Chapter 40 - The low Countries from 1515 to 1517
Chapter 40 – The Low Countries from 1515 to 1517
The years after 1515 had been peaceful ones for the Grand Duchy of Brabant. The Treaty of Graveline had settled the conflict between England and Boulogne, owning much to the diplomatic skills of Philip. The acquired territories included in Brabant had all fallen into line and his grip on Burgundy were secured. The peace was welcome to Philip, as he increasingly felt fatigued and relied more heavily on his son for support. Ever since the age of eight he had kept up a restless tempo and the consequences began to come calling. The wars in Frisia had also taken their toll on the duke and in the winter of 1515, he suffered a severe cold that left him bedridden for nearly two weeks. Duchess Philippa tended to him personally, leaving Countess Beatrijs in charge of the court once more. Two more children had been born to Beatrijs since 1510, Charles of Brabant and Beatrice of Brabant. Another pregnancy had ended in a miscarriage, but the succession of the grand duchy was secured. Scotland had become another ally as his niece had wedded James V and the peace between the all of the neighbours has lasted.
The death of Emperor Maximilian marked the last endeavour undertaken by the Grand Duke. Determined to keep any other interloper of the imperial throne, Philip dispatched William de Croy, 1st count of Beaumont to the court of Vienna. Elections cost money and Philip had riches in plenty. He gave a generous offer to Frederick, king of Romans with a few conditions. The grand duke wanted the protection of the empire from all enemies of Brabant as the Duchy of Burgundy and the Palatinate of Burgundy laid by the empire’s boarder. Philip also hoped to further undercut the Hansa in Germany and perhaps to see one of his granddaughters becoming the bride of Archduke Frederick, the second son of the king. With as many crowns as his father had, Archduke Frederick would certainly inherit a realm of his own and even if he was not the future emperor, an imperial match would bring prestige. The negotiations between England and Brabant had fallen aside as King Richard had refused Marguerite of Brabant for his son in favour of Archduchess Elizabeth. But there were other realms to consider, such as Portugal and Spain. Right now, the Empire was on Philip’s mind.
The election of 1516 only had one clear contender to the throne: The king of the Romans. Frederick was well known to the German princes as he had spent many years traveling in Germany, especially after his sister Hedwig eloped with her Báthory lord and shamed the Elector Palatine. One other contester could have been Philippe, the heir to the Grand Duchy of Brabant, but he had no interest of governing a realm like Germany when the splendidness of the Low Countries and Burgundy would be his soon, as his father’s health was faltering. The king of France could not mount a challenge and Richard IV had no interest in obtaining the crown as his affairs were in England.
The election was decided by June in Frankfurth where the electors had gathered to make their decision. The outcome was clear from the start and the annunciation held no surprise:
The election of the King of the Romans as Frederick IV rang from all the church bells in Germany on that sunny day in 1516. The emperor had a new ruler and the House of Hapsburg had triumphed once more. The Holy Roman Empire would face many challenges in the coming decades, as the threat of the Ottomans was not the only danger facing them. Internal tensions and a huge shift in the religious world would come soon and Frederick would have to rely on all of his resources to face the challenges.
Giving his sister the crown of the Holy Roman Empress would be Philip’s last grand act. In 1516 Anne was the sibling with the greatest standing remaining. Their sister Isabella had been banished from the court of France and was forced to leave the splendor of the royal residences of the Valois kings by her own son and fled back to her father’s kingdom the year before. The death of her only daughter, Marie, had devastated her further as well as the loss of contact with her grandchildren and while her condition improved in the Low Countries, she still remained a figure cloaked in sorrow. John of Burgundy, Count of Saint Pol had been slain by his nephew when defending the Duchy in 1507. And the Grand Duke was increasingly ailing. By comparison, Anne enjoyed both health and strength and the full splendor of the imperial court. In her own way, the youngest child of Charles the Bold, Anne the Posthumous of Burgundy had reached the highest as Empress, and Queen of Bohemia and Hungary as well as Archduchess of Austria. No doubt her father would have been proud of his son in law in 1516 and even more in 1526, in which a stroke of victory would immortalize Frederick forever in christian Europe.
In the last day of October of 1517, the bells rang for their Grand Duke for the last time. Philip died in the early morning in the Palace of Bruges. His last night was spent surrounded by his family, much to his joy during the few moments of wakefulness in the final hours. Philippa and Philippe sat by his bedside, keeping their husband and father company in the last days. To the citizens of the Low Countries the next days would be days of mourning and church bells would toll hourly from Amiens to Amsterdam.
