The history of France, which is located in the very center of Europe, began long before the appearance of permanent human settlements. Convenient physical and geographical position, proximity to the seas, rich reserves of natural resources have contributed to France being the “locomotive” of the European continent throughout its history. And this is how the country remains today. Occupying leading positions in the European Union, the UN and NATO, the French Republic remains in the 21st century a state whose history is being created every day.
Location
The country of the Franks, if the name of France is translated from Latin, is located in the region of Western Europe. The neighbors of this romantic and beautiful country are Belgium, Germany, Andorra, Spain, Luxembourg, Monaco, Switzerland, Italy and Spain. The coast of France is washed by the warm Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. The territory of the republic is covered with mountain peaks, plains, beaches, and forests. Hidden among the picturesque nature are numerous natural monuments, historical, architectural, cultural attractions, ruins of castles, caves, and fortresses.
Celtic period
In the 2nd millennium BC. Celtic tribes, whom the Romans called Gauls, came to the lands of the modern French Republic. These tribes became the core of the formation of the future French nation. The Romans called the territory inhabited by the Gauls or Celts Gaul, which was part of the Roman Empire as a separate province.
In the 7th-6th centuries. BC, Phoenicians and Greeks from Asia Minor sailed to Gaul on ships and founded colonies on the Mediterranean coast. Now in their place there are cities such as Nice, Antibes, Marseille.
Between 58 and 52 BC, Gaul was captured by the Roman soldiers of Julius Caesar. The result of more than 500 years of rule was the complete Romanization of the population of Gaul.
During Roman rule, other important events took place in the history of the peoples of future France:
- In the 3rd century AD, Christianity entered Gaul and began to spread.
- Invasion of the Franks, who conquered the Gauls. After the Franks came the Burgundians, Alemanni, Visigoths and Huns, who completely put an end to Roman rule.
- The Franks gave names to the peoples who lived in Gaul, created the first state here, and founded the first dynasty.
The territory of France, even before our era, became one of the centers of constant migration flows that passed from north to south, west to east. All these tribes left their mark on the development of Gaul, and the Gauls adopted elements of various cultures. But it was the Franks who had the greatest influence, who managed not only to drive out the Romans, but also to create their own kingdom in Western Europe.
The first rulers of the Frankish kingdom
The founder of the first state in the vastness of the former Gaul is King Clovis, who led the Franks during their arrival in Western Europe. Clovis was a member of the Merovingian dynasty, which was founded by the legendary Merovey. He is considered a mythical figure, since 100% evidence of his existence is not found. Clovis is considered the grandson of Merovey, and was a worthy successor to the traditions of his legendary grandfather. Clovis led the Frankish kingdom in 481, and by this time he had already become famous for his numerous military campaigns. Clovis converted to Christianity and was baptized in Reims, which happened in 496. This city became the center of baptism for the rest of the kings of France.
Clovis's wife was Queen Clotilde, who together with her husband revered Saint Genevieve. She was the patroness of the capital of France - the city of Paris. The following rulers of the state were named in honor of Clovis, only in the French version this name sounds like “Louis” or Ludovicus.
Clovis The first division of the country between his four sons, who did not leave any special traces in the history of France. After Clovis, the Merovingian dynasty began to gradually fade away, since the rulers practically did not leave the palace. Therefore, the stay in power of the descendants of the first Frankish ruler is called in historiography the period of lazy kings.
The last of the Merovingians, Childeric the Third, became the last king of his dynasty on the Frankish throne. He was replaced by Pepin the Short, so nicknamed for his small stature.
Carolingians and Capetians
Pepin came to power in the mid-8th century, and founded a new dynasty in France. It was called Carolingian, but not on behalf of Pepin the Short, but his son, Charlemagne. Pepin went down in history as a skillful manager who, before his coronation, was the mayor of Childeric the Third. Pepin actually ruled the life of the kingdom and determined the directions of the kingdom's foreign and domestic policies. Pepin also became famous as a skilled warrior, strategist, brilliant and cunning politician, who during his 17-year reign enjoyed the constant support of the Catholic Church and the Pope. Such cooperation of the ruling house of the Franks ended with the head of the Roman Catholic Church prohibiting the French from choosing representatives of other dynasties to the royal throne. So he supported the Carolingian dynasty and kingdom.
The heyday of France began under Pepin’s son, Charles, who spent most of his life in military campaigns. As a result, the territory of the state increased several times. In 800 Charlemagne became emperor. He was elevated to a new position by the Pope, who put the crown on the head of Charles, whose reforms and skillful leadership brought France to the TOP of leading medieval states. Under Charles, the centralization of the kingdom was laid and the principle of succession to the throne was defined. The next king was Louis the First the Pious, the son of Charlemagne, who successfully continued the policies of his great father.
Representatives of the Carolingian dynasty were unable to maintain a centralized unified state, therefore in the 11th century. Charlemagne's state fell apart into separate parts. The last king of the Carolingian family was Louis the Fifth; when he died, Abbot Hugo Capet ascended the throne. The nickname appeared due to the fact that he always wore a mouth guard, i.e. the mantle of a secular priest, which emphasized his ecclesiastical rank after ascending to the throne as king. The rule of representatives of the Capetian dynasty is characterized by:
- Development of feudal relations.
- The emergence of new classes of French society - lords, feudal lords, vassals, dependent peasants. Vassals were in the service of lords and feudal lords, who were obliged to protect their subjects. The latter paid them not only through military service, but also tribute in the form of food and cash rent.
- There were constant religious wars, which coincided with the period of the Crusades in Europe, which began in 1195.
- The Capetians and many French were participants in the Crusades, participating in the defense and liberation of the Holy Sepulcher.
The Capetians ruled until 1328, bringing France to a new level of development. But the heirs of Hugo Capet failed to stay in power. The Middle Ages dictated its own rules, and a stronger and more cunning politician, whose name was Philip VI from the Valois dynasty, soon came to power.
The influence of humanism and the Renaissance on the development of the kingdom
During the 16th-19th centuries. France was ruled first by the Valois and then by the Bourbons, who belonged to one of the branches of the Capetian dynasty. The Valois also belonged to this family and were in power until the end of the 16th century. After them the throne until the mid-19th century. belonged to the Bourbons. The first king of this dynasty on the French throne was Henry the Fourth, and the last was Louis Philippe, who was expelled from France during the period of change from monarchy to republic.
Between the 15th and 16th centuries, the country was ruled by Francis the First, under whom France completely emerged from the Middle Ages. His reign is characterized by:
- He made two trips to Italy to present the kingdom's claims to Milan and Naples. The first campaign was successful and France gained control of these Italian duchies for some time, but the second campaign was unsuccessful. And Francis the First lost territories on the Apennine Peninsula.
- Introduced a royal loan, which in 300 years would lead to the collapse of the monarchy and the crisis of the kingdom, which no one could overcome.
- Constantly fought with Charles the Fifth, ruler of the Holy Roman Empire.
- France's rival was also England, which at that time was ruled by Henry the Eighth.
Under this king of France, art, literature, architecture, science and Christianity entered a new period of development. This happened mainly due to the influence of Italian humanism.
Humanism was of particular importance for architecture, which is clearly visible in the castles built in the Loire River valley. The castles that were built in this part of the country to protect the kingdom began to turn into luxurious palaces. They were decorated with rich stucco, decor, and the interior was changed, which was distinguished by luxury.
Also, under Francis the First, book printing arose and began to develop, which had a huge influence on the formation of the French language, including the literary one.
Francis the First was replaced on the throne by his son Henry the Second, who became the ruler of the kingdom in 1547. The policy of the new king was remembered by his contemporaries for his successful military campaigns, including against England. One of the battles, which is written about in all history textbooks dedicated to France in the 16th century, took place near Calais. No less famous are the battles of the British and French at Verdun, Toul, Metz, which Henry recaptured from the Holy Roman Empire.
Henry was married to Catherine de Medici, who belonged to the famous Italian family of bankers. The Queen ruled the country with her three sons on the throne:
- Francis II.
- Charles the Ninth.
- Henry the Third.
Francis reigned for only a year and then died of illness. He was succeeded by Charles the Ninth, who was ten years old at the time of his coronation. He was completely controlled by his mother, Catherine de Medici. Karl was remembered as a zealous champion of Catholicism. He constantly persecuted Protestants, who became known as Huguenots.
