General Notes

Philip the Bold, b. Jan. 17, 1342, d. Apr. 27, 1404, the youngest son of John
II of France, served as a regent for his nephew, King Charles VI, and was
virtual ruler of France after Charles became insane (1392). Philip was
captured (1356) with his father at the Battle of Poitiers, and became duke of
Burgundy in 1363. Six years later he married Margaret, heiress to the counties
of Flanders, Burgundy, Artois, and Nevers. He ruled these lands as count after
1384, beginning a system of marriage alliances that was to bring important
parts of the Low Countries adjacent to Flanders into his family's realm. In
this way he created the Burgundian state that brought nominal unity to the
Netherlands. Philip was the dominant figure at the French court, although he
was strongly challenged in his later years by his nephew and rival, Louis, duc
d'Orleans