FRENCH B&B  |  HOLIDAY COTTAGE FRANCE SELF CATERING  | CENTRAL FRANCE

French holiday cottage - self catering in style and comfort plus B&B

Central France at La Loge Sagrolle, France

A little history:

Le Berry was once the ancient province that now makes up the departments of the Indre and Cher in Central France.

The Duke of Berry - Jean de Valois (John of Valois The Magnificent) was born November 30, 1340. He was also Duke of the Auvergne and Count of Poitiers and Montpensier. He was the third son of King John II of France.

Jean de Valois' first wife was Joanna of Armagnac with whom he had five children. His second wife was Jeanne d'Auvergne.

Jean de Valois was a notable patron of the Arts who among other works commissioned the Très Riches Heures; the most famous Book of Hours. He was also patron to Jacquemart de Hesdin (1355-1414) who was a miniaturist painter working in the Late Gothic Style. 

The high spending on art by Jean de Valois caused him to become deeply in debt by the time he died in 1416, in Paris.

There is a connection between the name Valois and Waller although we are not related to Jean de Valois.

Charles de Valois (1394-1465) became Duke of Orléans at the age of only 14. He was also Duke de Valois. He was expected to take leadership in the fight against the Burgundians after his father was assassinated. At the soon to be deathbed of his grief-stricken mother he and his brothers were made to swear the traditional oath of vengence for their father's death.

Charles became one of many French noblemen to be wounded in the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. He was taken prisoner by Sir Richard Waller and taken to England. Charles remained a prisoner of war for twenty-five years - during which time a long term friendship developed between the two men.

His imprisonment was comfortable and he was able to live quite normally. There were no terms set for his release, purely because he was in line for succession to the French throne and therefore a danger to the then ruling Henry V of England.

Charles was eventually freed in 1440, returning to France to go on to marry his third wife, Marie of Cleves and then settled to a gentle life as a patron of the arts.

During his twenty-five years of captivity, Charles wrote a large collection of poems, including "Le Foret de Longue Attente".

He wrote over 500 poems before he died, most of them during his captivity.

Shakespeare's play "Henry V" mentions Charles as Duke of Orléans.