Negotiating princely power in late medieval France: Jeanne de Penthièvre, duchess of Brittany (c.1325–1384) Erika Maëlan Graham-Goering PhD University of York History April 2016 Abstract Jeanne de Penthièvre (r. 1341–1365) inherited the duchy of Brittany, but was challenged by her collateral relatives in a lengthy civil war and ultimately de- feated, though she remained politically active until her death. This thesis uses her career as a case study of the ways princely power was expressed and imple- mented in the fourteenth century, and includes a critical biography and an edition of the 1341 legal brief for her succession. It focuses especially on official records such as legal arguments, charters, orders, and seals, and incorporates the close reading of individual texts alongside broader linguistic and quantitative analyses. The high nobility of fourteenth-century France has been relatively underserved by this type of examination of the influences of rank, relationships, gender, and conflict within the focused context of an individual’s life, an approach which demonstrates the flexibility of non-royal political authority. Jeanne’s participa- tion across different areas of government (such as finances, bureaucracy, warfare, and diplomacy) reveals a variable balance of power between Jeanne and her hus- band as spouses and as co-rulers. The terms used to establish her power in the official acta suggest further that simple descriptions of power often used inmod- ern scholarship on noblewomen do not adequately characterize or explain late medieval views of these dynamics. The legal arguments advanced in defence of Jeanne’s claim to the duchy reveal disagreements about the technical relationship of the duke/duchess to the rest of Franco-Breton political society. Jeanne’s ability to assert her authority was particularly important in the contested circumstances of her rule, and her adherence to or deviation from contemporary expectations was important in establishing her legitimacy. Contemporary Breton and French chroniclers, particularly Froissart, complement this perspective with their reac- tions to her rule; Jeanne’s reputation was informed by the multilayered standards attached to her positions as heiress, wife, and duchess. 3 Contents Abstract 3 List of figures 7 Acknowledgements 8 Author’s declaration 10 Introduction 11 Part 1 The career of Jeanne de Penthièvre 34 1 Birth, family, and inheritance 35 Birth, marriage, and family ...................... 35 A patchwork inheritance ........................ 43 The trouble with Brittany ....................... 46 2 The war for Brittany, 1341–1365 50 Jeanne’s duchy ............................. 50 ‘La guerre des deux Jeanne’ ...................... 54 3 Later life, 1365–1384 64 A new centre of business ........................ 64 The difficult settlement of the treaty of Guérande . 65 Opportunities and frustrations . 69 A quiet end ........................... 77 Lifestyle ................................. 77 Part 2 Shared power and the realities of rule 82 4 Managing property: Land and money 86 Revenues and expenditures in the Limousin, 1344–1347 . 87 Shared management of incomes and costs . 90 Different responsibilities ........................ 94 Joint interests and the donations of 1343 . 97 4 Contents Conclusion ............................... 102 5 Managing people: Followers and service 103 Chronological and geographical patterns in ducal personnel . 104 Councillors . 104 Officials ............................. 110 Managing relationships . 117 Rewarding loyalty . 117 Recollections of service, 1371 . 119 Conclusion ............................... 123 6 Managing strategy: Justice and conflict 126 Administering justice . 127 Case study: The Avaugour inheritance . 129 Waging war and peace . 136 Case study: Diplomacy, 1347–1356 . 137 Conclusion ............................... 146 Part 3 Discussing power: Documentary studies 150 7 Jeanne de Penthièvre’s acta: The language of command 151 Power and authority in the acta . 152 Technical phrases . 153 A grant from Jeanne to Charles . 155 Letters to Louis d’Anjou, 1379 . 158 Complicating the power dynamics in the acta . 160 Modelling power ............................ 165 Conclusion ............................... 169 8 The succession arguments of 1341: Debating the social context of princely power 171 The historiography of 1341 . 173 Placing the duke in society: The Penthièvre case . 176 The Breton nobles as a group in 1341 . 177 The participation of the prince . 181 The Montfortist views . 184 Medieval communities and the Breton prince . 185 Relationships and roles: The view from 1341 . 189 Conclusion ............................... 194 5 Contents Part 4 Power in context: Continuity and adaptation 197 9 Legitimate rule and the balance of power 198 The implications of inherited legitimacy for Jeanne’s role . 