Pierre Terrail, seigneur de Bayard
Encyclopedia
Pierre Terrail LeVieux, seigneur de Bayard (1473 – Rovasenda (VC) 30 April 1524) 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, generally known as the Chevalier de Bayard. Throughout the centuries since his death, he has been known as "the knight without fear and beyond reproach" (le chevalier sans peur et sans reproche). He himself however, preferred the name given him by his contemporaries for his gaiety and kindness, "le bon chevalier", or "the good knight".

Early Life

The descendant of a noble family, the head of which had fallen in battle in nearly every generation for two centuries; Bayard was born at the Château Bayard
Château Bayard
The Château Bayard is a castle in the commune of Pontcharra in the département of Isère , and dominates the valley of Grésivaudan in the Dauphiné Alps....

, Dauphiné
Dauphiné
The Dauphiné or Dauphiné Viennois is a former province in southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of :Isère, :Drôme, and :Hautes-Alpes....

 (near Pontcharra
Pontcharra
Pontcharra is a commune in the Isère department in south-eastern France.- See also :* Communes of the Isère department* Château Bayard* Avalon, France...

, Isère). He served as a page to the young Duke Charles I of Savoy
Charles I of Savoy
Charles I , surnamed the Warrior, was the Duke of Savoy from 1482 to 1490 and titular king of Cyprus, Jerusalem, and Armenia from 1485 to 1490....

, until March 1490, when the Duke died of illness.

1490 - Service of King Charles VIII of France

1490 - Man at arms of Louis de Luxembourg

In 1490 he took service as a man-at-arms in the household of Louis de Luxembourg, the seigneur
Fiefdom
A fee was the central element of feudalism and consisted of heritable lands granted under one of several varieties of feudal tenure by an overlord to a vassal who held it in fealty in return for a form of feudal allegiance and service, usually given by the...

 de Ligny (November, 1490); a favorite of King Charles VIII of France
Charles VIII of France
Charles VIII, called the Affable, , was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. Charles was a member of the House of Valois...

. As a youth, Terrail was distinguished for his looks, charming manner, and skill in the tilt-yard.

1494 - Battle of Naples

In 1494, he accompanied King Charles VIII of France
Charles VIII of France
Charles VIII, called the Affable, , was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. Charles was a member of the House of Valois...

's expedition into Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 to seize the Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...

. This campaign is now known as the Italian War of 1494–1498.

1495 - Battle of Fornovo

He was knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....

ed after the 1495 Battle of Fornovo
Battle of Fornovo
The Battle of Fornovo took place 30 km southwest of the city of Parma on 6 July 1495. The League of Venice was able to temporarily expel the French from the Italian Peninsula. It was the first major battle of the Italian Wars.-Antecedents:...

, in which he captured a standard. Shortly afterwards, entering Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...

 alone in pursuit of the enemy, he was taken prisoner, but was set free without a ransom by Ludovico Sforza
Ludovico Sforza
Ludovico Sforza , was Duke of Milan from 1489 until his death. A member of the Sforza family, he was the fourth son of Francesco Sforza. He was famed as a patron of Leonardo da Vinci and other artists, and presided over the final and most productive stage of the Milanese Renaissance...

.

1503 - Battle of Garigliano

Bayard was the hero of a celebrated combat of thirteen French knights against an equal number of Spaniards, and his restless energy and valour were conspicuous throughout the Italian wars of this period. At the Battle of Garigliano
Battle of Garigliano (1503)
The Battle of Garigliano was fought on December 29, 1503 between a Spanish army under Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba and a French army commanded by Ludovico II, Marquis of Saluzzo.-Preliminary phase:...

 it is said that he single-handedly defended the bridge of the Garigliano against 200 Spaniards, an exploit that brought him such renown that Pope Julius II
Pope Julius II
Pope Julius II , nicknamed "The Fearsome Pope" and "The Warrior Pope" , born Giuliano della Rovere, was Pope from 1503 to 1513...

 tried unsuccessfully to entice him into his service.

