#philippe ii

[roehenstart]

Portrait of Philippe II (1674-1723) Duke of Chartres as a Boy. Hyacinthe Francois Rigaud.

[tiny-librarian]

Royal Birthdays for today, August 2nd:

John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg, 1455

Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, 1674

Mahmud I, Ottoman Sultan, 1696

Dietrich of Anhalt-Dessau, German Prince, 1702

Francisca of Brazil, Princess of Joinville, 1824

Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont, Queen of the Netherlands, 1858

Constantine I, King of Greece, 1868

Ingeborg of Denmark, Duchess of Västergötland, 1878

Zein al-Sharaf, Queen of Jordan, 1916

Marie Gabrielle of Luxembourg, Countess of Holstein-Ledreborg, 1925

[artschoolglasses]

Philippe II, Duc d’Orléans

Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh

[thecapetiandynasty]

Today in history, August 21, 1165: the birth of Philip II:

"Philip II, known as Philip Augustus (French: Philippe Auguste; 21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), was King of France from 1180 to 1223, a member of the House of Capet. Philip's predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks, but from 1190 onward, Philip became the first French monarch to style himself king of France. The son of King Louis VII and his third wife, Adèle of Champagne, he was originally nicknamed Dieudonné "God-given" because he was the first son of Louis VII, born late in his father's life. Philip was given the nickname "Augustus" by the chronicler Rigord for having extended the Crown lands of France so remarkably.

Philip was born in Gonesse on 21 August 1165. King Louis VII intended to make his son Philip co-ruler with him as soon as possible, in accordance with the traditions of the House of Capet, but these plans were delayed when Philip, at the age of thirteen, was separated from his companions during a royal hunt and became lost in the Forest of Compiègne. He spent much of the following night attempting to find his way out, but to no avail. Exhausted by cold, hunger and fatigue, he was eventually discovered by a peasant carrying a charcoal burner, but his exposure to the elements meant he soon contracted a dangerously high fever. His father went on pilgrimage to the Shrine of Thomas Becket to pray for Philip's recovery and was told that his son had indeed recovered. However, on his way back to Paris, he suffered a stroke.

In declining health, Louis VII had his 14-year-old son crowned and anointed as king at Rheims on 1 November 1179 by the Archbishop Guillaume aux Blanches Mains. He was married on 28 April 1180 to Isabelle of Hainaut, the daughter of Baldwin V, Count of Hainaut, and Margaret I, Countess of Flanders, who brought the County of Artois as her dowry. From the time of his coronation, all real power was transferred to Philip, as his father slowly descended into senility. The great nobles were discontented with Philip's advantageous marriage, while his mother and four uncles, all of whom exercised enormous influence over Louis, were extremely unhappy with his attainment of the throne, which caused a diminution of their power. Eventually, Louis died on 18 September 1180.

While the royal demesne had increased under Philip I and Louis VI, it had diminished slightly under Louis VII. In April 1182, partially to enrich the French crown, Philip expelled all Jews from the demesne and confiscated their goods. Philip's eldest son Louis was born on 5 September 1187 and inherited the County of Artois in 1190, when his mother Isabelle died. The main source of funding for Philip's army was from the royal demesne. In times of conflict, he could immediately call up 250 knights, 250 horse sergeants, 100 mounted crossbowmen, 133 crossbowmen on foot, 2,000 foot sergeants, and 300 mercenaries. Towards the end of his reign, the king could muster some 3,000 knights, 9,000 sergeants, 6,000 urban militiamen, and thousands of foot sergeants. Using his increased revenues, Philip was the first Capetian king to build a French navy actively. By 1215, his fleet could carry a total of 7,000 men. Within two years, his fleet included 10 large ships and many smaller ones."

[eksynyt-virvatuli]

Two very similar portraits by François de Troy

Left: Louis de Bourbon, Count of Vermandois (1667–1683), son of Louis XIV

Right: Philippe II, Duke of Orléans (1674–1723), son of Louis XIV’s brother

[tiny-librarian]

Royal Birthdays for today, August 2nd:

John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg, 1455

Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, 1674

Mahmud I, Ottoman Sultan, 1696

Dietrich of Anhalt-Dessau, German Prince, 1702

Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont, Queen of the Netherlands, 1858

Constantine I, King of Greece, 1868

[tiny-librarian]

A portrait of Elisabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate, Duchesse d’Orleans, and her two surviving children; her son Philippe and daughter Elisabeth Charlotte.

A third child, her eldest, a son named Alexandre Louis died at the age of two.

[thecapetiandynasty]

Today in history, July 14, 1223: the death of Philip II:

"Philip II, known as Philip Augustus (French: Philippe Auguste; 21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), was King of France from 1180 to 1223, a member of the House of Capet. Philip's predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks, but from 1190 onward, Philip became the first French monarch to style himself king of France. The son of King Louis VII and his third wife, Adèle of Champagne, he was originally nicknamed Dieudonné "God-given" because he was the first son of Louis VII, born late in his father's life. Philip was given the nickname "Augustus" by the chronicler Rigord for having extended the Crown lands of France so remarkably.

After a twelve-year struggle with the Plantagenet dynasty in the Anglo-French War of 1202–14, Philip broke up the large Angevin Empire presided over by the crown of England and defeated a coalition of his rivals (German, Flemish and English) at the Battle of Bouvines in 1214. This victory would have a lasting impact on western European politics: the authority of the French king became unchallenged, while the English King John was forced by his barons to sign Magna Carta and deal with a rebellion against him aided by Philip, the First Barons' War.

The military actions surrounding the Albigensian Crusade helped prepare the expansion of France southward. Philip did not participate directly in these actions, but he allowed his vassals and knights to help carry it out.

Philip transformed France from a small feudal state into the most prosperous and powerful country in Europe. He checked the power of the nobles and helped the towns to free themselves from seigniorial authority, granting privileges and liberties to the emergent bourgeoisie. He built a great wall around Paris ("the Wall of Philip II Augustus"), re-organized the French government and brought financial stability to his country."