harles VIII (1470-98), King of France, succeeded in 1483 his father, Louis XI. For eight years his sister Anne practically ruled France with a strong hand, repelling foreign invaders, while giving peace and prosperity at home. Charles, however, chafed under her control, and dreamed of conquering Italy, and of expelling the Turks from Europe; but when he invaded Italy in 1495 he so alienated the people by his imprudence and thoughtlessness that they threatened to cut off his retreat. However, he gained a decisive victory at Fornova (1495). By his marriage to the heiress of the Duke of Brittany he added Brittany to France. See Cherrier’s Histoire de Charles VIII. [World Wide Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1935]

Charles VIII (of France) (1470-1498), king of France (1483-1498). He was the son of Louis XI. His sister Anne served as regent from 1483 to 1491, when he began to reign in his own right. In 1487, during Anne's regency, Charles's cousin Louis, who succeeded Charles as King Louis XII, was imprisoned for attempting to overthrow Anne and Charles. By Charles's marriage to Anne of Bretagne in 1491, that province was united to France. The chief event of his reign was his invasion of Italy in 1494 and his temporary occupation of Naples in 1495. Charles wanted to assert his reign over Naples, where his ancestors had once ruled. However, the usually divided states of Italy united to defeat him; Charles and his armies were forced to flee to France. His was the first of a series of French invasions into Italy that lasted more than five decades and introduced Italian cultural influences into France. [Microsoft Encarta 98 Encyclopedia]

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