Silver gros tournois. Diameter 25mm, 4.00gm. + PhILIPVS· REX small cross in centre.  R. TVRONV·S· CIVIS  Chatel tournois, Round O, pellets before and after S   Duplessy 202A.  Hard green verdigris patches on the obverse, otherwise Good Very Fine and better for the issue.

Philip III was born in Poissy in 1245, the second son of King Louis IX of France. As a younger son, Philip was not expected to rule France, however, on the death of his older brother Louis in 1260, he became the heir apparent. His father, Louis IX, died in Tunis during the Eighth Crusade, in 1270, Philip, who was accompanying him, returned to France and was anointed king at Reims in 1271.

During his reign, Philip inherited numerous territorial lands, including the County of Toulouse. With the Treaty of Orléans, he expanded French influence into the Kingdom of Navarre. Due to his military activities, he acquired the nickname ‘le Hardi’ the Bold.

Philip married twice, first to Isabella, daughter of James I of Aragon. After her death, he remarried in 1274, to Marie, daughter of the late Henry III, Duke of Brabant. Their third child, Margaret, married King Edward I of England on 8 September 1299.  Following the Sicilian Vespers, Philip led the Aragonese Crusade in support of his uncle. Initially successful, Philip, his army racked with sickness, was forced to retreat and he died from dysentery in Perpignan in 1285.  He was succeeded by his son Philip IV.