Philip V the Tall (French: Philippe le Long), was King of France and King of Navarre (as Philip II). He reigned from 1316 to his death and was the penultimate monarch of the main line of the House of Capet. As the second son of king Philip IV, he was entitled to an appanage, the County of Poitiers, while his elder brother, Louis X, inherited the throne in 1314. When Louis died in 1316, he left a daughter and a pregnant wife, Clementia of Hungary. Philip the Tall successfully claimed the regency. Queen Clementia gave birth to a boy, who was proclaimed king as John I, but the infant king lived only for five days. At the death of his nephew, Philip immediately had himself crowned at Reims. However, his legitimacy was challenged by the party of Louis X’s daughter Joan. Philip V successfully contested her claims for a number of reasons, including her youth, doubts regarding her paternity (her mother was involved in the Tour de Nesle Affair), and the Estates General's determination that women should be excluded from the line of succession to the French throne. The succession of Philip, instead of Joan, set the precedent for the French royal succession that would be famously known as the Salic law. Philip V restored somewhat good relations with the County of Flanders, which had entered into open rebellion during his father’s rule, but simultaneously his relations with Edward II of England worsened as the English king, who was also Duke of Guyenne, initially refused to pay him homage. A spontaneous popular crusade started in Normandy in 1320 aiming to liberate Iberia from the Moors. Instead the angry populace marched to the south attacking castles, royal officials, priests, lepers, and Jews. Philip V engaged in a series of domestic reforms intended to improve the management of the kingdom. These reforms included the creation of an independent Court of Finances, the standardization of weights and measures, and the establishment of a single currency. Philip V died from dysentery in 1322 without a male heir and was succeeded by his younger brother Charles IV. |
Reigned as | In Country | From | To | Coins Issued | |
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Philippe V le Long (King Philip V the Tall) | France, Kingdom of | 20 November 1316 | 3 January 1322 | ||
King Philip II | Navarre | 20 November 1316 | 3 January 1322 |
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