Rainier I and the Franco-Flemish War

Lord Rainier I was renowned as a great sailor, particularly for his part in the victory of the English and Flemish fleet at the battle of Zierikzee. Long before that he had a reputation for naval excellence in the service of King Charles II of Anjou and against the Ghibellines. But what was the background of the conflict that brought him to his most celebrated victory? It started with a campaign that would have sounded familiar to Napoleon Bonaparte many centuries later. King Philippe IV of France had determined that the way to cripple the power of England was to cut her off from trade with the European continent. Toward this end he undertook a diplomatic campaign to effectively create a blockade of England. His efforts were quite successful with rulers from Sicily to the Baltic closing their ports to English ships. England was soon becoming more and more weakened and the formidable King Edward I determined that something had to be done about this. However, England was not much of a naval power in those days and Edward I realized that he needed an ally that was.

Flanders was the place the English king looked to. A trading people even then, the blockade of England had hurt the Flemish economy, making them more open to the idea of an alliance with England, and the Flemish were renowned sailors. In 1297 King Edward I and Count Guy of Flanders signed the Treaty of Bruges which granted a monopoly to English and Flemish ships on all trade between Europe and England. This did a great deal to save the situation of England but it took a toll on the French ports in the area, such as Calais and others, and King Philippe IV determined that war was the only answer. He would have to attack England and Flanders on the high seas to break their dominance of Channel trade and restore his proto-Continental system. To do that he would need good warships and a veteran naval warrior to command them and for that he turned to Lord Rainier I of Monaco from the House of Grimaldi which had served French royals so well in the past. Rainier I came with sixteen well-armed galleys to add to the twenty ships the King of France had available but these were poorly built and the crews not experienced. It was up to Rainier I to train them for serious combat and he took a 'hands on' approach, taking them in several small-scale raids against English ships to teach them the ways of naval warfare. This helped them gain the experience they would need to confront the more formidable Flemish ships.

When the fight came, both sides called on all available allies. France had the Count of Holland who contributed warships while on the English side help came, primarily from Flanders but also from Spain, Sweden and the Hanseatic League. France also, it seems, had an agent among the enemy fleet. As battle was first joined the Anglo-Flemish forces seemed to be getting the better of the Grimaldi admiral as the larger French ships tended to run aground in the shallow coastal waters. However, when the tides changed, the French galleys began to take a terrible toll on their enemies. Then, during the night, someone who was presumably an agent of France, cut the anchor cables of the Anglo-Flemish ships and they drifted out of formation and the next day Lord Rainier I had little trouble picking them off one at a time until the enemy fleet was totally destroyed. As a result the siege of Zierikzee was lifted, Guy of Flanders was captured and King Philippe IV led his army to victory against the Flemish at the battle of Mons-en-Pévèle on August 18, 1304. Not a bad contribution to history by the veteran sailor from Monaco.

Imagine Lord Rainier I

Try to imagine Monaco as it was when the first members of the Grimaldi family of Genoa set their eyes on it. Instead of apartment buildings, luxury hotels, casinos and rows and rows of yachts imagine rocky, windswept cliffs, one or two towering and ominous castles keeping watch over a mostly empty countryside of farmland and fruit trees while small fishing boats cast their nets in the Mediterranean. From the ramparts of the castle flies the St George cross of the city-state of Genoa where feuding factions have carried on a civil war. This war started as a clash between the Pope and the Holy Roman (German) Emperor and soon spread across the Italian peninsula. The noble lords mostly favored the Emperor since it was by his favor that they gained their titles, the land that went with those titles, the peasants that went with the land and the income those peasants produced for them. The merchant city-state republics of northern Italy mostly favored the Pope, as did families such as the House of Grimaldi. These were self-made people who, by daring voyages of trade and astute business practices, became wealthy and gained status. The Pope was content to leave them to manage their own affairs and this is what made them loyal partisans of the papacy. They feared that under the Emperor they would be able to advance only so far as the ruler in far-off Germany would allow whereas with the Pope they could retain their independence and advance as far as their talents and ambition could take them.

