Jean de Foix (c. 1415 – 1485) was the Captal de Buch, first Earl of Kendal (Gallicised into "''Comte de Candalle''"), Vicomte de Castillon, Meilles and Comte de Benauges.

Biography

Jean de Foix was a Gascon noble in the service of the English. His parents were Gaston de Foix, captal de Buch (1412–1456), and Marguerite d'Albret, daughter of

Arnaud Amanieu, Lord of Albret Arnaud Amanieu (also ''Arnold'' and ''Amaneus'', 4 August 1338–1401) was the Lord of Albret from 1358. Amanieu held lands in Gascony which by the Treaty of Brétigny (1360) were obtained by Edward III of England. Edward III appointed his son E ...

, and Marguerite de Bourbon (1344–1416). In 1445, like his father before him, John became a Knight in the

Order of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. The most senior order of knighthood in the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British honours system, it is outranked in ...

. He was active in the defence and subsequent recovery of the city of

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

. Then on 17 July 1453 he and

John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury, 1st Earl of Waterford, 7th Baron Talbot, KG (17 July 1453), known as "Old Talbot" and "Terror of the French" was an English nobleman and a noted military commander during the Hundred Years' War. He was t ...

, fought the French forces at the

Battle of Castillon The Battle of Castillon was a battle between the forces of England and France which took place on 17 July 1453 in Gascony near the town of Castillon-sur-Dordogne (later Castillon-la-Bataille). On the day of the battle, the English commande ...

. Talbot and a son were killed and Jean de Foix was taken prisoner. The French King Charles VII sent John de Foix to Taillebourg Castle where he was held prisoner by Olivier de Coëtivy,

Seneschal The word ''seneschal'' () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ...

Guyenne Guyenne or Guienne ( , ; ) was an old French province which corresponded roughly to the Roman province of '' Aquitania Secunda'' and the Catholic archdiocese of Bordeaux. Name The name "Guyenne" comes from ''Aguyenne'', a popular transform ...

. John negotiated his ransom directly with Olivier de Coëtivy and was released, after seven years on 18 January 1460, after promising to pay 23,850 écus. On his release he left France for England where he was captured in the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...

following the Battle of Northampton on 10 July 1460. He was placed in the custody of

Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick, 6th Earl of Salisbury (22 November 1428 – 14 April 1471), known as Warwick the Kingmaker, was an English nobleman, administrator, landowner of the House of Neville fortune and military com ...

, and returned with him to France. When King Charles VII died in July 1461, John de Foix still owed Olivier de Coëtivy 18,000 écus, but the new King

Louis XI of France Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the 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 revolt known as the ...

, who profoundly hated everybody who had served his father, forced Olivier de Coëtivy to cancel this debt. Jean de Foix now entered in the service of King Louis XI. He may have resigned the Order of the Garter in 1462, but the family continued to use the title 'Earl of Kendal' until the death of Henri François de Foix-Candalle (1640–1714), duc de Randan.

Family

Jean de Foix was married in 1446 to Margaret Kerdeston, daughter of Sir Thomas Kerdeston and Elizabeth de la Pole. (Elizabeth was sister to

William de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk William de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk (16 October 1396 – 2 May 1450), nicknamed Jackanapes, was an English magnate, statesman and military commander during the Hundred Years' War. He became a favourite of Henry VI of England, and consequent ...

. They had: * Gaston de Foix, Comte de Candale, married (1)1469 his cousin Catherine de Foix (2)1494 Isabelle d'Albret *Jean de Foix (d. 1521) Comte de Gurcon, de Fleix, de Meilles, Married (1507) Anne de Villeneuve (d. 1567) *Catherine de Foix (d. 1510), married 1468 Charles, Comte d'Armagnac * Marguerite de Foix (d. 1534/36), married 1492 Ludovico II, Marquess of Saluzzo (1438–1504)

Notes

References

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External links

*{{cite web , last=Marek , first=Miroslav , url=http://genealogy.euweb.cz/foix/foix3.html#JE , title=Pierre de Foix , website= genealogy.euweb.cz , access-date=28 November 2016 "Jean de Foix, Cte d'Etampes, Vcte de Narbonne, *after 1450, +Etampes 5.11.1500; m.1476 Marie d'Orleans (*1457 +1493)" 15th-century French nobility 1485 deaths Knights of the Garter People of the Hundred Years' War Year of birth uncertain Earls of Kendal Counts of Candale