Bayonne
Bayonne (; eu, Baiona ; oc, label= Gascon, Baiona ; es, Bayona) is a city in Southwestern France near the Spanish border. It is a commune and one of two subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine re ...
) was a French military commander and diplomat. He served as Marshal of France from 1641, Viceroy of
Navarre
Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...
and
Béarn
The Béarn (; ; oc, Bearn or ''Biarn''; eu, Bearno or ''Biarno''; or ''Bearnia'') is one of the traditional provinces of France, located in the Pyrenees mountains and in the plain at their feet, in southwest France. Along with the three Bas ...
, and Governor of
Bayonne
Bayonne (; eu, Baiona ; oc, label= Gascon, Baiona ; es, Bayona) is a city in Southwestern France near the Spanish border. It is a commune and one of two subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine re ...
.
Life and career
Antoine de Gramont came from an old southern French noble family. His father was
Antoine II de Gramont
Antoine is a French language, French given name (from the Latin ''Antonius'' meaning 'highly praise-worthy') that is a variant of Danton (name), Danton, Titouan, D'Anton and Antonin.
The name is used in France, Switzerland, Belgium, Canada, West ...
, and his mother was Louise de Roquelaure (d. 1610), daughter of Marshal
Roquelaure
Roquelaure (; ''Ròcalaura'' in Gascon) is a commune in the Gers department in southwestern France. A type of knee-length cloak, which was worn by men in the 18th and 19th Centuries of the Common Era, is named for the commune.
Geography
Histo ...
(1544–1625). He had a younger half-brother, Philibert de Gramont, from their father's second marriage to Claude de Montmorency.
Gramont was a loyal supporter of
Richelieu
Richelieu (, ; ) may refer to:
People
* Cardinal Richelieu (Armand-Jean du Plessis, 1585–1642), Louis XIII's chief minister
* Alphonse-Louis du Plessis de Richelieu (1582–1653), French Carthusian bishop and Cardinal
* Louis François Armand ...
. It is said that he once toasted to Richelieu saying that the cardinal was more important to him than the king and the entire royal family.
Gramont took part in many battles of the Thirty Years War, was promoted to Marshal of France on 22 September 1641, and obtained the title of Duke of Gramont in 1648 for himself and his heirs. He became minister in 1653, ambassador to the Reichstag in Frankfurt am Main in 1657, and was sent to Spain in 1660 to ask the hand in marriage of Maria Theresa of Spain for Louis XIV. He died in 1678.
His memoirs (''"Mémoires du maréchal de Gramont",'' Paris 1716) were published by his son
Antoine Charles IV de Gramont
Antoine Charles IV de Gramont, ''comte de Guiche,'' 3rd ''Duke de Gramont,'' ''comte de Louvigny,'' ''Souverain de Bidache'' (1641 – 25 October 1720) was a French diplomat.
Early life
He was the youngest son of Antoine III de Gramont and Franç ...
.
In literature
As the Comte de Guiche, he is a major character in
Edmond Rostand
Edmond Eugène Alexis Rostand (, , ; 1 April 1868 – 2 December 1918) was a French poet and dramatist. He is associated with neo-romanticism and is known best for his 1897 play ''Cyrano de Bergerac''. Rostand's romantic plays contrasted with t ...
's 1897 play '' Cyrano de Bergerac'', where he is depicted at first as vain, lustful, and opportunistic. He is infatuated with Roxane, the heroine of the play, and tries to arrange her marriage to the Vicomte de Valvert as a "front" in order that he (the Count) may become her secret lover. When Cyrano kills Valvert in a duel, De Guiche becomes more open in his desires and tries to arrange his own marriage to her. After he is thwarted by Cyrano long enough for her to be able to marry her sweetheart Christian de Neuvillette, he vengefully sends both Christian and Cyrano to do battle at the 1640 Siege of Arras, in which Christian is killed. At Arras, however, de Guiche shows gallantry toward Roxane and a willingness to sacrifice his life to protect her after she arrives at the battlements. In doing this, he wins Cyrano's respect, and later becomes one of his most loyal friends. He is last seen warning Roxane of a plot to kill Cyrano - a plot which unfortunately succeeds.
Family
His younger half-brother was Philibert, comte de Gramont (1621–1707), renowned for his memoirs describing the love affairs of the English court of Charles II, edited by Antoine Hamilton.
In 1634, he married Richelieu's niece, Françoise-Marguerite du Plessis de Chivré (1608–1689).
They had four children:
* Guy Armand, comte de Guiche, (1637 – 29 November 1673, rumored lover of both Philippe I, Duke of Orléans and his wife Henrietta of England, duchess of Orleans. Predeceased his father and is thus known to history by the subsidiary title of comte de Guiche.
* Catherine-Charlotte (1639–1678), Princess of Monaco and mistress of Louis XIV of France.
* Antoine Charles (1641–1720), Viceroy of Navarre; succeeded his father as Duke of Gramont etc.
*Henriette-Catherine, married Alexandre de Canonville, marquis de Raffetot.
Royal origin
According to Count Philibert de Gramont, their father, Antoine II de Gramont, viceroy of Navarre, was assumed to be a bastard child of king Henry IV by
Diane d'Andoins
Diane d'Andoins or d'Andouins (Diane of Andoins) was born in Hagetmau in the fall of 1554, and died there in February 1621. The Countess of Guiche, and called "the beautiful Corisande", she was known for having been a royal mistress of King Henri ...
, knowns as "''La Belle Corisande''". This has been challenged by some modern historians.
Raymond Ritter
Raymond is a male given name. It was borrowed into English from French (older French spellings were Reimund and Raimund, whereas the modern English and French spellings are identical). It originated as the Germanic ᚱᚨᚷᛁᚾᛗᚢᚾᛞ ( ...
( French article) in ''Une dame de chevalerie, Corisande d'Andoins, comtesse de Guiche (A lady of chivalry, Corisande of Andoins, Countess of Guiche)'' (1959) shows that this was her son by Philibert, and her affair with the king was childless. Diane's sister-in-law, Catherine, Countess of
Lauzun
Lauzun (; Languedocien: ''Lausun'') is a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne department in south-western France. The village of Lauzun is located in the north of Lot et Garonne, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. It is separated from Périgord (Dordogne ...
la Grande Mademoiselle
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
* "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...
.
Literature
* W. H. Lewis: ''Assault on Olympus; the rise of the House of Gramont between 1604 and 1678.'' New York, Harcourt, Brace (1958)