King of Kings - by Lewis Lavoie
Panel #189
 Charles VII the Victorious
Country
 King of France
Reign
 21 October 1422 – 22 July 1461
Born
 22 February 1403
Died
 22 July 1461 (aged 58)
Wikipedia: Charles VII succeeded—partly with the aid of Joan of Arc—in driving the English from French soil and in solidifying the administration of the monarchy. Before ascending the throne he was known as the Dauphin and was regent for his father, Charles VI, from 1418.
Not until 1433 did Charles actively assume personal control of the war with England. In 1434 the Church recognized his legitimacy, and in 1435 he was officially reconciled with Philip the Good. Also by 1435 Charles had freed himself from the control of favorites, and his personal finances had been improved by his financial adviser, Jacques Coeur. Thus the period of his reign characterized by indifference, ingratitude, poverty, and fear came to an end. He began a period of vigorous personal rule characterized by intense legislative activity and close attention to the economy. He was especially concerned with sweeping governmental reforms. In 1444 Charles secured a 5-year truce with England and turned even greater attention to the rebuilding of France.
Charles's political skill was also reflected in his policies. Encouraged by the higher French clergy, who had become increasingly independent of the papacy, he issued the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges in 1438, which sharply limited papal control of the French Church. The Church in France therefore enjoyed greater freedom than any other national body of clergy, and more important to Charles, the papacy's role in French politics was severely curtailed.
But Charles's reign was not free of internal troubles. In 1437, 1440, and 1442, he suppressed internal revolts. His son (later Louis XI) participated in a number of these uprisings and was forced to take refuge with Philip the Good from 1456 until Charles's death.
By 1449 Charles had created a standing army, and in 1449-1450 this force won back Normandy for the Crown. By the end of 1453 Charles had also recovered Gascony, the strongest English possession in France, and for all practical purposes the Hundred Years War had ended. With the return of Normandy, Charles was able to survey the records of Joan of Arc's trial, and in 1456 he had her officially rehabilitated through the annulment of her sentence by the Church.
The last years of Charles's reign were spent in consolidating and strengthening royal authority. At the end of his reign, France was more stable than it had been in more than a century. Charles died on July 22, 1461, leaving a restored kingdom to his rebellious but efficient son, Louis XI.