alternatehistory.com
1337: Gascony
1337: GASCONY; SO CLOSE TO FRANCE PROPER, SO FAR FROM GOD
"...By 1337, affairs in Gascony were at a breaking point. While in theory the Gascon nobility answered to Prince Edward in his role of Duke of Aquitaine, in reality as most contemporaries noted, the great charm of English rule was that a distant sovereign allowed the Gascons to focus on internal rivalries and local power maneuvers. Indeed, what influence the English had among them rested on manipulating those very things. In the face of the potential destruction of the Courtmanteau[1] Duchy the popular response was to bend towards France, or at best, to hedge one's bets.
"Considering the standing of the English administration, this was a completely reasonable decision. There were, at this point, nearly no English troops in Gascony, save for a few personal retinues of no great size. Forces in Gascony were based on retainers and armies of the nobility allied with England, and at the moment, they were at a low point. When Oliver Ingham, Seneschal of Aquitaine called an assembly of loyalist nobles, the entire meeting could be fitted in a small side chapel of a local church, with, it was said, room to spare[2].
"It was tribute to Ingham's talents that he was able to bring that assembly together at all. Nearly fifty, he had spent over a decade in his position, and achieved an expertise in the Duchy's affairs that blended with a natural ability. His service was one of the few things in England's favor in Gascony at the war's start. Another was the service of Berard d'Albret, a leading member of the powerful Albret clan whose natural charm and knowledge of his fellows were as great as his skill as a warrior. Berard was a dedicated loyalist to the English crown[3], something that was rare on the ground in Gascony at this time. It was certainly not common among the Albrets. The Lord of Albret did not possess it--he was notably not there in that small side chapel with his kinsman and the Seneschal. Bernard-Ezi was not as opposed to the English as his father Amanieu, who had feuded with a previous Seneschal and later sided with the French during Saint-Sardos. Indeed, in private communications to the Seneschal, he'd made it abundantly clear that he preferred Prince Edward's rule to King John--he had even offered the hand of his daughter to the Prince's son Edward of Woodstock (the future Edward IV), though this had fallen through[4]. However, he was not going to risk his family's holdings for the English's sake when this looked like backing a lost cause, even if he considered John of France to be a churlish bully. Indeed, that gave him a very good reason not to... Albret made it clear that he would not act against the English, but unless he saw a clear sign that affairs in the Duchy were changing, he would not act for them...
"If the Albrets were pursuing a scrupulous neutrality, it could at least be said they were not fixedly hostile. The house of Foix-Bearn were. The little Viscounty of Bearn had been under the Dukes of Aquitaine for centuries--however, it had been (relatively) recently inherited by the Counts of Foix, who were direct vassals of France. In better times for England, this had seen a careful balancing act on the part of the Foix-Bearns--under the present Count, Gaston II, it saw only loyalty to the French Crown. Gaston had not even bothered to ever pay homage to Prince Edward and his father, nor would he ever. In time, his brand of surly defiance towards the English would be replaced by the flamboyant adventurism of his son and grandson, Gaston-Phoebus and John-Troilus[5], which knew loyalty to neither monarch, nor indeed had time for such concepts as morality and common decency--but for now, the Foix-Bearns were the English's problem...
"Still, as troublesome as these sort of divided loyalties and active hostility among the regional nobles were, they were ultimately problems that had existed as long as the duchy had. What was new was England's utterly wretched defensive position. Keeping Gascony in English hands required strong castles, something it had had there in the past, and now largely lacked. While a not unformidable line of them still existed in the south, to give the Counts of Foix a reason to be wary, the northern line, the primary defense against the Kings of France, was in disarray. During a tour of the fortified town of Blaye, Berard d'Albret pointed out moats filled with refuse, trenches ruined by goats, and crumbling walls, some of which had had holes knocked in them to serve as shortcuts for the town's inhabitants. A sizable suburb had sprung up on the north side, which had overtaken the city walls--the south side had come to lack any fortification at all[6]. And Blaye was a vital location, whose loss could result in a collapse of the English position in the area. Many other such strongholds were in as bad a condition--others were better off, but so weakly supported as to be impotent in an actual war... Worst of all, the defense of most of these places rested with local men, whose limited loyalty to England could be easily subverted by the French exploiting their connections to the region, something Ingham himself had experienced during the War of Saint-Sardos[7]...
"It was with this desiccated infrastructure and facing such deep-rooted problems that Ingham would have to defend the Duchy after two lieutenants of the Seneschal of Perigord sent the royal decree that Gascony was now forfeit..."
--The Long War, Vol. 1: The Campaign of Flanders, Alexander Cole (1994)
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[1] The cognomen "Curtmantle" rendered in French that I am pleased to reveal serves as TTL's version of the appellation 'Plantagenet'.
[2] This was also the case IOTL. Gascons were well aware of the odds.
[3] How loyal, you ask? IOTL and ITTL, he stayed faithful throughout the War of Saint-Sardos and its aftermath. So, very loyal.
[4] This was also the case IOTL. How sincere Albret was remains up for debate, but the simple fact of the offer being made says a lot.
[5] While this is getting ahead of ourselves, it's safe to inform you that Gaston-Phoebus did not have a son named "John-Troilus" IOTL. And as it will likely be quite a time before I can mention him again, I should clarify that Gaston-Phoebus was not really named "Gaston-Phoebus"--rather he gave himself the nickname "Phoebus". Yes, that is precisely how you should react.
[6] This was all the case IOTL as well.
