Louis I of Anjou (July 23,
1339 – September 20, 1384), or Louis I of Naples, was the second
son of King John II of France and Bonne of Luxembourg.
He was the Count of Anjou (1356–1360), Duke of Anjou (1360–1384),
Count of Maine (1356–1384), Duke of Touraine (1370–1384),
and titular King of Naples and Jerusalem and Count of Provence and Forcalquier
from 1382 to 1384.
He was a member of the House of Valois-Anjou.
He was present at
the Battle of Poitiers (1356), in the battalion commanded by his brother
Charles, the Dauphin. They hardly fought and the whole group escaped
in the middle of the confrontation.
Although humiliating, their flight allowed them to avoid capture by
the English, who won the battle decisively. King John II and Louis'
younger brother Philip were not so fortunate and were captured by the
English, commanded by Edward, the Black Prince. From
1380 to 1382 Louis served as regent for his nephew, King Charles VI
of France, but left France in the latter year to claim the throne of
Naples following the death of Queen Joanna I.
She had adopted him to succeed her, as she was childless and did not
wish to leave her inheritance to any of her close relatives, whom she
considered enemies. He was also able to succeed her as count of Provence
and Forcalquier.
Despite his incoronation at Avignon as King of Naples by Antipope Clement
VII, Louis was forced to remain in France and Joan's troops were defeated
by Charles of Durazzo, her second cousin and previous heir. Joanna was
killed in her prison in San Fele in 1382; Louis, with support of the
Antipope, France, Bernabò Visconti of Milan and Amadeus VI of
Savoy, and using the money he had been able to obtain during the regency,
launched an expedition to regain the Kingdom of Naples from Charles.