Zeeland. The battle was part of the Hook and Cod wars waged over control of the Low Countries and resulted in a significant victory for Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy.
The Revolt of Ghent was an uprising by the citizens of Ghent against the regime of the Holy Roman Emperor and Spanish king Charles V in 1539. The revolt was a reaction to high taxes, which the Flemish felt were used solely to fight wars abroad. Charles marched his army into the city the following year and the rebels surrendered without a fight. Charles humiliated the rebels by parading their leaders in undershirts with hangman nooses around their necks. Since then Ghent citizens informally call themselves "noose bearers".
The Battle of Beverhoutsveld took place on 3 May 1382, on a field situated between the towns of Beernem, Oostkamp and Assebroek. It marked an important phase in the rebellion of Ghent against Louis II, Count of Flanders.
The First Battle of Guinegate took place on 7 August 1479. King Louis XI's French troops, led by Philippe de Crèvecœur d'Esquerdes, were defeated by the Burgundians, led by Archduke Maximilian of Habsburg. The battle was the first in which the innovative Swiss pike square formation was used by a power that was not natively Swiss.
The Revolt of Ghent was a rebellion by the city of Ghent against the Burgundian State. It lasted from 1449 to 1453. The rebellion was eventually suppressed by the Burgundians.
On 23 August 1328, the Battle of Cassel took place near the city of Cassel, 30 km south of Dunkirk in present-day France. Philip VI fought Nicolaas Zannekin, a wealthy farmer from Lampernisse. Zannekin was the leader of a band of Flemish rebels. The fighting erupted over taxation and punitive edicts of the French over the Flemish. The battle was won decisively by the French. Zannekin and about 3,200 Flemish rebels were killed in the battle.
The Battle of Montenaken was fought between the forces of Liège and the Burgundian State on 20 October 1465 as part of the First Liège War. Although outnumbered, the Burgundian force succeeded in routing the militia of Liège, inflicting heavy casualties.
The Battle of Bazel was fought in the Belgian village of Bazel on June 16, 1452 between the army of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy and the rebelling city of Ghent. The battle was part of the Revolt of Ghent, and a victory for the Duke.
In the period 1482–1492, the cities of the County of Flanders revolted twice against Maximilian of Austria, who ruled the county as regent for his son, Philip the Handsome. Both revolts were ultimately unsuccessful.
The Siege of Oudenaarde took place in 1452. It was one of the major engagements in the Revolt of Ghent (1449–53). The city was besieged by forces of the rebellious city of Ghent and defended by forces led by Simon de Lalaing, one of the leading captains of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy. The siege included one of the largest artillery bombardments then seen in Europe. The relief of the town by forces under Philip and his allies opened the way for an attack on Ghent by the Burgundian forces. In 1453 the rebels were defeated at the Battle of Gavere.
The Burgundian State is a concept coined by historians to describe the vast complex of territories that is also referred to as Valois Burgundy.
The Revolt of Ghent (1379-1385) was an uprising by the city of Ghent against the count of Flanders and the king of France. Under the leadership of successively Jan Hyoens, Philip van Artevelde and Frans Ackerman, Ghent rebelled against Count Louis II of Flanders, Duke Philip the Bold of Burgundy and King Charles VI of France. It was an expression of the growing power of the Third Estate and of economic ties with England that had been strained by the Hundred Years' War. After six years of war, Ghent submitted to the ducal authority while avoiding further punishment. The dream of an autonomous city-state failed, and the era of royal centralization continued.
