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France admired her but Brittany loved her. Just as Louis did.Anne, Duchess of Brittany, is the love of King Louis XII of France’s life. Too bad he’s already married.While his annulment proceedings create Europe’s most sensational scandal of 1498, Anne returns to Brittany to take back control of her duchy that her late husband, Charles VIII, King of France, had wrested from her.
France admired her but Brittany loved her. Just as Louis did.Anne, Duchess of Brittany, is the love of King Louis XII of France’s life. Too bad he’s already married.While his annulment proceedings create Europe’s most sensational scandal of 1498, Anne returns to Brittany to take back control of her duchy that her late husband, Charles VIII, King of France, had wrested from her.
France, 1498
Charles VIII, King of France, has died in
a freak accident at age twenty-seven. His queen, Anne of Brittany, is now sole
sovereign ruler of Brittany as well as Europe’s most wealthy widow. When the
new king, Louis XII of France, sues for her affections, she tells him he has
one year to get an annulment or she will move on. The king’s annulment
proceedings create Europe’s most sensational scandal of 1498, while Anne
returns to Brittany to take back control of her duchy that her late husband had
wrested from her. But can she maintain Brittany’s independence from France if
she accepts Louis’ offer to make her queen of France once more?
Stained Glass Mosaic of Anne of Brittany and Louis XII, King of
France
Hotel de Ville, Vannes, France
Photo courtesy of Thor Karlsen and ABP BZH Agence Bretagne Presse
Hotel de Ville, Vannes, France
Photo courtesy of Thor Karlsen and ABP BZH Agence Bretagne Presse
Louis has
admired Anne since meeting her as a young girl at the court of her father, Duke
Francis II of Brittany. Even at the age of seven, the future duchess of
Brittany held herself as the ruler she would one day become.
In return, Anne’s first girlish crush was on Louis d’Orléans, the twenty-one-year-old handsome and debonair friend of her father’s from the French royal house of Valois. The impression Anne and Louis made on each other was indelible, the threads of which were picked up many years later once Anne became the widow of Charles VIII and Louis ascended the French throne.
In return, Anne’s first girlish crush was on Louis d’Orléans, the twenty-one-year-old handsome and debonair friend of her father’s from the French royal house of Valois. The impression Anne and Louis made on each other was indelible, the threads of which were picked up many years later once Anne became the widow of Charles VIII and Louis ascended the French throne.
Anne of Brittany and Louis d’Orléans, 1491
Gravure from Secrets of History: Anne of Brittany
Courtesy of Stephane Bern
Gravure from Secrets of History: Anne of Brittany
Courtesy of Stephane Bern
Louis
must get an annulment to make Anne his bride. His wife resists, the hunchbacked,
sterile Jeanne of France, whom he was forced to marry against his will as a
youth of fourteen, by her father, known as the spider king for his devious
machinations.
But
Louis has an ace up his sleeve. He is aware that the most scandalous pope in
the history of the Catholic church, Alexander VI, also known as Rodrigo Borgia,
needs a title, land, and noble wife for his purported nephew, Cesare, whom everyone
knows is his son.
While
Louis offers a backroom deal to the pope in order to obtain his annulment, Anne
returns to Brittany to make the Tro Breizh, a journey through her realm to
reaffirm her political power as Brittany’s sovereign ruler. If the French king
wants to marry her, he will have to come get her, but not without his annulment
decree in hand.
Courtesy of Wikimedia
Commons
Map of the Tro Breizh (Tour of Brittany)
from Editions Coop Breizh, courtesy of Google Images
from Editions Coop Breizh, courtesy of Google Images
Finally, the annulment
is granted. The decree is delivered by Cesare Borgia himself, a cocky peacock
from the streets of Rome who is laughed at behind his back by the French royal
court.
Louis leaves for Brittany
immediately, there to wed Anne in Nantes at her father’s castle where they first
met. This time, Anne’s marriage to the king of France is on her terms. Her
marriage contract states that she is to remain sole sovereign ruler of her own
duchy of Brittany, unlike her marriage contract with Charles, in which she was
forced to cede sole sovereignty.
Louis respects Anne’s right
to administer her own duchy. He knows she is determined to retain Brittany’s
independence from France. One day he believes Brittany will come into the
kingdom of France, but not under his wife’s watch.
Chateau of the Dukes of
Brittany
Birthplace and ancestral home of Anne of Brittany
Nantes, France
It is not Brittany that the
king of France covets, but Italy, just as Charles VIII did before him. Louis stakes
a claim to the duchy of Milan and then to the kingdom of Naples.
Portrait of Louis XII,
King of France
Artist Unknown, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Artist Unknown, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Anne would prefer Louis
to mind France’s affairs and stay out of Italy’s, but the king has other ideas.
