| John the Fearless | |
|---|---|
 Anonymous portrait, c. 1405 | |
| Duke of Burgundy | |
| Reign | 27 April 1404 – 10 September 1419 |
| Predecessor | Philip II |
| Successor | Philip III |
| Born | 28 May 1371 Ducal palace, Dijon, Burgundy |
| Died | 10 September 1419 (aged 48) Montereau, France |
| Burial | Champmol, Dijon |
| Spouse | |
| Issue more... | |
| House | Valois-Burgundy |
| Father | Philip the Bold |
| Mother | Margaret III, Countess of Flanders |
| Signature |  |
John I (French: Jean sans Peur ; Dutch: Jan zonder Vrees; 28 May 1371 – 10 September 1419) was a scion of the French royal family who ruled the Burgundian State from 1404 until his assassination in 1419. He played a key role in French national affairs during the early 15th century,[1] particularly in his struggle to remove the mentally ill King Charles VI and during the Hundred Years' War against Kingdom of England. A rash, ruthless and unscrupulous politician,[1] John murdered Charles's brother, the Duke of Orléans, in an attempt to gain control of the government, which led to the eruption of the Armagnac–Burgundian Civil War in France and in turn culminated in his own assassination in 1419.
The involvement of Charles, the heir to the French throne, in his assassination prompted John's son and successor Philip to seek an alliance with the English, thereby bringing the Hundred Years' War to its final phase.
John, like his father Philip before him, played an important role in the development of gunpowder artillery in European warfare, making extensive and successful use of it in his military campaigns.[2]
- ^ a b Vaughan 1998.
- ^ Smith, Kay Douglas; Smith, Robert Douglas; DeVries, Kelly (2005). The Artillery of the Dukes of Burgundy, 1363–1477. Boydell Press. pp. 16–19. ISBN 978-1-84383-162-4.