This was the Guelph-Ghibelline feud that split Italy for many, many years. It became so bad people forgot what it had all been about to begin with. Some split into even more radical factions such as the Black Guelphs and White Guelphs. The poet Dante was from a faction more supportive of the Emperor (hence the presence of popes in his Inferno) and families feuded for generations. Shakespeare’s famous tragedy “Romeo and Juliet” was based on two feuding families from this same conflict. In Genoa the pendulum swung back and forth as one faction took control from the other. The House of Grimaldi was in the Guelph camp and their fortunes rose and fell depending on who held power at the moment. When the Ghibelline faction took control of Genoa the members of the Guelph faction such as the Grimaldi and Fieschi families were driven into exile. One of those who had to leave was the famous ancestor of the Princely Family Lord Rainier I. Imagine what a bitter pill this must have been. The Grimaldis, even at that time, had served Genoa for generations, attaining high office as consuls and ambassadors. Now they were fugitives and their former homeland was a hostile country under enemy occupation.

However, Rainier I was not a man to shrink from danger. Along with government offices, the Grimaldi family even then had a history of being sea-faring warriors. Rainier carried on the fight as best he could. We can imagine him, wearing his red and white family colors, standing on the deck of his galley dressed in armor, clenching his sword, the wind blowing sea spray in his face as his vessel plowed through the Mediterranean. Imagine his eyes squinting against the wind, keeping a sharp eye for Genoese galleys but also, in a larger sense, looking for any opportunity to restore the fortunes of his family and gain and advantage over those who had driven him and him from his home. At times he had to accept employment from neighboring royals to stay afloat (in more ways than one) such as King Charles II of Anjou. In his service Lord Rainier gained quite a reputation for skill and daring across the Mediterranean area. Imagine it: an enemy galley is sighted, the course is changed toward it as the men below decks groan with all their strength at the oars to increase their speed. The guns thunder, the galleys collide and Rainier pulls his sword and leads his men in boarding the enemy ship, wrenching it from them in fierce hand-to-hand combat. Quite a far cry from car races, football games and roulette wheels isn’t it?

It may be hard for people today to imagine what the Mediterranean was like back then. Competing states struggled for control among themselves, fighting for a variety of reasons. Additionally, if the threat from your fellow Christians was not enough, on the southern shore of the Mediterranean Sea the Muslims ruled a vast though fragmented empire that stretched from the Atlantic ocean to Persia. Stray too far in the wrong direction and Muslim corsairs could see you and your crew killed or sold into slavery. The famous Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes, for example, was captured by an Algerian corsair in the Mediterranean and kept as a slave until he was ransomed by his family. All of these were threats that Rainier I had to deal with, the enemies of the House of Anjou he was paid to fight, the Ghibelline faction that were his own enemies, the various raiders who were out for what they could get from any quarter and the Muslim corsairs who were a threat to any Christian ship no matter what flag they sailed under. We can imagine that this environment helped make Rainier I the hardened warrior that he was. Yet, in the one portrait we have of the man, we can see a twinkle in his eye (a familiar one) suggesting a bit of bravado and a more calculating mind than that of a simple mercenary. He was always on the lookout for an opportunity to make a comeback. Eventually, that opportunity came when, thanks to the crafty attack of Francesco Grimaldi, the “Rock” of Monaco was captured for the Grimaldi family who obtained their own land which, in time, would become one of the most glamorous and successful countries in the world.

Chateau Grimaldi

Seigneur Rainier I is best known as the founding father, so to speak, of the Princely Family of Monaco. He was the first official Lord of Monaco but spent much of his time in France where, as readers of this blog will know, he became a grand-admiral of France for his contribution during the wars of King Philippe IV against England and Flanders, particularly the great naval victory in Zeeland in August of 1304 where he captured the Flemish admiral Guy de Namur whom he carried in triumph back to Paris. However, he was also, in addition to being Lord of Monaco, the Lord of Cagnes and it was as Cagnes-sur-Mer, in what is now the Alps-Maritimes department in France, that he built the formidable Chateau Grimaldi.
Standing tall and imposing on a hill overlooking the town, the castle was built from local stone with fortified walls, bastions, towers, an imposing keep all centered around a triangular courtyard. There had been fortifications on the hill going back to the Roman Empire and even the ancient Greeks before Seigneur Rainier I built his castle there in 1309. Later, during the reign of King Louis XIII, the castle was modified to be a more livable residence rather than simply a military structure. During that time the artist Genois Carlone painted the great hall of the chateau with a scene of the fall of Phaeton from Greek mythology.

