Captal de Buch (later Buché from Latin ''capitalis'', "first", "chief") was a medieval feudal title in

Gascony Gascony (; french: Gascogne ; oc, Gasconha ; eu, Gaskoinia) was a province of the southwestern Kingdom of France that succeeded the Duchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until the French Revolution (1789–1799), it was part o ...

held by

Jean III de Grailly Jean III de Grailly (aka. John De Grailly, died 7 September 1376), Captal de Buch, , was a Gascon nobleman and a military leader in the Hundred Years' War, who was praised by the chronicler Jean Froissart as an ideal of chivalry. Biography ...

among others. According to Du Cange, the designation ''captal'' (''capital, captau, capitau'') was applied loosely to the more illustrious nobles of Aquitaine, counts, viscounts, &c., probably as ''capitales domini'', "principal lords", though he quotes more fanciful explanations. As an actual title, the word was used only by the seigneurs of Trene, Puychagut, Epernon and Buch.

Buch Buch (the German word for book or a modification of the German word '' Buche'' for beech) may refer to: People * Buch (surname), a list of people with the surname Buch Geography ;Germany: *Buch am Wald, a town in the district of Ansbach, Bavaria * ...

was a strategically located town and port on the Atlantic, in the bay of Arcachon. When Pierre, the seigneur of Grailly (''ca'' 1285 – 1356) married Asalide (the ''captaline de Buch''), the heiress of Pierre-Amanieu de

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...

, captal de Buch, in 1307, the title passed into the Grailly family, a line of fighting seigneurs with origins in

Savoy Savoy (; frp, Savouè ; french: Savoie ) is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps. Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south. Savo ...

. The title is best known in connexion with the famous soldier

Jean III de Grailly, captal de Buch Jean III de Grailly (aka. John De Grailly, died 7 September 1376), Captal de Buch, , was a Gascon nobleman and a military leader in the Hundred Years' War, who was praised by the chronicler Jean Froissart as an ideal of chivalry. Biography H ...

(r. 1343–1376), the "captal de Buch" par excellence, immortalized by

Jean Froissart Jean Froissart ( Old and Middle French: '' Jehan'', – ) (also John Froissart) was a French-speaking medieval author and court historian from the Low Countries who wrote several works, including ''Chronicles'' and ''Meliador'', a long Arthuria ...

as the confidant of the

Black Prince Edward of Woodstock, known to history as the Black Prince (15 June 1330 – 8 June 1376), was the eldest son of King Edward III of England, and the heir apparent to the English throne. He died before his father and so his son, Richard II, suc ...

and the champion of the English cause against France during the first phase of the

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

. He played a decisive role as a cavalry leader in 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 ...

(1356). In 1364, he ravaged the country between Paris and Rouen, but was beaten by

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 ...

at the

Battle of Cocherel The Battle of Cocherel was a battle fought on 16 May 1364 between the forces of Charles V of France and the forces of Charles II of Navarre (known as ''Charles the Bad''), over the succession to the dukedom of Burgundy.Wagner. Encyclopedia o ...

(1364) and taken prisoner. Released next year, he received the seigniory of Nemours and took the oath of fealty to the French king,

Charles V Charles V may refer to: * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise * Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690) * Infan ...

, but soon resigned his new fief and returned to his allegiance to the English king. In 1367, he took part in the

Battle of Navarrete A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

(1367) in which Du Guesclin was taken prisoner, the captal being entrusted with his safe-keeping. In 1371, Jean de Grailly was appointed constable of Aquitaine, but was taken prisoner next year and interned in the Temple in Paris where, resisting all the tempting offers of the French king, he remained until his death five years later.

References

External links

*{{cite web , last=Marek , first=Miroslav , url=http://genealogy.euweb.cz/foix/foix3.html , title= Genealogy of the seigneurs de Grailly, captals de Buch , publisher= Genealogy.EU Buch, Captal de House of Grailly Grailly Medieval titles