On the night of August 23-24, 1572, Charles the Ninth gave the order to purge all Huguenots in France. This event was called St. Bartholomew's Night, since the murders took place on the eve of St. Bartholomew. Two years after the massacre, Charles died and Henry III became king. His opponent for the throne was Henry of Navarre, but he was not chosen because he was a Huguenot, which did not suit most of the nobles and nobility.
France in the 17th-19th centuries.
These centuries were very turbulent for the kingdom. The main events include:
- In 1598, the Edict of Nantes, which was issued by Henry the Fourth, ended the religious wars in France. Huguenots became full members of French society.
- France took an active part in the first international conflict - the Thirty Years' War of 1618-1638.
- The kingdom experienced its "golden age" in the 17th century. under the reign of Louis the Thirteenth and Louis the Fourteenth, as well as the “gray” cardinals – Richelieu and Mazarin.
- The nobles constantly fought with the royal power to expand their rights.
- France 17th century constantly faced dynastic strife and internecine wars, which undermined the state from within.
- Louis the Fourteenth dragged the state into the War of the Spanish Succession, which caused the invasion of foreign countries into French territory.
- Kings Louis the Fourteenth and his great-grandson Louis the Fifteenth devoted enormous influence to the creation of a strong army, which made it possible to conduct successful military campaigns against Spain, Prussia and Austria.
- At the end of the 18th century, the Great French Revolution began in France, which caused the liquidation of the monarchy and the establishment of the dictatorship of Napoleon.
- At the beginning of the 19th century, Napoleon declared France an empire.
- In the 1830s. An attempt was made to restore the monarchy, which lasted until 1848.
In 1848, a revolution called the Spring of Nations broke out in France, as in other countries of Western and Central Europe. The consequence of the revolutionary 19th century was the establishment of the Second Republic in France, which lasted until 1852.
Second half of the 19th century. was no less exciting than the first. The Republic was overthrown, replaced by the dictatorship of Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, who ruled until 1870.
The Empire was replaced by the Paris Commune, which brought about the establishment of the Third Republic. It existed until 1940. At the end of the 19th century. The country's leadership pursued an active foreign policy, creating new colonies in different regions of the world:
- North Africa.
- Madagascar.
- Equatorial Africa.
- West Africa.
During the 80s - 90s. 19th centuries France constantly competed with Germany. Contradictions between states deepened and aggravated, which caused the separation of countries from each other. France found allies in England and Russia, which contributed to the formation of the Entente.
Features of development in the 20-21st centuries.
The First World War, which began in 1914, became a chance for France to regain lost Alsace and Lorraine. Germany, under the Treaty of Versailles, was forced to give this region back to the republic, as a result of which the borders and territory of France acquired modern contours.
During the interwar period, the country actively participated in the Paris Conference and fought for spheres of influence in Europe. Therefore, she actively took part in the actions of the Entente countries. In particular, together with Britain, it sent its ships to Ukraine in 1918 to fight against the Austrians and Germans, who were helping the government of the Ukrainian People's Republic drive the Bolsheviks out of its territory.
With the participation of France, peace treaties were signed with Bulgaria and Romania, which supported Germany in the First World War.
In the mid-1920s. Diplomatic relations were established with the Soviet Union, and a non-aggression pact was signed with the leadership of this country. Fearing the strengthening of the fascist regime in Europe and the activation of far-right organizations in the republic, France tried to create military-political alliances with European states. But France was not saved from the German attack in May 1940. Within a few weeks, Wehrmacht troops captured and occupied all of France, establishing a pro-fascist Vichy regime in the republic.
The country was liberated in 1944 by the forces of the Resistance Movement, the underground movement, and the allied armies of the United States and Britain.
The Second War hit the political, social and economic life of France hard. The Marshall Plan and the country's participation in economic European integration processes, which in the early 1950s, helped to overcome the crisis. unfolded in Europe. In the mid-1950s. France abandoned its colonial possessions in Africa, granting independence to the former colonies.
Political and economic life stabilized during the presidency of Charles de Gaulle, who led France in 1958. Under him, the Fifth Republic of France was proclaimed. De Gaulle made the country a leader on the European continent. Progressive laws were adopted that changed the social life of the republic. In particular, women received the right to vote, study, choose professions, and create their own organizations and movements.
In 1965, the country elected its head of state for the first time by universal suffrage. President de Gaulle, who remained in power until 1969. After him, the presidents in France were:
- Georges Pompidou – 1969-1974
- Valeria d'Estaing 1974-1981
- Francois Mitterrand 1981-1995
- Jacques Chirac – 1995-2007
- Nicolas Sarkozy - 2007-2012
- Francois Hollande – 2012-2017
- Emmanuel Macron – 2017 – until now.
After World War II, France developed active cooperation with Germany, becoming with it the locomotives of the EU and NATO. The government of the country since the mid-1950s. develops bilateral relations with the USA, Britain, Russia, countries of the Middle East, Asia. The French leadership provides support to former colonies in Africa.
Modern France is an actively developing European country, which is a participant in many European, international and regional organizations and influences the formation of the world market. There are internal problems in the country, but the well-thought-out successful policy of the government and the new leader of the republic, Macron, is helping to develop new methods of combating terrorism, the economic crisis, and the problem of Syrian refugees. France is developing in accordance with global trends, changing social and legal legislation so that both the French and migrants feel comfortable living in France.
Frankish state
The word "France" comes from the name of the Germanic people of the Franks, some of whom settled in Flanders - the northeastern corner of Gaul - in the 5th century. Initially, the name Francia meant the country between the Seine and the Rhine, the western part of which alone became part of France, while the southwestern corner of the eastern part, together with the neighboring region to the east (along the Main), received the name Franconia, also derived from the name francs
The Franks who moved to Flanders are called Western or Salic Franks. In the second half of the 5th century, their state began to take shape.
The Merovingians (late 5th century - 751) are considered the first royal dynasty in the Frankish state. The dynasty was named after the semi-legendary founder of the family - Merovey. The most famous representative is Clovis I (ruled from 481 to 511, from 486 king of the Franks).
Clovis I began the conquest of Gaul. The population of Gaul is usually called Gallo-Romans, since by this time the Gauls had completely Romanized - they lost their native language, adopted the language of the Romans, their culture, and even began to consider themselves Romans. In 496 Clovis converts to Christianity. The transition to Christianity allowed Clovis to gain influence and power over the Gallo-Roman population. Moreover, now he had powerful support - the clergy. Clovis settled his warriors in small villages throughout Gaul so that they could collect tribute from the local population. This led to the emergence of the feudal class. Communicating with the Gallo-Romans, the Franks gradually became Romanized and switched to the language of the local population.
In the 5th-6th centuries, almost the entire territory of Gaul (present-day France) came under the rule of the Franks. The Franks who remained in Germany (Eastern, or Ripuarian Franks) also came under the rule of the kings from the Merovingian dynasty.
The Merovingian capital was Metz from 561. The last representative of the Merovingians is considered to be Childeric III (ruled from 743 to 751, died in 754). Since 751, the Frankish state was ruled by the Carolingians. Despite being called Roman emperors since 800, the capital of the Carolingians was the city of Aachen.
The kings from this family were unable, due to the conditions of the time, and were unable, due to their personal qualities, to keep its eastern outskirts within France, where Lorraine and Burgundy, which had been cut off from ties with France, arose (see history of the territory). In France itself at this time, the difference between north and south began to become more and more sharply defined: in the north the Germanic element intensified with the settlement of the Normans, in the south the Romanesque elements were preserved more purely. The north of France became a classic country of feudalism, but the centripetal trend that led to the process of gathering France also arose here. Not only the smaller lords, but also the larger princes had many interests that forced them to adhere to a common union, the personification of which was the old monarchy.
Under the last Carolingians, who reigned for a century and a half (843-987), France suffered a lot from external enemies who invaded it from different sides: the Normans attacked from the north, the Saracens from the south, and inside the country became more and more disintegrated. It was at this time that the process of feudalization took place, which led France to disintegrate into a number of smaller possessions.
Arose during the last Carolingians, the name France became, over time, more and more confined to the western part alone, and in it - mainly to the large duchy, which subsequently gathered the country around itself (duché de France, later the province of Ile-de-France ).
