King Francois

Louise, Princess of France (August 19, 1515 - September 21, 1517)

Charlotte, Princess of France (October 23, 1516 - September 8, 1524)

Francois, Dauphin of France (February 28, 1518 - August 10, 1536)

Henry II, King of France (March 31, 1519 - July 10, 1559)

Madeleine, Princess of France (August 10, 1520 - July 2, 1537)

Charles de Valois, Duke of Orleans (January 22, 1522 - September 9, 1545)

Margaret of France, Duchess of Berry (June 5, 1523 - September 14, 1574)

> A lui le plus Chrétien Grandeur (His most Christian Majesty), par le grâce de Dieu
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> (by the grace of God), Francois premier (Francois I), Roi de France (King of France)
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> duc de Milan, comte d'Asti, comte d'Angoulême, duc de Valois seigneur de Gênes.
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## History

### Early Life

Francis of Orleans was born on 12 September 1494 at the Château de Cognac as the only son of Charles of Orleans and Louise of Savoy. Although his family had connections to the throne, he was not expected to inherit, as the king was still young and healthy at the time of Francis's birth. However, when the king died childless, leaving the throne to yet another man without a male heir, the four year old Francois became the heir presumptive, as well as the Duke of Valois.

When the King fell ill, he ordered that Francis be married to his daughter, Claude, who thanks to Salic law was not able to inherit the throne on her own. In 1515, Francis took the throne with Claude as his Queen Consort.

### Reign

Francis received an excellent education, being schooled in geography, grammar, history, reading, spelling, and writing. He was also educated in chivalry, dancing, and music, and he loved archery, falconry, horseback riding, hunting, and jousting. He was also a great lover of literature, philosophy, and theology. Because this, he became a great patron of the arts, and supported the new thinking developed in Renaissance Italy- that of humanism. Overall, he strived to bring culture to his war-obsessed nation.

### Military action

Although Francis preferred to focus on culture and art over war, that did not mean he ignored all military pursuits. He participated in the Italian Wars and even made attempts at claiming the throne of the Holy Roman Emperor. He had an intense rivalry with Charles V of Spain, who brashly challenged Francis to single combat multiple times. In addition to the Holy Roman Empire, Charles personally ruled Spain, Austria, and a number of smaller possessions neighbouring France, which made him a constant threat.

## Appearance

King Francois is a handsome man in his mid thirties. He is tall and slender, and has dark black hair. His hair is quite short, even shaved on the sides. It is believed that this was due to an incident of his hair being burnt. He has a black goatee as well. The King dresses himself in many fine clothes, though there are some ensembles that are clearly favorites, as he often shows them off in court. If it is not too hot, he will wear a grand overcoat of red and gold fabric which has puffed sleeves and edges of black velvet. He wears tall boots, along with multiple pieces of jewelry. His chain of office is slightly simpler than some of the other nobility, consisting of pale silver and gold clamshells and a blue drop. His crown is golden, and set with sapphires.

## Personality

King Francois is a just and fair King who tries to do right by his people, and is proud to say that they do right by him. He adores art, music, and theatre, and when he can, he supports the endeavors of artists in his kingdom. He is also a scholar, as he received a great education influenced by many new ideas. He even dabbles in many intellectual and artistic studies himself. The King's cleverness shines through not only in his academic pursuits, but also in his sense of humor. He has a quick wit, and adores a good (or bad) pun.

### Likes and Dislikes

#### Likes

* Music
* Art
* Books
* Puns

##### Favorite things

* Poet: Clement Marot (1496-1544) → my court poet
* Artist: Leonardo de Vinci (April 15, 1452 – May 2, 1519)
* Palace: Hunting at Château de Chambord; though had main residencies at Château de Blois and at Château d'Amboise , both located in the Vallée de la Loire
* City: Lyon, of course, because the people love their King
* Composer: Josquin des Prez (1440-1521)
* Animals: The falcon (a majestic animal), for hunting at Château de Chambord, hunting dogs, and the salamander (his insignia)
	+ Fun Fact: People once thought that salamanders were baby dragons because during forest fires, people would see them emerging from their burrows to escape the flames, and people thought they were being born from fire.
* Books: Plato’s writings → profound in thought and philosophy of humanism (rebirth)

#### Dislikes

* Charles V
* Losing

## Relationships

### Family

#### Claude: Wife

Claude and Francois have a good relationship, and seem to be happy together. Although Francois may be a bit promiscuous, as he has been known to take mistresses, Claude rarely, if ever, challenges him on this. In return, Francois does not question the mischief she gets into with the other court ladies, and even seems lovingly amused by her more questionable adventures.

#### Marguerite: Sister

Marguerite is Francois's younger sister, and close friend. The two of them often enjoy comparing thoughts on politics and philosophy, and it is clear that the king enjoys having someone who matches wits with him.

### Court

#### Anne De Montmorency: Champion

Francois and Anne De Montmorency have a good working relationship, though Anne does seem to be a bit closer to Claude than Francois. They have a mutual trust in one another, and commonly speak on matters of politics and military pursuits.

#### King Henry: Friend...Rival...depends on the day

King Henry and Francois have a bit of a confusing relationship. Although they seem to be friends much of the time, or at the very least allies, they also have a sort of rivalry that often shows when they are walking together in the lanes. They are both very competitive, and neither enjoy losing, so things can often be quite delicate.

### Others

#### Greenleaf Singers

Although he does not perform in all of their sets, King Francois has been known to join in on many songs, dazzling patrons with his royal voice.

## Gallery

Historical PortraitSignatureArtist's RenditionThe French RoyaltyFrancois and Mary BoleynFrancois performing with Greenleaf
1. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clément\_Marot
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Château\_de\_Chambord
3. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Château\_of\_Blois
4. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Château\_d%27Amboise
5. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josquin\_des\_Prez