Louis, Count of Vendôme

Louis de Bourbon (Louis I, Count of Vendôme) (1376 – December 21, 1446), younger son of John I, Count of La Marche and Catherine de Vendôme, was a French prince du sang, as well as Count of Vendôme from 1393, and Count of Castres from 1425 until his death.^[1]

Louis, Count of Vendôme
Louis and his first wife, Blanche
Count of Vendôme
Reign	1393-1446
Predecessor	Jeanne of Vendôme and John VII
Successor	John VIII, Count of Vendôme
Born	1376
Died	21 December 1446(1446-12-21) (aged 69–70) Tours
Spouse	Blanche de Roucy Jeanne de Laval
Father	John I, Count of La Marche
Mother	Catherine de Vendôme

Louis was a supporter of the duc d'Orléans, and obtained valuable posts at court, becoming Grand Chamberlain of France in 1408 and Grand Maître de France in 1413. As part of the Armagnac faction, he was at odds with the Burgundians, and was imprisoned by them twice, in 1407 and 1412.

In 1414, Louis married Blanche (d. 1421), daughter of Hugh II, Count of Roucy; but he was captured the next year by the English at the Battle of Agincourt, and held by them for some time.^[2] Freed, he was in command of French forces at Cravant and later captured, 31 July 1423.^[3][4]

In 1424, he married Jeanne de Laval (d. 1468), daughter of Guy XIII, Count of Laval and Anne de Laval, at Rennes.^[5] Their children were:

• Catherine de Bourbon (b. 1425)
• Gabrielle de Bourbon (b. 1426)
• John VIII, Count of Vendôme (1425–1477)^[6]

He also had an illegitimate son, fathered with the Englishwoman, Sybil Bostum, during his captivity:

• John de Bourbon, Bastard of Vendôme (c. 1420–1496), Seigneur de Preaux.

Faithful to the king, he subsequently joined Joan of Arc and many other French nobles at the defense of Orléans in 1429, commanded at the siege of Jargeau, and assisted in the coronation at Reims. He was later present at the Treaty of Arras (1435). He died in Tours.

References

1. Henneman 1995, p. 138.
2. Askins 2000, p. 40.
3. Grammit 2010, p. 442.
4. Grummitt 2015, p. 68.
5. Walsby 2007, p. 184.
6. Potter 1995, p. 376.

Sources

• Askins, William (2000). "The Brothers Orleans and their Keepers". In Arn, Mary-Jo (ed.). Charles D'Orléans in England, 1415-1440. D.S. Brewer.
• Grammit, David (2010). "Battle near Crevant". In Rogers, Clifford J. (ed.). The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology. Vol. 1. Oxford University Press.
• Grummitt, David (2015). Henry VI. Routledge.
• Henneman, John Bell (1995). "Bourbon". In Kibler, William W. (ed.). Medieval France: An Encyclopedia. Routledge.
• Potter, David (1995). Keen, Maurice (ed.). A History of France, 1460–1560: The Emergence of a Nation State. Macmillan.
• Walsby, Malcolm (2007). The Counts of Laval: Culture, Patronage and Religion in Fifteenth- and Sixteenth-Century France. Ashgate.

Preceded by Jeanne with John VII	Count of Vendôme with Catherine to 1403 1393–1446	Succeeded by Jean VIII
Preceded by —	Count of Chartres 1425–1446	Succeeded by to royal domain