e Court and the dynasty. The Empire disappeared in 1204-1205 when the King of France, Philip II, seized Normandy and Anjou.
Henceforth a part of the Kingdom of France, Angers becomes the "Clé du Royaume" (Key to the Kingdom) facing independent Brittany. In 1228, during Louis IX's minority, Blanche of Castile decides to fortify the city and to rebuild the castle. Later, during the 1350s and 1360s, the schools of Law, Medicine and Theology, renowned in the whole Europe, are organised in a university. In 1373, Louis I of Naples and Anjou orders the six tapestries illustrating the Apocalypse of St John known today as the Apocalypse Tapestry.
Renaissance
King René of Anjou contributed to the economic revival in a city that had been diminished by the Black Death(1347–1350) and the Hundred Years War (1337–1453). A man of great culture and generosity, René transformed Angers into a cultural and politic centre and held there a brilliant Court. He transformed the castle moat into a menagerie and built several gardens. He also founded in Angers a new Ordre du Croissant which was supposed to compete with the Order of the Golden Fleece, created several years before.
In 1474, Louis XI of France, who wants to seize Anjou, comes to Angers with his army, asking for the keys of the city. René, then 65 years old, do not want to lead a war against his nephew and surrender his domains without any fight. Thus, Anjou ceased to be an appanage and felt definitely into the Royal domain. After his dead, René is buried in 1480 in Saint-Maurice cathedral.
In 1551, Angers becomes the seat of a bailiwick and the présidial of a jurisdiction, a position the city keeps until 1790. At the same time, with the growth of Protestantism in France, a Catholic is placed at the head of the city and its castle while the bourgeoisie forms a Catholic militia to protect Angers from the Huguenots. The bishop, Gabriel Bouvery, organises on his side an
