After the dramatic defeat at Pavia, Francis I was taken prisoner and taken to the monastery of San Paolo, outside Pavia. He was later transferred to the castle of Pizzighettone and, finally, to Spain, where Charles V forced him to sign the Treaty of Madrid, an agreement that sealed his freedom in exchange for the renunciation of much of his territory. Francis had to give up the Duchy of Milan, Burgundy and even his claims to the Kingdom of Naples, thus sacrificing his ambitions in Italy.
The resumption of the war
Upon his return to France, Francis I immediately denounced the terms of the agreement, as they had been imposed during his imprisonment. On May 22, 1526, the French king, determined not to resign himself to the loss of Italy, signed the League of Cognac with the Pope, Venice, Milan, and Florence, creating an alliance between the Italian states that feared the growing power of Charles V.
The war resumed with violence and Italy, once again, became the scene of devastating incursions. Rome was sacked by the imperials in May 1527, and Pavia was invaded three times between 1527 and 1528, first by the French, then by the Spanish, and finally by the French again. Despite these incursions, however, the political and military situation that had emerged with the Battle of Pavia in 1525 remained unchanged.
The Peace of the Two Ladies
The conflict seemed to have no end, but on August 5, 1529, in Cambrai, the Peace of the Two Ladies was signed. This agreement, so called because it was signed between two influential women of the time – Louise of Savoy, mother of Francis I, and Margaret of Austria, aunt of Charles V – marked a turning point: Charles V renounced Burgundy, while Francis I definitively ceded his rights to the Duchy of Milan and the Kingdom of Naples.
With the death of the Duke of Milan Francesco II Sforza in 1535, Charles V completed the work: the Duchy of Milan passed under his direct control and was donated to his son Philip of Habsburg, the future king of Spain. France, although it attempted to regain control over these lands, found itself effectively excluded.
Francis I will never resign himself to the loss of Italy. During his reign he will try two more times, without success, to retake Milan and Naples. After his death in 1547, the rivalry between France and Spain will continue between Henry II, Charles V, and the latter’s successor, Philip II.
The long dispute between the two countries culminated in the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis in 1559, which marked the end of French claims on Italy. With this agreement, France definitively renounced all claims on Italy, which passed largely under Spanish domination.
In photo: Francis I prisoner in the convent of San Paolo after the Battle of Pavia, Savoja Achille, 1842-1886, oil on cardboard, Civic Museums, Pavia
In photo: The convent of San Paolo outside Pavia, Virginia Cortese, Civic Museums, Pavia
