Charles VI, king of France

Charles VI (Charles the Mad or Charles the Well Beloved), 1368–1422, king of France (1380–1422), son and successor of King Charles V. During his minority he was under the tutelage of his uncles (particularly Philip the Bold Philip the Bold, 1342–1404, duke of Burgundy (1363–1404); a younger son of King John II of France. He fought (1356) at Poitiers and shared his father's captivity in England. He was first made duke of Touraine (1360) and then duke of Burgundy.
..... Click the link for more information. , duke of Burgundy), whose policies drained the royal treasury and provoked popular uprisings in France and in Flanders. Charles freed himself of this influence in 1388, took as his counselor his brother Louis, duc d'Orléans Orléans, Louis, duc d' (lwē dük dôrlāäN`)
..... Click the link for more information. , and recalled his father's ministers, the Marmousets Marmousets (märm

zā`), [Fr.
..... Click the link for more information. . After 1392, Charles suffered from recurrent insanity and was not active in the government. Philip of Burgundy returned to power. His rule was challenged by Louis d'Orléans and the conflict eventually resulted in war between Philip's successor, John the Fearless John the Fearless, 1371–1419, duke of Burgundy (1404–19); son of Philip the Bold . He fought against the Turks at Nikopol in 1396 and was a prisoner for a year until he was ransomed.
..... Click the link for more information. , and supporters of the Orleanists, known as Armagnacs (see Armagnacs and Burgundians Armagnacs and Burgundians, opposing factions that fought to control France in the early 15th cent. The rivalry for power between Louis d' Orléans , brother of the recurrently insane King Charles VI, and his cousin John the Fearless , duke of Burgundy, led to
..... Click the link for more information. ). The struggle was complicated by the invasion of France by King Henry V of England. In 1420, under the influence of the Burgundians, who were allied with Henry V and his wife Isabel of Bavaria Isabel of Bavaria, 1371–1435, French queen, consort of Charles VI , daughter of the duke of Bavaria. After her marriage (1385) she was several times regent for her demented husband.
..... Click the link for more information. , Charles accepted the Treaty of Troyes Troyes, Treaty of, 1420, agreement between Henry V of England, Charles VI of France, and Philip the Good of Burgundy. Its purpose, ultimately unsuccessful, was to settle the issues of the Hundred Years War.
..... Click the link for more information. , recognizing Henry V as his successor.

Charles VI, Holy Roman emperor

Charles VI, 1685–1740, Holy Roman emperor (1711–40), king of Bohemia (1711–40) and, as Charles III, king of Hungary (1712–40); brother and successor of Holy Roman Emperor Joseph I Joseph I, 1678–1711, Holy Roman emperor (1705–11), king of Hungary (1687–1711) and of Bohemia (1705–11), son and successor of Leopold I.
..... Click the link for more information. . Charles was the last Holy Roman emperor of the direct Hapsburg line. In 1700 he was designated successor in Spain to King Charles II, who was childless. On his deathbed, however, Charles II left his throne to Philip of Anjou (Philip V Philip V, 1683–1746, king of Spain (1700–1746), first Bourbon on the Spanish throne. A grandson of Louis XIV of France, he was titular duke of Anjou before Charles II of Spain designated him as his successor.
..... Click the link for more information. ), grandson of King Louis XIV Louis XIV, 1638–1715, king of France (1643–1715), son and successor of King Louis XIII.

Early Reign

After his father's death his mother, Anne of Austria , was regent for Louis, but the real power was wielded by Anne's adviser, Cardinal
..... Click the link for more information. of France; Philip was proclaimed king in Nov., 1700. War broke out immediately against Louis XIV and Philip (see Spanish Succession, War of the Spanish Succession, War of the, 1701–14, last of the general European wars caused by the efforts of King Louis XIV to extend French power. The conflict in America corresponding to the period of the War of the Spanish Succession was known as Queen Anne's War
..... Click the link for more information. ). Although Charles, with the aid of British troops, invaded Spain and proclaimed himself king as Charles III in 1704, he was able to maintain himself only in Catalonia, with his capital at Barcelona.