Today the Chateau Grimaldi still stands, to a large extent as it was when Rainier I of Monaco built it but with a more peaceful occupation. Officially known as the Grimaldi Castle Museum it houses an impressive art collection including pieces of mostly contemporary and modern art. It is safe to say that a fighting sailor like Rainier I would be quite surprised to see his imposing fortress used to display modern art.

The Grimaldis Take Monaco

Once Monaco came under the protection of Genoa it steadily grew. The fortifications were strengthened, there was a permanent garrison that was heavily armed and documents from 1252 even mention an “old castle” and a “new castle” which would seem to imply there were two. So it was no small task when the Grimaldi clan took it upon themselves to rest Monaco from Genoese control. As we have discussed before the conflict came about as a result of the struggle in Genoa between the Guelph and Ghibelline factions. The Guelphs were driven out of Genoa and into the protecting arms of Charles d’Anjou, comte de Provence. However, despite the Ghibellines taking over Genoa and being in a seemingly strong position they had not counted on the tenacity and aggressiveness of the House of Grimaldi. They planned a surprise attack on the main fortress on The Rock at Monaco.

This operation was taken in hand, famously, by Francesco Grimaldi, also known as Francesco (or Francois) the Cunning. Others called him Francesco Malizia or “Francis the Malicious”. It was the night of January 8, 1297 -picture it. A clear, cold night on The Rock, jutting out into the sea with the roar of waves crashing at the base. Atop the rock stands an imposing castle. There is a knock at the door. A sleepy guard finally responds, looking out to see a rugged, bearded man in the hooded brown robe of a Franciscan monk. The guard asks what the man wants. He replies that he is a poor monk, simply seeking shelter for the night. The tired guard opens the door, after all, Guelph or Ghibelline, they are all Christians.

If the guard had been paying closer attention he might have noticed that the monk was not barefoot or heard a slight clinking noise of metal on metal as the man came through the door. But, it was too late -Francesco Grimaldi pulled his sword from under his robe and dropped the guard with a single blow. He pulled back his hood and waved his companions in from the door. From around the walls Guelph soldiers dashed into the fortress, including Francesco’s stepson Rainier Grimaldi, future first Seigneur de Monaco. The first Ghibelline soldiers were wiped out in minutes and through the night the Guelph soldiers fought their way through the castle. Imagine the cold dark night, the castle perched high on The Rock, the screams from within drowned out by the crashing waves. Did any soldiers fall from the battlements onto the jagged cliffs or pounding surf below? Perhaps so, perhaps not, none of the details are known to history, just the basic fact that the attack happened. By the time dawn broke The Rock, and with it all of Monaco, was in the hands of the House of Grimaldi.

That night in 1297 was the start of the modern history of Monaco as we know it and the start of Grimaldi rule which has continued, with occasional interruption, to this day. The event is commemorated throughout Monaco. A number of stamps have featured the nighttime attack or Francesco Grimaldi. A statue of the intrepid Guelph stands in front of the Princely Palace and the event is symbolically represented on the Grimaldi coat-of-arms which feature two men dressed as monks brandishing swords.