Almost fifty years has passed since the marriage between Charles the Bold to Margaret of York in 1468 in 1517. The Burgundian Netherlands had been troubled by lack of cohesion, strife between the cities and the dukes, hostilities from France and fears regarding the succession. The birth of Philip in 1469 turned out to be the salvation of all those fears. His reign had been a nearly uninterrupted peace for nearly forty years. A period of tranquility since 1480 in which the Low Countries had become a more cohesive realm. The lands had prospered, the trades network spread its tendrils all over Europe, humanism spread out around from the court, reaching merchants, religious communities and peasants. A strong network of marriages had been crafted from 1490 and onward, including England, Denmark, Lorraine, Brittany, Scotland and the Holy Roman Empire itself. The many allies had brought Brabant international prestige and advantages amongst the kings of Europe. And perhaps most importantly, the Duchy of Burgundy had been recovered from the grasp of France.
The two marriages of both father and son had been of crucial importance to the Low Countries. The splendid wedding of Charles the Bold and Margaret had been known as the Marriage of the Century for its ostentatious grandeur being displayed to all attendants. The union of Philip and Philippa had been another one, a powerful display of internal healing from strife and wars. Even if certain naysayers had been negative about the lack of a dowry or foreign alliance that Philippa brought with her to the marriage.
Philip would receive the epitaph of Philip the Unifier by historians and he is considered the Father of the Netherlands to this day, with his reign being seen as a golden age for the Low Countries.
Philip of Burgundy’s son would go on to rule the Low Countries at the Grand Duke of Brabant and Duke of Burgundy. The day after Philip’s death the world changed forever, as a monk named Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the wall of the church in Wittenberg.
The Marriage in Cana by David Gerard ca 1510. It was delivered as a gift for the Grand Duke and it is supposed to show several ducal members. The lady in red with a cloak is believed to be the countess Beatrijs, with Margaretha sitting between the saint and Katelijne in the cloth of gold dress with white and black fabric at the corner of the table. The young man sitting to the left is believed to be Philippe, Count of Namur and Philippa of Guelders in a white hood and black dress kneeling to the in the right corner in prayer. Philip of Burgundy is the man in the left corner in black and red. Antoine of Brabant is the small child behind his father and the young man in red clothes kneeling before Philippa is Jean of Brabant, their second son.
Author's Note: Well, this chapter was always meant to haunt me. Our dear Grand Duke has exited the stage and the Low Countries has a new ruler. Poor Philippa. And here comes Martin Luther with a steel chair!
The years after 1515 had been peaceful ones for the Grand Duchy of Brabant. The Treaty of Graveline had settled the conflict between England and Boulogne, owning much to the diplomatic skills of Philip. The acquired territories included in Brabant had all fallen into line and his grip on Burgundy were secured. The peace was welcome to Philip, as he increasingly felt fatigued and relied more heavily on his son for support. Ever since the age of eight he had kept up a restless tempo and the consequences began to come calling. The wars in Frisia had also taken their toll on the duke and in the winter of 1515, he suffered a severe cold that left him bedridden for nearly two weeks. Duchess Philippa tended to him personally, leaving Countess Beatrijs in charge of the court once more. Two more children had been born to Beatrijs since 1510, Charles of Brabant and Beatrice of Brabant. Another pregnancy had ended in a miscarriage, but the succession of the grand duchy was secured. Scotland had become another ally as his niece had wedded James V and the peace between the all of the neighbours has lasted.
The death of Emperor Maximilian marked the last endeavour undertaken by the Grand Duke. Determined to keep any other interloper of the imperial throne, Philip dispatched William de Croy, 1st count of Beaumont to the court of Vienna. Elections cost money and Philip had riches in plenty. He gave a generous offer to Frederick, king of Romans with a few conditions. The grand duke wanted the protection of the empire from all enemies of Brabant as the Duchy of Burgundy and the Palatinate of Burgundy laid by the empire’s boarder. Philip also hoped to further undercut the Hansa in Germany and perhaps to see one of his granddaughters becoming the bride of Archduke Frederick, the second son of the king. With as many crowns as his father had, Archduke Frederick would certainly inherit a realm of his own and even if he was not the future emperor, an imperial match would bring prestige. The negotiations between England and Brabant had fallen aside as King Richard had refused Marguerite of Brabant for his son in favour of Archduchess Elizabeth. But there were other realms to consider, such as Portugal and Spain. Right now, the Empire was on Philip’s mind.
The election of 1516 only had one clear contender to the throne: The king of the Romans. Frederick was well known to the German princes as he had spent many years traveling in Germany, especially after his sister Hedwig eloped with her Báthory lord and shamed the Elector Palatine. One other contester could have been Philippe, the heir to the Grand Duchy of Brabant, but he had no interest of governing a realm like Germany when the splendidness of the Low Countries and Burgundy would be his soon, as his father’s health was faltering. The king of France could not mount a challenge and Richard IV had no interest in obtaining the crown as his affairs were in England.
