Arnoul d'Audrehem was a French

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 soldier

Soldier

A soldier is a member of the land component of national armed forces; whereas a soldier hired for service in a foreign army would be termed a mercenary...

.

He was born at Audrehem

Audrehem

Audrehem is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France.-Geography:The village is located 11 miles northwest of Saint-Omer, at the junction of the D223 with the D217E road.-Population:-Places of interest:...

, in the present arrondissement of Saint-Omer

Arrondissement of Saint-Omer

The arrondissement of Saint-Omer is an arrondissement of France, located in the Pas-de-Calais département, in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais région...

, in the département of Pas de Calais. Nothing is known of his career before 1332, when he is heard of at the court of Philip VI of France

Philip VI of France

Philip VI , known as the Fortunate and of Valois, was the King of France from 1328 to his death. He was also Count of Anjou, Maine, and Valois from 1325 to 1328...

.

Between 1332 and 1342 he went three times to Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 to aid King David Bruce

David II of Scotland

David II was King of Scots from 7 June 1329 until his death.-Early life:...

 in his wars. In 1342 he became captain for the king of France in Brittany

Brittany

Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...

; then he seems to have served in the household of the duke of Normandy

Duke of Normandy

The Duke of Normandy is the title of the reigning monarch of the British Crown Dependancies of the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey. The title traces its roots to the Duchy of Normandy . Whether the reigning sovereign is a male or female, they are always titled as the "Duke of...

, and in 1346, as one of the defenders of Calais

Calais

Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....

, was taken as a prisoner to England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 by Edward III

Edward III of England

Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...

.

From 1349 he held an important place in the military history of France, first as captain in Angoulême

Angoulême

-Main sights:In place of its ancient fortifications, Angoulême is encircled by boulevards above the old city walls, known as the Remparts, from which fine views may be obtained in all directions. Within the town the streets are often narrow. Apart from the cathedral and the hôtel de ville, the...

, and in June 1351, in succession to the lord of Beaujeu

Beaujeu, Rhône

Beaujeu is a commune of the Rhône department in eastern France.It lies between Mâcon and Lyon.Beaujeu gives its name to the famous wine region of Beaujolais , a former province of France of which it is the historical capital...

, as marshal of France

Marshal of France

The Marshal of France is a military distinction in contemporary France, not a military rank. It is granted to generals for exceptional achievements...

. In March 1352 he was appointed lieutenant for the king in the territory between the Loire

Loire

Loire is an administrative department in the east-central part of France occupying the River Loire's upper reaches.-History:Loire was created in 1793 when after just 3½ years the young Rhône-et-Loire department was split into two. This was a response to counter-Revolutionary activities in Lyon...

 and the Dordogne

Dordogne

Dordogne is a départment in south-west France. The départment is located in the region of Aquitaine, between the Loire valley and the High Pyrénées named after the great river Dordogne that runs through it...

, in 1353 in Normandy

Normandy

Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...

, and in 1355 in Artois

Artois

Artois is a former province of northern France. Its territory has an area of around 4000 km² and a population of about one million. Its principal cities are Arras , Saint-Omer, Lens and Béthune.-Location:...

 and Picardy

Picardy

This article is about the historical French province. For other uses, see Picardy .Picardy is a historical province of France, in the north of France...

 and the Boulonnais

Boulonnais (land area)

The Boulonnais is a coastal area of northern France, around Calais and Boulogne-sur-Mer. It has a curved belt of chalk downs which run into the sea at both ends, and geologically is the east end of the Weald-Artois Anticline.- Administration :...

.
It was Audrehem who arrested Charles II of Navarre

Charles II of Navarre

Charles II , called "Charles the Bad", was King of Navarre 1349-1387 and Count of Évreux 1343-1387....

 and his partisan

Partisan (political)

In politics, a partisan is a committed member of a political party. In multi-party systems, the term is widely understood to carry a negative connotation - referring to those who wholly support their party's policies and are perhaps even reluctant to acknowledge correctness on the part of their...

s, at the banquet given by the dauphin (later Charles V of France

Charles V of France

Charles V , called the Wise, was King of France from 1364 to his death in 1380 and a member of the House of Valois...

