René II (2 May 1451 – 10 December 1508) was

Count of Vaudémont The title Count of Vaudémont was granted to Gérard 1st of Vaudémont in 1070, after he supported the succession of his brother, Theodoric II, Duke of Lorraine to the Duchy of Lorraine. Counts of Vaudémont served as vassals of the Dukes of Lorr ...

from 1470,

Duke of Lorraine The rulers of Lorraine have held different posts under different governments over different regions, since its creation as the kingdom of Lotharingia by the Treaty of Prüm, in 855. The first rulers of the newly established region were kings of ...

from 1473, and

Duke of Bar The County of Bar, later Duchy of Bar, was a principality of the Holy Roman Empire encompassing the '' pays de Barrois'' and centred on the city of Bar-le-Duc. It was held by the House of Montbéliard from the 11th century. Part of the county, ...

from 1483 to 1508. He claimed the crown of the

Kingdom of Naples The Kingdom of Naples ( la, Regnum Neapolitanum; it, Regno di Napoli; nap, Regno 'e Napule), also known as the Kingdom of Sicily, was a state that ruled the part of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States between 1282 and 1816. It was ...

and the County of

Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...

as the

Duke of Calabria Duke of Calabria was the traditional title of the heir apparent of the Kingdom of Naples after the accession of Robert of Naples. It was also adopted by the heads of certain Houses that had once claimed the Kingdom of Naples in lieu of the royal ...

1480–1493 and as

King of Naples The following is a list of rulers of the Kingdom of Naples, from its first separation from the Kingdom of Sicily to its merger with the same into the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Kingdom of Naples (1282–1501) House of Anjou In 1382, the Kin ...

and

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

1493–1508. He succeeded his uncle

John of Vaudémont John of Lorraine-Vaudémont (died 1473) was a younger son of Antoine of Lorraine, Count of Vaudémont and Marie of Harcourt. He was Count of Harcourt and Count of Aumale, as well as Baron of Elbeuf. His mother was the eldest daughter of John VI ...

Count of Harcourt {{Unreferenced, date=June 2019, bot=noref (GreenC bot) When the Viking chieftain Rollo obtained via the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte the territories which would later make up Normandy, he distributed them as estates among his main supporters. Am ...

in 1473, exchanging it for the county of

Aumale Aumale (), formerly known as Albemarle," is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in north-western France. It lies on the River Bresle. History The town's Latin name was ''Alba Marla''. It was raised by William t ...

in 1495. He succeeded as

Count of Guise Count of Guise and Duke of Guise (pronounced �ɥiz were titles in the French nobility. Originally a seigneurie, in 1417 Guise was erected into a county for René, a younger son of Louis II of Anjou. While disputed by the House of Luxembourg ...

in 1504.

Life

René was born in

Angers Angers (, , ) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Anjou until the French Revolution. The inhabitants of both the city and the prov ...

, the son of

Yolande of Lorraine Yolande (2 November 1428, Nancy, France, Nancy – 23 March 1483, Nancy) was List of rulers of Lorraine, Duchess of Lorraine (1473) and Duchy of Bar, Bar (1480). She was the daughter of Isabella, Duchess of Lorraine, and René of Anjou (King of Na ...

and Frederick, Count of Vaudémont. He spent his youth in the court of his grandfather

René I of Anjou René ('' born again'' or ''reborn'' in French) is a common first name in French-speaking, Spanish-speaking, and German-speaking countries. It derives from the Latin name Renatus. René is the masculine form of the name (Renée being the feminin ...

between Angers and

. René succeeded his father in Vaudémont in 1470 and, three years later, his uncle as captain of Angers,

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, ...

and governor of Anjou. That same year he became Duke of Lorraine, which was at the time under the pressure of both

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

Charles the Bold Charles I (Charles Martin; german: Karl Martin; nl, Karel Maarten; 10 November 1433 – 5 January 1477), nicknamed the Bold (German: ''der Kühne''; Dutch: ''de Stoute''; french: le Téméraire), was Duke of Burgundy from 1467 to 1477. ...

of Burgundy, with whom he initially allied. When the latter began to establish garrisons in Lorraine, however, René secretly allied with Louis (1474). Charles invaded the duchy and René was forced to quit Nancy (30 November 1475). He regained the city on 5 October the following year and moved to Switzerland to hire an army of

Swiss mercenaries The Swiss mercenaries (german: Reisläufer) were a powerful infantry force constituted by professional soldiers originating from the cantons of the Old Swiss Confederacy. They were notable for their service in foreign armies, especially among t ...

