Well, Buckingham’s position is strange. He was surely a Yorkist but his actions made difficult understanding if he was truly a Ricardian or an Edwardian one. The reasons for his rebellion also are mysterious, like most of the facts in that timeframe
La generación magnífica//The Magnificent Generation - A Catholic Monarchs TL
- Thread starter HortenseMancini
- Start date
AIUI Buckingham expected getting de bohun inheritance from Richard. He......was not forthcoming.
VII: "La petite Autrichienne"
"La petite Autrichienne"
1482-1494
1482-1494
In 1482 was signed the Treaty of Arras between the French regent, Anne de Beaujeu, and Archduke Maximilian, regent of Burgundy. The treaty ended hostilities between France and the Archduke regarding certain contested areas of Burgundy but its main outcome was the betrothal of Margaret of Austria, Maximilian’s young daughter from his first marriage, to King Charles VIII of France. Margaret was to have the counties of Franché Comte and Artois as her dowry and to be raised at the French court. The treaty was considered a great embarrassment for Maximilian, who had been forced to cede a significant part of his son’s patrimony to the French.
Thus it was that young Margaret of Austria departed from Brussels in 1484. Since their mother’s death, she and Philip of Austria had been mostly in the care of their step-grandmother, Margaret of York. With the arrival of their English stepmother Elizabeth, who was also Margaret of York’s niece, the two spent more time with their father. Elizabeth of York was very fond of her young stepchildren, even being criticized for the amount of time that she spent playing on the floor with them. Margaret of Austria must have been upset and confused as she left for France but her fate there was not to disappoint her. From the start, Anne de Beaujeu took a liking to ‘la petite Autrichienne’, as she called Margaret. Margaret was given an excellent education and had companions of her own age who were suitable company for France’s future queen, being of the highest rank. Among these were Louise of Savoy, the future countess of Angoulême, and Charlotte of Naples, Princess of Taranto.
Portrait of Margaret of Austria by Jean Hey circa 1490.
Unfortunately for this coalition, the war proved to be a disaster. They had foreign allies, foremost among them Maximilian of Austria. Maximilian’s attempted invasion of northern France in 1486, though, was a failure. Similarly, in the south of France the Lord of Albret was beaten back by the Count of Candale, and the pro-rebel governor of Guyenne was replaced by the Duke of Bourbon, husband of Anne de Beaujeu. Meanwhile, Francis II failed to raise an army in Brittany, the northern portion of which was overrun by the pro-royal Viscount of Rohan. This was partly due to discontent with his rule among the Breton nobles. 1488 saw a revival of the rebel hopes, with money and troops arriving from Spain, England, and the Low Countries. Rebel forces assembled in Brittany but were still outnumbered by the royal troops of Louis II de la Trémoille, the faithful young general of Charles VIII and Anne de Beaujeu. In July 1488, the rebels were defeated by de la Trémoille at Mézières-sur-Couesnon.
The final defeat of the rebels was soon followed by the punitive Treaty of Sablé, concluded between the French and Francis II of Brittany. Negotiations were complicated by the fact that the main demand of the French crown was for the marriage rights of Francis’s daughters. Isabeau was still in her father’s custody in Brittany but, as it happened, Anne had been sent to the court of her betrothed in England on the renewal of hostilities in 1486. Isabeau, with her potential claim to Brittany, was still a decent marriage prize though and plans were grudgingly (well, at least on part of the Bretons) made for her to be sent to the French royal court by 1489. This was prevented by Francis II’s timely - or rather, untimely - death in August 1488. He died at the Château de Dinan following a very short and unexpected but nonetheless violent illness, leading to allegations of poisoning by the French [1]. After this, Alain d’Albret, a cousin and ally of Duke Francis, moved in and had Isabeau, who was not yet 10, betrothed to his son John, then about 20. Albret’s control of the duchy was soon bolstered by forces from England, as Richard III moved to secure the patrimony of his future wife, who was now Duchess of Brittany. With the duchy relatively in hand, Isabeau of Brittany and Jean d’Albret would be married in February 1491.
Sculpture of Francis II, Duke of Brittany on his tomb in Nantes.
Meanwhile, the marriage of Charles VIII and Margaret of Austria would be formalized in May 1492. The two had apparently become quite fond of each other over the past eight years, despite the decade difference in age. Charles VIII, unlike his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, seems to have been entirely faithful to his wife throughout their marriage. Unusually for a royal couple of the time, he and Margaret were also rarely lodged apart, with Margaret even accompanying Charles on his military ventures. Even still, the union could not be consummated at first since Margaret was only 12 years old and considered to be far too young to risk a pregnancy. But from spring 1494, Margaret and Charles would certainly have been having sex and attempting to have a child together. These attempts were successful fairly quickly and by the end of the year, Margaret was pregnant.
[1] The idea that the French poisoned Francis II seems unlikely and was regarded as so by those closest to him. However, that did not prevent it from spreading in certain anti-French circles and encouraging general disdain for the French in Brittany.
Last edited:
A good victory for the Regent Anne and a happy marriage for Charles VIII and Margaret of Austria!!! Excellent update!
Thank you! Yeah, I always imagine that Charles and Margaret would’ve been very happy together...and with Anne of Brittany not in the picture, they can be!
I'm thinking of having a surviving Corvinid dynasty in Hungary ITTL, what would it take for Matthias Corvinus to get János secured as his heir? Sorry if this seems silly, I just don't know that much about eastern/central Europe at this time.
@Zygmunt Stary @Jan Olbracht know better than me but IIRC it was something involving beating Maximilian in a war.
I know little of Eastern European politics, but perhaps if he successfully marries Bianca Maria Sforza, it would give him and his father the wealth and prestige to get him elected as king. Otherwise perhaps if he marries a memeber of a powerful Hungarian family, like a Zapoyla, they would be induced to elect him as their in law...
Beatrice of Naples' attitude towards Janos would need to be completly different than IOTL to give him chance to get the throne. Beatrice IOTL despised her stepson and his mother and ruined his chances completly (which were not that great anyway).
Beatrice would need to love Janos like her own son-in such case:
-she'd not ruin his marriage plans
-she'll use her money to give him support of Black Army.
But that requires very different Beatrice of Naples.
That is also problematic, because in such case Matthias would remarry and Beatrice's money would go to that second wife likely once Matthias dies.
I was actually thinking that János can marry Isabella of Naples, if her marriage to Gian Galeazzo Sforza is dissolved. Beatrice might be more amenable to her husband's bastard marrying if his wife is her niece. Plus, I did see you or someone else mention that Naples would be a natural ally against the Ottomans, which makes it a useful match for both Matthias and Ferrante of Naples.
I used that trick at least once, as that is the most likely match to go on without too much sabotage by Beatrice, specially when the Italian situation is stable and the alliance between Milan and Naples is still strong. After all poor Isabella will need another match (and quickly enough) for making forget to her and everyone else the Milanese disaster of which she had no fault. That or Bianca Maria (if her uncle is willing to go all the way, unlike OTL) are the only weddings who have good chances to work
Good to know that at least one person thinks it's not too bad a plan, considering that I already have marital plans for János and Isabella's children and grandchildren.
Yeah, János and Isabella seem to be pretty good, especially as Beatrice won't be as angry....
Oh, she would still be angry but powerless in trying to stop the match