Tra Papato, Impero e Regnum Franciae. Alle origini di un inedito accostamento politico tra i principati di Bar e di Lussemburgo (marzo 1308, Poitiers)

In March 1308, Count Henry VII of Luxembourg was residing at the papal curia in Poitiers, where he dictated a testament on behalf of Edward I, Count of Bar. Coming after half a century of dispute, this charter marked, unexpectedly, a reconciliation between the rival houses of Luxembourg and Bar. The latter family had been defeated by the king of France in 1301, but was nevertheless still playing an important role on the European political scene, thanks to his ties with the Plantagenets and the support of Boniface VIII. This article addresses several questions, amongst which: the delicate political-military relations between the principalities of Bar and Luxembourg in the thirteenth century; the real value of Henry's testament and the role played by Clement V, Boniface’ successor, in promoting the initiative. Most importantly, it will assess its overall importance in revealing a carefully crafted political strategy on the part of the pope, who was planning, from his very coronation in 1305, to support Henry VII as an antagonist to Philip the Fair, King of France. It was that same strategy which a few months later, in November 1308, led to the election of Henry VII as King of the Romans.