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393:'s 1966 study of Commines has shown that the next five years, up to 1477, were the most prosperous from Commines's point of view, and the only ones when he truly had Louis's confidence. After Charles the Bold's death in 1477, the two men openly disagreed about how best to take political advantage of the situation. Commines himself admitted associating with some of the king's most prominent opponents and referred to another incident, in May 1478, when Louis reprimanded him for allegedly being open to bribery. Thereafter, much of his diplomatic work was done in the Italian arena, and he came into contact with
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432:), Commines's work was completed (first published in 1524 in Paris), and is considered a historical record of immense importance, largely because of its author's cynical and forthright attitude to the events and machinations he had witnessed. His writings reveal many of the less savoury aspects of the reign of Louis XI, and Commines related them without apology, insisting that the late king's virtues outweighed his vices. He is regarded as a major primary source for 15th-century European history.
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459:("For the honours always go to the winners"). Some have disputed whether his candid phrases disguise a deeper dishonesty. Yet at no time does he attempt to present himself as a hero, even when recounting his military career. His attitude to politics is one of pragmatism, and his ideas are practical and progressive. His reflections on the events he has witnessed are profound by comparison with those of
284:, recounts that one day, when they came home from hunting and were joking around as was their wont within the "family", Commines "ordered" the prince to remove Commines's boots as if he were a servant; laughing, the prince did so but then tossed the boot at Commines, and it bloodied his nose. Everyone in the Burgundian court started calling Commines "booted head". D'Israeli, in his 1824
292:"When we are versed in the history of the times, we often discover that memoir-writers have some secret poison in their hearts. Many, like Comines, have had the boot dashed on their nose. Personal rancour wonderfully enlivens the style... Memoirs are often dictated by its fiercest spirit; and then histories are composed from memoirs. Where is TRUTH? Not always in histories and memoirs!"
726:
309:
D'Israeli says
Commines so resented his nickname that it was the reason he suddenly left Burgundy and went into the service of the French king, but the financial incentives offered by Louis provide a more than adequate explanation: Commines was still heavily burdened with his father's debts. He fled
439:
are divided into "books", the first six of which were written between 1488 and 1494, and relate the course of events from the beginning of
Commines' career (1464) up to the death of King Louis. The remaining two books were written between 1497 and 1501 (printed in 1528), and deal with the Italian
400:
When Louis began to suffer ill-health, Commines was apparently welcomed back into the fold and performed personal services for the king. Many of his activities during the period seem to have involved a degree of secrecy; he was effectively acting as a kind of undercover agent. However, he never
401:
regained the level of intimacy with the king that he had previously enjoyed, and Louis's death in 1483, when
Commines was still only in his thirties, left him without many friends at court. Nevertheless, he retained a place on the royal council until 1485. Then, having been implicated in the
425:. Charles never allowed him the privileged position he had held under Louis, and he was once again used as an envoy to the Italian states. However, his personal affairs were still problematic, and his right to some of the possessions given him by Louis was subject to legal challenges.
249:, he mentions that King Edward was most beautiful, that he was very popular with his people and his subjects, but that he does not doubt at all (before the exile, Edward never heard any of Duke Charles' and his people's warnings). Commines praises Edward's best friend
213:, Philip's son who succeeded to the dukedom in 1467, and thereafter he moved in the most exalted circles, being party to many important decisions and present at history-making events. A key event in Commines's life seems to have been the meeting between Charles and
221:
in
October 1468. Although Commines's own account skates over the details, it is apparent from other contemporary sources that Louis believed Commines had saved his life. This may explain Louis's later enthusiasm in wooing him away from the Burgundians.
467:. Like Machiavelli, Commines aims to instruct the reader in statecraft, though from a slightly different viewpoint. In particular, he notes how Louis repeatedly got the better of the English, not by military might, but by political machination.
229:, then an English possession. It is unlikely that he ever visited England itself, what he knew of its politics and personalities coming mostly from meetings with exiles, both Yorkist and Lancastrian; these included
654:
Cristian Bratu, « Je, auteur de ce livre »: L'affirmation de soi chez les historiens, de l'Antiquité à la fin du Moyen Âge. Later
Medieval Europe Series (vol. 20). Leiden: Brill, 2019 (
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of Berrie, Sables, and Olonne. Despite later reverses in the family's fortunes, on 13 August 1504 their only child, Jeanne de
Commines (d.1513), made a splendid marriage to the heir of
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which had belonged to the family of his paternal grandmother, Jeanne de
Waziers. His paternal grandfather, also named Colard van den Clyte (d. 1404), had been governor first of
129:). Neither a chronicler nor a historian in the usual sense of the word, his analyses of the contemporary political scene are what made him virtually unique in his own time.
687:
Cristian Bratu, "De la grande
Histoire à l'histoire personnelle: l'émergence de l'écriture autobiographique chez les historiens français du Moyen Age (XIIIe-XVe siècles)."
463:, who lived a century earlier. His psychological insights into the behaviour of kings are ahead of their time, reminiscent in some ways of the contemporaneous writings of
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318:. On the following morning, when Duke Charles discovered his servant and god-brother missing, he confiscated all of Commines' property. These were later given to
189:. However, the death of Commines' father in 1453 left him the orphaned owner of an estate saddled with enormous debts. In his teens he was taken into the care of
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405:, he was taken prisoner and kept in confinement for over two years, from January 1487 until March 1489. For some of that period, he was kept in an iron cage.
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389:, Louis no doubt valued the inside information Commines was able to provide, and Commines quickly became one of the king's most trusted advisers.