Two months before the birth of their first child together, Louis leaves for
Milan, where he enjoys initial success in claiming its ducal throne. But after
several months, Louis begins to realize the morass he has gotten himself into
in Italy. Allies change sides, then change sides again. The age of chivalry is
dead and in its place the Borgias lead the pack in poisoning their enemies and
seizing power by unscrupulous means.
Stained glass image of
Louis XII, King of France
By Jean Perréal, c. 1500
Walters Art Musuem, Baltimore, Maryland
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
By Jean Perréal, c. 1500
Walters Art Musuem, Baltimore, Maryland
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Anne is concerned that
her good-hearted husband is like a lamb led to slaughter in Italy. When,
finally, he returns, they are visited by diplomatic envoys from Florence, the
junior of whom is the young Niccolò Machiavelli. Instantly, Anne sees that
Machiavelli is sizing up the king, to report back to Florence. She arranges for
the young envoy to be sent back soon, distrusting his motives at the French
court.
Beggar’s Meeting with Anne of Brittany and Louis XII
By Adrien Thibault
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
By Adrien Thibault
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Both Anne and Louis have
high hopes that a dauphin for France will soon be born to Anne to join their
daughter Claude. Meanwhile, Louis, confident that he still holds Milan, is
determined to try to take the kingdom of Naples, to which he has a much more
flimsy claim. Knowing that he lacks the resources to take and hold Naples
alone, he enters into a secret alliance with Ferdinand of Spain. They decide to
carve up southern Italy between France and Spain, with Louis getting Abruzzi
and the Campania, including the city of Naples, and Ferdinand getting Apulia
and Calabria in the south.
All is harmonious
between Anne and Louis, a couple temperamentally suited to each other and with
deep affection planted between them from the days of Anne’s childhood. Where
Anne is fierce, Louis loves a challenge. Anne is lavish in her tastes, but also
in her care of her husband; Louis is somewhat parsimonious and relies on Anne
to add splendor and lustre to the French court.
But when Anne proposes
that their daughter Claude one day marry the heir to the Habsburg throne, Louis
secretly wishes their daughter to marry the heir to the throne of France.
Neither worry overmuch as Claude is just a babe of one. Besides, once Anne has
a son, he will ascend the French throne and Claude will one day rule Brittany
as her mother’s successor.
Yet no son arrives…
Close up of figures reputed to be Anne of Brittany and
Louis XII
from The Unicorn Tapestries thought to be commissioned by Anne of Brittany for Louis XII, c. 1498-1505
The Met Cloisters, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Photo by R. Gaston
from The Unicorn Tapestries thought to be commissioned by Anne of Brittany for Louis XII, c. 1498-1505
The Met Cloisters, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Photo by R. Gaston
ANNE
AND LOUIS excerpt:
“Ma Brette, you know I must go. The
moment is right. With the pope’s support I will sweep Milan clean of Sforza and
claim my inheritance for France,” Louis reasoned to Anne. As usual, she was not
having it.
“Why must you fall into the same
trap that Charles did? Do you really think there is something on the other side
of the Alps so much better than what we have here?” Anne balled her fists at
her side, containing the urge to beat some sense into her husband’s head. What
was with these men and their harebrained dreams of conquest in foreign lands?
“’Tis not the same trap at all.
Milan is mine through my father’s mother. And Borgia has given his word that he
will support me in sweeping Sforza from the city. His son will ride at my side
as soon as I can wrap up his affairs here.” Louis looked frustrated. He was no
matchmaker like his wife and without her support Cesare’s marriage aspirations
were going nowhere.
“Get rid of him as soon as possible,
then stay here and wait for the birth of your child, husband. Is not your duty
to manage the affairs of your country and not interfere in the affairs of
another?”
“This is an opportunity ripe for the
picking. And you know the Borgia won’t leave unless I personally accompany him
over the border.” Louis rolled his eyes. “We just need to get your princess to
agree to marry him.”
“She will never agree.”
Louis looked closely at his wife.
Usually Anne didn’t put too fine a point on whether her maids of honor agreed
with her marriage choices for them or not. She just insisted on their
obedience. What his Brette really
meant was that she herself would never agree to handing over Charlotte of
Naples to such a man.
Louis sighed, wondering how he could
get her to change her mind. His wife’s motto was ‘Non mudera, I will not change.’ Well did he know.
