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In 1525 during the Battle of Pavia, Charles V (1500-1558), the Holy Roman Emperor , defeated Francis I (1494-1547), King of France , taking him prisoner after the hurting of his horse by Cesare Hercolani , and confining him in Spain . This event has been called "the first major modern battle", shifting from Knight s in armour and crossbowmen to cannoneers. Hercolani, a native of Forlì , was hailed as the "victor of the battle of Pavia". Francis I also lost his general Louis De La Trémoille in this battle, who died of a wound inflicted by an Arquebus . Context The Battle of Pavia was a continuation of the Italian Wars which began in 1494. Renaissance Italy was divided into several rival states, hostage to European powers, principally France and Spain. Swiss mercenaries held the balance between two great civilizations, that of the south and that of the north. (A relic of this historic position is the continuation of the Pope's Swiss Guard down to this day.) Francis I, King Of France , in alliance with the Venetians, had achieved a hard-fought victory over the Swiss cantons at the Battle Of Marignano , near Milan, on Sept. 13-14, 1515. This fiercely-fought battle excited all Europe, was referred to as the "Battle of Giants," and represented the first serious check suffered by Swiss arms, due largely to combined arms tactics by the French and their used of large numbers of relatively modern Cannon , although the Swiss were only moved to retreat when the Venetian army arrived on their rear on the second day of the battle. In 1525, Pope Clement VII became alarmed at the control of Naples and Lombardy by Emperor Charles V . So the Pope formed an alliance with the victor at Marignano, Francis I, who returned over the Alps with a new army of 26,000 French, Italian, Swiss, and German soldiers. The campaign began brilliantly with the capture of Milan and Francis' triumphal entry. Marching on to Pavia (20 miles south of Milan), Francis dawdled in laying siege to the city. The Habsburg Emperor retaliated by sending a 23,000-man Habsburg army under Fernando Francisco De Avalos , Marchese di Pescara, to support the 6,000-man garrison in lifting the siege. The battle The attack came on the night of February 23 , 1525 . In the first assault, the Emperor's troops were routed, Francis distinguishing himself bravely. His coat-of-arms and white-plumed helmet appeared in the thickest of fighting. His faithful nobles accompanied him, among them Admiral Bonnivet . The Admiral mistakenly advised an over-confident Francis to make a rally, and they found themselves attacked from the rear. The climax and crisis of the battle came when Pescara surprised the French with 1500 Spanish arquebusiers. All of the enemy's onslaught concentrated on the French center, where Francis rode. Gathering his scattered forces as best he could, Francis tried to save the remnants of his army. His bravest officers, dismayed by the failiure of the left flank, fought their way toward their King. The bravest and noblest of France were falling. Louis De La Trémoille fell from his horse, shot through the heart. The Marechal de la Foix died at the Francis's side. Francis' horse was shot by the arquebus wielded by Cesare Hercolani , but the King fought on, hand-to-hand. The enemy was determined to kill the King. But Charles De Lannoy , Viceroy of Naples rushed forward, saving the life of the half-naked French King . Thus ended the Battle of Pavia (in which the French army was virtually annihilated), on the Emperor's birthday. His birthday gift was the person of the King of France. Spanish hegemony in Italy dates from this battle. Francis was eventually freed in 1526 through negotiations conducted by his sister, Marguerite, Queen Of Navarre . Trivia
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