1508 - Service of King Louis XII of France

1508 found Bayard accompanying King Louis XII against rebellious Genoa. In the battle that broke the back of the rebellion, Bayard played the role of champion and spearhead in the French assault; a breakneck cavalry charge up a mountain slope against a seemingly impregnable barricade, defended by a pike-phalanx of Genoese militia. The Genoese shattered and fled before the furious charge of Bayard and the French gendarme
Gendarme (historical)
A gendarme was a heavy cavalryman of noble birth, primarily serving in the French army from the Late Medieval to the Early Modern periods of European History...

. Genoa subsequently fell, and Bayard entered the city in triumph behind his king.

In June of that year, King Louis played host to the Spanish king, Ferdinand. Weeks of festivities followed, including tourneys, banquets, and balls. Bayard was the champion of the first; and at the last became reacquainted with his former opponent at the Garigliano, Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba
Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba
Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba known as The Great Captain, Duke of Terranova and Santangelo, Andria, Montalto and Sessa, also known as Gonzalo de Córdoba, Italian: Gonsalvo or Consalvo Ernandes di Cordova was a Spanish general fighting in the times of the Conquest of Granada and the Italian Wars...

, El Gran Capitán ("The Great Captain") of Spain.

1509 - Battle of Agnadello

In 1509, the League of Cambrai was formed between France, the Empire, Spain, and the Papacy; in an effort to wrest from Venice its territorial empire in northeastern Italy.

For this campaign, the king commissioned Bayard to raise a company of horse and foot. Up until that time, French infantry had been a despised rabble. Bayard’s company became a model for discipline, high morale, and battlefield effectiveness; and played a key role that year in rescuing the French vanguard at the Battle of Agnadello
Battle of Agnadello
The Battle of Agnadello, also known as Vailà, was one of the more significant battles of the War of the League of Cambrai and one of the major battles of the Italian Wars....

, on May 14, 1509; against the Venetian forces led by Bartolomeo d'Alviano
Bartolomeo d'Alviano
Bartolomeo d'Alviano was an Italian condottiero and captain who distinguished himself in the defence of the Venetian Republic against the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian.-Biography:...

.

1509 - Siege of Padua

Later that year, Bayard was among the French forces under Jacques de La Palice
Jacques de la Palice
Jacques de la Palice was a French nobleman and military officer. His full name and titles are Jacques II de Chabannes, Lord of La Palice, of Pacy, of Chauverothe, of Bort-le-Comte and of Héron...

  sent to join their German ally, the Emperor Maximilian I at the Siege of Padua
Siege of Padua
The Siege of Padua was a major engagement early in the War of the League of Cambrai.Imperial forces had captured the Venetian city of Padua in June 1509. On July 17, Venetian forces commanded by Andrea Gritti marched quickly from Treviso with a contingent of stradioti and conquered back the city,...

. Though the siege ultimately failed, what early success the allies enjoyed was largely due to the combination of cool-headed leadership and dashing bravado of Bayard.

1510 - Servicing of Lucrezia Borgia

In 1510 the Duchy of Ferrara joined the alliance. Bayard was co-commander of the French contingent sent to garrison and aid the city and its Duke, Alphonso d'Este. During his eight month stay, Bayard won the admiration of the Duke and his infamous wife, the lady Lucrezia Borgia
Lucrezia Borgia
Lucrezia Borgia [luˈkrɛtsia ˈbɔrʤa] was the illegitimate daughter of Rodrigo Borgia, the powerful Renaissance Valencian who later became Pope Alexander VI, and Vannozza dei Cattanei. Her brothers included Cesare Borgia, Giovanni Borgia, and Gioffre Borgia...

. According to his biographer, "The Loyal Servant," (likely Bayard's archer and lifelong secretary, Jacques de Mailles) the chevalier fully returned Lucrezia's admiration; considering her "a pearl" among women. Bayard would return to Ferrara on other occasions to pay his hommage to the lady; once in the company of Gaston de Foix, Duc de Nemours, just months before the Battle of Ravenna, where the Duke lost his life.