) at Rouen

Rouen

Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...

 in 1356. At Poitiers

Battle of Poitiers (1356)

The Battle of Poitiers was fought between the Kingdoms of England and France on 19 September 1356 near Poitiers, resulting in the second of the three great English victories of the Hundred Years' War: Crécy, Poitiers, and Agincourt....

 he was one of those who advised John II of France

John II of France

John II , called John the Good , was the King of France from 1350 until his death. He was the second sovereign of the House of Valois and is perhaps best remembered as the king who was vanquished at the Battle of Poitiers and taken as a captive to England.The son of Philip VI and Joan the Lame,...

 to attack the English, and, charging into the front line of the French army, was slightly wounded and taken prisoner.

From England he was several times given safe-conduct to France, and he took an active part in the negotiations for the Treaty of Bretigny

Treaty of Brétigny

The Treaty of Brétigny was a treaty signed on May 9, 1360, between King Edward III of England and King John II of France. In retrospect it is seen as having marked the end of the first phase of the Hundred Years' War —as well as the height of English hegemony on the Continent.It was signed...

, recovering his liberty at the same time as king John. In 1361, as the king's lieutenant in Languedoc

Languedoc

Languedoc is a former province of France, now continued in the modern-day régions of Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées in the south of France, and whose capital city was Toulouse, now in Midi-Pyrénées. It had an area of approximately 42,700 km² .-Geographical Extent:The traditional...

, he prevented the free companies from seizing the castles.

In 1365 he joined Bertrand du Guesclin

Bertrand du Guesclin

Bertrand du Guesclin , known as the Eagle of Brittany or the Black Dog of Brocéliande, was a Breton knight and French military commander during the Hundred Years' War. He was Constable of France from 1370 to his death...

 in the expedition to Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

, and was taken prisoner with him by Edward, the Black Prince

Edward, the Black Prince

Edward of Woodstock, Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwall, Prince of Aquitaine, KG was the eldest son of King Edward III of England and his wife Philippa of Hainault as well as father to King Richard II of England....

 at the Battle of Nájera (Navarette)

Battle of Najera (Navarette)

The Battle of Nájera, also known as the Battle of Navarrete, was fought on 3 April 1367 between an Anglo-Gascon army and Franco-Castilian forces near Nájera, in the province of La Rioja, Castile...

 in 1367. He still owed the English ransom money from his previous capture at Poitiers, but he was freed in 1368.
On account of his age, he was relieved of the office of marshal, being appointed bearer of the oriflamme

Oriflamme

The Oriflamme was the battle standard of the King of France.It was originally the sacred banner of the Abbey of St. Denis, a monastery near Paris. The banner was red or orange-red and flown from a lance. It was suggested that the lance was originally the important object, with the banner a...

, with a pension of 2,000 livre

French livre

The livre was the currency of France until 1795. Several different livres existed, some concurrently. The livre was the name of both units of account and coins.-Etymology:...

s.
He was sent to Spain in 1370 by Charles V of France

Charles V of France

Charles V , called the Wise, was King of France from 1364 to his death in 1380 and a member of the House of Valois...

 to urge his friend du Guesclin to return to France, and in spite of his age he took part in the Battle of Pontvallain

Battle of Pontvallain

The Battle of Pontvallain was an important battle in France’s Hundred Years War with England. It was fought in early December 1370 in the Sarthe region between English forces that had broken away from the army commanded by the English knight Sir Robert Knolles and a French army under the...

 (December 1370), but fell ill and died, probably at Saumur

Saumur

Saumur is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France.The historic town is located between the Loire and Thouet rivers, and is surrounded by the vineyards of Saumur itself, Chinon, Bourgueil, Coteaux du Layon, etc...

, in the latter part of December 1370.