The young orphan and his property were placed by the king under the guardianship of his cousin-german, Jean de la Clite, Lord of Commines, who succeeded, not without great difficulty, in preserving to his ward a small part of his patrimony—so small, indeed, that its value amounted only to the sum of 2424 livres 16 sols 6 deniers tournois. The development of the mind of young Commines was almost as utterly neglected as the management of his property; for his guardian was too much absorbed by more personal business to attend to either. His ward received the same education as, with but few exceptions, was then given to all the children of the nobility. Greek and Latin formed no part of his instruction, and bodily exercises were cultivated with far greater assiduity than mental discipline. Perhaps, however, we ought to congratulate ourselves that this was the case. Intellects like that of Commines form themselves, and advance all the faster and farther because they have no useless acquirements to forget, and no false instruction to unlearn. The sagacious and meditative mind of the future historian was likely to learn far more from the great book of the world than from all the writings of the schoolmen; and that book soon opened before him. The brilliant and splendid court of Philip the Good then rivalled those of more powerful monarchs in magnificence and lustre. Commines was summoned to this sphere of action by his godfather, who attached him to his person as one of his esquires, probably in the year 1463, and soon transferred him, in the same capacity, to the service of his son, the Count of Charolois. He was then about seventeen years of age, and his youthful inexperience was easily dazzled by two dominant qualities of his new master, self-confidence and courage, which were fated so soon to involve him in acts of presumption and temerity. Under such a prince, the opportunity of winning his spurs was not long delayed. Commines accompanied him into France at the time of the war of the Public Good (1465), fought by his side at the battle of Montlhery, and did not leave him during the whole of that eventful day—feeling less alarmed at his own danger, than astonished at the audacity of the French in resisting his master. Two years later, he entered Liege with the victorious duke, and there is every reason to believe that at this period he was dubbed a knight.