Jean de Luxembourg, Lord of Beaurevoir, comte de Ligny, was the younger brother of Cardinal de Luxembourg, Chancellor of England.

Governor of Arras in 1414, Jean de Luxembourg waged a cruel war on the French frontiers; he delivered Senlis in 1418, was wounded at Mons-en-Vimieu (1421), made many expeditions into Picardy and Hainault, was put in charge of the siege of Guise by Bedford, in 1424, led an Anglo-Burgundian expedition against the French forts of the Argonne and ravaged the Beauvais district.

In August, 1429, at the head of an embassy, he went to Compiègne to bring the King false promises of peace. On February 20, 1430, he evacuated Peronne and formed the advance guard of Philippe le Bon, who was marching on Compiègne.

We know that the Bastard of Wandomme, who took Jeanne prisoner, served in the company of this captain: he turned Jeanne over to Jean de Luxembourg, who gave up the siege of Compiègne (which he had strategically invested with forts) thanks to the vigorous defense of captain Guillaume de Flavy. On October 26, Jean de Luxembourg had to follow the retreat of his troops, mortally wounded, and he left his artillery in de Flavy's hands. Jeanne d'Arc was kept in his castle of Beaurevoir during the month of August.

Required to give her up to the English, Luxembourg at first refused, restrained from this villainy, perhaps, by his aunt. Later on he yielded her on the demands of Pierre Cauchon, and sold her to the English for 10,000 livres; he visited her later in her cell at Rouen.

The paid protector of the towns of Picardy, Jean de Luxembourg tried to shield them from the pillaging of de Flavy and the French captains; he refused to sign the Treaty of Arras in 1435, and continued to ravage, in reprisal, the country about Soissons and Laon (in 1436, La Hire took possession of Soissons).

In 1437 we see him in agreement with Charles d'Orléans, who made him send his poursuivant d'armes, Porte Espy, from Blois in Picardy. This rough Burgundian condottiere died at the Château de Guise in 1440. The comte de Ligny is represented in the tournament of the Knights of the Torsion d'or in 1431.