Philip the Good

Philip the Good, 1396–1467, duke of Burgundy (1419–67); son of Duke John the Fearless. After his father was murdered (1419) at a meeting with the dauphin (later King Charles VII of France), Philip formed an alliance with King Henry V of England. Under the Treaty of Troyes (1420; see Troyes, Treaty of) Philip recognized Henry V as heir to the French throne; the dauphin was disinherited. Philip aided the efforts of Henry and his successor to establish English rule in France. Finally, in return for important concessions, Philip ended the English alliance and made peace with Charles VII in the Treaty of Arras (1435; see Arras, Treaty of). Despite the truce, Philip's relations with Charles were not always amicable. He temporarily supported (1440) the rebellious nobles in the Praguerie and gave asylum to the dauphin (later King Louis XI), who was constantly in revolt against his father. During Philip's reign the territory of his duchy was more than doubled. Through inheritance, treaty, conquest, and purchase he acquired Hainaut, Holland, Zeeland, Friesland, Brabant, Limburg, Namur, Luxembourg, Liège, Cambrai, and numerous other cities and feudal dependencies. Uprisings in Bruges (1436) and in Ghent (1450–53) were suppressed. In 1463, Philip was forced to return some of his holdings to Louis XI. His vow (1454) to go on crusade was never fulfilled. Philip's court was the most splendid in the Western Europe of his time. He was succeeded by his ambitious son, Charles the Bold, who took control of the government from Philip in 1465.

Bibliography

See biography by R. Vaughan (1970); J. L. A. Calmette, The Golden Age of Burgundy (1949, tr. 1962).

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Philip III

 French Philippe known as Philip the Good

(born July 31, 1396, Dijon, Burgundy—died June 15, 1467, Bruges) Duke of Burgundy (1419–67). The most important of the Valois dukes of Burgundy, he founded the Burgundian state that rivaled France in the 15th century. He confirmed his right to Burgundy by signing the Treaty of Troyes with Henry V of England (1420), and he maintained an alliance with England, breaking it only during his unsuccessful attempt to capture Calais (1435–39). Philip avoided conflict with France and instead attacked his smaller neighbors, conquering Hainaut, Brabant, Holland and Zeeland, and Luxembourg by 1443. A renowned patron of the arts, he presided over one of Europe's most extravagant courts.

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Philip the Good

1396--1467, duke of Burgundy (1419--67), under whose rule Burgundy was one of the most powerful states in Europe

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Philip the Good 

(Philip III of Burgundy). Born July 31, 1396, in Dijon; died June 15, 1467, in Bruges. Duke of Burgundy from 1419.

During the Hundred Years’ War of 1337–1453, Philip the Good was first (from 1419) an ally of the English. As such, he took part in the siege of Compiègne (1430), during which Joan of Arc was taken prisoner. In 1435 he went over to the French side and, by the Treaty of Arras, received Picardy in return for recognizing Charles VII as the lawful ruler of France. Philip significantly enlarged his holdings through marriages, money, and clever diplomacy: in 1421 he annexed the county of Namur, between 1428 and 1433 the counties of Hainault, Zeeland, and Holland, in 1430 the duchies of Brabant and Limburg, and between 1431 and 1443 the duchy of Luxembourg.