John, Duke of Berry

John of Valois, the Magnificent, (November 30 1340 – March 15 1416) was Duke of Berry and Auvergne and Count of Poitiers and Montpensier. He was the third son of King John II of France and Bonne of Luxemburg; his brothers were Charles V, King of France, Louis I of Anjou, King of Naples and Philip II, Duke of Burgundy.

Upon the death of his older brother Charles V in 1380, his son and heir, Charles VI was a minor, so Berry and his brothers, along with the king's maternal uncle the Duke of Bourbon acted as regents. Following the death of Louis of Anjou in 1384, Berry and his brother Burgundy were the dominant figures in the kingdom. The king ended the regency and took power into his own hands in 1388, giving the governance of the kingdom largely to his father's former ministers, who were political enemies of the king's powerful uncles. Berry and Burgundy bided their time, and were soon able to retake power, in 1392, when the King had his first attack of insanity, an affliction which would remain with him throughout his life. The two royal dukes continued to rule until 1402, when the king, in one of his moments of lucidity, took power from them and gave it to his brother Louis, Duke of Orleans.

In his later years, John became more of a consensual figure in France. After the death of Philip of Burgundy in 1404, he was the last survivor of the sons of King John, and generally tried to play the role of a peacemaker between the factions of his nephews Orleans and John, Duke of Burgundy. After the murder of Orleans at the orders of the Duke of Burgundy, Berry generally took the Orleanist or Armagnac side in the civil war that erupted, but was always a moderate figure, attempting to reconcile the two sides and promote internal peace. It was largely due to his urging that Charles VI and his sons were not present at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. Remembering his father's fate as a captive after the Battle of Poitiers 59 years before, Berry feared the fate of France should the king and his heirs be taken captive, and successfully prevented their participation. He died a few months after the battle, which proved as disastrous as he had feared.

John of Berry was also a notable patron who among other works commissioned the most famous Book of Hours, the Très Riches Heures. His spending on his art collection severely taxed his estates, and he was deeply in debt when he died in 1416.

John of Berry had the following issue by his first wife, Joanna of Armagnac (1346–1387):

Charles of Berry, Count of Montpensier (1362–1382)
John of Berry, Count of Montpensier (1363–1402), married Princess Catherine of France, daughter of Charles V, King of France
Louis of Berry (1364–1383)
Bonne of Berry (1365–1435), married Amadeus VII of Savoy and Bernard VII, Count of Armagnac
Marie of Berry, Duchess of Auvergne (1367–1434), married: 1) Louis III of Châtillon, 2) Philip of Artois, Count of Eu; 3) John I, Duke of Bourbon