France under the Capetians
Historical maps of France. Table II.
VI.France in 987 VII.France in 1180 VIII.France in 1328 IX.France in the XIV and XV centuries.
The last Carolingians, having weakened themselves by distributing benefices, turned out to be unable to play the role of central power, and in 987 large feudal lords transferred the crown to one of the noble families, which managed to create a strong possession (“France”) for itself in the northern part of the country. This family, named after the first king of the new dynasty (or “race”, as the French say), Hugo Capet, received the name Capetian (the subsequent Valois and Bourbon dynasties were only offspring of this family).
At the accession of the Capetian dynasty to the throne (in 987), there were nine main possessions in the kingdom: 1) County of Flanders, 2) Duchy of Normandy, 3) Duchy of France, 4) Duchy of Burgundy, 5) Duchy of Aquitaine (Guienne), 6) Duchy of Gascony , 7) County of Toulouse, 8) Marquisate of Gothia and 9) County of Barcelona (Spanish Mark). Over time, fragmentation went even further; From the named possessions, new ones emerged, of which the most significant were the counties: Brittany, Blois, Anjou, Troyes, Nevers, and the lordship of Bourbon.
At the end of the 10th century, the king in France was only “first among equals” (lat. primus inter pares), and his power did not extend to all regions of the vast country, and even in his own duchy he constantly had to reckon with rebellious vassals. Although the election of the princes who chose Hugon Capet violated the inheritance right of the Carolingians (the uncle of the deceased king, Charles of Lorraine), nevertheless, an electoral monarchy was not established in France, since during the king’s lifetime his son was chosen as his successor (which was repeated later). The first Capetians, however, had too much to do at home, that is, in their duchy (“France”) or even county (Paris), to think about establishing their power throughout the entire territory included in their kingdom. Moreover, they had no conscious desire to replace feudal relations with others.
Acquiring new lands, they at the same time distributed fiefs to brothers, sons, and relatives. The best characterization of the insignificance of the first Capetians is the fact that under the fourth of them, Philip I (1060-1108), his vassal, the Norman Duke William, conquered England (1066), and his other vassals took part in the first crusade, then how the king sat at home, unable to actively intervene in the events of the era.
The immediate possession of the first kings of the Capetian dynasty was a narrow territory stretching north and south of Paris and very slowly expanding in different directions; during the first two centuries (987-1180) it only doubled. At the same time, most of what was then France was under the rule of the English kings.
In one important matter, Louis VII did not listen to Suger, going, against his advice, on the second crusade. In the absence of the king, events occurred that forced him, upon his return, to divorce his wife Eleanor, heiress of Aquitaine. She did not hesitate to marry the owner of Normandy and Anjou, Henry Plantagenet, who soon became the king of England. Thus, Louis VII himself refused the opportunity to annex Aquitaine to his possessions and contributed to the formation of a powerful possession in France, which ended up in the hands of England. In addition to the clergy, the cities also helped the Capetians during the Crusades. At this particular time, a communal movement was taking place in France, that is, the liberation of many cities from the power of feudal lords and their transformation into independent communes. Very often this was the result of a revolt of the townspeople against the lords; There were even real wars between the two. At the same time, townspeople often sought support from the kings and themselves assisted them in their fight against the feudal lords. The kings first took one side or the other, but then began to consciously support the townspeople, granting them charters that confirmed their rights. The kings did not allow the establishment of communes on their lands, but they gave the townspeople many other benefits.
A century after this (1154), the Counts of Anjou (Plantagenets) became kings of England and dukes of Normandy, and the first king from this dynasty, Henry II, thanks to his marriage to the heiress of Aquitaine, Eleanor, acquired the entire southwest of France. The “gathering” of France began with Philip II Augustus (1180-1223), who, by the way, acquired Vermandois, part of Artois, Normandy, Brittany, Angers, Maine, Touraine, Auvergne and other smaller lands.
In France, even a special social class of the bourgeoisie was formed, in which the kings found active supporters of their anti-feudal policies. However, when royal power strengthened, it began to take away the rights of the communes. Under Philip II Augustus (1180-1223), a participant in the Third Crusade, royal power in France made new progress. Philip took Normandy from the English king (John the Landless) when he, as a vassal of the French king, did not want to appear at the peer court on charges of killing his nephew. Normandy had to be conquered, but Philip successfully completed this task and acquired other English possessions. Under the same king, a crusade took place against the Albigenses and Waldenses of southern France, which ended with its conquest and subjugation to the northern French. Most of the possessions of the Count of Toulouse were then transferred to the son of Philip Augustus, Louis VIII (1223-26), by the knights who conquered them, but were unable to hold on to them.
Finally, Philip II Augustus was also the first organizer of the royal administration, in the form of bailiffs and prevots, who were entrusted with the management of individual regions, subordinate to the royal council and the chamber of accounts in Paris (in the south, seneschals later became royal governors). Royal power in France increased even more under Louis IX the Saint (1226-1270), who was the true embodiment of the knightly ideal of the Middle Ages and greatly raised the moral authority of royal power. Louis IX also managed to increase his possessions by annexing Anjou and Poitou, which he took from the king of England. Its internal governance was especially important. At this time, the study of the Justinian Code spread from Italy to France and the reception of Roman law began.
Thanks to the activities of these kings and their successors, the unification of France was gradually accomplished. With weapons, money, marriage ties, they little by little take over individual possessions, increasing their domains, and at the same time, more and more subjugate vassals to their power, through new institutions.
As a result, the feudal monarchy under the last Capetians turns into an estate monarchy during the next dynasty - the Valois.
France under the Valois dynasty
The accession to the throne in 1328 of the Valois dynasty was marked by the inclusion of its hereditary duchy into the royal domains. In 1349, Dauphiné was annexed, ending the local dynasty. In general, the successes of royal power in France over the century and a half that elapsed from the accession of Philip II Augustus to the throne (1180) until the end of the Capetian dynasty (1328) were very significant: the royal domains expanded greatly (at the same time, many lands fell, however, into the hands of others members of the royal family), while the possessions of the feudal lords and the English king were reduced. But under the very first king of the new dynasty, a hundred-year war with the British began, in the first period of which the French king, according to the Treaty of Bretigny in 1360, had to renounce a number of lands in favor of the English.
In the first third of the 15th century, things went even worse for France; The British captured a vast territory as far as the Loire. The process of gathering France, suspended by this war, resumed under Charles VII (1422-1461), who managed to expel the British. Among the feudal possessions of the descendants of Saint Louis in this era, Burgundy rose to prominence, the territory of which lay with its western part in France and its eastern part in Germany. Louis XI (1461-1483) in 1477 annexed the French part (the Duchy of Burgundy) to his possessions. In addition, this king acquired Provence by right of inheritance from the last Count of Anjou (1481), conquered Boulogne (1477) and subjugated Picardy.
The new era began, after much hesitation by Louis, only in 1624, when Cardinal Richelieu became minister and soon took control of affairs and unlimited power over the king. The Huguenots were pacified and lost La Rochelle. Princes and dukes were gradually deprived of any influence and power locally. The uprisings of the nobility were suppressed. All the castles of the feudal lords (except the border ones) were razed. After the death of Richelieu (1642), King Louis XIII also died a year later. As a result of Richelieu's activities, an absolute monarchy arose in France.
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In this lesson you will immerse yourself in the world of medieval France. This is the time of the reign of the greatest French dynasties: the Capetians, Valois and Bourbons, the time of the bloody Hundred Years' War between France and England, as well as religious wars between Catholics and Protestants. The time of the emergence of an estate-representative body in France, and subsequently the formation of an absolute monarchy. This period is one of the most important in the history of France, because it was then that France became united and centralized, but encountered many obstacles on its development path.
The unity of the state could be strengthened not only by military methods, but also by others. PhilipIIAugust(Fig. 2) (reigned 1180-1223) carried out numerous military clashes, for example with the English king. As a result of these wars, France regained the territories of Normandy, which belonged to the Kingdom of England.
Rice. 2. Philip II Augustus ()
During the early Middle Ages, the capitals of many European states were mobile. The capital was considered to be the place where the king was located. The French capital was also mobile. It was during the reign of PhilipIIAugust Paris becomes the real French capital. New houses are being built here, and the Louvre fortress was built by order of Philip II Augustus. The fortress has not reached us in its original form; now the Louvre serves as the main French museum.
