Francis I (redirected from Franz)

Francis I, king of France

Francis I, 1494–1547, king of France (1515–47), known as Francis of Angoulême before he succeeded his cousin and father-in-law, King Louis XII.

Wars with the Holy Roman Emperor

Francis resumed the Italian Wars, beginning his reign with the recovery of Milan through the brilliant victory at Marignano (1515). A candidate for the Holy Roman emperor's crown (1519), he was defeated by Charles V, king of Spain, whose supremacy in Europe Francis was to contest in four wars. In 1520 Francis tried to secure the support of King Henry VIII of England against the emperor in the interview on the Field of the Cloth of Gold.

Although no agreement was reached with the English king, Francis began his first war against the emperor (1521–25). He was defeated at La Bicocca (1522) and at Pavia (1525), where he was captured. Francis regained his freedom by consenting to the Treaty of Madrid (1526); he renounced his claims in Italy, agreed to surrender Burgundy to Charles, and abandoned his suzerainty over Flanders and Artois. Resolved to violate a treaty signed under duress, Francis created the League of Cognac (1526) with Pope Clement VII, Henry VIII, Venice, and Florence, and commenced his second war (1527–29) against Charles. It ended, unfavorably for Francis, with the Treaty of Cambrai (see Cambrai, Treaty of), which left Burgundy to France but otherwise duplicated the Treaty of Madrid.

Francis fulfilled the treaty's terms until 1535, when the death of the duke of Milan, Francisco Sforza, opened the question of the Milanese succession. In a third attempt to regain Milan, Francis invaded (1536) Italy. Charles retaliated by invading Provence, and in 1538 a 10-year truce was arranged at Nice. In 1542 with the support of the Ottoman sultan Sulayman I, Francis for the fourth time attacked the emperor, who allied himself (1543) with Henry VIII. Their invasion of France resulted (1544) in the Treaty of Crépy, in which Francis relinquished his claims to Naples, Flanders, and Artois. Peace with England (1546) confirmed the loss of Boulogne.

The French Renaissance

Despite Francis's military failures, his reign saw domestic glory in the fullest development of the French Renaissance. Leonardo da Vinci, Benvenuto Cellini, and Andrea del Sarto worked at his court. Francis and his sister, Margaret of Navarre, were the patrons of François Rabelais, Clément Marot, and Guillaume Budé; Francis also founded the Collège de France. The most permanent monuments of Francis's reign are the châteaus of the Loire, notably Chambord, and the royal residence at Fontainebleau.

Other Aspects of Francis's Reign

The king also had some notable political achievements, including a concordat with the papacy and an alliance with Switzerland (both in 1516). Jacques Cartier, exploring the coast of North America for Francis, established French interest in Canada. In domestic affairs, Francis expanded the absolutism of the monarchy. Government affairs were dominated by successive personal favorites, including Anne, duc de Montmorency, and Francis's mistresses. Louise of Savoy, the king's mother, was also influential. Francis's persecution of the Waldenses (1545), his ruinous expenditures for foreign wars, and the prodigality of his court foreshadowed some aspects of the reign of King Louis XIV. Francis I was succeeded by his son, Henry II.

Bibliography

See biographies by F. Hackett (1935, repr. 1968) and D. Seward (1973).

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Francis I, Holy Roman emperor

Francis I, 1708–65, Holy Roman emperor (1745–65), duke of Lorraine (1729–37) as Francis Stephen, grand duke of Tuscany (1737–65), husband of Archduchess Maria Theresa. He succeeded his father in Lorraine, but agreed (1735) to cede his duchy to Stanislaus I of Poland to end the War of the Polish Succession (see Polish Succession, War of the); in exchange he received the right of succession to Tuscany. In 1736 he married Maria Theresa, heiress to all Hapsburg lands. Francis succeeded (1737) the last Medici ruler of Tuscany and carried out several long-needed reforms. In 1740, Maria Theresa acceded to her inheritance, which was immediately contested in the War of the Austrian Succession (see Austrian Succession, War of the; 1740–48) by an alliance under Frederick II of Prussia. The election (Sept., 1745) of Francis to succeed Charles VII as emperor was recognized by Frederick in the Treaty of Dresden (Dec., 1745) with Maria Theresa. Francis I governed little; the real rulers were Maria Theresa and chancellor Kaunitz. Founder of the house of Hapsburg-Lorraine, Francis was succeeded as Holy Roman emperor by his eldest son, Joseph II, and as grand duke of Tuscany by his younger son, Leopold (later Holy Roman Emperor Leopold II).

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Francis I, king of the Two Sicilies

Francis I, 1777–1830, king of the Two Sicilies (1825–30), son and successor of Ferdinand I. He continued the ruthless and reactionary policy of his father, and his court was notorious for waste and corruption. He was succeeded by his son Ferdinand II.

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Francis I, emperor of Austria

Francis I, emperor of Austria: see Francis II, Holy Roman emperor.

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Francis I

 French François

King Francis I of France, portrait by Pierre Dumonstier, after a drawing by Jean Clouet; in the …

(credit: Courtesy of the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris)

(born Sept. 12, 1494, Cognac, France—died March 31, 1547, Rambouillet) King of France (1515–47). The cousin and son-in-law of Louis XII, Francis succeeded to the throne in 1515. Soon after his coronation he rode off to the Italian Wars (1515–16) and recovered the Duchy of Milan. He was a Renaissance patron of the arts, a humanist, and a popular king who traveled throughout France, curtailing abuses by nobles and providing games and processions for the people. All this ended with the election in 1519 of Charles V as Holy Roman emperor. Charles was already king of Spain, and his lands now encircled France. Francis vainly sought an alliance with Henry VIII on the Field of Cloth of Gold, then waged a series of wars with Charles from 1521. Francis was taken captive in 1525 and languished in prison, refusing to accede to Charles's exorbitant demands, until in 1526 the French ambassadors concluded a treaty. The war with Charles resumed in 1536, and one of Francis's last diplomatic achievements was an alliance with the Turks against the emperor.

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Francis I

 German Franz

(born Dec. 8, 1708, Nancy, Duchy of Lorraine—died Aug. 18, 1765, Innsbruck, Austria) Holy Roman emperor (1745–65). The son of the duke of Lorraine, he succeeded to the duchy in 1729 (as Francis Stephen). In 1736 he married Maria Theresa, heiress to Emperor Charles VI, who agreed to the marriage on the condition that Francis cede Lorraine to Stanislaw I of Poland, in compensation for which Francis was granted Tuscany (1737). He served with Maria Theresa as coregent (1740–45) and was elected emperor during the War of the Austrian Succession. He was overshadowed by his wife during his rule but was remembered for his cultural interests.

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Francis I

1. 1494--1547, king of France (1515--47). His reign was dominated by his rivalry with Emperor Charles V for the control of Italy. He was a noted patron of the arts and learning

2. 1708--65, duke of Lorraine (1729--37), grand duke of Tuscany (1737--65), and Holy Roman Emperor (1745--65). His marriage (1736) to Maria Theresa led to the War of the Austrian Succession (1740--48)