1511 - Holy league

By 1511 the League of Cambrai had collapsed due to Papal fears of the growing power of France in Italy. To counter this, Pope Julius II
Pope Julius II
Pope Julius II , nicknamed "The Fearsome Pope" and "The Warrior Pope" , born Giuliano della Rovere, was Pope from 1503 to 1513...

 declared the formation of the Holy League
Holy League
Holy League may refer to:* Holy League , AKA "League of Venice", alliance of several opponents of French hegemony in Italy, arranged by Pope Alexander VI...

. This alliance put France at odds with not only the Papacy, but its erstwhile ally, the Holy Roman Empire; as well as Spain and ultimately the Swiss Confederation.

In various skirmishers with Papal troops around Ferrara, Bayard continued to win renown. In one instance, he very nearly captured the Pope himself. About this time, the Duke Alphonso and Bayard found themselves under Papal Interdict. How long Bayard's period of excommunication lasted is unclear.

1512 - Siege of Brescia

At the Siege of Brescia in 1512, Bayard led a wedge of dismounted men-at-arms against the defenders, himself at its tip. Several times the French assault was thrown back. Each time Bayard rallied the French forces and led them in renewed attacks. His boldness at last resulted in a severe wound to the thigh, but not before the defenses were breached and the French had entered the town.

His soldiers carried Bayard into a neighbouring mansion, the residence of a nobleman, whose wife and daughters he protected from threatened insult. Bayard was charmed by the young daughters, who sang to him nightly. Before his wound was healed, he learned that battle was imminent at Ravenna, and he hurried to depart to rejoin his comrades. But not before endowing the two daughters with a thousand gold ducats each; the money paid originally to him by the lady of the house as ransom for her family.

1512 - Battle of Ravenna

Bayard joined his commander and friend, Gaston de Foix, in time for the fateful Battle of Ravenna
Battle of Ravenna (1512)
The Battle of Ravenna, fought on 11 April 1512, by forces of the Holy League and France, was a major battle of the War of the League of Cambrai in the Italian Wars...

 (1512). Though the gallantry of Bayard and the French cavalry under de'Foix carried the day, the Duke was killed in the final hour; rendering the battle a strategic loss for the French; and a personal tragedy for Bayard.

1513 - Battle of the Spurs

In 1513, when Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...

 routed the French at the Battle of the Spurs (Guinegate, where Bayard's father had received a lifelong injury in a battle of 1479), Bayard, trying to rally his countrymen, found his escape cut off. Unwilling to surrender, he rode suddenly up to an English officer who was resting unarmed, and summoned him to yield; the knight complying, Bayard in turn gave himself up to his prisoner. He was taken into the English camp, but his gallantry impressed Henry as it had impressed Ludovico, and the king released him without ransom, merely exacting his word
Oath
An oath is either a statement of fact or a promise calling upon something or someone that the oath maker considers sacred, usually God, as a witness to the binding nature of the promise or the truth of the statement of fact. To swear is to take an oath, to make a solemn vow...

 not to serve for six weeks.

1515 - Service of King Francis I of France

On the accession of Francis I
Francis I of France
Francis I was King of France from 1515 until his death. During his reign, huge cultural changes took place in France and he has been called France's original Renaissance monarch...

 in 1515, Bayard was made lieutenant-general of Dauphiné
Dauphiné
The Dauphiné or Dauphiné Viennois is a former province in southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of :Isère, :Drôme, and :Hautes-Alpes....

; but soon accompanied the King and army into the territory of Milan, control of which was challenged by the Swiss. At the Battle of Marignano
Battle of Marignano
The Battle of Marignano was fought during the phase of the Italian Wars called the War of the League of Cambrai, between France and the Old Swiss Confederacy. It took place on September 13 and 15, 1515, near the town today called Melegnano, 16 km southeast of Milan...

 the opposing armies engaged in a protracted and bloody struggle; which the French won largely because of the valour of Bayard, King Francis, and the French gendarme
Gendarme
A Gendarme is a member of a gendarmerie; the word is often incorrectly used to refer to any French policeman or pikeman.Gendarme can also mean:* Gendarme , French medieval or early modern cavalryman...

