Francis I |
1494-1547 (reigned 1515-47), the cousin, son-in-law, and successor of Louis XII. He resumed the Italian Wars and recovered Milan by a brilliant victory at Marignano (1515). A candidate for Holy Roman emperor (1519), Francis lost to Charles V, who became his lifelong rival. A planned alliance with Henry VIII of England failed to occur at the Field of the Cloth of Gold (1520), and Francis was captured in his first war (1521-25) against Charles V. To gain his freedom Francis renounced many territorial claims. He then created the League of Cognac, consisting of Francis, Henry VIII, Venice, Florence, and the papacy; they were all allied against Charles V, but a second war (1527-29) gained little, and a third war (1536-38) proved inconclusive. In 1542 Francis, allied with the Turkish sultan Sulayman I, again attacked Charles, who was supported by Henry VIII. The resulting peace treaties only confirmed earlier French losses. Francis was a typical Renaissance monarch, unscrupulous, spendthrift, and dissolute, but is also known for his support of the arts. He was a patron of Rabelais, and Leonardo da Vinci worked at his court. Francis was succeeded by his son Henry II. «Pantagruelion» |