. With this force René defeated and killed Charles at the

Battle of Nancy The Battle of Nancy was the final and decisive battle of the Burgundian Wars, fought outside the walls of Nancy on 5 January 1477 by Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, against René II, Duke of Lorraine, and the Swiss Confederacy. René's ...

(5 January 1477), ending the

Burgundian Wars The Burgundian Wars (1474–1477) were a conflict between the Burgundian State and the Old Swiss Confederacy and its allies. Open war broke out in 1474, and the Duke of Burgundy, Charles the Bold, was defeated three times on the battlefield in th ...

. In 1476, upon the death of his grandmother, he became sole

and

Baron of Elbeuf The Seigneurie of Elbeuf, later a marquisate, dukedom, and peerage, was based on the territory of Elbeuf in the Vexin, possessed first by the Counts of Valois and then the Counts of Meulan before passing to the House of Harcourt. In 1265, it was ...

. The alliance with Louis would not last, as Louis moved to acquire René's lands. In June 1478, as compensation for the royal seizure of Anjou and Provence, Louis XI reaffirmed his rights to the formerly Burgundian possessions of the Duchy of Luxembourg and the County of Burgundy, and then transferred those rights to René and all of his descendants. The transfer of the County of Burgundy to France in 1482 with the Treaty of Arras made realization of these rights possible, but the County was returned to the Habsburgs in 1493 with the

Treaty of Senlis The Treaty of Senlis concerning the Burgundian succession was signed at Senlis, Oise on 23 May 1493 between Maximilian I of Habsburg and his son Philip "the Handsome", Archduke of Austria, and King Charles VIII of France. Background After the ...

and René would not exercise control over the County again. Likewise, any authority over Luxembourg was merely theoretical outside of the seizure of Virton, as the Duchy remained in possession of the Habsburgs throughout René's lifetime. In 1480 René succeeded his grandfather as

while his mother was still living. In 1482 he conquered the ''prévôté'' of

Virton Virton (; Gaumais: ''Viertån''; wa, Vierton) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. It is also the administrative centre of the district (''arrondissement'') of the same name, as well as the pri ...

, a part of the Duchy of Luxembourg, and annexed it to Bar. In 1484

Peter II, Duke of Bourbon Peter II, Duke of Bourbon (1 December 1438 – 10 October 1503 in Moulins), was the son of Charles I, Duke of Bourbon, and Agnes of Burgundy, and a member of the House of Bourbon. He and his wife Anne of France ruled as regents during the minor ...

, regent for the young King

Charles VIII of France Charles VIII, called the Affable (french: l'Affable; 30 June 1470 – 7 April 1498), was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. He succeeded his father Louis XI at the age of 13.Paul Murray Kendall, ''Louis XI: The Universal Spider'' (Ne ...

, formally installed him in the Duchy of Bar. When his mother Yolande died in 1483, he succeeded her in her claims to the kingdoms of Naples and Jerusalem. In 1482, René traveled to Italy and defeated the Duke of Ferrara in the Battle of Adria as an ally of the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...

. In 1485 René took part in the first phase of the so-called "

Mad War The Mad War (french: la Guerre folle) was a late medieval conflict between a coalition of feudal lords and the French monarchy. It occurred during the regency of Anne of Beaujeu in the period after the death of Louis XI and before the majority of ...

", but prudentially retired after a while. In 1488 the Neapolitans offered him the crown of the

, and René set an expedition to gain possession of the realm; he was however halted by the new French king, Charles VIII, who intended to claim the realm himself. In 1495, to settle a dispute with his second cousin, Jean IV de Rieux, over their grandmothers' inheritance, he ceded to Jean the county of Harcourt and its

appurtenances An appurtenance is something subordinate to or belonging to another larger, principal entity, that is, an adjunct, satellite or accessory that generally accompanies something else.Elbeuf Elbeuf () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in northern France. Geography A light industrial town situated by the banks of the Seine some south of Rouen at the junction of the D7, D321 and the D313 roads. The c ...

and

Brionne Brionne () is a commune in the Eure department. Brionne is in the region of Normandy of northern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of oversea ...

, and receiving the county of Aumale.

Death

René fell ill during a hunt in

Fains Fains is a commune in the Eure department in the Normandy region in northern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territor ...

