not only “advice” but also “advice-giving bodies.” By the 14th century, a royal council
was called not only conseil in French but also consilium where Latin still was used.
In the 14th century, the documents began to identify as royal councilors those who sat
on the king’s conseil. From the disputed succession of Philip V in 1316 until the late
stages of the Hundred Years’ War, kings often had to appoint councilors who reflected
the political mood of the kingdom. For a time ca. 1340, Philip VI’s council consisted
exclusively of the “sovereigns” of the Chambre des Comptes, but discontent with the
financial administration led him to abandon this experiment after 1343. For decades
thereafter, frequent changes of councilors reflected the power of interest groups, although
there was one period of relative stability (1359–74) when the body was dominated by
Guillaume de Melun, archbishop of Sens.
Under Charles VI, the council was one arena for the power struggle between
successive dukes of Burgundy and their rivals at court. In 1388, the anti-Burgundian
faction called the Marmousets persuaded the king to oust his uncle Philip the Bold, duke
of Burgundy, from the council. In 1406, the council, which had risen to more than fifty in
number, was reduced by about half, a “reform” that purged most of the supporters of
John the Fearless, duke of Burgundy. After many similar episodes, the council was more
fully under royal control by the later 15th century.
John Bell Henneman, Jr.
[See also: ASSEMBLIES]
Cazelles, Raymond. “Les mouvements révolutionnaires du milieu du XIVe siècle et le cycle de
l’action politique.” Revue historique 227(1962):279–312.
——. Société politique, noblesse et couronne sous Jean le Bon et Charles V. Geneva: Droz, 1982.
Langmuir, Gavin I. “Concilia and Capetian Assemblies, 1179–1230.” Album Helen Maud Cam 2
(Studies Presented to the International Commission for the History of Representative and
Parliamentary Institutions, 24[1963]):27–63.
Nordberg, Michael. Les ducs et la royauté: études sur la rivalité des ducs d’Orléans et de
Bourgogne, 1392–1407. Norstedt: Svenska Bokforlaget, 1964.
Valois, Noël. Le conseil du roi aux XIVe, XVe, et XVIe siècles. Paris: Picard, 1888.
CONSTABLE OF FRANCE
. The office of constable (Fr. connétable), which came to signify the chief commander of
the French royal army, originated with the “count of the stable” (comes stabuli), an
officer in the household of 9th-and 10th-century monarchs. This apparently modest
position grew into an important one as heavy cavalry became the essential element in
military operations. War-horses and their equipment were increasingly expensive; their
care and maintenance became a correspondingly important responsibility. Household
officials whose duties were related to military activities tended to acquire more prestige
than those concerned with domestic duties, especially if the household happened to be
that of a ruler.
During the reign of Philip I (1060–1108), the constable emerged as one of the four
“great officers” of the crown, who witnessed royal enactments and provided one stable
element in a royal entourage of continually changing composition. At first, the chief
Medieval france: an encyclopedia 486