When Charles's brother Joseph I died (1711), Charles succeeded him as Holy Roman emperor. His accession led to England's withdrawal from the war since the English did not wish to see the reunification of the empire of Charles V Charles V, 1500–1558, Holy Roman emperor (1519–58) and, as Charles I, king of Spain (1516–56); son of Philip I and Joanna of Castile, grandson of Ferdinand II of Aragón, Isabella of Castile, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I, and Mary of
..... Click the link for more information. . A treaty (see Utrecht, Peace of Utrecht, Peace of, series of treaties that concluded the War of the Spanish Succession . It put an end to French expansion and signaled the rise of the British Empire. By the treaty between England and France (Apr.
..... Click the link for more information. ; 1713) was signed between France and Charles's former allies, Holland and England. Charles continued fighting. He finally concluded peace in 1714. By the terms of the peace Philip V remained king of Spain and Charles received most of the Spanish possessions in the Low Countries and in Italy. Philip's subsequent attempt to overthrow the settlement in Italy resulted (1718) in the formation of the Quadruple Alliance Quadruple Alliance, any of several European alliances. The Quadruple Alliance of 1718 was formed by Great Britain, France, the Holy Roman emperor, and the Netherlands when Philip V of Spain, guided by Cardinal Alberoni , sought by force to nullify the peace
..... Click the link for more information. against him. The war was ended by the Treaty of The Hague (1720), which repeated the terms of 1713–14, except that Charles obtained Sicily from Savoy in exchange for Sardinia.

In E Europe, Charles continued to defend his lands against Turkish invasions (1716–18). In a campaign against the Turks the imperial commander Eugene of Savoy Eugene of Savoy, 1663–1736, prince of the house of Savoy, general in the service of the Holy Roman Empire. Born in Paris, he was the son of Eugène, comte de Soissons of the line of Savoy-Carignano, and Olympe Mancini, niece of Cardinal Mazarin .
..... Click the link for more information. obtained for Hungary the Banat and N Serbia. Charles was later forced to return these lands to the Ottoman Empire (Turkey) after several defeats in the Turkish war of 1736–39. Near the end of his reign in the War of the Polish Succession Polish Succession, War of the, 1733–35. On the death (1733) of Augustus II of Poland, Stanislaus I sought to reascend the Polish throne. He was supported by his son-in-law, Louis XV of France.
..... Click the link for more information. (1733–35) Charles was again involved in a conflict with France and Spain. By the Treaty of Vienna (1738) he was forced to give up Sicily and Naples to Spain, but received Parma and Piacenza.

Since Charles had no male heirs, one of his chief concerns was to secure the succession to the Hapsburg lands for his daughter, Maria Theresa Maria Theresa (mərē`ə tərā`zə)
..... Click the link for more information. . His last years were spent in an effort to win European approval of the pragmatic sanction Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges, issued by Charles VII of France in 1438, sharply limited the papal authority over the church in France and established the liberty of the Gallican Church (see Gallicanism ).
..... Click the link for more information. of 1713, which made Maria Theresa his heir. Although the Pragmatic Sanction was guaranteed by the Treaty of Vienna, the succession was contested on his death (see Austrian Succession, War of the 2)) was signed. Prussia gained Silesia and thus emerged as a major European power; the Hapsburgs thenceforth looked to the east for resources to develop their state.

Bibliography

See biography by E. Crankshaw, Maria Theresa (1970); C. A.
..... Click the link for more information. ). Charles was a patron of learning and the arts, particularly of music. A mercantilist, he encouraged commerce and industry.

Charles VI

known as Charles the Well-Beloved or Charles the Mad

(born Dec. 3, 1368, Paris, Fr.—died Oct. 21, 1422, Paris) King of France (1380–1422). Crowned at age 11, he allowed his uncles and advisers to rule France until 1388. He suffered fits of madness from 1392, and royal power waned as the dukes of Burgundy and Orléans grew stronger. The English invasion and victory at the Battle of Agincourt (1415) obliged Charles to sign the Treaty of Troyes (1420), which provided for the marriage of his daughter Catherine of Valois to Henry V of England, who was declared regent of France and heir to the French throne.

Charles VI

German Karl

(born Oct. 1, 1685, Vienna, Austria—died Oct. 20, 1740, Vienna) Holy Roman emperor (1711–40) and king of Hungary (as Charles III). Son of Emperor Leopold I, he tried unsuccessfully to claim the Spanish throne (as the pretender Charles III), which caused the War of the Spanish Succession. He conducted a successful war against the Ottoman Empire (1716–18) but lost the War of the Polish Succession (1733–38), and a new conflict with Turkey (1736–39) resulted in the loss of most of the territories gained in 1718. He promulgated the Pragmatic Sanction in an attempt to ensure that his daughter Maria Theresa would succeed him, which led to the War of the Austrian Succession.