, and died on 10 December 1508, aged 57.

Family

On his mother's side, he was a grandson of

Isabella, Duchess of Lorraine Isabella (1400 – 28 February 1453) was suo jure Duchess of Lorraine, from 25 January 1431 to her death in 1453. She was also Queen of Naples by marriage to René of Anjou. Isabella ruled the Kingdom of Naples and her husband's domains in Fr ...

. His father was a member of the Vaudémont family, a junior branch of the Lorraine ducal family, descending from

John I, Duke of Lorraine John I (February 1346 – 23 September 1390) was the Duke of Lorraine from 1346 to his death. As an infant of six months, he succeeded his father, Rudolph, who was killed in the Battle of Crécy. His mother was Marie of Blois. Life During J ...

. He was thus both heir-general and heir-male to the Duchy when he succeeded on the death of his cousin

Nicholas Nicholas is a male given name and a surname. The Eastern Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Anglicanism, Anglican Churches celebrate Saint Nicholas every year on December 6, which is the name day for "Nicholas". In Greece, the n ...

in 1473. René married

Philippa of Guelders Philippa of Guelders (; 9 November 1464 – 28 February 1547), was a Duchess consort of Lorraine. She served as regent of Lorraine in 1509 during the absence of her son. She was the Great-Grandmother of Mary Queen of Scots. Life Philippa was born ...

, daughter of

Adolf, Duke of Guelders Adolf of Egmond (Grave, Netherlands, Grave, February 12, 1438 – Tournai, June 27, 1477) was a Duke of Guelders, Count of Zutphen from 1465–1471 and in 1477. Life Adolf was the son of Arnold, Duke of Guelders and Catherine of Cleves (1417- ...

, in

Orléans Orléans (;"Orleans"
(US) and Nancy); d. young * Francis (5 July 1487,

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-Mous ...

); died at birth *

Antoine, Duke of Lorraine Antoine (4 June 148914 June 1544), known as the Good, was Duke of Lorraine from 1508 until his death in 1544. Raised at the French court, Antoine would campaign in Italy twice: once under Louis XII and the other with Francis I. During the Germ ...

(1489–1544) * Nicholas (9 April 1493, Nancy); d. young *

Claude, Duke of Guise Claude de Lorraine, Duke of Guise (20 October 1496 – 12 April 1550) was a French aristocrat and general. He became the first Duke of Guise in 1528. He was a highly effective general for the French crown. His children and grandchildren were to ...

(1496–1550); first

Duke of Guise Count of Guise and Duke of Guise (pronounced �ɥiz were titles in the French nobility. Originally a seigneurie, in 1417 Guise was erected into a county for René, a younger son of Louis II of Anjou. While disputed by the House of Luxembourg ...

Jean, Cardinal of Lorraine Jean de Lorraine (9 April 1498 – c. 18 May 1550) was the third son of the ruling Duke of Lorraine, and a French cardinal, who was (at one time or another) archbishop of Reims (1532–1538), Lyon (1537–1539), and Narbonne (1524–1550), bisho ...

and

Bishop of Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand E ...

(1498–1550) *

Louis, Count of Vaudémont Louis de Lorraine (27 April 1500 – 23 August 1528) was a nobleman of Lorraine who attempted to claim the Kingdom of Naples. He was styled as the Count of Vaudémont. A younger son of René II, Duke of Lorraine, he was born in Bar-le-Duc in 1500. ...

(1500–1528) *

François François () is a French masculine given name and surname, equivalent to the English name Francis. People with the given name * Francis I of France, King of France (), known as "the Father and Restorer of Letters" * Francis II of France, Kin ...

, Count of Lambesc (1506–1525) * Anne (19 December 1490,

Bar-le-Duc Bar-le-Duc (), formerly known as Bar, is a Communes of France, commune in the Meuse (department), Meuse Departments of France, département, of which it is the capital. The department is in Grand Est in northeastern France. The lower, more moder ...

– 1491) * Isabelle (2 November 1494,

Lunéville Lunéville ( ; German, obsolete: ''Lünstadt'' ) is a commune in the northeastern French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle. It is a subprefecture of the department and lies on the river Meurthe at its confluence with the Vezouze. History Lun ...

– bef. 1508) * Claude and Catherine (twins) (24 November 1502,

); d. young

Ancestors

Notes

Sources