Highly unique and historically significant incredible rarity from the Age of the Hundred Years' War - Charter in the name of HENRY VI, King of France and England for the restitution of property to Miss Massime de Cochefilet, daughter of Jehan de Cochefilet, lord of la Pellonière in Perche. Given in Rouen on September 20, 1437 and signed by the King's counselor J. Leclerc,

During the reign of Henri VI as King of France and England, there were indeed numerous charters, treaties, and legal documents issued. These documents often pertained to matters such as land ownership, inheritance, feudal rights, and other legal affairs. This particular document issued under the name of Henry VI as King of France and England is a remarkable piece of history, representing a fascinating intersection of English and French royal legacies. It is treasured not only for its historical value but also for its rarity and the unique insights it provides into a turbulent era of European history.

This specific charter housed in archival records on page 323 of the 1883 edition of the "Société historique et archéologique de l'Orne."

Below is translation from French:

“Alongside acts of loyalty, there were failures: on September 20, 1437, Massime de Cochefilet obtained from the King of England the lands of Pin and Pelonnière, left by her father upon his death, due to his faithful services. When peace was restored, around 1470, the lord of Landres was Geoffroy de Ciray, son of a bourgeois from Mauves, who had made his fortune supplying men-at-arms for Charles VII and had bought this land when knights were selling theirs to pay their ransoms. How many lands then changed hands, how many valiant defenders fell without leaving descendants to continue their name! If the misfortunes of the Hundred Years' War reduced the population of the region, it recovered from the crisis, since, around 1480, we find all the fiefs inhabited and from then they continued to subdivide until the small size of the parcels forced the holders to part with them.”

Size: 14" x 8" (34 cm x 21 cm)

Massine (Marguerite) de Cochefilet daughter of Jehan de Cochefilet seigneur de La Pelloniere (Perche) and Margaurite Loue married about 1425 to Robert (Robin) du Grenier who was an owner of Boiscorde from 1457 and the owner of the manor of La Pellonière in Pin la Garenne.

Jean le Clerc, Chancellor of France during the reign of Charles VI, King of France, and at the beginning of Henry VI, once King of France and England. He wasthe first president of the Parliament Court in Paris from 1420, as witnessed by Monstrelet. His coat of arms was azure with three silver swans, membered and beaked in gules. He served during a particularly transformative period in French history, spanning the latter part of the Hundred Years' War and the beginning of the consolidation of royal power in France. His responsibilities would have included collecting revenues, funding military campaigns, and contributing to the economic strategies that supported the monarch's objectives in strengthening the centralized state. Serving two consecutive monarchs suggests that he was highly trusted and proficient in his duties, aligning with the interests of the crown during a time of national recovery and consolidation.

Henry VI (6 December 1421 – 21 May 1471) was King of England from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. First of the English sovereigns to bear the title of “King of France” by invoking rights affirmed by the Treaty of Troyes of 1420 and legitimized by the Parliament of Paris; only sacred sovereign in France, but at Notre-Dame de Paris to respond to the coronation of Charles VII in Reims. Only nine months old when his father died, Henry VI was long kept aside by the regent of France, Bedford, and the regent of England, Gloucester. His reign was marked by the collapse of continental mirages, established with the loss of Normandy (1450) and Guyenne (1453). Henry VI was Duke of Aquitaine from 1422 to 1453, under the terms of the Treaty of Troyes concluded in 1420 by his father, King Henry V of England, with his maternal grandfather, King Charles VI of France. However, he refused to pay homage and claimed the throne of France as a descendant of a daughter of King Philip the Fair. Additionally, in the very first months of his life before his accession to the throne of England, he held the title of Duke of Cornwall, which is associated with the heir to the crown. His external defeats, his weakness of character, the periodic madness which struck him from 1455, his keener interest in scholarship and religious life than in temporal affairs all contributed to undermining his authority: Parliament, but also the great vassals benefit from it. A prisoner of clans seeking to annex him, he gradually abdicated all real power and, despite the death of Richard of York in 1460, actually lost the crown, in 1461, to Edward IV. Defended in spite of himself by legitimists, numerous in the North and favored by Scottish friendship, he was captured in 1464 and in fact recognized the loss of his throne. The energy of his wife, Marguerite of Anjou, and the liveliness of the rivalries returned him to power in October 1470, but Edward IV captured him again the following year and probably had him assassinated. These dynastic quarrels, where the white rose of the Yorks and the red rose of the Lancastrians oppose each other (hence the nom de guerre of the Two Roses), complete the ruin of the work of restoration of the first sovereigns of the Lancastrian dynasty. Henry VI, whom some contemporaries considered a saint, was the victim of unpopularity which was hardly tempered by the relative prosperity of the kingdom.

Documents issued in the name of Henry VI, King of France and England, are indeed highly unique and historically significant for several reasons:

1. **Dual Monarchy Context**: Henry VI’s unique position as King of both England and France (1422-1453 in England and nominally 1422-1453 in France) makes any documents issued during his reign particularly interesting. His claim to the French throne was contested and represented a major international and dynastic conflict during the Hundred Years' War. Documents relating to his rule over both realms are thus rarer and embody the complexities of medieval European politics.

2. **Historical Significance**: Documents from Henry VI’s reign encapsulate a period of intense conflict and change, including the ongoing struggles of the Hundred Years' War and the internal strife of the Wars of the Roses in England. Any document from this period offers insights into the governance, diplomatic relations, and legal disputes of the time.

3. **Content and Provenance**: The content of the documents can also add to their uniqueness. Decrees, letters, treaties, or other types of official correspondence that reflect significant historical events or decisions are particularly valued. The provenance, or history of ownership, can also enhance the document's uniqueness, especially if it has a well-documented lineage or was previously owned by notable historical figures.

Overall, any document issued under the name of Henry VI as King of France and England is a remarkable piece of history, representing a fascinating intersection of English and French royal legacies. Such documents are treasured not only for their historical value but also for their rarity and the unique insights they provide into a turbulent era of European history.