Belleperche was a castle, now destroyed, located in the current town of Bagneux (Allier). It was the seat of one of the chatellenies of

Bourbonnais Bourbonnais () was a historic province in the centre of France that corresponds to the modern ''département'' of Allier, along with part of the ''département'' of Cher. Its capital was Moulins. History The title of the ruler of Bourbonnais ...

. Belleperche was the scene of an important episode of the

Hundred Years War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagen ...

, when

Louis II, Duke of Bourbon Louis de Bourbon, called the Good (4 February 1337 – 10 August 1410), son of Peter de Bourbon and Isabella de Valois (the sister of French King Philip VI), was the third Duke of Bourbon. Louis inherited the duchy after his father Duke Pe ...

, sieged the fortress to try to deliver his mother, Isabelle de Valois, held captive by a company of Gascon brigands/

mercenary A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any o ...

History

The Siege of Belleperche (1369-1370)

During the summer or autumn of 1369, a small group of about 30 Gascon "Free Company" mercenaries in the employ of the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, managed to seize the castle by trickery, where the

dowager A dowager is a widow or widower who holds a title or property—a "dower"—derived from her or his deceased spouse. As an adjective, ''dowager'' usually appears in association with monarchy, monarchical and aristocracy, aristocratic Title#Aristocr ...

duchess Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranked ...

Bourbon Bourbon may refer to: Food and drink * Bourbon whiskey, an American whiskey made using a corn-based mash * Bourbon barrel aged beer, a type of beer aged in bourbon barrels * Bourbon biscuit, a chocolate sandwich biscuit * A beer produced by Bras ...

Isabella of Valois, Duchess of Bourbon Isabella of Valois (1313 – 26 July 1383) was a Duchess of Bourbon by marriage to Peter I, Duke of Bourbon. She was the daughter of Charles of Valois by his third wife Mahaut of Châtillon.Joni M. Hand, ''Women, Manuscripts and Identity in Nor ...

, lived. "Free Company" units at this time were mercenaries who when not employed took to

brigand Brigandage is the life and practice of highway robbery and plunder. It is practiced by a brigand, a person who usually lives in a gang and lives by pillage and robbery.Oxford English Dictionary second edition, 1989. "Brigand.2" first recorded us ...

ry. Her son-in-law, Louis II, who was then at the court, hastened, assembled troops, and laid siege to Belleperche. The siege lasted three months; the Duke had four great

siege engine A siege engine is a device that is designed to break or circumvent heavy castle doors, thick city walls and other fortifications in siege warfare. Some are immobile, constructed in place to attack enemy fortifications from a distance, while other ...

s put in, which sent stones night and day to the fortress, doing great damage. Frossart tells us that the siege redoubt was "''as strong and as well fortified as a good town might have been''". But a troop of

Poitiers Poitiers (, , , ; Poitevin: ''Poetàe'') is a city on the River Clain in west-central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and the historical centre of Poitou. In 2017 it had a population of 88,291. Its agglomerat ...

and

Aquitaine Aquitaine ( , , ; oc, Aquitània ; eu, Akitania; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne ( oc, Guiana), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former administrative region of the country. Since 1 January ...

"Free Company" roadmen commanded by two English princes, the

Earl of Cambridge The title of Earl of Cambridge was created several times in the Peerage of England, and since 1362 the title has been closely associated with the Royal family (see also Duke of Cambridge, Marquess of Cambridge). The first Earl of the fourth creat ...

, son of

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

Edward III 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 r ...

, and the

Earl of Pembroke Earl of Pembroke is a title in the Peerage of England that was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title, which is associated with Pembroke, Pembrokeshire in West Wales, has been recreated ten times from its origin ...

came to the aid of the besieged and delayed the capture of the castle. Louis II finally succeeded in taking Belleperche, but could not prevent the truckers, Bernardon de la Salle, Bernard de Wisk and Hortingo de la Salle from escaping by taking the duchess hostage; she was not released until two years later for ransom. This episode greatly contributed to the glory of the duke.The case of Belleperche is told by John Froissart, in his Chronicles.

References

{{coord missing, France Ruined castles in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Buildings and structures in Allier