Cesare Borgia (1475-1507)
Portrait of a Gentleman Thought to be Cesare Borgia
by Meloni Altobello (1490-1543)
Museum Accademia Carrara, Italy
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Portrait of a Gentleman Thought to be Cesare Borgia
by Meloni Altobello (1490-1543)
Museum Accademia Carrara, Italy
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
“I
have arranged for Cesare to come to dinner tonight. Have Charlotte come, too,
and we will excuse ourselves so that they may dine alone and get to know one
another.” Louis tried to sound authoritative. He was king, but he had never
arranged a private dinner for two unmarried people to meet. He had no idea how
to manage it.
“Why should a princess of Naples and
Aragon get to know a man with no title and no lineage, other than one he cannot
claim?” The accepted story was that Cesare was the pope’s nephew. Not a single
soul in Europe believed it.
“Wife, do you not understand that
the Borgia’s support is vital for me to claim Milan?”
“Husband, do you not understand that
claiming Milan gains you and your kingdom nothing?”
“Of course, it does. It would be a
gem in the crown of France.”
“A gem that will fall out at the
first push. The moment you leave Milan you know what will happen, just as it did
with Charles in Naples. The Italians will re-form their alliances and push you
out. Do you not know them well enough by now after suffering so horribly at
Fornovo?” Louis and his troops had endured terrible losses in 1495 at the
battle of Fornovo, due to the treachery of Ludovico Sforza. Initially France’s
ally, Milan’s powerful ruler had switched sides to the League of Venice at the
last moment.
“It was a terrible time, but this
will be different.”
“Men! When will any of you
understand that war is never different? It always ends badly, and none of you
ever learn that it is best not to go where one is not invited.”
“And that is precisely the
difference. The pope has made it clear that the people of Milan want Sforza
out. They’ve had enough of him. With the pope’s help, and his son at my side,
they will welcome the king of France, great grandson of Giangalezzo Visconti,
their very first duke!” Louis pulled himself up, looking almost Italian for a
moment, handsome and glowering.
“For how long do you think they will
welcome you? You will be greeted in glory, welcomed for a month or two, then
slowly resented and ultimately booted out. Has not recent history taught you
this, husband?”
“I know that if ever there was a
chance to claim Milan for France, it is now. Bid the princess of Naples to join
us for dinner, so that Cesare can work his magic and we can wrap up this
marriage business so I can get to Milan.”
“Husband, you are in a dream, and I
would have you wake from it soon.”
“Wife, I am in a hurry. Deliver the
princess tonight and I will write to her father to request permission for
Cesare to proceed with his suit.”
“I will not deliver Charlotte into
the hands of such a ruffian.”
“This is dinner, m’amie. Not an engagement.”
“I will never deliver her to such a
man.”
“Then he will never leave France.”
Anne paused a moment, looking as if
she had swallowed a bag of lemons. Finally, she spoke. “If her father says no,
this cannot proceed.”
“Of course, m’amie. Just dinner is all I ask.”
Images of Louis XII and Anne of Brittany
atop their tomb
Basilica of Saint-Denis
Saint-Denis, France
Basilica of Saint-Denis
Saint-Denis, France
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
For
further reading, discover Anne of Brittany in the Anne of Brittany Series.
The
gripping tale of a larger than life queen
Available for pre-order
now is my new short story The
Least Foolish Woman in France. Readers might be
interested to learn the true tale of how Anne of Brittany’s second husband was
sexually harassed in young adulthood by his sister-in-law Anne de Beaujeu,
France’s most powerful woman at the time. This story is short but riveting, a
surprising twist on the #MeToo movement.
On pre-order now, it
comes out April 12, 2019. Post a short review on Amazon by the end of April and
receive an eBook edition of any of my other books for free.
Rozsa Gaston
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rozsagastonauthor Instagram: rozsagastonauthor and on Twitter: @RozsaGaston
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Rozsa Gaston
# # #
About the Author
Rozsa Gaston writes playful books on serious matters, including the struggles women face to get what they want out of life. She studied European history at Yale, and received her Master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University. She worked at Institutional Investor, then as a hedge funds marketer. Entirely unsuited to the world of finance, she was happy to give it up to become a full-time novelist. Gaston lives in Bronxville, New York with her family and is currently working on Anne and Louis: Middle Years, Book Three of the Anne of Brittany Series. If you read and enjoy Sense of Touch, please post a review at http://lrd.to/SENSEOFTOUCH to help others find this book. One sentence is enough to let readers know what you thought. Drop Rozsa Gaston a line on Facebook to let her know you posted a review and receive as thanks an eBook edition of any other of Gaston’s books: Anne and Charles, Anne and Louis, The Least Foolish Woman in France, Paris Adieu, or Black is Not a Color. Visit her at www.rozsagaston.com or at https://www.rozsagastonauthor.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rozsagastonauthor Instagram: rozsagastonauthor and on Twitter: @RozsaGaston
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