The next stage in the development of the French state is associated with the reign of the king LouisIXSaint(ruled 1226-1270). He received this nickname for the Crusades, but they could not be called successful. He spent a whole series reforms, which were aimed at centralizing the country:
Creation of the highest judicial body of the kingdom - parliament;
Prohibition of judicial duels in royal domains. Thus, the nobles were forced to appear before the king for trial;
The formation of the Accounting Chamber and the introduction of a single royal coin on the territory of the state, as well as the ban on “bad coins” containing a low percentage of precious metals.
The king played an even greater role in the process of centralization of France. PhilipIVBeautiful(Fig. 3) (reigned 1285-1314). A number of reforms are associated with the era of his reign. He set his main goal replenishment of the French treasury. For the first time in European practice he introduced sales tax. This tax was received very negatively , in France they called him "bad tax" However, the tax did help replenish the French treasury. Philip IV also took measures to ensure that gold did not flow out of France. He prohibited the export of gold and silver outside the country. This caused discontent in his relations with other countries, because trade became more difficult. This law also caused the indignation of the Pope. The church collected taxes - church tithe, and it was impossible to export gold and silver from France. Therefore the tax was paid copper coin, which caused extreme indignation of the Pope. A conflict with him was not in the interests of the French king, because the Pope could harm the king's popularity in France. In order to strengthen your authority, 1302 Philip IV convenes the French Parliament for the first time - States General. Elections were held only in cities: 2 representatives from the city had to arrive in Paris. Participated in the work of the States General the highest nobility and the highest clergy.
Rice. 3. Philip IV the Handsome ()
Pope BonifaceVIII was not pleased with the changes in the policy of the French king. Actually, for this purpose, Philip IV convened the States General, fearing that the Pope might excommunicate him from the church. As a result, in order to avoid further continuation of the conflict, in 1305, King Philip of FranceIVcaptures Rome and overthrows BonifaceVIIIcpapal throne. As a result of new elections, a French representative was elected as the new Pope - ClementV(Fig. 4). The residence of the Pope was located in Rome, but at the insistence of Philip IV in 1309 Clement V moved the papal capital to France. The location for the new residence was chosen in the south of the country, in the city Avignon(the city still bears that name). The Papal Palace was located in Avignon for 69 years. This period from 1309 to 1378 went down in history as the Avignon Captivity of the Popes.
Rice. 4. Pope Clement V ()
Now church tithes had to be paid not to Italy, but to France. This led to the fact that the French king had even more money. But Philip IV was insatiable: he borrowed and almost never repaid the debts. He was in debt to many French cities, whose self-government bodies could not resist the royal claims.
Philip IV went so far as to borrow money from Jewish money changers, and when he realized that he was unable to pay, he expelled the Jews from France. As a result, the debts were cancelled. The Jews left France, but Philip realized that the Jews would no longer give him a loan, because now they were not within the borders of his power. Therefore, he allowed them to return, but on the condition that Philip IV would not return the debt to them. The Jews returned and again began to lend money to the king, and the king again expelled the Jews from the country.
The king spent money primarily on strengthening the state, not only on creating luxurious palaces, but also on creating an army. Philip, like other French kings, needed a professional army that would remain loyal only to him. But a professional army is an expensive business, and more and more money was needed.
The last high-profile case in the life of Philip IV was defeat of the Knights Templar. The defeat of this order, according to Philip, was supposed to bring him enormous wealth, because all the confiscated property went to the royal treasury. However, as a result of the defeat of the order, the treasury was not significantly replenished.
After the death of Philip IV, the throne passed to his sons in turn, but they all reigned briefly, and in 1328 the dynasty came to an end.
Then power passed to a side branch of the Capetian dynasty, and the dynasty was on the throne Valois.
The main field of the Valois dynasty was the famous Hundred Years' War(1337-1453). The cause of the war was a dynastic crisis. When the Capetian dynasty came to an end, it aroused great interest among the English kings, because they were relatives of the French kings and came from the Norman dynasty. The claims of the English kings to the French throne became the cause of the Hundred Years' War.
In addition to the dynastic one, there was interest and economic. England and France competed over rich regions such as Flanders. These were regions with a high development of crafts and had sources of raw materials.
But according to the official version, it was believed that the English king EdwardIIIPlantagenet has the same relation to the Capetian dynasty as PhilipVIValois, who took the throne when the Capetian dynasty ended.
Most of the Hundred Years' War took place under the sign of English superiority. The French army suffered defeats year after year: 1346 - defeat at the Battle of Crecy, 1356 - defeat in the Battle of Poitiers (Fig. 5). There were many reasons for the defeat: the plague epidemic, the Parisian uprising (1356-1358), as well as the peasant war Jacquerie, which, although it lasted only 2 weeks, shocked France. But even after the end of the peasant wars and uprisings, the French army still remained weaker than the English.
Rice. 5. Battle of Poitiers, 1356 ()
In 1415, the French suffered another defeat at the Battle of Agincourt. IN 1420 a peace treaty was signed in Troyes, according to which the northern part of France, together with Paris, passed into the hands of the British.
The situation worsened, and the French king KarlVII(reigned 1422-1461) was not given the opportunity to be officially crowned either in Paris or in the ancient capital of Reims. He was less a king than Dauphin- heir to the throne.
Saved the French king Joan of Arc (Fig. 6). She offered her help in restoring French independence. Her actions were successful. She brought Charles to Reims and ensured his safety during the coronation.
Rice. 6. Joan of Arc ()
After Charles VII officially became King of France, reforms were introduced. He created not just a standing army, but an army loyal to the king. This army was called gendarmerie. Charles VII also introduced a permanent tax, which is levied in France to this day. It was no longer just about the unification of the country, but about its centralization.
The role of the States General during the reign of Charles VII and his successors becomes less and less. France is gradually turning from an estate-representative monarchy into an absolute monarchy.
The process of centralization reaches its apogee since the reign of King FrancisI(Fig. 7)(ruled 1515-1547). In his decrees the form appears: “This is my permission,” that is, the king relies only on his own will, and not on the opinion of the estate-representative body. It was this king who took the initiative to develop territories in the New World, under him the first French colonies were created on the American continent.
Rice. 7. Francis I of Valois ()
However, during the reign of Francis I, an important factor appears that destabilizes France. This factor was a new religion - Protestantism, a direction Calvinism, gaining popularity at the very beginning of the 16th century. Until the Calvinists (in France they were called Huguenots) did not represent a serious political force; the French monarchy tolerated them and did not carry out any persecution. When the Huguenots penetrated the highest echelons of power, this could not but cause conflict. As a result, a series of conflicts on religious grounds took place in France, which went down in history as Religious wars(1562-1594). Their culmination is considered St. Bartholomew's Night, or the Massacre of the Huguenots (Fig. 8), organized in Paris and spread throughout France in 1572.
Rice. 8. St. Bartholomew's Night (August 1572) ()
The King ended the Religious Wars HenryIVNavarrese (Fig. 9)(reigned 1589-1610). IN 1598 Henry of Navarre proclaimed edict of toleration or Edict of Nantes, according to which it was declared that everyone has the right to profess the religion that he considers appropriate to adhere to. Thus, religious contradictions between Catholics and Huguenots were supposed to end. But similar disagreements remained characteristic of France in the 17th century and later.
Rice. 9. Henry IV of Navarre ()
The Edict of Nantes proclaimed the official character Gallican Church(the French Catholic Church, which has its own self-government, unlike the Roman Catholic Church).
Henry of Navarre himself no longer belonged to the Valois dynasty, but belonged to dynastiesBourbons who ruled France until 1848. His activities were also aimed at improvement of state social policy. For the first time, the rights of subjects to life, property and certain privileges were proclaimed.
Henry of Navarre tried to create a system that would allow every Frenchman to achieve prosperity. Under him, serious social changes took place, and he remained in the memory of the French as the “good king.”
In 1610, Henry of Navarre was assassinated in Paris by the religious fanatic François Ravaillac, who disagreed with Henry on a religious issue (regarding the Edict of Nantes and toleration). With the death of Henry of Navarre, the process of creating a social state in France slowed down sharply. His son, the future king LouisXIII(reigned 1610-1643), was too small, and all power was concentrated in the hands of the minister - Cardinal Richelieu.