  (armored lancers). After the battle, Bayard had the honour of conferring knighthood on his youthful sovereign.

1521 - Siege of Mézières

When war again broke out between Francis I and Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...

, Bayard, with 1000 men, held Mézières
Charleville-Mézières
Charleville-Mézières is a commune in northern France, capital of the Ardennes department in the Champagne-Ardenne region. Charleville-Mézières is located on the banks of the Meuse River.-History:...

, which had been declared untenable, against an army of 35,000, and after six weeks, compelled the imperial generals to raise the siege. This stubborn resistance saved central France from invasion, as the king had not then sufficient forces to withstand the Holy Roman Empire.

All France celebrated the achievement, and Francis gained time to collect the royal army which drove out the invaders (1521). The parlement thanked Bayard as the saviour of his country; the king made him a knight of the Order of Saint Michael
Order of Saint Michael
The Order of Saint Michael was a French chivalric order, founded by Louis XI of France in 1469, in competitive response to the Burgundian Order of the Golden Fleece founded by Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy, Louis' chief competitor for the allegiance of the great houses of France, the Dukes of...

, and commander in his own name of 100 gens d'armes, an honour until then reserved for princes of the blood.

1524 - Death in Italy

After allaying a revolt at Genoa, and striving with the greatest assiduity to check a pestilence in Dauphiné
Dauphiné
The Dauphiné or Dauphiné Viennois is a former province in southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of :Isère, :Drôme, and :Hautes-Alpes....

, Bayard was sent into Italy with Admiral Bonnivet
Guillaume Gouffier, seigneur de Bonnivet
Guillaume Gouffier, seigneur de Bonnivet was a French soldier.The younger brother of Artus Gouffier, seigneur de Boisy, tutor of Francis I of France, Bonnivet was brought up with Francis, and after the young king's accession he became one of the most powerful of the royal favourites. In 1515 he...

, who, being defeated at Robecco and wounded in a combat during his retreat, implored Bayard to assume command and save the army. He repulsed the foremost pursuers, but in guarding the rear at the passage of the river Sesia
Sesia
Sesia may refer to:* Sesia River, in northwest Italy* Sesia , a district during the First French Empire, named after the river* Sesia, a genus of moths* The Valsesia, the river’s valley...

, was mortally wounded by an arquebus
Arquebus
The arquebus , or "hook tube", is an early muzzle-loaded firearm used in the 15th to 17th centuries. The word was originally modeled on the German hakenbüchse; this produced haquebute...

 ball (April 30, 1524).

He died in the midst of the enemy, attended by Pescara, the Spanish commander, and by his old comrade, Charles, duc de Bourbon
Charles III, Duke of Bourbon
Charles III, Duke of Bourbon was a French military leader, the Count of Montpensier and Dauphin of Auvergne. He commanded the Imperial troops of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V in what became known as the Sack of Rome in 1527, where he was killed.-Biography:Charles was born at Montpensier...

, who was now fighting on the opposite side. Charles is reported to have said "Ah! Monsieur de Bayard... I am very sad to see you in this state; you who were such a virtuous knight!" Bayard answered,

His body was restored to his friends and interred at Grenoble
Grenoble
Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...

.

Legacy

As a soldier, Bayard was considered the epitome of chivalry
Chivalry
Chivalry is a term related to the medieval institution of knighthood which has an aristocratic military origin of individual training and service to others. Chivalry was also the term used to refer to a group of mounted men-at-arms as well as to martial valour...

 and one of the most skillful commanders of the age. He was noted for the exactitude and completeness of his information on the enemy's movements, which he obtained by careful reconnaissance and a well-arranged system of espionage. In the long history of mounted warfare, he rates highly as one of the greatest cavalry leaders of all time.

In the midst of mercenary
Mercenary
A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...

 armies, Bayard remained absolutely disinterested, and to his contemporaries and his successors, he was, with his romantic heroism, piety, and magnanimity
Magnanimity
Magnanimity is the virtue of being great of mind and heart. It encompasses, usually, a refusal to be petty, a willingness to face danger, and actions for noble purposes. Its antithesis is pusillanimity...

