At the death of Philip the Fair in 1314, the Capetian monarchy of France seemed to be evolving into a new professional institution staffed by efficient and loyal bureaucrats. Philip Augustus, Louis IX, and Philip the Fair had all consolidated royal power at the expense of their feudal vassals, who included the kings of England.
Soon, however, France became embroiled in a long conflict with England—the so-called Hundred Years’ War of 1337-1453—that crippled the monarchy for well over a century.