Bibliography
1. Basovskaya N.I. The Hundred Years' War: Leopard vs. Lily. - M.: Astrel, AST, 2007.
2. Volobuev O.V., Ponomarev M.V., General history for grade 10. - M.: Bustard, 2012.
3. Klimov O.Yu., Zemlyanitsin V.A., Noskov V.V., Myasnikova V.S. General history for 10th grade. - M.: Ventana-Graf, 2013.
4. Koposov N.E. Absolute monarchy in France // Questions of History, 1989, No. 1.
5. Novoselov V.R. Religious Wars in France (1562-1598): the military in the face of civil war. // From the history of social conflicts and popular movements in medieval Europe. - M., Pyatigorsk, 2001.
6. Skazkin S.D. Reformation and Religious Wars // History of France. - M., 1972.
Homework
1. What did the important principle in the Middle Ages mean: “The vassal of my vassal is not my vassal”?
2. What was the cause of the conflict between Philip IV the Fair and Pope Boniface VIII?
3. What were the causes of the Hundred Years' War? List the main battles and results of this war.
4. Why did the Religious Wars begin in France and what was the essence of the Edict of Nantes?
“XI-XV centuries” The era of the developed Middle Ages marked the beginning of the Crusades - aggressive warriors of European feudal lords in the countries of the Eastern Mediterranean. They lasted 200 years (1096-1270). Their organizer was the Catholic Church, which gave the campaigns the character of religious warriors—the struggle of Christianity against Islam. Naturally, France could not stay away from these events. It was she who organized the first trip. In November 1095, Pope Urban II convened a church council in Clermont, where he made a speech calling for people to take up arms in order to snatch the Holy Sepulcher from the hands of infidels. All participants in the campaign were promised complete forgiveness of sins, and those who died were promised paradise. He also pointed out the earthly benefits awaiting the crusaders in the east. After this, the war was preached in all the churches of Europe. In 1096, tens of thousands of poor people went on pilgrimage. But their campaigns were unsuccessful. In October 1096, after numerous robberies, robberies, and violence, the pilgrims were completely defeated by the Muslims. In the summer of the same year, the knights, who were well armed and stocked up on supplies and money, moved to the east, selling and mortgaging their possessions in favor of the church. The feudal lords of Lorraine, Toulouse, Normandy, Blois and Flanders went on campaigns earlier than others. Although the army did not represent a single whole, the campaigns were successful. As a result, several principalities belonging to the French nobility were founded. In the summer of 1099, after the capture of Jerusalem, these principalities actually began to belong to France. With the final establishment of feudalism, the fragmentation that reigned in France acquired certain features in various parts of the country.
In the north, where feudal relations of production were most fully developed, fragmentation reached its conclusion and the feudal hierarchy was most complex. The king was a lord only for his immediate vassals: dukes, counts, as well as barons and knights of his domain. The norm of feudal law was in force: “The vassal of my vassal is not my vassal.” There are many allods left in the south, both large and small, that is, peasant ones. Free communities have long been protected in the mountainous regions of the Massif Central. The early development of cities also contributed to the weakening of feudal relations. As a result, the feudal hierarchy did not acquire a smoky character in the south. There were local dynasties there, and often little was even known about the Capetians. The Dukes of Aquitaine were titled “Dukes of the entire Aquitaine monarchy and considered themselves equal to the kings in everything. The large feudal estates of the south were more connected in the 11th-12th centuries. with other countries. The feudal fragmentation of France was further aggravated by significant differences in the socio-economic and political development of the northern and southern parts of the country, as well as the presence on its territory of two nationalities - northern French and southern French (Provencal). As in an earlier period, these peoples spoke local dialects of various languages: in the south of France - Provencal, in the north - Northern French. According to the different pronunciation of the word “yes” in these languages (“os” - in Provençal, “oil” - in Northern French) later, in the XIII - XIV centuries. The northern regions of France were called “Languedoille” (langue - “language” in French), and the southern ones - “Languedoc”.
In the 13th century. the whole country was already covered with many cities - large, medium and small. Crafts and trade in them initially coexisted with agriculture, but soon pushed it into the background. There were some differences between the cities of Southern and Northern France from the very beginning. The heyday of southern cities - Bordeaux, Toulouse, etc. - began in the 11th century. And it especially intensified in the 12th century. The Crusades played a big role in their development. These cities traded with each other and played the role of intermediaries in trade with the countries of continental Europe. All oriental, Italian and Spanish goods entered the country through the Mediterranean ports of France. Trade contributed to the rapid growth of crafts in many southern cities. Throughout the 12th century. in almost all southern cities a so-called consulate was established, i.e. the board of consuls - elected officials from nobles, merchants and artisans, along with whom there were Great Councils, consisting of all full-fledged citizens. Southern cities became virtually independent republics, much like Italian cities. The nobles also lived and traded in them. The power of large feudal lords was weakened by the independence of large cities. The cities of the North suffered a more difficult fate. The most significant of them - Noyon, Reims, and others - flourished in the north-east of France, in areas of developed sheep breeding, where cloth making became the main industry. Rich craftsmen and merchants appeared there, but their economic activities encountered many obstacles on their way, because... the cities were at the mercy of lords, mainly bishops, who robbed the townspeople, often resorting to violence. The townspeople had no rights, their property was under threat of appropriation by the feudal lords. In the 11th century, cities were repeatedly bought off from the claims of feudal lords. Usually they organized a secret conspiracy (communio) and with weapons in their hands, the townspeople attacked the lord and his knights, killing or expelling them. If successful, the feudal lords were forced to grant the city self-government.
The first "commune" was Cambrai in 1077, which received a communal charter. As a result of the establishment of the commune, the city received the rights of self-government, court and taxation. Kings often supported the communes in their fight against the lords, because the liberated cities recognized the authority of the king. But there were no communes on the territory of the royal domain. The conquest of political independence led to the rapid growth of cities. Crafts flourished and the division of labor between workshops grew. The growth of cities has accelerated the socio-economic differentiation of the urban population. Merchants and craftsmen of some workshops (butchers, cloth makers, jewelers, etc.) became rich; in the communes they completely seized power, neglecting the interests of artisans and small traders. A fierce internal struggle began in the cities. Taking advantage of this, the kings interfered in the internal affairs of the communes, and from the beginning of the 14th century they began to gradually deprive them of their former privileges. In the 12th century, the process of state centralization began in France. Initially, it unfolds in the North, where economic and social prerequisites existed for it. Centralization policy was a progressive phenomenon. The royal power fought against feudal anarchy, which undermined the country's productive forces. The opponents of this policy were the large feudal lords, who most valued their political independence and the associated power over the population. The feudal lords were supported by part of the higher clergy. The strengthening of royal power was facilitated by continuous hostility between the feudal lords. The beginning of the 12th century is a turning point in the growth of royal power. Louis VI (1108-1137) and his chancellor Suger put an end to the resistance of the feudal lords in the royal domain. The castles of the feudal lords were destroyed or occupied by royal garrisons. But in the middle of the 12th century. The French kings had very strong rivals in France. In 1154, one of the French feudal lords, Count of Apjouy Henry Plantagenet, became king of England. His possessions in France were several times greater than the domain of the French king. The rivalry between the Capetians and the Plaptagenets especially flared up under Philip II Augustus (1180-1223). More than all his predecessors, he understood the great benefit that the royal power of the city could provide, and sought to cement his alliance with them. This is evidenced by the numerous communal charters that he gave to a number of cities. Thanks to the military successes of Philip II, the French king's domain increased approximately fourfold. The importance of royal power also increased greatly in those parts of France that had not yet become part of the domain. The flourishing economic condition of southern French cities and their political independence led to increased social contradictions and intense ideological struggle in them. This was manifested in the spread in the southern regions of heretical teachings that had an anti-feudal orientation. In the middle of the 12th century. they began to be called by the common name “Albigensians” (after the main center of the heresy - the city of Albi). The Albigensians considered the earthly world in the Catholic Church itself to be the creation of the devil, denied the basic dogmas of the church, and demanded the elimination of the church hierarchy, church land ownership and tithes. Under a religious veneer, the struggle against the feudal lords unfolded.