Rainier I, Lord of Monaco

Rainier I of Monaco, although not much remembered today, was quite the legend in his own lifetime, known for his daring exploits on land and sea as well as becoming the first Grimaldi sovereign of modern-day Monaco. The Grimaldi family had long been famous for their seafaring adventures. A Grimaldi had led the fleet that brought the kings of Jerusalem and Hungary to Egypt in the Fifth Crusade. Rainier was to earn much of his own swashbuckling reputation afloat as well. Rainier was born in 1267, the eldest of three sons of Lanfranco Grimaldi, French Vicar of Provence and the son of the Consul of Genoa Grimaldo Grimaldi, and Aurelia del Carretto who later married her nephew by that last marriage Francois Grimaldi. As he grew older he became a skilled naval leader in the service of King Charles II of Anjou in 1296 and the success of his galleys was so skillful that he gained a reputation throughout the Mediterranean for his dash and daring.

The following year, in 1297, Rainier went along with his stepfather and a group of armed men in taking the castle on the Rock of Monaco. This was the famous founding of Grimaldi rule over the area of modern Monaco. The men, led by Francois Grimaldi, disguised themselves as monks, concealing their sword under their long, brown robes. Requesting shelter from the Ghibellines who held the castle they were admitted and quickly sprung upon the guards, killing them and opening the way for the rest of their forces which quickly stormed in and took the castle. This was part of a long standing feud amongst the states of Italy between the Guelph and Ghibelline factions. It started out of a conflict between the Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor over who had final authority, over religious matters in particular. The Ghibellines supported the Emperor whereas the Guelphs (such as the Grimaldis) supported the Pope. The Guelph Grimaldis had been driven from Genoa by a Ghibelline victory but in 1297, in Monaco at least, they had gained the upper hand and Rainier became Lord Rainier I of Monaco.

In those days King Philippe IV of France embarked on a grand and ambitious campaign against the old enemy of England. Some might think that the Continental Blockade was the invention of Napoleon, but in fact it was a revival of the policy of Philippe IV who endeavored to forge alliances across the continent from the Baltic to Sicily to shut out English goods, turn back English merchants and hopefully leave an economically isolated England to wither on the vine. To a large extent the policy worked but the English monarch, the fierce King Edward I, was no man to trifle with and he found the weak point in the French plan which was Flanders. The policy of isolating England had effected them as well and Edward made an alliance with Count Guy of Flanders to monopolize trade between England and the continent. This quickly made other ports, especially French ports like Calais, see their profits dry up.

Another result was that the increasingly wealthy merchants were rapidly becoming power rivals for the old nobility, especially in Flanders. Philippe IV backed the lords while Edward I tended to sympathize with the merchant democrats. When the situation came to blows in 1302 the aristocrats suffered a bloody defeat and Philippe IV was obliged to go looking for help. Remembering the service he had given to Charles of Anjou and Sicily, Philippe turned to Rainier Grimaldi. An arrangement was made and soon Rainier was off the French coast with 16 armed galleys to which the King added 20 of his own though they were less well built and not as expertly manned as Rainier’s veteran craft. Rainier began training the French sailors and preparing them for battle with the English who did not have quite the same reputation for naval excellence that they would gain later. Their Dutch and Flemish allies, however, had a superb naval reputation.

The confrontation came in August of 1304 at the battle of Zierikzee. Despite being outmatched by the enemy fleet the superior training and seamanship of Rainier and his forces won the day and he earned a great victory for France even capturing the Flemish admiral Guy de Dampierre. In gratitude King Philippe IV appointed Rainier to the rank of Admiral-General of France and granted him the title to Villeneuve in Normandy. A period of peace ensued broken only by the occasional skirmish while in the Mediterranean the feud between the Guelph and Ghibelline factions went on with first one side gaining the upper hand and then the other. In 1309 Rainier established a fortified base today known as Chateau Grimaldi. This was in the town of Cagnes and thereafter Rainier was titled Lord of Cagnes. Rainier had been married twice. His first marriage was to Salvatica, the daughter of the Margrave of Final Giacomo del Carretto. By her he had four children; Charles I, Vinci Guerra (who later married Constancia Ruffa), Salvaggia (who later married Gabriel Vento) and Luca, Lord of Villefranche. Rainier’s second marriage was to Andriola Grillo but they had no children. When Admiral Rainier died in 1314 the leadership of the Grimaldi clan passed to his son, Lord Charles I.