Pierre de Craon (c. 1345 – c. 1409), known as "le Grand", was a medieval French aristocrat notorious for his riotous temperament, culminating in his attempted murder of
Olivier V de Clisson,
Constable of France
The Constable of France (french: Connétable de France, from Latin for 'count of the stables') was lieutenant to the King of France, the first of the original five Great Officers of the Crown (along with seneschal, chamberlain, butler, and ...
. Events following the assault led to the mental breakdown of King
Charles VI of France
Charles VI (3 December 136821 October 1422), nicknamed the Beloved (french: le Bien-Aimé) and later the Mad (french: le Fol or ''le Fou''), was King of France from 1380 until his death in 1422. He is known for his mental illness and psychotic ...
ushering in a long period of political instability in France.
[« Pierre de Craon le Grand », in Louis-Gabriel Michaud, ''Biographie universelle ancienne et moderne : histoire par ordre alphabétique de la vie publique et privée de tous les hommes avec la collaboration de plus de 300 savants et littérateurs français ou étrangers'', 1843-1865.]
Early life
de Craon inherited considerable wealth from his father, Guillaume I de Craon. He held the titles Lord of
La Ferté-Bernard
La Ferté-Bernard () is a commune in the Sarthe department in the Pays de la Loire region in north-western France.
History
La Ferté-Bernard owes its origin and name to a stronghold (''fermeté'') built about the 11th century and afterwards hel ...
and
Sablé.
Craon was involved in the expedition of
Louis I, Duke of Anjou
Louis I, Duke of Anjou (23 July 1339 – 20 September 1384) was a French prince, the second son of John II of France and Bonne of Bohemia. His career was markedly unsuccessful. Born at the Château de Vincennes, Louis was the first of the Ange ...
to seize the kingdom of Naples, de Craon was entrusted with money to finance the expedition, but he kept the funds himself and spent his time in debauchery in Venice. He was blamed for Louis' premature death and the collapse of the expedition. On his return to Paris, he was publicly upbraided by Louis' brother,
John, Duke of Berry
John of Berry or John the Magnificent (French: ''Jean de Berry'', ; 30 November 1340 – 15 June 1416) was Duke of Berry and Auvergne and Count of Poitiers and Montpensier. He was Regent of France during the minority of his nephew 1380-1388 ...
. However, his wealth protected him.
Attack on Clisson
In 1391, de Craon was abruptly expelled from the court in Paris, for unknown reasons. He blamed Olivier V de Clisson, encouraged by de Clisson's enemy
John IV, Duke of Brittany
John IV the Conqueror KG (in Breton Yann IV, in French Jean IV, and traditionally in English sources both John of Montfort and John V) (1339 – 1 November 1399), was Duke of Brittany and Count of Montfort from 1345 until his death and 7th Ea ...
. After a period in Brittany, he returned to Paris in secret, planning to murder de Clisson. He waylaid de Clisson in a narrow street. de Clisson's unarmed servants fled, but de Clisson was saved from death by his
chainmail
Chain mail (properly called mail or maille but usually called chain mail or chainmail) is a type of armour consisting of small metal rings linked together in a pattern to form a mesh. It was in common military use between the 3rd century BC and ...
coat, and was able to draw his sword and fend off his attackers. In the struggle, he fell from his horse and was knocked out against the door of a baker's shop. Believing him dead, Craon fled Paris for Brittany.
[Michael Jones, ''Ducal Brittany, 1364-1399: relations with England and France during the reign of Duke John IV'', Oxford University Press, 1970, pp. 106, 123–24, 128, 130, 200.]
In fact de Clisson was only superficially injured. In the aftermath of the attack, several of Craon's servants in Paris were arrested and executed for assisting him. Craon's property was seized and his castle in
Porchefontaine near
Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, ...
was razed to the ground. John V refused to deliver de Craon to the king, so Charles and de Clisson marched on Brittany, only for the king to have a mental breakdown during the expedition, killing several of his own soldiers in a deranged fit. de Clisson's enemies at court blamed him for provoking the disaster, and instituted proceedings against him. de Clisson himself then fled to Brittany, to become a lifelong ally of his old enemy John IV.
Exile and return
de Craon was forced to move from place to place, at last seeking refuge with
Richard II of England, who granted him a pension. When the threat of prosecution for the attack on de Clisson was lifted, de Craon returned to France; however, his enemies instituted legal measures to recover the money that de Craon had misappropriated from Louis I, Duke of Anjou. Craon was imprisoned in the
Louvre
The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...
, but was soon released following interventions by the Queen of England and the Duchess of Burgundy. A deal was made over the money and Craon made penance for his crimes. In an unprecedented move, he was made confessor to some monks who had been convicted of bewitching the king. He erected a cross bearing his coat of arms at the gallows of Paris, at which criminals could confess before their execution. He also donated money to the
Conventual Franciscans
The Order of Friars Minor Conventual (OFM Conv) is a male religious fraternity in the Roman Catholic Church that is a branch of the Franciscans. The friars in OFM CONV are also known as Conventual Franciscans, or Minorites.
Dating back to ...
, dedicating them to acts of mercy.
The date of Craon's death is not known. His son Antoine de Craon was implicated in the murder of
Louis I, Duke of Orléans
Louis I of Orléans (13 March 1372 – 23 November 1407) was Duke of Orléans from 1392 to his death. He was also Duke of Touraine (1386–1392), Count of Valois (1386?–1406) Blois (1397–1407), Angoulême (1404–1407 ...
and was killed at the
Battle of Agincourt in 1415.
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Craon, Pierre de
French assassins
14th-century births
15th-century deaths