The bulk of the Albigensians were townspeople, but they were also joined, especially at the beginning of the movement, by knights and nobles who encroached on the land wealth of the church. In 1209, Pope Innocent III managed to organize a “crusade” of northern French bishops and their vassals under the leadership of the papal legate against the Albigenses. The northern French knights willingly took part in the campaign, hoping to profit from the rich southern cities. During the 13th century, especially during the reign of Louis IX (1226-1270), the strengthening of royal power was consolidated by a number of important reforms. As a result of the reform, judicial duels were prohibited on the territory of the royal domain. The decision of any feudal court could be appealed to the royal court, which thus became the supreme authority for judicial matters of the entire kingdom. A number of the most important criminal cases were removed from the jurisdiction of feudal courts and were considered exclusively by the royal court. A special judicial chamber emerged from the Royal Council, called the “parliament”. Louis IX prohibited wars between feudal lords in the royal domain, and in the domains not yet annexed to the domain he legalized the custom of the “40 days of the king,” i.e. the period during which the person receiving the challenge could appeal to the king. This weakened feudal strife. The royal coin was to be accepted throughout the country along with the local one. This contributed to the economic cohesion of France. Gradually, the royal coin began to displace the local coin from circulation.
Thus, the development of the feudal state in France in the XI-XIII centuries. went through a number of stages. Feudal fragmentation was first overcome in the northern part of the country on the basis of urban development and strengthening economic ties between regions. In the first third of the 14th century. The French economy continued to develop rapidly. The most important changes took place in the cities. The structure of the workshop changed, and especially rich workshops subordinated the workshops of related professions. Inside the workshops, the masters paid the apprentices so poorly that they now did not have the opportunity to open their own workshops and become masters. Masters increased the number of apprentices and apprentices and lengthened the working day. The number of urban uprisings increased sharply. Cash rent finally turned the French feudal lords away from running their own households. The developed commodity-money relations made it possible to buy for money everything that was within one's pocket. However, as the country's economy further developed, the needs of the lords increased; medium and small knights experienced an increasingly urgent need for money. Money came from the peasants in an unchanged amount, in accordance with the “eternal” established at one time (often back in the 13th century), i.e. unchanged, qualification. French chivalry sought a way out of difficulties through war and robbery, and sometimes supported the separatist tendencies of large feudal lords. But numerous wars required significant funds, so taxes were increased. The king demanded especially large subsidies from cities. Since the time of Philip IV, the kings began to gradually deprive cities of their rights in the field of self-government and taxation, increasingly subjugating them politically. Philip IV began to impose taxes on church lands. This caused a protest from Pana Boniface VIII. An open conflict broke out between the king and the pope in 1296. Soon the conflict acquired wider significance, as Boniface VIII made claims to the supremacy of spiritual power over secular power. Like Gregory VII, he argued that popes were placed above kings and emperors. But by that time the royal power in France had already strengthened enough to withstand the fight against papal claims and defend the sovereignty of the secular state. In order to influence public opinion, the royal legists organized a skillful campaign against the pope, and extensive anti-papal journalism arose. To gain widespread support, Philip IV convened the Estates General in 1302, where three classes (states) were represented - the clergy, nobles and townspeople. The nobility and townspeople supported the king in everything: the clergy took an uncertain position on the issue of the pope's claims. Boniface VIII sent his legate to France, who was instructed to proclaim the excommunication of Philip IV if the latter did not submit to the pope's demands, but the legate was arrested. In turn, Philip IV decided to achieve the deposition of the pope and, for this purpose, sent agents to Italy who spared no expense and attracted many of the pope's influential enemies to their side. The conspirators broke into the papal palace (in the small town of Anagni) and began to insult the pope in every possible way. Broken by this shock, Boniface VIII soon died.
In 1305, under pressure from Philip IV, a French prelate under the name of Clement V was elected pope. Royal power won a decisive victory over the papacy; its political and international importance in Europe was greatly undermined. In the 30s of the XIV century. the normal development of France was interrupted by the Hundred Years' War with England (1337-1453), which led to the massive destruction of productive forces, population decline and a reduction in production and trade. Dire misfortunes befell the French people - the long occupation of France by the British, the ruin and devastation of many territories, terrible tax oppression, robbery and civil strife between French feudal lords. The Hundred Years' War was mainly a struggle over the southwestern French lands, which were under the rule of the English kings. In the first years of the war, rivalry over Flanders, where the interests of both countries collided, was also of considerable importance. Subsequently, the main arena of military action became (along with Normandy) the South-West, i.e., the territory of the former Aquitaine, where England, which sought to recapture these lands, found allies in the face of the still dependent feudal lords and cities. The immediate cause of the war was the dynastic claims of the English king Edward III, grandson of Philip IV the Fair. In 1328, the last of the sons of Philip IV died; Edward III declared his rights to the French crown, but in France the senior representative of the side branch of the Capetians, Philip VI of Valois (1328-1350), was elected king. Edward III decided to seek his rights with weapons.
The war began in 1337. The invading English army had a number of advantages over the French: it was small, well organized, detachments of mercenary knights were under the command of captains who were directly subordinate to the commander-in-chief; English archers, recruited mainly from free peasants, were masters of their craft and played an important role in battles, supporting the actions of the knightly cavalry. In the French army, which consisted primarily of knightly militia, there were few shooters, and the knights did not want to take them into account and coordinate their actions. The army disintegrated into separate detachments of large feudal lords; in reality, the king commanded only his own, albeit the largest, detachment, that is, only part of the army. The English won by sea (in 1340 at Sluys, off the coast of Flanders) and by land (in 1346 at Crecy, in the north of Picardy), which allowed them to take Calais in 1347 - an important military and transshipment point for wool exported from England . Otherwise, the British military actions in the north were unsuccessful. Then they moved them to the southwest and again captured the regions of Guyep and Gascony from the sea. It was a difficult time for France, the treasury was completely empty, and there was virtually no army. Further waging the war, the peaks, including the king, were ransomed, demanding huge amounts of money. The defeat at Poitiers angered the people against the nobles and the king, who failed to organize the defense of the country from the enemy. Unrest began in Paris. The head of the Parisian municipality, merchant foreman Etienne Marcel, became the head of the Parisians. Etienne Marcel and his closest supporters were among the richest merchants and owned large fortunes at that time. They shared the indignation that swept the entire country with the nobles and the government, but were not going to sacrifice their income to ease the tax burden of the urban population and peasantry and therefore had no real support among the masses of Paris. At the end of May 1358, the largest peasant uprising in the history of France and one of the largest in the history of Europe, the Jacquerie, broke out. It was prepared by the entire course of socio-economic development of Northern France. In 1348, a plague epidemic (“Black Death”) struck France, killing thousands of inhabitants. The population decline led to an increase in wages, which, in turn, caused the publication of laws directed against its growth. On May 28, in the region of Bovezy (north of Paris), peasants in a skirmish with a noble detachment killed several knights, which served as a signal for an uprising. With extraordinary speed, the uprising spread to many areas of Northern France. This is where the later name “Jacquerie” came from.
