Summary
Highlights
Between the 11th and 15th centuries, the French monarchy underwent a significant transformation. Initially, in the 11th century, the king's power was weak, limited to a small royal domain. By the 15th century, the king's authority was incontestable, the royal domain had greatly expanded, and a political unity centered around the French king was established. The central question addressed is how the French king strengthened his power against the lords during this period.
Feudal society was organized around a vassal pyramid, with the king at its apex, being no one's vassal. However, his direct authority over other lords was limited, and some grand lords held territories larger than the royal domain. Hugh Capet, elected in 987, founded the Capetian dynasty, establishing a lineage of kings. Early Capetians' direct authority was confined to the modest royal domain. Despite this, the king held significant moral authority due to his coronation at Reims, which made him a divine elect, giving him a sacred character. The coronation also allowed the king to confiscate fiefs from disobedient vassals, leading to a gradual expansion of the royal domain.
In the 12th century, the royal domain remained small, and the King of England (due to William the Conqueror's conquest of England in 1066 and Henry II Plantagenet's marriage to Eleanor of Aquitaine) held vast fiefs in France, posing a serious rivalry. The 12th and 13th centuries saw a strengthening of royal power under several sovereigns. Philip Augustus (1180-1223) expanded the royal domain through marriage and war. His victory at Bouvines in 1214 against an Anglo-imperial coalition solidified his authority and united the French. He also established royal administrators called baillis to weaken the power of great lords. Louis IX (Saint Louis, 1226-1270) was a pious king who strengthened royal administration by issuing ordinances applicable throughout the kingdom and establishing a royal justice system with the right of appeal, further diminishing seigneurial power. Philip IV the Fair (1285-1314) further centralized power with legal specialists and challenged the Pope's authority over the French clergy, leading to the papacy's move to Avignon. By the 12th and 13th centuries, a modern state began to form with royal control over vassals, an expanding royal domain, a modern administration, church support, and a sacred royal identity.
The death of Philip IV without a direct male heir in 1328 led to the crown passing to Philip VI of Valois. Edward III of England, Philip IV's grandson through his mother, claimed the French throne but was dismissed due to the Salic Law, which forbade women from transmitting the crown. The Hundred Years' War began in 1337 when Philip VI confiscated Edward III's Guyenne fiefs. Significant French defeats occurred at Crécy (1346) and Poitiers (1356), where King John II was captured. The Treaty of Brétigny (1360) saw Edward III renounce the French throne but gain significant French territories. This period also saw peasant revolts like the Jacqueries and civil strife between the Armagnacs and Burgundians. The Black Death (1347-1349) decimated a third of the French and English populations.
Under Charles VI, France faced internal divisions between his uncles, leading to civil war. The English victory at Agincourt in 1415, supported by the Burgundians, allowed England to occupy Northern France. The assassination of Jean the Fearless (Duke of Burgundy) in 1419 led to the Treaty of Troyes, where Charles VI's wife disinherited their son, Charles VII, and recognized the English king as the legitimate heir to the French throne. In 1429, Joan of Arc, claiming divine visions, inspired Charles VII, helping him reconquer territory and orchestrating his coronation at Reims, solidifying his claim to the throne. Despite Joan's capture and execution in 1431, her actions reignited French morale. The Duke of Burgundy eventually reconciled with Charles VII, and the Battle of Castillon (1453) definitively expelled the English from France, leaving them only with Calais.
The Hundred Years' War led to the creation of a permanent army, financed by new, permanent taxes like the 'taille' (income tax), 'gabelle' (salt tax), and 'aides' (commercial tax). These taxes meant the king no longer needed the Estates-General to raise funds, though nobility and clergy remained exempt. The war also fostered a strong patriotic sentiment and a sense of French national unity. By the early 15th century, the king's authority was significantly reinforced. Louis XI further consolidated power by subduing the Duke of Burgundy, expanding the royal domain, and eliminating challenges to royal authority. The feudal system was replaced by a direct royal authority over all lords. The king became a sacred, inviolable figure, and the royal function was seen as eternal, transcending the individual monarch, as symbolized by the cry 'The King is dead, long live the King!'.