LEWIS XI

son of King Charles VII, king of France in Shakespeare's Henry VI, Part 3. A cunning politician, Lewis abandons the traditions of feudal loyalty and tries to balance his long-promised support for the Lancastrians under Queen Margaret with a prudent regard for the newly crowned Yorkist king, Edward IV, who agrees to wed his sister. When his plans are thwarted, Lewis changes sides again and forms an alliance with the earl of Warwick to reinstate Henry VI.