199 Acting ducally: Realities and interpretations . 207 Legitimacy, unity, and division in Brittany . 210 Different legitimacies for the duchess and duke . 216 Jeanne alone: Conflict and legitimacy after 1365 . 222 Conclusion ............................... 229 10 The duchess and the chroniclers: Narrating female roles 231 Froissart’s duchesses . 232 La droite heiresse: A question of legitimacy . 236 Leur droite dame: A question of loyalty . 239 La dame qui s’en appellée duçoise: A question of action . 242 Jeanne’s reputation: Between facts and fictions . 252 Negative re-evaluations and feminine ideals . 259 Conflicts of interest . 263 Conclusion ............................... 267 Conclusion 269 Appendices 273 A The succession arguments of Jeanne de Penthièvre and Charles de Blois, 1341 274 B Three additional acta of Jeanne de Penthièvre, 1349-1351 313 Abbreviations 316 Bibliography 318 Unpublished sources ............................. 318 Printed sources ................................ 320 Secondary sources .............................. 323 6 List of figures 1 Preservation of acta ............................ 17 2 Family tree of Jeanne de Penthièvre ................... 36 3 Map of Jeanne’s Breton inheritance .................... 43 4 Map of Anglo-Breton control during the war . 51 5 Geographical distribution of attendance, 1352 . 53 6 Receipts from the viscounty of Limoges for the period 1344–1346 . 88 7 Transactions concerning lands and resources, 1341–1364 . 91 8 Interventions concerning taxes, 1341–1364 . 92 9 Loans to Jeanne and Charles, 1341–1364 . 92 10 Map of donation from Jeanne to Charles in 1343 . 98 11 Councillors of Jeanne and Charles, 1341–1364 . 106 12 Distribution of orders to officials within Brittany, 1341–1364 . 111 13 Orders to regional officers by Jeanne, 1341–1364 . 112 14 Geographic distribution of orders to external officials . 113 15 Travels of Charles de Blois outside Brittany after 1341 . 115 16 Witnesses in 1371 serving since Jeanne and Charles’ marriage . 120 17 Family tree of descendants of Henri III d’Avaugour . 130 18 Terms of power and authority in Jeanne’s acta . 158 19 Sources for the 1341 succession debates . 173 20 Status of witnesses in 1341 . 192 21 Act of Jeanne de Penthièvre, 29 November 1352 . 212 22 Seal of Jeanne de Penthièvre, 17 December 1366 . 218 23 French female fighters, nineteenth-century frontispiece . 243 24 BnF, MS fr. 18697, f. 124 . 312 7 Acknowledgements While preparing this thesis I have been fortunate to have the generous support of numerous institutions and individuals. I am grateful for the financial assistance I have received from the University of York, including the McCormack Research Fund and the James Jarvis Bursary, and from the Society for the Study of French History, including the Ralph Gibson Bursary, all of which have been instrumental in allowing me to pursue my studies over three and a half years and undertake research in archives across France. The National Archives at Kew also sponsored a week-long training programme which introduced me to the basics of archival work on medieval records. The libraries and librarians at the Universities of York, Leeds, Oxford (and in particular Jesus College), at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and at the Centre de recherche bretonne et celtique have been of great assistance in helping me acquire the books and articles needed in my research. My thanks go especially to the archives that have allowed me to consult their documents and their archivists: the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the Archives nationales in Paris; the Archives départementales de Loire-Atlantique and the Médiathèque Jacques Démy in Nantes; and the Archives départementales des Côtes-d’Armor (Saint-Brieuc), des Pyrenées-Atlantiques (Pau), and d’Ille-et- Vilaine (Rennes). Craig Taylor has been my supervisor since I undertook my master’s disserta- tion, and it is only by his long and dedicated guidance that this PhD has been re- alized. He has helped me push my thinking in new directions and worked closely with me to improve my skills both as a researcher and as a teacher. His insight and patience while I have navigated the labyrinth of Jeanne’s career (and my own) have been immeasurably beneficial to me, and I would like to offer him my sincerest thanks. In addition, I am very grateful to the members of my thesis advisory panel, Mark Ormrod, Sarah Rees Jones, and Laura Crombie, for their incisive questions and feedback over the last three years. I have greatly benefited from the efforts and instruction of many other schol- ars over the course of my studies. I would particularly like to thank Michael Jones for his invaluable encouragement of