Contemporaries called the uprising “a war of non-nobles against nobles,” and this name well reveals the essence of the movement. From the very beginning, the uprising took on a radical character: the Jacques destroyed noble castles, destroyed lists of feudal duties, killed feudal lords, trying to “eradicate the nobles of the whole world and become masters themselves.” The total number of rebels in all regions, according to contemporaries, reached approximately 100 thousand. Some cities openly went over to the side of the peasants: in others, the rebels enjoyed the sympathy of the urban lower classes. The uprising took on its greatest scope in Bovesi. At the head of the united detachments of peasants was Guillaume Cal, an experienced man and familiar with military affairs. The rebels also had banners with the royal coat of arms. The peasants opposed the feudal lords, but for the “good king.” On June 8, near the village of Mello, the peasants met the army of Charles the Evil, King of Navarre, who was hurrying with his Varrian and English knights to Paris, hoping to seize the French throne. Peasants and knightly detachments stood against each other for two days in full combat readiness. But since the numerical superiority was on the side of the Jacobs, Karl the Evil proposed a truce and expressed his readiness to cooperate with the peasants. Believing the king's chivalrous word, Kal came to him for negotiations, but was treacherously captured. After this, the knights rushed at the leaderless peasants and brutally defeated them. Guillaume Cal and his comrades were sold to a painful execution. This ended the uprising in Boveei. After the suppression of the uprising, the nobility brutally dealt with the peasants: executions, fines and indemnities fell on villages and villages. However, despite the victory, the feudal lords for a long time could not forget the panic that gripped them during the uprising, and were afraid to increase feudal payments. The Jacquerie contributed to the further development of the beginning of the decomposition of feudal relations. The growth of commodity production, the strengthening of the independence of the peasant economy and its connections with the market, the development of cash rent - these processes in the French countryside accelerated and deepened even more after the Jacquerie. The peasants were unable to crush the feudal system and were defeated, but their selfless struggle to a certain extent stopped the attempts of the lords to increase feudal exploitation and defended the possibility of further development of the personal freedom of the peasant and his economy. From the turbulent events of 1356-1358. royalty has learned some lessons. A number of tax reforms were introduced. In response to this, numerous popular uprisings broke out throughout France. During the reign of the mentally ill Charles VI Feudal (1380-1422), fierce strife began. Taking advantage of the temporary weakening of central power, the princes of the royal house sought complete independence in their apanages, and the southern feudal lords longed to maintain their independence. Both parties exterminated each other and mercilessly robbed the treasury and people, causing enormous damage to the economy and population of the country. In 1415, a new English invasion of France began. France was left without an army and without money. Compared to the 14th century. the situation was even worse, since civil strife not only terribly ruined the country, but also led to the split of its territory.
As a result of military successes, the British imposed the most difficult peace conditions on France (the Treaty of Troyes in 1420), it lost its independence and became part of the united Anglo-French kingdom. During the life of Charles VI, the English king Henry V became the ruler of France, and then the throne was supposed to pass to the son of the English king and the French princess. The north of France was occupied by the British, but the size of the royal lands was not inferior to the territory occupied by the British. The king had many large cities that provided him with invaluable assistance in money and people during the war. The most important factor that ensured the final victory of France was popular resistance to the invaders. The guerrilla war of the population of the occupied territory began almost from the beginning of the British invasion (1415) and flared up more and more. Elusive partisan detachments, which found help and support from the residents (although this threatened with cruel executions), undermined the rule of the British. The latter no longer risked moving except in numerous and well-armed detachments. Sometimes they did not even dare to leave their fortresses. Many of the cities occupied by the English were in secret relations with the king. Conspiracies were uncovered in Paris and Rouen. The British tried to find a way out by further advancing south. For this purpose, the siege of Orleans, which was directly adjacent to English territory, was undertaken. In 1428, a small army, consisting of detachments that arrived from England and gathered from the Norman garrisons, arrived near Orleans and began to build siege fortifications around it. The news of this horrified the French. Having taken this first-class fortress for those times and crossed the Loire, the British would not have encountered well-fortified cities further along the road. If troops from Bordeaux had moved towards them from the southwest, the royal army, squeezed on both sides, would have found itself in a hopeless position. During this extremely difficult and dangerous time for France, the fight against foreign invaders was led by Joan of Arc, who managed to achieve a decisive turning point in the war. In the 30s of the 15th century, in connection with the victories of the French army, the process of strengthening the central royal power, which at that time was at the time an exponent of national unity and state sovereignty. In 1481, Provence with the largest Mediterranean port of Marseille, which played a large role in the trade of French merchants with the Levant, Italy, Spain and the northern coast of Africa, was annexed to France. As a result, by the end of the reign of Louis XI, the unification of the country into a single state with a strong central government was largely completed.
After the death of Louis XI (in 1491), as a result of the marriage of Charles VIII and Anne of Brittany, Brittany was annexed to France (but it finally became part of France in the next century). Outside French borders at the end of the 15th century. That left Lorraine, Franche-Comté, Roussillon and Savoy, the annexation of which lasted until the middle of the 19th century. The process of merging the two nationalities has made significant progress, although it is still far from complete. In the XIV-XV centuries. in Northern France, a single language developed on the basis of the Parisian dialect, which then developed into the modern common French language; however, local dialects of the Provençal language continued to exist in the south.
Yet France entered the 16th century as the largest centralized state in Western Europe, with developing economic ties, wealthy cities, and a growing cultural community. Chapter 3 Late Middle Ages. By the beginning of the 16th century. France had almost completed its territorial unification and was a united and strong state. The now few large feudal lords were forced to enter the service of the powerful king and became part of the court nobility. Far from Paris, in the south of France, the nobles, however, tried to behave quite independently. Their local feuds sometimes took on the character of feudal strife; They even tried, according to the old feudal custom, to “move away” from their sovereign and go into the service of another, for example, the emperor. But the French kings were already strong enough to punish disobedient vassals and “explain” to them the concept of high treason, which was unusual for them. The difficult and slow path of the unification of France was also reminiscent of the existence in a number of outlying provinces of local estate institutions - provincial states, which had the right to negotiate with the government on the amount of tax that fell on a given province and distribute taxes among payers (Languedoc, Provence, Dauphine, Burgundy , Brittany, Normandy).
France was the largest centralized state in Europe in terms of territory and population (15 million). But unlike England, for which the 16th century was the beginning of rapid and successful capitalist development, France developed economically much more slowly, and accordingly there were no radical changes in its social structure. Agriculture was the basis of the country's economy. The absolute majority of its population lived in the countryside. The cities were small, their industry was predominantly of a craft nature. Neither the nobility nor the bourgeoisie were yet interested in creating a large economy. The French lords had long ago abandoned their own ploughing, and distributed the land to the peasants to hold for cash rent. But various duties and payments entangled peasant farms in a network of heavy obligations and hampered their development. The process of primitive accumulation also took place in France, but its forms were unique. The increasing marketability of agriculture, the increase in the tax burden, due to which the state waged wars and sought to compensate the nobility for the loss of income from the fixed feudal rent, which was falling as a result of the “price revolution”, increased usurious exploitation, etc. accelerated the process of property stratification of the French peasantry. The urban bourgeoisie, the “people of the mantle”, as well as the rich “strong men”, managers of noble estates (regisseurs), general tax farmers of income from large seigneuries - all of them, who grew fat on the robbery of peasants overwhelmed by poverty, crowded out the rural poor, some of whom were ruined, sold her land and went to the cities in search of work. As in all European countries where the process of primitive accumulation took place, vagrancy became the scourge of France. Already in the first half of the 16th century. in France, ordinances were issued against “tramps.” As a system, “bloody legislation” received its form a little later. Vagrant people filled the ranks of unskilled workers for the capitalist manufactories that were emerging in France. Large capitals in France found their application mainly in trade, credit and farming operations, and in manufactories. The discovery of America and the sea route to India was of less importance for France than for Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands and England. Nevertheless, the general revival of trade also affected France. The role of western and northern ports (Bordeaux, La Rochelle, Nantes, Saint-Malo, Dienpas, etc.) has grown. Trade along the Mediterranean Sea with the countries of the East through Marseille was further developed, “Languedoc cities are drawn into trade with Spain and Italy. Overland trade was of great importance. Lyon, with its fairs, encouraged by the French kings, became one of the centers of European trade and the most important international money market. Large financial transactions were concluded here, external and internal government loans concluded by European states were realized. Capital acquired in trade, through state lending, and through farm-outs began to penetrate into production.
