July 19th, Year of Our Lord 1339
I must admit that it has not been an unpleasant summer of campaigning. I continue to chaff at the manner in which the timely arrival of Bishop de Donges has robbed me of the glory of defeating Louis de Bourbon but this fine weather does not encourage low spirits. Together with the Bishop, whose sanity comes increasingly under question, we have continued to guard the southern approaches to Nantes along the Loire. The armies of the Crown have to attempted further forced crossings of the river but there have, thankfully, been no engagements on the scale of
my previous triumph. Indeed it has rapidly become apparent that there is little stomach amongst the royalist forces for another battle of such scale. From our personal correspondence I can detect a marked reluctance from de Bourbon, who is also something of a man of letters, to sacrifice his soldiers for the royal cause. This should be no surprise - my contacts abroad report that the revolt of both Flanders and Brittany has greatly weakened the resolve of the French dukes. For now they watch the progress of the wars and gauge the strength of the unpopular Jean de Valois. It is common knowledge that the armies of Flanders, facing little resistance in the east, prepare march on the Pays de France. I pray that the King considers his the protection of his homeland a more pressing cause than crushing Brittany
July 29th, Year of Our Lord 1339
Good news from Anjou! The royalist garrison of that keep have forfeited their honour and surrendered possession of the town to Duke de Dreux and his army. The immediate objective of this campaign has been met and all Brittany can now focus on resisting the imminent royal offensive. This now must be the most pressing fear - I am convinced that the King has embarked on a march north with the bulk of the Crown armies. With the English driven from the mainland and the rebellious provinces in the southwest pacified, at least temporarily, a swift victory in Brittany would similarly silence the mutterings of discontent from other lords and allow for a leisurely campaign in Flanders
It is not surprising that Duke de Dreux entrusted the defence of the realm to a keen military mind such as mine. Now I pray that Saint Christopher grants he and his soldiers good speed as they race to reinforce my position and repulse any invasion from the south. With the combined armies of Brittany - save those campaigning in Normandy with Countess Jeanne de Dreux - I am confident that we can withstand another Royal assault across the river. The longer Jean de Valois spends campaigning in the western duchies (Aquitaine, Armagnac, and, of course, Brittany) the weaker his grasp on the kingdom becomes. Who knows what winds of change another royal defeat would unleash...
August 13th, Year of Our Lord 1339
I scribble these words with a fury that I usually reserve only for the battlefield - the stunning incompetence of Hélie de Pontchâteau has struck again. This insipid and witless excuse for a Frank has used his influence with the Duke to somehow broker a treaty between Brittany and France. Bypassing me (the Chancellor!) the fool has met with the King north of Poitiers and arrived at an accord. The terms are, I must grudgingly admit, handsome for Brittany - retained possession of Anjou and withdrawal from France's suzerainty - but this is only indicative of the harsh days facing the Crown! Flanders has pillaged Paris, if not actually seized the keep, and two more lords (Champagne and Chartres) have declared for the cause of rebellion. All we need do is occupy the King's attention for a few scant weeks and his whole kingdom may collapse. Alas the Duke and his advisors are too blinkered to appreciate the opportunities presented and will settle for a single province as a trophy of their victory. Can they not see how close I am to achieving victory over de Valois? Once more I am constrained by petty men - de Dreux is content to harvest his glory and ignore the wider strategic developments, and de Pontchâteau is just an idiot
I have conferred with the Bishop and he shares my concerns... albeit expressed more as a tirade against the "voices" that he feels are taunting and tempting him. Similarly I have little doubt that Jeanne de Dreux was hoping to expand her northern holdings during this war and, given that the treaty specifically limits Breton acquisitions to the lands of Anjou (safely secured by the Duke), I doubt that she shall favour this accord. I will consider my next steps carefully... but I shall not let victory slip from between my fingers. Not while the downfall of de Valois, and thus escape from this hellish province, is so imminent
September 2nd, Year of Our Lord 1339
I now understand the muted response of the Duke's wife, Jeanne de Dampierre, to a treaty that leaves her brother in Flanders dangerously isolated. For the past week she has been in the throes of childbirth and is clearly in no condition to advise her husband on matters of state. Positively (for her) she has emerged from the ordeal safely and has produced a male heir for the Duke. Should the child survive, and I hear that he is in good health, then it is almost certain that Jeanne de Dreux will never inherit this duchy. Such thoughts inform my temperament as I prepare to pen a new missive to the fair Countess
At times it is almost pleasant to retrieve my mind from these dark pathways and focus on the simple tasks inherent in managing an army on the march. Both myself and Bishop de Donges have begun to move north in order to meet the Duke en route to Nantes. Our liege is determined to enter the town at the head of a procession worthy of a Roman Triumph. Either his thirst for glory and prestige remains unabated or the Duke cannily attempts to claim all credit for the victorious war in order to bolster his own standing within the duchy. Regardless, it will take a quick march to bring our regiments to the rendezvous at the arranged date - I write this as the Bishop's column stops
yet again to allow the cleric to either pray or scribble another lengthy dispatch to his equally erratic sister in Nantes. At least it gives me the time required to correspond with Countess Jeanne and to prepare my words for the coming meeting with Duke de Dreux