fme_500880 - JEAN II LE BON Étienne Marcel

JOHN II "THE GOOD"

(22/08/1350-8/04/1364)

Jean II (1319-1364) is the son of Philippe VI de Valois and Jeanne de Bourgogne, called the lame. He succeeded his father in 1350. His reign is the most catastrophic of the 14th century. The war resumed with the English in 1355. The Black Prince, son of Edward III, ravages all of western France. John II brings together the States General to obtain subsidies. He was defeated at the Battle of Poitiers in 1356, taken prisoner and taken captive to England. Charles, the dolphin, son of Jean II, becomes lieutenant general of the kingdom. He had to face Charles the Bad, king of Navarre and descendant of Philippe IV, allied to Étienne Marcel, provost of the merchants, who forced the dauphin to compose. The States General are convened and try to impose on the regent a profound reform of the institutions as well as the respect of the coin: it is the great ordinance of 1357. In 1358, he had to face the revolt of Paris and the Jacquerie in the provinces. Étienne Marcel is assassinated and Charles regains power. Jean II le Bon has been a prisoner in England since 1356 and the London Treaties of 1358 and 1359 prepare for the release of King John who signs the Treaty of Brétigny on May 8, 1360. He loses a third of his kingdom and must pay a ransom of 3 million gold crowns.. Released in July 1360, he asked for special aid (tax) to restore good coin and create the horse franc on December 5, 1360. The Duke of Burgundy, Philippe de Rouvres, having died without an heir, the king attached the province to the kingdom and the prerogative in 1363 to his son, Philippe le Hardi, who had supported his father in Poitiers in 1356. The Duke of Anjou, hostage, having escaped from London, Jean, as a knight, returns there to constitute himself a prisoner. He died there on April 8, 1364..