On this basis, capitalist manufactories arise, predominantly of a dispersed and mixed type, mainly in textile production. New industries appeared and rapidly developed, especially the production of luxury goods: silk, velvet, gold and silver brocade, art glass, enamel, and earthenware. Mining and metallurgical enterprises developed, which, due to their military importance, enjoyed special privileges. The development of industry and trade, the territorial unification of the country and politics, national productive forces, contributed to the further development of the domestic market. With the development of capitalist industrial relations, i.e., the strengthening of manufactories, the ancient partnerships of apprentices - companions - increasingly turned into organizations fighting with craftsmen and entrepreneurs for higher wages and a general improvement in working conditions. The government prohibited companions, but they continued to exist illegally and exerted an organizing influence on the performances of apprentices, who essentially turned into hired workers. In the 16th century Major class clashes broke out. Printing, which arose already at the time of the decline of the guild system, required the investment of large capital and therefore developed in the form of a centralized manufacture. However, some old forms of organization and even medieval terminology still continued to exist in this branch of production. The hired workers were called apprentices, and the organizations created to protect their interests were still called companions. In the 16th century Printing workers organized several strikes, demanding better working conditions and higher wages. The increase in the tax burden, the attempts of the nobles to arbitrarily increase the size of feudal duties and payments of peasants, and the oppression of usurious capital exacerbated social contradictions in the countryside. In some seigneuries and districts of France, peasant protests did not stop. However, in the first two thirds of the 16th century. The sources do not indicate uprisings that would cover more or less significant areas and involve large masses of peasants, like the peasant uprisings of the late 16th century. French noble nobility in the 16th century. was divided mainly into two groups, no longer distinguished by their position on one or another step of the feudal-hierarchical ladder, but by their proximity to the king, their position on the steps of the stairs leading to the royal chambers. Members of the reigning dynasty, titled major lords, as well as the lucky ones who were blessed by the royal favor, constituted the highest stratum of the nobility, the court aristocracy. They lived on funds siphoned from their estates, but court life required such large expenses that they constantly had to resort to the mercy of the king. They received pensions, gifts and rewards from him for serving in court positions and in the guard. All of them, through extravagance and generosity, supported the splendor and glory of their class and its head, the King of France. The rest of the nobility lived in the provinces on gradually diminishing incomes - on feudal rent from their peasant holders and through service in the royal army. The nobility as a whole was the main support of French absolutism, which was gradually established in France. In the king, it saw its patron and its protection from peasant and urban uprisings that were ready to break out. A significant layer of the bourgeoisie served in the financial institutions of the monarchy or took charge of collecting taxes. Thus, part of the French bourgeoisie already in the 16th century. became a moneylender for her country, making huge capital from the tax system of the noble state. This circumstance led to another feature that had disastrous consequences for the bourgeoisie: less entrepreneurial spirit compared to the English or Dutch bourgeoisie. In industry, trade and navigation, the French bourgeoisie lagged behind its competitors.
The largest monetary capital remained in the financial unproductive sphere. The socio-economic changes that took place in France in the 16th-18th centuries, and the associated intensification of the class struggle, forced the ruling class to look for a new form of state, more suitable to the conditions of that time. This became the absolute monarchy, which somewhat later took on its most complete form in France. The foundations of the absolute monarchy were laid under the three successors of Louis XI - Charles VIII (1483-1498), Louis XII (1498-1515) and Francis I (1515-1547). The States General ceased to be convened at this time. Instead of them, notables were sometimes convened, that is, small meetings of persons appointed by the king. The king had a large army at his disposal and collected taxes with the help of his apparatus. All management was concentrated in the royal council, but the most important matters were decided in a narrow circle of close advisers, the king. Parliaments, especially the Parisian one, somewhat constrained the power of the king. He registered the king's decrees and financial edicts and had the right to bring to his attention his views on their conformity with the customs of the country or the spirit of previous legislation. This right was called the right of remonstration, and Parliament valued it very much, seeing in it a well-known form of participation in the legislative power. But meetings in the personal presence of the king (lit de justice) made the registration of royal decrees and edicts mandatory. Maintaining a large army and a growing bureaucratic apparatus, distributing pensions to the nobility and nobility required large amounts of money. Expenses were covered in two ways: by a constant increase in taxes, i.e. robbery within the country, and predatory warriors. Direct taxes from 3 million livres at the end of the 15th century. rose to 9 million livres by the middle of the 16th century. and continued to grow. True, the “flail revolution” went even faster than the increase in taxes, and partly compensated for their increase. Wide expansion was carried out in the international arena. Having barely completed the unification of the country, the French monarchy rushed to seize Italian lands. The impoverished French nobility craved spoils, money and fame. French merchants who traded with the East were not averse to turning Italian harbors into transit points for French eastern trade. Italian campaigns occupy the entire first half of the 16th century (1494-1559).
Having begun with the French campaigns in Italy, they were soon complicated by the struggle and rivalry of France with the Habsburg power and escalated into a clash between these two largest powers in Europe. The second important event of the first half of the 16th century. There was a reform movement that acquired a unique character in France. As royal power turned into absolute power, kings sought to subjugate the church and turn it into their obedient instrument. An important step in this direction was taken by Francis I, who concluded the so-called Bologna Concordat with the pope in 1516. According to this agreement, the king received the right to appoint candidates for the highest church positions with subsequent approval by the pope, but the pope’s right to receive annats was partially restored. The king could not fill vacancies for a long time and take income from church benefits for his own benefit. He could bestow them on his associates. Thanks to this, the income of the Catholic Church - the largest landowner in France - was to a greater extent at the disposal of the king. Appointment to high church positions has evolved into. royal award. Mostly nobles and nobles were appointed bishops and abbots, who were more interested in income than in church duties, leaving the affairs of the flock in charge of the affairs of the flock for a relatively insignificant remuneration to their vicars, i.e. deputies, people usually of humble origins. However, socio-economic changes also occurred in France, which contributed to the spread of reform ideas. One of the moderate French reformers, Lefebvre d'Etaples, even before Luther, expressed ideas close to reformation ones. Lutheran ideas began to spread in France in the early 20s of the 16th century. The first speech of the Sorbonne (theological faculty of the University of Paris) against “heresy” dates back to this time "Several stubborn heretics were burned. The early period of the Reformation in France was characterized by two things: Protestantism spread more or less evenly throughout the country; it spread exclusively among the third estate - the bourgeoisie and artisans. Among the artisans, reformation ideas were adopted mainly by apprentices and craftsmen. hired workers, who especially suffered from exploitation: for them, Protestantism was a form of expression of social protest. The guild masters, who were isolated in a closed privileged group, who bought patents from the king for the title of master for a fairly significant sum, basically adhered to the royal faith, i.e. e. Catholicism. As for the peasantry, the majority of them remained alien to the reformation. The government's tolerant attitude towards Protestants ended when adherents of the standard faith switched to more decisive actions in the mid-80s. In October 1534, in connection with the arrests of several Protestants, posters compiled by adherents of the Reformation were posted in Paris and even in the royal palace. This performance was considered unheard of insolence, and Catholic fanatics protested strongly. The king was forced to take serious measures. On January 13, 1535, 35 Lutherans were burned and about 300 were imprisoned. By this time, a new reformation movement was emerging on French soil, which later became widespread throughout the world - Calvinism. In 1536, the first edition of “Instruction in the Christian Faith” by John Calvin was published. The author of this work was forced to flee abroad due to religious persecution. In the 40s, the second period of the Reformation began in France, associated with the spread of Calvinism among the nobility, merchants and among the lower classes of the Catholic clergy, mainly in the south of France. The successes of Calvinism and its militant nature provoked government responses. Under Henry II, the “Fiery Chamber” was established to try heretics, which sentenced many Protestants to be burned at the stake. By the time the campaigns in Italy ended, a great internal ferment was already acutely felt in France, affecting the most diverse segments of the population. The growth of unrest was facilitated not only by the consequences of changes in the socio-economic nature and changes in the political superstructure of the country in connection with the strengthening of absolutism, but also by the insignificance of the successes gained by France in the Italian campaigns.
The ongoing processes of decomposition of feudal relations and the emergence of a capitalist structure in the depths of feudalism inevitably aggravated social contradictions. Naturally, the working people, suffering from the ever-increasing oppression of taxes, could not put up with this situation, and social protest on their part took on increasingly acute forms. One of the forms of protest was a departure from Catholicism, which sanctified the feudal order with its authority, and a conversion to Calvinism, which was becoming increasingly widespread among the urban plebs - apprentices and other poor, hungry cities, and in some places the peasantry. On the other hand, the reaction to the policy of absolutism in the middle similar class began to affect itself. Acute discontent was revealed in the circles of the provincial nobility and nobility, who had not yet given up the dream of returning to the “good old days,” when not only a major lord, but also an ordinary nobleman could behave independently in relation to the king, transfer to the service of another sovereign and fight with other lords, including the king himself. These sentiments also found a response among the court aristocracy, dissatisfied with the growing power of the bureaucracy and the “upstarts” of the “people of the mantle,” always inclined to unconditionally support absolutism.
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