The War of MetzPeter Fraser Purton, ''A History of the Late Medieval Siege, 1200-1500'', (The Boydell Press, 2010), 143–144 or War of Four LordsZdeněk Žalud, "Financiers to the Blind King: Funding the Court of John the Blind (1310–1346)", in Roman Zaoral (ed.), ''Money and Finance in Central Europe during the Later Middle Ages'' (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016), 63-64. (, "four lords' war") was a

feudal Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of struc ...

conflict which devastated the region around

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

between 1324 and 1326. At the Siege of Metz, in 1324,

cannons A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during t ...

were used,Kelly DeVries and Robert Douglas Smith, ''Medieval Military Technology'', 2nd edit., (University of Toronto Press, 2012), 138. perhaps for the first time in

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...

. Following a series of quarrels with the city of Metz and mounting debts incurred by its bourgeoisie, King

John of Bohemia John of Bohemia, also called the Blind or of Luxembourg (; ; ; 10 August 1296 – 26 August 1346), was the Count of Luxembourg from 1313 and King of Bohemia from 1310 and titular King of Poland. He is well known for having died while fighting ...

, his uncle

Baldwin, Archbishop of Trier Baldwin of Luxembourg (c. 1285 – 21 January 1354) was the Archbishop of Trier, archbishop and Electorate of Trier, elector of Trier and archchancellor of Kingdom of Burgundy, Burgundy from 1307 to his death. From 1328 to 1336, he was the dio ...

, Count

Edward I of Bar Edward I (1294 – died November 1336), was the Count of Bar from 1302 to his death. He was a minor when he succeeded his father Henry III as count, so ruled initially under the regency of his uncles, John of Puisaye, Theobald, Bishop of Liège ...

, and Duke Frederick IV of Lorraine joined together to form a coalition to take the city by force. The war was fought chiefly over the possession of land and the obligations, not always respected, of the burgesses as vassals of their lords. The debts the burgesses owed were many and varied: *the ransom of the duke of Lorraine paid to Louis of Bavaria after he was made prisoner after the

Battle of Mühldorf The Battle of Mühldorf (also known as the Battle of Ampfing) was fought near Mühldorf am Inn on September 28, 1322 between the Duchy of (Upper) Bavaria and the Archduchy of Austria. The Bavarians were led by German King Louis of Wittelsbach ...

in 1322 *the ransom of the count of Bar paid to Frederick IV of Lorraine after he was made prisoner after a battle near Nancy in 1313 *the 50,000 pound loan to Henry VII, father of the king of Bohemia, in order to finance his successful bid for the

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

ship *the garrisoning of troops in the city by the count of Bar during a war with the

Bishop of Verdun The Diocese of Verdun (; ) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in France. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Besançon. The Diocese of Verdun co ...

After two years of trouble,

Pope John XXII Pope John XXII (, , ; 1244 – 4 December 1334), born Jacques Duèze (or d'Euse), was head of the Catholic Church from 7 August 1316 to his death, in December 1334. He was the second and longest-reigning Avignon Papacy, Avignon Pope, elected by ...

refused his financial assistance and the four princes were constrained to come to terms with the citizens of Metz. By March 1325 peace was restored and a treaty was signed called the "Peace of Herrings", as Metz was depending on herrings for food while the lords blocked incoming trade routes. The negotiations took place at

Pont-à-Mousson Pont-à-Mousson () is a commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department in north-eastern France. Its inhabitants are known as ''Mussipontains'' in French. It is an industrial town (mainly steel industry), situated on the river Moselle. Pont-à-Mou ...

. The burgesses promised not to set up markets on the fiefs of the lords without their consent.

References

{{reflist

Sources

* Bour René: "''Histoire de Metz''", Metz, 1950. * Le Moigne François-Yves: "''Histoire de Metz''", 1986. 1320s in France

Wars involving the Holy Roman Empire 1320s in Europe 1320s conflicts Military history of Metz 1320s in the Holy Roman Empire 1324 in Europe 1325 in Europe 1326 in Europe 14th-century military history of France