Amaury IV of Craon (16 August 1326 – 30 May 1373), Lord of
Craon,
Chantocé,
Ingrandes,
Briollé,
Châteauneuf-sur-Sarthe
Châteauneuf-sur-Sarthe () is a former commune in the Maine-et-Loire department of western France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the commune Les Hauts-d'Anjou.Précigné
Précigné () is a commune in the Sarthe ''département'' in the region of Pays de la Loire in north-western France.
See also
*Communes of the Sarthe department
The following is a list of the 354 communes of the Sarthe department of France ...
and
Sablé ,
Sainte-Maure
Sainte-Maure () is a commune in the Aube department in north-central France.
Population
See also
*Communes of the Aube department
The following is a list of the 431 communes of the Aube department of France.
The communes cooperate in th ...
,
Nouâtre,
Pressigny and
Marcillac,
Châteauneuf-sur-Charente
Châteauneuf-sur-Charente (; literally 'Châteauneuf on Charente') is a commune in the Charente department in southwestern France. and
Jarnac
Jarnac (; ; Saintongese: ''Jharnat'') is a commune in the Charente department, southwestern France.Seneschal of Anjou
A seneschal (''siniscallus'', Vulgar or old Frankish Latin, also ''dapifer'') was an officer of an aristocratic household assigned to manage the domestic affairs of the lord. During the course of the twelfth century, the seneschalship also became ...
and
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...
.
He married in 1345
Péronelle, Viscountess of Thouars and Countess of Dreux, with whom he had no issue. He is known to have had two illegitimate children, Pierre, and Jeannette who married Thibaut de La Devillière.
Created royal lieutenant in 1347 by King Philip IV, Amaury was sent to Brittany with a small force and took
La Roche-Derrien
La Roche-Derrien (; br, Ar Roc'h-Derrien) is a former Communes of France, commune in the Côtes-d'Armor Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in northwestern France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into ...
from the English in three days. In 1356, after being besieged at Romorantin in late August during the Chevauchée of the Black Prince, and ransomed, Amaury was taken prisoner at the
Battle of Poitiers
The Battle of Poitiers was fought on 19September 1356 between a French army commanded by King JohnII and an Anglo- Gascon force under Edward, the Black Prince, during the Hundred Years' War. It took place in western France, south of Poi ...
on the 19 September. Craon became one of the main captains of King
John II of France
John II (french: Jean II; 26 April 1319 – 8 April 1364), called John the Good (French: ''Jean le Bon''), was King of France from 1350 until his death in 1364. When he came to power, France faced several disasters: the Black Death, which kill ...
and becomes Captain for Touraine, Anjou, Maine and Lower Normandy. Amaury is later influenced by the Poitou lords who are favourable to King
Edward III of England
Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring ro ...
and eventually joins them at the head of the Anglo-Poitevin coalition, facing
Bertrand du Guesclin
Bertrand du Guesclin ( br, Beltram Gwesklin; 1320 – 13 July 1380), nicknamed "The Eagle of Brittany" or "The Black Dog of Brocéliande", was a Breton knight and an important military commander on the French side during the Hundred Years' W ...
who is attempting to regain Poitou on behalf of King
Charles V of France
Charles V (21 January 1338 – 16 September 1380), called the Wise (french: le Sage; la, Sapiens), was King of France from 1364 to his death in 1380. His reign marked an early high point for France during the Hundred Years' War, with his armi ...
.
Du Guesclin defeats the English garrisons at Bressuire, Poitiers, Châtellerault, Saint-Maixent-l'École, Fontenay-le-Comte then arrives in at Thouars in June 1372 with an army of thirty thousand soldiers. In addition to Amaury, the main leaders of the pro-English lords, Guillaume VII of Parthenay, Geoffroy d'Argenton, the Lords of Oyron and Airvault, Perceval de Coulanges are holed up within the fortifications of Thouars. The direct attack of the French army having failed, Du Guesclin brings siege engines to the walls of the city. A breach is opened in the walls but the besieged manage to repel the attackers. A suspension of the siege is concluded and if Thouars is not relieved by Saint-Michel the town would surrender to the French. The town capitulate and the leaders take the oath of fealty to Charles V.
Amaury died on 30 May 1373 and was buried in the church of Cordeliers,
Angers
Angers (, , ) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Anjou until the French Revolution. The inhabitants of both the city and the prov ...
.
References
Sources
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Craon, Amaury IV de
1326 births
1373 deaths
Craon family