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Dromo's Den
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[Up] [Dromo's Den] Charles VI Biography CHARLES VI (1368-1422). King of France from 1380 to 1422. He was the son and successor of Charles V and less than 12 years of age at his father's death. For several years he was under the guardianship of four uncles, one of whom (the Duke of Anjou) acted as regent. Their ambitions led to civil war. In 1388 Charles took the government into his own hands and ruled well for some years, till he became insane. A regent was appointed, and party strife broke out again. The two great parties into which the nation was divided were those of Orleans and Burgundy. Each party at different times called in the English to its aid. Henry V took advantage of the civil conflict and at the battle of Agincourt, in 1415, won a victory which left France almost helpless. Murders, massacres, and all the horrors of civil war devastated France until, in 1420, a peace was made at Troyes, by which Charles VI disinherited his son and accepted Henry V as his successor. He died Oct. 21, 1422, leaving most of France in the hands of the English. Consult Lavisse, Histoire de France (Paris, 1902). The New International Encyclopaedia, Vol. V (New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1920) 65. |