Tanneguy III du Châtel (also spelt Tanguy; 1369–1449) was a

Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally ** Breton people ** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Ga ...

knight who fought in the Armagnac–Burgundian Civil War and 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, ...

. A member of the

Armagnac party Armagnac (, ) is a distinctive kind of brandy produced in the Armagnac (region), Armagnac region in Gascony, southwest France. It is distilled from wine usually made from a blend of grapes including Baco 22A, Colombard, Folle blanche and Ugni bla ...

, he became a leading adviser of King

Charles VII of France Charles VII (22 February 1403 – 22 July 1461), called the Victorious (french: le Victorieux) or the Well-Served (), was King of France from 1422 to his death in 1461. In the midst of the Hundred Years' War, Charles VII inherited the throne of F ...

, and was one of the murderers of Duke John the Fearless of

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...

in 1419.

Life

In 1415, he was provost of Paris, charged with keeping order in the city. During the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

between the Armagnacs and

Burgundians The Burgundians ( la, Burgundes, Burgundiōnes, Burgundī; on, Burgundar; ang, Burgendas; grc-gre, Βούργουνδοι) were an early Germanic tribe or group of tribes. They appeared in the middle Rhine region, near the Roman Empire, and ...

, he was one of the leaders of the Armagnac faction under Bernard VII, Count of Armagnac, constable of France. He opposed the partisans of the duke of Burgundy in their attempts to capture

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Alain de Coëtivy Alain (II) de Coëtivy (8 November 1407 – 4 May 1474) was a prelate from a Breton noble family. He was bishop of Avignon, Uzès, Nîmes and of Dol, titular cardinal of Santa Prassede, then cardinal-bishop of Palestrina and cardinal-bishop o ...

, bishop of Avignon, was a nephew of his. He was a favourite of Charles the Dauphin (later Charles VII), whom he saved by taking him out of Paris to Melun at the time of the invasion of Paris by the Burgundians led by Jean de Villiers de l'Isle-Adam during the night of 28–29 May 1418. With Jean Louvet, another of Charles VII's favourites, he was one of the main instigators of the

assassination Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...

of John the Fearless by some Armagnac men-at-arms during his meeting with Charles on the bridge at Montereau on 10 September 1419. From 1425, his influence waned as

Arthur de Richemont Arthur III ( br, Arzhur), more commonly known as Arthur de Richemont (24 August 139326 December 1458), was briefly Duke of Brittany from 1457 until his death. He is noted primarily, however, for his role as a leading military commander during ...

's waxed. Also, in 1429, he used all his effort to convince the Dauphin to receive and welcome

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= �an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronati ...

– in effect, several of Charles VII's counsellors supported the principle of a rapprochement with Burgundy in order to present a united front against England, which could not have been achieved without du Chastel's efforts.

Tanguy IV du Chastel, his nephew

His nephew, Tanneguy IV du Chastel, began as governor of

Roussillon Roussillon ( , , ; ca, Rosselló ; oc, Rosselhon ) is a historical province of France that largely corresponded to the County of Roussillon and part of the County of Cerdagne of the former Principality of Catalonia. It is part of the reg ...

, before fleeing to Brittany, where he became ''grand maître d'hôtel'' of Francis II, Duke of Brittany. He next was in the service of king

Louis XI of France Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (french: le Prudent), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revo ...

, and was killed in 1477 at the siege of Bouchain in

Picardy Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France. Hi ...

, in the course of a war against the Duchy of Burgundy, after the death of Charles the Bold. Louis XI had him buried at the Basilique Notre-Dame at Cléry-Saint-André (

Loiret Loiret (; ) is a department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France. It takes its name from the river Loiret, which is contained wholly within the department. In 2019, Loiret had a population of 680,434.

), where Louis XI himself was buried in 1483.

Bibliography

* * ''Histoire des ducs de Bourgogne de la maison de Valois, 1364–1477 de Prosper Brugière baron de Barante- 1782-1866'', conservé à la Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF N087463). For a detailed account of the "affaire du pont de Montereau"
Extracts from the document
* Albert Mirot, ''Vie politique de Tanguy du Chastel'', thesis for the École des chartes, 1926 * Philippe de Commines, ''Mémoire des faits du feu roy Louis onziesme:'' see Index
Tanneguy du Chastel (son)

: the second passage on Montereau recounts the assassination of John the Fearless.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tanneguy Du Chastel 1369 births 1449 deaths 15th-century murderers 15th-century Breton people Commanders of the Bastille People of the Hundred Years' War Armagnac faction Grand Masters of France