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421:. (This title was not used until an edition of 1552.) By 1490, however, he was recovering his position at court and was in the service of King
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of
Renescure, Watten and Saint-Venant, Clyte became bailiff of Flanders for the Duke of Burgundy in 1436, and had been taken prisoner at the
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of
Argenton, Varennes, and Maison-Rouge. When Hélène's sister, Colette de Chambes, was believed to have been poisoned by her aged husband
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during the latter's continental exile and later wrote a description of his appearance and character. Like other Burgundians,
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269:, Commines mentions that Edward was a bastard and his real father was Blayborne (in French, Blayborgne), and that
684:. Juliana Dresvina and Nicholas Sparks, eds. (Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2012): 231–259.
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most of his properties. Some of these he later gave to Commines for life, including the Princedom of Talmond in
288:, suggests that Commines's hatred for the duke of Burgundy poisoned everything he wrote about him, but comments:
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Commines was a great favorite with Duke Charles for seven years (going back to when he had still been Count of
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625:(1957). "The Arts in Western Europe: Vernacular Literature in Western Europe". In G. R. Potter (ed.).
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Philippe de Commynes: The Reign of Louis XI 1461–83, translated with an introduction by Michael Jones
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680:: The Authorial Personae of French Medieval Historians from the 12th to the 15th centuries." In
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Louis was generous in making up for those losses. On 27 January 1473 the king wed him to a
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and "cruel". (In addition, according to Commines and rumours in Burgundy, Richard killed
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669:: Authorial Persona and Authority in French Medieval Histories and Chronicles." In
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Authorities in the Middle Ages. Influence, Legitimacy and Power in Medieval Society
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123:) and "the first critical and philosophical historian since classical times" (
161:), to an outwardly wealthy family. His parents were Colard van den Clyte (or
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as "le plus grand chevalier", "un sage chevalier", while overly attacks
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193:(1419–1467), Duke of Burgundy, who was his godfather. He fought at the
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115:; 1447 – 18 October 1511) was a writer and diplomat in the courts of
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541:(in French). Paris (published 1901). 1489–1498. pp. 193–221
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and France. He has been called "the first truly modern writer" (
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The New Cambridge Modern History: I. The Renaissance 1493–1520
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Authority and Gender in Medieval and Renaissance Chronicles
629:. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 184–185.
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in 1467 but in general seems to have kept a low profile.
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After his release, Commines was exiled to his estate at
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Commines' scepticism is summed up in his own words:
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30:"Commines" redirects here. Not to be confused with
165:) and Marguerite d'Armuyden. In addition to being
209:In 1468, he became a knight in the household of
637:, ed. J. Blanchard, Geneve, Droz, 2007, 2 vol.
457:Car ceux qui gagnent en ont toujours l'honneur
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711:Bibliography of Philippe de Commines's works
355:, in a fit of jealousy over her affair with
499:. Vol. 6 (11th ed.). p. 774.
225:In 1470 Commines was sent on an embassy to
428:In 1498 (fifteen years after the death of
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314:on 7 August 1472, and joined Louis near
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644:, ed. J. Blanchard, Geneve, Droz, 2001
562:MĂ©moires de Philippe de Commynes. T. 2
538:MĂ©moires de Philippe de Commynes. T. 1
273:was not eligible to claim the throne.
126:Oxford Companion to English Literature
27:Belgian writer, historian and diplomat
451:The deathbed of Philippe de Commines.
337:heiress, Hélène de Chambes (d.1532),
146:Coat of arms of Philippe de Commines.
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772:People from Nord (French department)
359:, Louis XI's brother, the king had
173:. Philippe took his surname from a
594:. Etienne Pattou. 26 February 2008
526:New York: Robert Appleton Company.
440:wars, ending in the death of King
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702:Biography of Philippe de Commines
329:Engraving of Philippe de Commines
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706:New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia
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762:15th-century French historians
417:, where he began to write his
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752:Flemish writers (before 1830)
717:Works by Philippe de Commines
490:"Commines, Philippe de"
121:Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve
514:Louis René Bréhier (1908). "
280:). The 19th-century scholar
94:writer, diplomat, politician
723:(public domain audiobooks)
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107:or "Philippe de Comines";
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767:Medieval French diplomats
678:Clerc, Chevalier, Aucteur
375:'s most powerful family,
286:Curiosities of Literature
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385:As a long-time enemy of
667:Je, aucteur de ce livre
496:Encyclopædia Britannica
320:Philip I of CroĂż-Chimay
782:16th-century diplomats
777:15th-century diplomats
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565:(in French). 1489–1498
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592:Racines et histoire
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403:Orleanist rebellion
380:comte de Penthièvre
353:Viscount of Thouars
297:Service of Louis XI
259:murderer of princes
243:Georges Chastellain
237:. He also met King
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691:25 (2012): 85–117.
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163:de La Clyte
105:de Commynes
736:Categories
611:References
569:4 November
545:4 November
382:(d.1524).
367:, and the
175:seigneurie
138:Early life
461:Froissart
278:Charolais
155:Renescure
133:Biography
65:Renescure
721:LibriVox
635:MĂ©moires
487:(1911).
437:MĂ©moires
419:MĂ©moires
409:MĂ©moires
387:Burgundy
373:Brittany
335:Poitevin
312:Normandy
205:Burgundy
167:seigneur
151:Commines
117:Burgundy
85:, Poitou
69:Flanders
18:Commines
704:at the
642:Lettres
343:of the
219:PĂ©ronne
79:c. 1511
32:Comines
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598:8 July
518:". In
365:Poitou
316:Angers
227:Calais
183:Cassel
588:(PDF)
471:Notes
415:Dreux
187:Lille
109:Latin
656:ISBN
600:2008
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547:2021
435:The
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233:and
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