Froissart's Chronicles
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Froissart's Chronicle was written in French by Jean Froissart. It covers the years 1322 until 1400 and describes the lead up to and the progress of the first half of the Hundred Years' War. For centuries it has been recognized as the chief expression of the chivalric revival of fourteenth-century England and France.
Froissart first wrote a rhyming chronicle for Philippa of Hainault now lost, but he began Book I of the surviving chronicle in 1369 at the insistence of Robert de Namur and finished it in 1373. Robert was an eye-witness to the events of the Siege of Paris and interviews with witnesses who were at important events supply much of the detail in Froissart's work. Although it seems Froissart never saw battle he did visit Sluys in 1386 to see the preparations for an invasion of England which, in the end, never happened and he attended other significant events such as the baptism of Richard II.
The other important source for the early part of the chronicle was the Vrayes Chroniques of Jean Le Bel, of which Froissart directly copied large parts. Le Bel wrote his chronicle for Jean, Count of Beaumont; and Jean's grandson, Guy II, Count of Blois, continued the tradition by being patron of Book II of Froissart's Chronicle. This was completed in 1388 and is wholly Froissart's work as Le Bel's chronicle ended in 1360. Book III was completed in 1390 and Book IV in 1400.
Although of great importance for our understanding of the events in the 14th century Froissart contains numerous errors in dates, geography and often over-estimating the numbers attending, captured or killed in battle. Aside from this there are his obvious biases; usually to whoever his patron may be at the time or people he is living amongst. There is for instance a large amount of information on many minor affairs in Flanders, about which he also wrote a separate chronicle, and being supported by aristocratic patrons meant that he barely mentions common people apart from their uprisings which he viewed with horror. Sir Walter Scott once remarked that Froissart had "marvelous little sympathy" for the "villain churls."
The chronicle is almost three million words long but few complete editions are published as Froissart is often repetitive or covers rather insignificant subjects. His descriptions of battles though are lively and engaging and there is a wealth of information on customs and behaviours of interest to the social historian. Enguerrand de Monstrelet wrote a continuation of the chronicle through to 1440.
The text of Froissart's Chronicles is preserved in more than 100 manuscripts, illustrated by a variety of miniaturists. One of the most lavishly illuminated copies was commissioned by Louis of Gruuthuse, a Flemish nobleman, in the 1470s. The four volumes of this copy (BNF, Fr 2643-6) contain 112 miniatures painted by the best Brugeois artists of the day, among them Loiset Lyédet, to whom the miniatures in the first two volumes are attributed. The illustrations here come from this copy.
Some of the important events recorded in Froissart's Chronicle include:
- Edward II deposed and accession of Edward III
- Execution of Hugh the younger Despenser
- Battle of Sluys
- Battle of Crécy
- The Siege of Calais
- Battle of Neville's Cross
- The founding of the Order of the Garter
- The Black Death
- Battle of Les Espagnols sur Mer, a sea battle off Winchelsea
- Battle of Poitiers
- Étienne Marcel leads a merchant revolt in Paris
- The Jacquerie
- The Death of King John II of France
- The end of Edward III reign
- The Great Schism
- The Peasants' Revolt
- The Battle of Roosebeke
- The marriage of Charles VI to Isabella of Bavaria
- The French preparations for an aborted invasion of England
- The final trial by combat ordered by French courts between Jean de Carrouges and Jacques Le Gris
- Richard II in conflict with his uncles
- The Battle of Otterburn
- A festival in honor of Isabella of Bavaria
- The death of Gaston III of Foix-Béarn
- The madness of Charles VI
- Richard II deposed and accession of Henry IV
- Battle of Nicopol and massacre of the prisoniers
[edit] External links and references
- Jean Froissart, Chronicles, Penguin Classics, 1978 ISBN 0-14-044200-6 (at close to 500 pages even this is only an excerpt).
- Chronicles of England France, Spain, etc.' Continuing project to web the entirety of the 1805 Thomas Jhones translation. Currently 53 chapters online, new chapter(s) added weekly, Monday updates.
- Tales from Froissart excerpts from 1849 edition of the Thomas Johnes translation (1805).
- The Chronicles of Froissart excerpts from John Bourchier and Lord Berners 1910 Harvard Classics translation.
- An extensive bibliography collected by Dr Godfried Croenen
