Charles 7 The winner is the King of France. Biography, years of government

On a cloudy winter day, February 22, 1403, Paris was seized with joy - a royal prince was born to a royal family. This event, in itself, is not so rare, in this case it was fatal for France, since the future appeared to its future King Charles 7, who went down in history with the title of "Winner". That's just about who and at what price he managed to win, will go the story in our article.

Young Dauphin - heir to the throne

His parents - the French King Charles VI of the Mad, who fully justified the nickname given to him, and his wife, the incomparable Isabella of Bavaria, Charles was already the fifth son, but it so happened that all his predecessors died at an early age, thus freeing him To the throne.

According to the testimony of contemporaries, in him from an early age the qualities inherent in a true monarch were manifested - fearlessness, a thirst for power and cold prudence. It seemed that he was destined to rule by fate. However, the path to the throne is not always straight and easy. In this 15-year-old Dauphin, heir to the throne, I had to be sure when the supporters of the Duke of Burgundy, the political opponent of his father, seized Paris, forcing him himself to a shameful escape.

The barrier to the throne

The next blow of fate Charles 7 received in 1421, when his parents unexpectedly set out to deprive him of the right to crown, declaring him illegitimate. To this end, a version was promulgated, according to which, he was the product of the secret love of his mother Queen Isabella and a certain court ladies' man, whose name, incidentally, was not called.

Such a turn of events threatened serious complications, confusion and bloodshed, because in this case, the claimants to the throne were two more - the Duke of Orleans and the young son of the recently deceased King Henry V. The young and still inexperienced in political intrigues, Charles needed strong support, and he received it , Marrying the daughter of Yolanda of Aragon, who was the queen of four kingdoms at once - Naples, Jerusalem, Sicily and Aragon.

The phenomenon of the Virgin of Orleans

But even with the patronage of such an uncommon mother-in-law and remaining with her support as the main pretender to the throne, Charles was unable to solve the main problem - to drive out the English, who had by that time occupied a significant part of the French kingdom and tried to force their protege to the throne.

Not having for the struggle neither the strength nor the determination, the Dauphin limited himself to running a small territory south of the Loire. It is possible that this land would have to be conceded if it were not for a miracle. They became a young girl who lived in the village of Domremi on the border of Lorraine and believed in her highest destiny. Her name was Jeanne d'Arc. In history, it came under the name of the Maid of Orleans.

The long-awaited coronation

Appearing to the local duke and telling him that she was chosen by God to save France, the girl demanded to help her to get to the city of Chinon, where, as she knew, there was then Karl 7. Not knowing how to react to such insane words, the ruler all He also gave her protection and, in addition, provided the necessary papers.

The rest is known, rather, from legends than from documentary sources. But rumor says that after learning about the arrival of such an unusual guest, the Dauphin decided to try it. To this end, he planted one of the courtiers in his place, and he settled himself a little further. How great was the general astonishment when a village girl, who had never seen Karl before, spoke to him exactly, ignoring the others present.

Having regarded this as a sign from above, Karl 7 was evidently encouraged. Having expressed his desire to fulfill his destiny at last, he immediately went to Reims, where traditionally the ceremonies of the accession of the French monarchs to the throne were held. In the same place, the coronation of Charles 7 was completed.

Death of Joan of Arc

About what happened next, hundreds of volumes of historical research were written. They describe in detail how inspired by Jeanne the French on their way to Rheims were freed from the English one city after another, how they liberated Orleans and how thanks to her, Charles 7, king of France, finally ascended to the throne. Her glory spread all over the country, and the name became the banner under which the people drove the invaders from their land.

But there is a story in them and how, on May 23, 1430, in the battle for the city of Compiegne, the Orleans maiden was betrayed by fellow countrymen and found herself in the hands of hated Englishmen. A week later, she was burned on charges of heresy. Many claim that since then the smoke of her fire bitterly fills the air of France. The demise of the girl became the curse that the entire dynasty of Charles 7 suffered. Having the opportunity to save Jeanne - the heavenly mission that bestowed on him the crown and throne, he despicably left it in the hands of the executioners.

The fighting spirit, which the Maid of Orleans infused into its people, was ineradicable even after her death. In the following four years, the French almost completely expelled the invaders from their land, and Charles 7, the King of France, annexed to his possessions the Burgundy hostile before him.

Under the burden of a curse

Thanks to the expulsion of the English and the suppression of recalcitrant vassals, he went down in history as Charles VII Winner. But the curse, which he brought upon himself and his descendants, did not fail to affect the last years of his life. It is not without reason that evil produces evil. Betrayed his savior, he himself became a victim of betrayal of the person closest to him - the son and heir to the throne, the future king of Louis XI.

The excessive thirst for power forced the young Dauphin to flatter his father with a network of dirty intrigues, the purpose of which was to overthrow him. Only the expulsion of Louis to the distant possession of Apanage saved the king from an imminent bloody denouement. But even there, Louis did not depart from his plans. Having fled from the place of his exile, he joined the worst enemy of his father - the Burgundian duke Philip, ironically nicknamed "Good".

Mad King

Almost the whole of 1458, the king lay on the bed of illness, which was the result of an infection that fell into the wound he received while pacifying the rebellious vassal of Jean d'Armagnac. At times it seemed to the courtiers that he was close to death, but by the will of Providence the king lived for another three years, repeatedly sending his son letters in which he prayed to return and promised forgiveness.

But the heart of Louis turned to stone. In anticipation of his father's death, he openly expressed his impatience, and even hired astrologers, from whom he hoped to know her exact day and time. This was reported to Carl, and his mind could not stand it. The king spent the last year of his life with an incessant nightmare. Afraid to be poisoned by order of his son, he barely touched the food, which lost his strength and melted in the eyes of those around him. The obsession with the attempt did not allow him to leave his own quarters. Fear of the hired killer turned the king into a prisoner, doomed to perpetual seclusion.

The end of life and the outcome of the reign

In the middle of the summer of 1461 the state of the king deteriorated extremely. To the turbidity of consciousness, a swelling of the throat was added, not allowing to take even the meager food that he allowed himself. As a result, July 22, he died of complete exhaustion and was buried in the abbey of Saint-Denis, where the ashes of his parents rested.

Charles 7, a brief biography of which formed the basis of this article, despite the shame associated with the death of Joan of Arc, entered the history of France as a king who did a lot for her prosperity. In particular, with him the country was centralized under the rule of a single monarch, and for the first time a regular army appeared, which included gendarmerie units - heavy knights, encased in a full set of armor.

It was he who became the founder of the University of Poitiers and the creator of the economic system, under which the standard of living of all layers of the population significantly increased. And today, however pertinent to his personality the researchers of that era, they are forced to admit that after 32 years of government (1429-1461), leaving this world, Charles left France in a better state than he accepted.