ABSTRACT
On 8 March 1468, one of Louis XI's diplomatic agents in England wrote to his master recounting a recent journey to London with the Earl of Warwick, Richard Neville. As Edward came to prefer a Burgundian alliance, Warwick's continued determination to find an accommodation with the French proved to be one of the most important reasons for the gradual deterioration of relations between Edward IV and the man who had helped him to seize the throne in 1461. The chapter discusses the practice of English diplomacy in France as a case study, in order to show by whom English diplomacy was carried out, and how diplomacy with France was administered. It is intended that this will shed light on some much neglected aspects of the late medieval English diplomatic polity and especially the diplomatic activities and influence of the Earl of Warwick. In early 1469, there were signs, according to Michael Hicks, of 'renewed favour towards the Nevilles'.
