Forgotten Realms: The Duchy of Burgundy

The Duchy of Burgundy (in French Bourgogne) was a semi-independent fief of the French crown that sat astride the much-disputed territory between France and the states of Germany and the Holy Roman Empire. During the Middle Ages it managed to acquire power and territory that ranked it with the great states of Europe at the time. Several attempts were made at consolidating the territories into a unitary kingdom, but they never quite worked out. Burgundy was incredibly influential in the art and fashion of the age, including being the source of the hennin, the conical hat that fairy tale princesses are stereotypically depicted in.

During the Hundred Years War, the Burgundians were allied with England against France, and were responsible for the capture of the great female warrior Joan of Arc in 1430. This time period marked the apogee of Burgundian power, however. Later in the century, however, a succession crisis in the ducal family led to a lack of heirs, and the territories of the once-mighty duchy were subsumed into the surrounding French and German lands. Disputes over the disposition of the Burgundian lands continued until the 20th century, leading to countless wars directly and as an underlying cause of others.