Anthony, Duke of Brabant

Not to be confused with Antoine, bastard of Burgundy.

Anthony, Duke of Brabant
A bust of Anthony in the Château de Versailles
Born	August 1384
Died	25 October 1415(1415-10-25) (aged 31) Agincourt
Buried	Saint John the Evangelist Church, Tervuren
Noble family	Valois-Burgundy-Brabant
Spouse(s)	Jeanne of Saint-Pol Elisabeth of Görlitz
Father	Philip II, Duke of Burgundy
Mother	Margaret III of Flanders

AR Gros or ½ Botdrager, struck in Leuven under Anthony, Duke of Brabant.

Anthony, Duke of Brabant, also known as Antoine de Brabant, Antoine de Bourgogne and Anthony of Burgundy (August 1384 – 25 October 1415), was Count of Rethel (1402–1406), Duke of Brabant, Lothier and Limburg (1406–1415), and Co-Duke of Luxemburg (1411-1415). He was killed at the battle of Agincourt.

Biography

Anthony was the son of Philip II, Duke of Burgundy, and Margaret III, Countess of Flanders, and brother of John the Fearless. When his great-aunt Joanna died childless in 1406, Anthony inherited the Duchy of Brabant, Lothier, and Limburg.

The Duke of Brabant arrived late to the Battle of Agincourt, and in his eagerness to reach the field, he dressed in improvised armour and wore a surcoat made from a trumpeter's flag. He fought valiantly but was captured by some English archers. He was executed along with the rest of the prisoners ordered by Henry V of England, the English being unaware of his high status and ransom value.

The execution was carried out as the much smaller English force found itself stretched to its limits, guarding prisoners with the battle still not won. A counterattack on the King's baggage train (guarded only by women and children) is thought to have driven King Henry to the decision, thinking he was being attacked from the rear and some chroniclers have given Brabant's belated charge as this very cause, adding to the Duke's chivalric but tragic final story. Subsequently the executions stopped immediately when the attack was seen to falter.

Marriages and family

Anthony married at Arras on 21 February 1402 Jeanne of Saint-Pol (d. 1407), daughter of Waleran III of Luxembourg, Count of Ligny and Saint-Pol. They had:

• John IV, Duke of Brabant (1403–1427)
• Philip of St. Pol (1404–1430), Duke of Brabant

Anthony married again at Brussels, on 16 July 1409, Elisabeth of Görlitz, duchess of Luxembourg (November 1390 – 8 August 1451), daughter of John, Duke of Görlitz. They had no children.

Ancestry

Ancestors of Anthony, Duke of Brabant
8. Philip VI of France 4. John II of France 9. Joan the Lame 2. Philip the Bold 10. John of Bohemia 5. Bonne of Bohemia 11. Elizabeth of Bohemia 1. Anthony, Duke of Brabant 12. Louis I, Count of Flanders 6. Louis II, Count of Flanders 13. Margaret I, Countess of Burgundy 3. Margaret III, Countess of Flanders 14. John III, Duke of Brabant 7. Margaret of Brabant 15. Marie of Évreux

Sources

• Blockmans, Willem Pieter; Prevenier, Walter (1999). The Promised Lands: The Low Countries under Burgundian rule, 1369–1530. University Pennsylvania Press.
• Curry, Anne, ed. (2000). The Battle of Agincourt: Sources and Interpretations. The Boydell Press.
• Vaughan, Richard (2009). Philip the Bold. The Boydell Press.

See also

• Dukes of Burgundy family tree
• Dukes of Brabant family tree