Francis I Of FRANCE

Other Events and Attributes:

• Name: Francois Of Navarre

Notes:

Francis I of France (French: FranÁois Ier) (September 12, 1494 ? March 31, 1547), called the Father and Restorer of Letters (le PËre et Restaurateur des Lettres), was crowned King of France in 1515 in the cathedral at Reims and reigned until 1547.

Francis I is considered to be France's first Renaissance monarch. His reign saw France make immense cultural advances. He was a contemporary of King Henry VIII of England and of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, his great rivals, and Suleiman the Magnificent, his ally.

rancis I, a member of the Valois Dynasty, was born at Cognac, Charente, the son of Charles d'AngoulÍme (1459 ? January 1, 1496), and of Louise of Savoy (September 11, 1476 ? September 22, 1531). His father, Charles d'AngoulÍme, was the cousin of King Louis XII. In 1498, the four-year-old Francis, already Count of AngoulÍme, was created Duke of Valois. He was the heir presumptive of Louis XII, who did not succeed in siring sons with any of his three wives. Young Francis was, by instigation of King Louis, in 1506 betrothed and on 18 May 1514 married, to Claude of France (1499-1524), the daughter of Louis XII and Anne of Brittany and heiress of Brittany. Because of the Salic Law that stated that women could not inherit the throne of France, the throne passed to Francis I at the death of Louis XII, as he was the descendant of the eldest surviving male line of the Capetian Dynasty. Claude of France became queen consort.

When young Francis ascended the throne in 1515, he was already a king with unprecedented humanist credentials. While his two predecessors, Charles VIII and Louis XII, had spent much of their reigns concerned with Italy they did not much embrace the new intellectual movements coming out of it. Both monarchs continued in the same patterns of behavior that had dominated the French monarchy for centuries. They are considered the last of the medieval French monarchs, but they did lay the groundwork for the Renaissance to come into full swing in France.

Contact between the French and Italians in the long running series of wars under Charles and Louis had brought new ideas to France by the time the young Francis was receiving his education. Thus a number of his tutors, such as Desmoulins, his Latin instructor, and Christophe de Longeuil were schooled in the new ways of thinking and they attempted to imbue Francis with it. Francis' mother also had a great interest in Renaissance art, which she passed down to her son. One certainly cannot say that Francis received a humanist education; most of his teachers had not yet been affected by the Renaissance. One can, however, state that he clearly received an education more oriented towards humanism than any previous French king.

Francis' legacy is a mixed one. He achieved great cultural feats, but they came at the expense of France's economic well being.

The persecution of the Protestants was to lead France into decades of civil war, which did not end until 1598 with the Edict of Nantes.

Francis I died at the Ch‚teau de Rambouillet and is interred with his first wife, Claude de France, Duchess of Bretagne, in Saint Denis Basilica. He was succeeded by his son, Henry II.

Francis married Leonor Of CASTILE on 07 Aug 1530. Leonor (daughter of Philip I The Handsome King Of CASTILE and Juana Queen Of CASTILE) was born on 24 Nov 1498 in Brussels; died on 18 Feb 1558 in Talavera. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Francis married Claude Princess Of FRANCE on 18 May 1514. Claude (daughter of Louis XII King Of FRANCE and Anne Of BRITTANY) was born on 14 Oct 1499; died on 20 Jul 1524. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Margaret Of FRANCE was born on 05 Jun 1523; died on 14 Sep 1574.
2. Madeleine Princess Of FRANCE was born on 10 Aug 1520; died on 02 Jul 1537.
3. Francis Dauphin Of FRANCE was born on 28 Feb 1518; died on 10 Aug 1536.
4. Charles Of Valois Duke Of ORLEANS was born on 22 Jan 1522; died on 09 Sep 1545.
5. Louise Princess Of FRANCE was born on 19 Aug 1515; died on 21 Sep 1517.
6. Charlotte Princess Of FRANCE was born on 23 Oct 1516; died on 08 Sep 1524.
7. Henry II King Of FRANCE was born on 31 Mar 1519 in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France; died on 10 Jul 1559.

Notes:

(1459 ? 1 January 1496) was a member of the French OrlÈans family descended from Louis I de Valois, Duke of OrlÈans, and a minor French prince. He was Count of AngoulÍme from 1467-1496. He married three times, the third to Louise of Savoy, daughter of Philip the Landless and Margaret of Bourbon, in 1490.

Charles married Louise Of SAVOY on 16 Feb 1488 in Paris. Louise (daughter of Philip II Duke Of SAVOY and Margaret Of BOURBON) was born on 11 Sep 1476 in Point d'Ain; died on 22 Sep 1531 in Greta-sur-Loing. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Louise was born at Point d'Ain, the eldest daughter of Philip II, Duke of Savoy (1443?1497) and his first wife, Margaret of Bourbon (1438?1483). Her brother, Philibert II, Duke of Savoy (1480?1504), succeeded her father as ruler of the duchy and head of the House of Savoy. He was, in turn, succeeded by their half-brother Charles III, Duke of Savoy (1486?1553).

At age twelve, Louise married Charles de Valois (1459?1496), Count of AngoulÍme, on February 16, 1488 in Paris. This was Charles' third marriage. Their first child, Marguerite, was born on April 11, 1492; their second child, FranÁois, was born on September 12, 1494.

Louise had a keen awareness for the intricacies of politics and diplomacy, and was deeply aware of the advances of arts and sciences in Renaissance Italy. She made certain that her children were educated in the spirit of the Italian Renaissance, also helped by her Italian confessor, Cristoforo Numai from ForlÏ. When she was widowed at the young age of 19, Louise deftly maneuvered her children into a position that would secure for each of them a promising future. She moved her family to the court of King Louis XII, her husband's cousin. Francis became a favorite of the king, who gave him his daughter Claude de France in marriage on 8 May 1514. With that marriage, Louis XII designated Francis as his heir. With the death of Louis XII on 1 January 1515, Francis became king of France.

On February 4, 1515, Louise was named Duchess of AngoulÍme, and on April 15, 1524, Duchess of Anjou.

Her mother having been one of the sisters of last dukes of main branch of Bourbon, after the death of Susan, Duchess of Bourbon in 1521, she on basis of proximity of blood advanced claims to Duchy of Auvergne and other possessions of the Bourbons. This lead her (supported by her son the king) in rivalry against Charles III, Duke of Bourbon, Susan's widower, whom she proposed to marry in order to settle the Bourbon inheritance issue. When rejected by Charles, Louise instigated efforts to undermine him, which led to Charles' exile and coming to war against France, and in 1527 death. Louise recovered Auvergne from confiscations and became its duchess.

Louise of Savoy remained active on behalf of her son in the early years of his reign especially. During his absences, she acted as regent on his behalf. She was the principal negotiator for the Treaty of Cambrai between France and the Holy Roman Empire, concluded on August 3, 1529. That treaty, called "the Ladies Peace", put an end to the second Italian war between the head of the Valois dynasty, Francis I of France, and the head of the Habsburg dynasty, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. The Treaty temporarily confirmed Habsburg hegemony in Italy.

The treaty was signed by Louise of Savoy for France and her sister-in-law, Margaretha von Habsburg (Margaret of Austria), for the Holy Roman Empire.

Louise of Savoy died on September 22, 1531, in Gretz-sur-Loing. Her remains were entombed at Saint-Denis in Paris. After her death, her lands including Auvergne merged in the crown, having come into king Francis' possession.