34 - Returned to a Dream (An Unfancy Death at Nancy)

History of the Netherlands

The final two years of Charles the Bold’s life would see him achieve one of his life’s ambitions, uniting his northern and southern domains as one continuous territory, before suffering a hat-trick of defeats at the hands of the Swiss, which would leave him unrecognisably dead, naked and half-eaten in a frozen pool of water. Having come to peace terms with the Emperor when abandoning the siege of Neuss in mid-1475, Charles turned his attention to his plans with Edward IV of England to jointly conquer France. Louis XI successfully bribed Edward, however, foiling this plan. Charles instead decided to go and crush those who had crossed him by conquering Lorraine and getting his grip on Savoy, from which he could invade Switzerland. This was a great idea in theory, but his own infamous lack of mercy provoked a stronger-than-expected unity amongst his enemies, which compounded the financial problems he was facing after years of constant military campaigns. Defeats at Grandson, Murten and finally Nancy, saw the past glories of the House of Valois-Burgundy reversed and, as he was presciently warned by one of his advisors before crushing Liege, returned to a dream. Perhaps a more accurate description, though, is that they were thrust into a nightmare.

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