Sept/Oct 1503

The affairs of a house go on, even when the master is away. The Duke of Nemours had been away in Italy for the better part of the last three years, campaigning for the glory of France. Yet, the House of Armagnac was not idle. A marriage between Marguerite and the recently widowed Pierre de Rohan had come, yet tragically the young Marguerite had died, struck by a sudden illness. This unexpected tragedy had taken some time to reach Louis in Italy; the duke had taken the news hard, for he had seen little of his sisters since had left on campaign. The news had made those three years feel like decades. He mourned in his own way, trying his best to place energy in the training of his men and the organization of his camp. He thought of his other sister, Charlotte, who remained unmarried. While he was hopeful that his own marriage would be fruitful, he could not hope but notice that they were the last of their bloodline. The door with Rohan had been opened, and perhaps it was best to walk through the open door than than to find another.

Couriers had been sent back to Brittany that the ties between Armagnac and Rohan could yet be preserved. With the Duke's suggestion and blessing, Charlotte would marry Pierre's son Charles. The offer had come quickly, for a dispatch from Italy, and the suggestion would ensure that any concerns over a dowry would not need to be settled further. Lord Pierre did not feel he was in a position to refuse a match, even if it were for his son rather than himself.

The news reached Charlotte in the Chateaux Nemours with surprise as much as anticipation. Such marriages were often political rather than romantic, though Charlotte breathed a sigh of relief that she would be married to a man closer to her in age. The members of the House of Rohan received Charlotte with great sympathy, and the Bretons ensured that her days would not be colored by the recent death to the best of their ability.