, the fearless and faultless knight (le chevalier sans peur et sans reproche). His gaiety and kindness won him, even more frequently, another name bestowed by his contemporaries, le bon chevalier.

Monuments and memorials

  • Equestrian statue at Pontcharra (Isère
    Isère
    Isère is a department in the Rhône-Alpes region in the east of France named after the river Isère.- History :Isère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Dauphiné...

    ).
  • Statue at Grenoble, place Saint-André.
  • Bayard Mausoleum, (1625), Saint-André Collegiate church at Grenoble.
  • Musée Bayard at the Château Bayard
    Château Bayard
    The Château Bayard is a castle in the commune of Pontcharra in the département of Isère , and dominates the valley of Grésivaudan in the Dauphiné Alps....

     in Pontcharra.
  • Statue at Charleville-Mézières
    Charleville-Mézières
    Charleville-Mézières is a commune in northern France, capital of the Ardennes department in the Champagne-Ardenne region. Charleville-Mézières is located on the banks of the Meuse River.-History:...

    , inaugurated October 2005. An earlier statue was damaged during World War I and demolished by the Germans in World War II.
  • Statue in the Collège Stanislas de Paris
    Collège Stanislas de Paris
    Le Collège Stanislas de Paris is a private Catholic school in Paris, situated on "Rue Notre-Dame-des-Champs" in the Montparnasse arrondissement. It has approximately 3,000 students, and is the largest private school in France....

  • Statue in Saint-Denis
    Saint-Denis
    Saint-Denis is a commune in the northern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Saint-Denis is a sous-préfecture of the Seine-Saint-Denis département, being the seat of the Arrondissement of Saint-Denis....

  • Statue in Sainte-Anne-d'Auray
    Sainte-Anne-d'Auray
    Sainte-Anne-d'Auray is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France.-Demographics:Inhabitants of Sainte-Anne-d'Auray are called in French Saintannois.-Breton language:...

  • Clément-Bayard
    Clément-Bayard
    Clément-Bayard was a French manufacturer of automobiles, aeroplanes and airships founded in 1903 by the entrepreneur Adolphe Clément-Bayard . The name celebrated the Chevalier Pierre Terrail, seigneur de Bayard who saved the town of Mézières in 1521...

    , an auto-mobile manufacturer of Mézières, was named in his honour and his image was incorporated in the logo.
  • Adolphe Clément-Bayard, an entrepreneur who created the Clément-Bayard auto-mobile company in honour of the knight in 1903, and then added Bayard to his family name in 1908.

In popular culture

Bayard is a recurring character in three novels by author Samuel Shellabarger
Samuel Shellabarger
Samuel Shellabarger was an American educator and author of both scholarly works and best-selling historical novels. He was born in Washington, D.C., on 18 May 1888, but his parents both died while he was a baby...

:
  • Prince of Foxes
    Prince of Foxes
    Prince of Foxes is a novel of historical fiction by Samuel Shellabarger, following the adventures of the fictional Andrea Orsini, a captain in the service of Cesare Borgia during his conquest of the Romagna.-Plot introduction:...

  • Captain from Castile
    Captain from Castile
    Captain from Castile is an action historical drama and swashbuckler film released by 20th Century Fox in 1947. Directed by Henry King, the Technicolor film starred Tyrone Power, Jean Peters, and Cesar Romero. Shot on location in Michoacán, Mexico, the film includes scenes of the Parícutin...

  • The King's Cavalier


The name Chevalier Bayard is used in reference to a character in Dashiell Hammett
Dashiell Hammett
Samuel Dashiell Hammett was an American author of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories, and political activist. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade , Nick and Nora Charles , and the Continental Op .In addition to the significant influence his novels and stories had on...

's The Dain Curse
The Dain Curse
The Dain Curse is a novel written by Dashiell Hammett and published in 1929.- Plot summary :The detective known only as The Continental Op investigates a diamond heist that looks like an inside job. He is told of a supposed curse on the Dain family, said to inflict sudden and violent deaths upon...

.
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