Armagnacs (party)

Coat of arms Armagnac

Armagnacs (fr. Armagnacs ) is a political and military party that formed in France during the Hundred Years War and opposes the “ Burgundians ” party. The war between these two groups was called the “ War of the Armagnacs and the Bourguignons .” It formed around Charles, Duke of Orleans , after Charles’s father, Duke Louis of Orleans , was killed in 1407 by order of the Duke of Burgundy.

The party was first called "Orleans", then began to be called by the name of Bernard VII , Count Armagnac, who was the patron saint of young Carl of Orleans and gave his daughter Bonnu for him. In 1408, the Duke of Breton joined Bernard, and in 1410 - Duke de Bourbon and his son, Comte de Clermont. That is how the party was formed, headed by Bernard. The emblem of the party was a white scarf over his shoulder or a white bandage on his arm. (In the Diary of a Parisian Citizen, the “ Nasty Armagnacs Wearing a Sash ^[1] ” is mentioned), while the emblem of their opponents was a red cross stitch or a scarlet cross of St. Andrew. The split touched even the royal family: Isabella of Bavaria supported the Burgundians, and the Dauphin Carl supported the Armagnacs.

In 1412 and early 1413, Armagnacs ravaged the environs of Paris and in fact kept the city under siege.

... before Christmas, when the truce was supposed to end, the Armagnacs around Paris committed so much evil that neither Roman tyrants, nor forest robbers, nor murderers, caused Christians such suffering, and could not be compared with them, they tortured anyone who came to them into the hands, and they went so far as to sell women and children if there was a buyer on them: and nobody opposed them, because the regent of France, the Duke of Bedford, saw no reason to interfere ... ^[2]

The killing of Parisians by caboshiens in 1413. Miniature from "Vigil for the death of King Charles VII . "

In 1413, Armagnacs seize Paris and hold the capital until 1419. The invasion of the British for some time reconciled them with the Burgundian party, and in 1415, at Azincourt, they fought together: Orleans and Bourbons participated in the battle against Armagnacs. In this battle, the Armagnacs Karl of Orleans and the Duke of Bourbon were captured.

The uprising of 1418 and the beating of Armagnacs. Miniature from "Vigil on the death of King Charles VII . "

On May 29, 1418, the Burgundian army led by Count de l'Ile Adam took Paris and Bernard was killed during the massacre. Armagnac ceased to be a "party of power", they began to pursue and confiscate property. These confiscations were almost the only source of income for the state treasury. But a couple of months after the Paris massacre, the British army moved to Paris. In a critical situation, the Burgundians decided to negotiate with the Armagnacs, but this attempt led to the opposite result: on September 10, 1419, during negotiations on the bridge in Montero, Armagnacs killed Jean the Fearless . This murder discredited Armagnac and Dauphin Charles, and the Burgundians openly sided with the English king, which led to a treaty in Troyes .

After the death of Bernard, Karl Orleans, who was still in captivity in England, became the formal head of the party, but the real power was gradually concentrated in the hands of the dauphin Karl. After the treaty in Trois, the Armagnacs were increasingly identified with the "Dauphin party." Parisians hated Armagnacs, but much changed the appearance of Joan of Arc, who actually became one of the Armagnacs: the Parisians called her "Armagnac virgin," and the British - "Armagnac whore." At the same time, the successes of Zhanna gradually changed the attitude towards the Armagnac party.

The world of Arras in 1435 finally reconciled the Burgundians and Armagnacs and, at the same time, Armagnacs and Parisians, who had no choice but to recognize the power of Charles VII and his supporters.

A political schism, the so-called “ Great Western schism ”, was also imposed on the political split of society. It was a conflict between the popes and the Avignon popes, in which England and the Burgundians supported the popes, and France, the countries of the Iberian Peninsula and the Armagnac party supported the popes of Avignon.