Burgundian Gendarmerie

Timeline

1. 1430–1467Dijon and the Burgundian court · DijonThe Duchy of Burgundy followed the French gendarmes d'ordonnance system, maintaining standing heavy cavalry of armored knights under contract, equipped with quality horses, lances, and full plate armor; Philip the Good and Charles the Bold further expanded its scale and introduced artillery, crossbowmen, and infantry cooperation in an attempt to establish an independent power.
2. 1471–1476Swiss border and Lorraine · Swiss borderAfter Charles the Bold's accession, heavy cavalry numbered over a thousand lances, supported by Swiss and German mercenary infantry, artillery, and crossbowmen; in the 1474-1476 wars against Switzerland and Lorraine, after defeat at Granson he attacked again at Murten, where heavy cavalry could not deploy charges in muddy terrain under pike firepower and suffered heavy losses.
3. 1477Nancy · NancyAt the Battle of Nancy in 1477, Burgundian heavy cavalry was again routed before the Swiss-Lorraine alliance, Charles the Bold was killed, and the duchy's military system collapsed; the battle proved that heavy cavalry charges alone could not match well-organized infantry squares and mixed firepower, pushing European armies toward combined infantry-cavalry-artillery operations.