The election was decided by June in Frankfurth where the electors had gathered to make their decision. The outcome was clear from the start and the annunciation held no surprise:
The election of the King of the Romans as Frederick IV rang from all the church bells in Germany on that sunny day in 1516. The emperor had a new ruler and the House of Hapsburg had triumphed once more. The Holy Roman Empire would face many challenges in the coming decades, as the threat of the Ottomans was not the only danger facing them. Internal tensions and a huge shift in the religious world would come soon and Frederick would have to rely on all of his resources to face the challenges.
Giving his sister the crown of the Holy Roman Empress would be Philip’s last grand act. In 1516 Anne was the sibling with the greatest standing remaining. Their sister Isabella had been banished from the court of France and was forced to leave the splendor of the royal residences of the Valois kings by her own son and fled back to her father’s kingdom the year before. The death of her only daughter, Marie, had devastated her further as well as the loss of contact with her grandchildren and while her condition improved in the Low Countries, she still remained a figure cloaked in sorrow. John of Burgundy, Count of Saint Pol had been slain by his nephew when defending the Duchy in 1507. And the Grand Duke was increasingly ailing. By comparison, Anne enjoyed both health and strength and the full splendor of the imperial court. In her own way, the youngest child of Charles the Bold, Anne the Posthumous of Burgundy had reached the highest as Empress, and Queen of Bohemia and Hungary as well as Archduchess of Austria. No doubt her father would have been proud of his son in law in 1516 and even more in 1526, in which a stroke of victory would immortalize Frederick forever in christian Europe.
In the last day of October of 1517, the bells rang for their Grand Duke for the last time. Philip died in the early morning in the Palace of Bruges. His last night was spent surrounded by his family, much to his joy during the few moments of wakefulness in the final hours. Philippa and Philippe sat by his bedside, keeping their husband and father company in the last days. To the citizens of the Low Countries the next days would be days of mourning and church bells would toll hourly from Amiens to Amsterdam.
Almost fifty years has passed since the marriage between Charles the Bold to Margaret of York in 1468 in 1517. The Burgundian Netherlands had been troubled by lack of cohesion, strife between the cities and the dukes, hostilities from France and fears regarding the succession. The birth of Philip in 1469 turned out to be the salvation of all those fears. His reign had been a nearly uninterrupted peace for nearly forty years. A period of tranquility since 1480 in which the Low Countries had become a more cohesive realm. The lands had prospered, the trades network spread its tendrils all over Europe, humanism spread out around from the court, reaching merchants, religious communities and peasants. A strong network of marriages had been crafted from 1490 and onward, including England, Denmark, Lorraine, Brittany, Scotland and the Holy Roman Empire itself. The many allies had brought Brabant international prestige and advantages amongst the kings of Europe. And perhaps most importantly, the Duchy of Burgundy had been recovered from the grasp of France.
The two marriages of both father and son had been of crucial importance to the Low Countries. The splendid wedding of Charles the Bold and Margaret had been known as the Marriage of the Century for its ostentatious grandeur being displayed to all attendants. The union of Philip and Philippa had been another one, a powerful display of internal healing from strife and wars. Even if certain naysayers had been negative about the lack of a dowry or foreign alliance that Philippa brought with her to the marriage.
Philip would receive the epitaph of Philip the Unifier by historians and he is considered the Father of the Netherlands to this day, with his reign being seen as a golden age for the Low Countries.
Philip of Burgundy’s son would go on to rule the Low Countries at the Grand Duke of Brabant and Duke of Burgundy. The day after Philip’s death the world changed forever, as a monk named Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the wall of the church in Wittenberg.
The Marriage in Cana by David Gerard ca 1510. It was delivered as a gift for the Grand Duke and it is supposed to show several ducal members. The lady in red with a cloak is believed to be the countess Beatrijs, with Margaretha sitting between the saint and Katelijne in the cloth of gold dress with white and black fabric at the corner of the table. The young man sitting to the left is believed to be Philippe, Count of Namur and Philippa of Guelders in a white hood and black dress kneeling to the in the right corner in prayer. Philip of Burgundy is the man in the left corner in black and red. Antoine of Brabant is the small child behind his father and the young man in red clothes kneeling before Philippa is Jean of Brabant, their second son.
Author's Note: Well, this chapter was always meant to haunt me. Our dear Grand Duke has exited the stage and the Low Countries has a new ruler. Poor Philippa. And here comes Martin Luther with a steel chair!
