ABSTRACT
In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, most of the differing provinces of the Netherlands formed part of the Duchy of Burgundy. Burgundy originally was a feudal duchy giving fealty and homage to the King of France – John II (John the Good, defeated at the battle of Poitiers in 1356 by the English during the Hundred Years War) – who had two sons. His eldest, the Dauphin, was his heir; the second son, Philip, was enforced as the Duke of Burgundy. Philip married Margaret – the Countess of Flanders – and more territory was acquired by the duchy. Philip’s son, John, to become known as “John the Fearless”, married Margaret, the Countess of Holland, and further expanded the territory of the duchy. Under John the Fearless and later dukes, the duchy became increasingly independent from the royal French control and became a European power to be reckoned with by the other European powers.