[7] During Saint-Sardos, Ingham saw the town he was defending rise up against him and demand he surrender.
"...By 1337, affairs in Gascony were at a breaking point. While in theory the Gascon nobility answered to Prince Edward in his role of Duke of Aquitaine, in reality as most contemporaries noted, the great charm of English rule was that a distant sovereign allowed the Gascons to focus on internal rivalries and local power maneuvers. Indeed, what influence the English had among them rested on manipulating those very things. In the face of the potential destruction of the Courtmanteau[1] Duchy the popular response was to bend towards France, or at best, to hedge one's bets.
"Considering the standing of the English administration, this was a completely reasonable decision. There were, at this point, nearly no English troops in Gascony, save for a few personal retinues of no great size. Forces in Gascony were based on retainers and armies of the nobility allied with England, and at the moment, they were at a low point. When Oliver Ingham, Seneschal of Aquitaine called an assembly of loyalist nobles, the entire meeting could be fitted in a small side chapel of a local church, with, it was said, room to spare[2].
"It was tribute to Ingham's talents that he was able to bring that assembly together at all. Nearly fifty, he had spent over a decade in his position, and achieved an expertise in the Duchy's affairs that blended with a natural ability. His service was one of the few things in England's favor in Gascony at the war's start. Another was the service of Berard d'Albret, a leading member of the powerful Albret clan whose natural charm and knowledge of his fellows were as great as his skill as a warrior. Berard was a dedicated loyalist to the English crown[3], something that was rare on the ground in Gascony at this time. It was certainly not common among the Albrets. The Lord of Albret did not possess it--he was notably not there in that small side chapel with his kinsman and the Seneschal. Bernard-Ezi was not as opposed to the English as his father Amanieu, who had feuded with a previous Seneschal and later sided with the French during Saint-Sardos. Indeed, in private communications to the Seneschal, he'd made it abundantly clear that he preferred Prince Edward's rule to King John--he had even offered the hand of his daughter to the Prince's son Edward of Woodstock (the future Edward IV), though this had fallen through[4]. However, he was not going to risk his family's holdings for the English's sake when this looked like backing a lost cause, even if he considered John of France to be a churlish bully. Indeed, that gave him a very good reason not to... Albret made it clear that he would not act against the English, but unless he saw a clear sign that affairs in the Duchy were changing, he would not act for them...
"If the Albrets were pursuing a scrupulous neutrality, it could at least be said they were not fixedly hostile. The house of Foix-Bearn were. The little Viscounty of Bearn had been under the Dukes of Aquitaine for centuries--however, it had been (relatively) recently inherited by the Counts of Foix, who were direct vassals of France. In better times for England, this had seen a careful balancing act on the part of the Foix-Bearns--under the present Count, Gaston II, it saw only loyalty to the French Crown. Gaston had not even bothered to ever pay homage to Prince Edward and his father, nor would he ever. In time, his brand of surly defiance towards the English would be replaced by the flamboyant adventurism of his son and grandson, Gaston-Phoebus and John-Troilus[5], which knew loyalty to neither monarch, nor indeed had time for such concepts as morality and common decency--but for now, the Foix-Bearns were the English's problem...
"Still, as troublesome as these sort of divided loyalties and active hostility among the regional nobles were, they were ultimately problems that had existed as long as the duchy had. What was new was England's utterly wretched defensive position. Keeping Gascony in English hands required strong castles, something it had had there in the past, and now largely lacked. While a not unformidable line of them still existed in the south, to give the Counts of Foix a reason to be wary, the northern line, the primary defense against the Kings of France, was in disarray. During a tour of the fortified town of Blaye, Berard d'Albret pointed out moats filled with refuse, trenches ruined by goats, and crumbling walls, some of which had had holes knocked in them to serve as shortcuts for the town's inhabitants. A sizable suburb had sprung up on the north side, which had overtaken the city walls--the south side had come to lack any fortification at all[6]. And Blaye was a vital location, whose loss could result in a collapse of the English position in the area. Many other such strongholds were in as bad a condition--others were better off, but so weakly supported as to be impotent in an actual war... Worst of all, the defense of most of these places rested with local men, whose limited loyalty to England could be easily subverted by the French exploiting their connections to the region, something Ingham himself had experienced during the War of Saint-Sardos[7]...
"It was with this desiccated infrastructure and facing such deep-rooted problems that Ingham would have to defend the Duchy after two lieutenants of the Seneschal of Perigord sent the royal decree that Gascony was now forfeit..."
--The Long War, Vol. 1: The Campaign of Flanders, Alexander Cole (1994)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] The cognomen "Curtmantle" rendered in French that I am pleased to reveal serves as TTL's version of the appellation 'Plantagenet'.
[2] This was also the case IOTL. Gascons were well aware of the odds.
[3] How loyal, you ask? IOTL and ITTL, he stayed faithful throughout the War of Saint-Sardos and its aftermath. So, very loyal.
[4] This was also the case IOTL. How sincere Albret was remains up for debate, but the simple fact of the offer being made says a lot.
[5] While this is getting ahead of ourselves, it's safe to inform you that Gaston-Phoebus did not have a son named "John-Troilus" IOTL. And as it will likely be quite a time before I can mention him again, I should clarify that Gaston-Phoebus was not really named "Gaston-Phoebus"--rather he gave himself the nickname "Phoebus". Yes, that is precisely how you should react.
[6] This was all the case IOTL as well.
[7] During Saint-Sardos, Ingham saw the town he was defending rise up against him and demand he surrender.
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