John II, the Hunchback, (1333 – 26 May 1384), Count of

Armagnac 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 ...

, of Fézensac,

Rodez Rodez (, , ; , ) is a small city and commune in the South of France, about 150 km northeast of Toulouse. It is the prefecture of the department of Aveyron, region of Occitania (formerly Midi-Pyrénées). Rodez is the seat of the communau ...

(1371–1384) and

Count of Charolais Charolais (; also Charollais) is a historic region of France, named after the central town of Charolles, and located in today's Saône-et-Loire '' département'', in Burgundy. History It was held by the French noble house of Chalon-Arlay, un ...

(1364–1384), Viscount Lomagne and Auvillars, he was the son of

John I, Count of Armagnac John I of Armagnac (French: Jean d’Armagnac; 1311–1373), son of Bernard VI and Cecilia Rodez, was Count of Armagnac from 1319 to 1373. In addition to Armagnac he controlled territory in Quercy, Rouergue and Gévaudan. He was the count who ...

, of Fezensac and Rodez, Viscount Lomagne and Auvillars and Beatrix de Clermont, great-granddaughter of

Louis IX of France Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), also known as Saint Louis, was King of France from 1226 until his death in 1270. He is widely recognized as the most distinguished of the Direct Capetians. Following the death of his father, Louis VI ...

. During the life of his father, he bore the title of lord, and subsequently, Count of Charolais, which he had received from his mother. Also, during his life, the government of

Languedoc The Province of Languedoc (, , ; ) is a former province of France. Most of its territory is now contained in the modern-day region of Occitanie in Southern France. Its capital city was Toulouse. It had an area of approximately . History ...

was entrusted to him.

Hundred Years War

Since 1351, he actively participated in the battles of the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

, fighting under the command of his father, or for his lord,

Philip III, Duke of Burgundy Philip III the Good (; ; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) ruled as Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death in 1467. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonged. During his reig ...

, or

John, Duke of Berry John of Berry or John the Magnificent (French language, French: ''Jean de Berry'', ; 30 November 1340 – 15 June 1416) was Duke of Berry and Rulers of Auvergne, Auvergne and Count of Poitiers and Montpensier. His brothers were King Charles ...

, or the king of France. As lord of Charolais he was not required, according to the terms of the

Treaty of Brétigny A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between sovereign states and/or international organizations that is governed by international law. A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, conventio ...

, to pay a humiliating tribute to those he had fought for several years;

Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...

, king of England, and his son,

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

, Prince of Wales. But it was the first and only time, to support the call from King Charles V against the actions of the Prince of Wales, which ultimately led to the liberation of

Biscay Biscay ( ; ; ), is a province of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community, heir of the ancient Lordship of Biscay, lying on the south shore of the Bay of Biscay, eponymous bay. The capital and largest city is Bilb ...

from the English occupation.

Peace with De Foix

In 1379 he concluded with Gaston III Phoebus, a peace consolidated by the marriage of his daughter Beatrice with the son of Gaston Phoebus. This ended a quarrel, which for 89 years had set the two most powerful families in the south of France against each other.

Trial

Through the intrigues of the Duke of Berry, against his brother, the Duke of Burgundy, John was summoned to court to defend himself against these charges: * Procuring an alliance with England; * Being in league with

free companies A free company (sometimes called a great company or, in French, ''grande compagnie'') was an army of mercenaries between the 12th and 14th centuries recruited by private employers during wars. They acted independently of any government, and were ...

; * Have tried, in concert with the Count of Foix, to share Languedoc. John never stood trial, having died at

Avignon Avignon (, , ; or , ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the Communes of France, commune had a ...

in 1384.

Marriage & Children

On 21 November 1359 he married Jeanne de Périgord, daughter of Roger Bernard, Count of Périgord, and Eleanor de Vendôme. They had three children: * John III, (1359 to 1391), Count of Armagnac * Bernard VII, (1363 to 1418), Count of Armagnac, Constable of France * Beatrice (c1365), married in 1379 to Gaston de Foix († 1381), son of

Gaston III, Count of Foix Gaston III, known as Gaston Phoebus or Fébus (30 April 1331 – 1 August 1391), was the eleventh Count of Foix (as Gaston III) and twenty-fourth Viscount of Béarn (as Gaston X) from 1343 until his death. Due to his ancestral inheritance, Gas ...

, and 27 January 1382 to Carlo Visconti, lord of Parma, son of

Bernabò Visconti Bernabò or Barnabò Visconti (1323 – 19 December 1385) was an Italian soldier and statesman who was Lord of Milan. Along with his brothers Matteo and Galeazzo II, he inherited the lordship of Milan from his uncle Giovanni. Later in 1355, he ...

and

Beatrice Regina della Scala Beatrice ''Regina'' della Scala (1331 – 18 June 1384) was Lady of Milan by marriage to Bernabò Visconti, Lord of Milan, and politically active as the adviser of her spouse. Life Beatrice Regina was the youngest child of Mastino II della Sca ...

. John also had several illegitimate children: * Jean, Bastard of Armagnac († 8 October 1409), bishop of Mende and archbishop of Auch. Joseph Vaissète, ''Histoire générale de Languedoc'', Vol.3, 68. * Bertrand, Bastard of Armagnac († 1403), master of the Château de Villiers in Armagnac.

References

Sources

* * *14 * ''The Americana: a universal reference library'', Vol.2, Ed. Frederick Converse Beach, George Edwin Rines, 1912. * ''Histoire générale de Languedoc'', Vol.3, Ed. Claude de Vic, Joseph Vaissete, Alexandre Du Mège, 1841. {{DEFAULTSORT:John 02 Of Armagnac 1333 births 1384 deaths Counts of Armagnac