Charles de Rohan (7 August 1693 – 25 February 1766) was a Prince of the

House of Rohan The House of Rohan ( br, Roc'han) is a Breton people, Breton family of viscounts, later dukes and princes in the French nobility, coming from the locality of Rohan (commune), Rohan in Brittany. Their line descends from the viscounts of Porhoët ...

. He was the founder of the Rochefort line of the Rohans which still continue to live today. He was styled the Prince of Rochefort as well as the Prince of Montauban.

Biography

Born in Paris to the Prince and Princess of Guéméné, he was the couples fourth child and third son. His older brother

Hercule Mériadec, Prince of Guéméné Hercule Mériadec de Rohan (13 November 1688 – 21 December 1757) was a ''prince étranger'' and the sixth Duke of Montbazon in France, "Prince de Guéméne" being the title he bore prior to inheriting the dukedom. Lineage Born to Charles de ...

was the senior male line as ''their'' older brother François Armand, Prince of Montbazon died without surviving issue to carry on the Guéméné succession. As he was the younger son, he was given the title of ''prince de Rochefort'', a title which would remain with him till his death. As a member of the

he enjoyed the prestigious rank of a ''

Foreign Prince Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * United S ...

'' in the early 17th century as the Rohans claimed their ancestry back to the

Dukes of Brittany This is a list of rulers of the Duchy of Brittany. In different epochs the sovereigns of Brittany were kings, princes, and dukes. The Breton ruler was sometimes elected, sometimes attained the position by conquest or intrigue, or by hereditary r ...

. The title of Prince of Rochefort was created a hereditary title in 1728. He married Eléonore Eugénie de Béthisy de Mézières, younger daughter of Eugène Marie de Béthisy, Marquis de Mézières, and Eléonore Oglethorpe, like her sisters, a loyal and active Jacobite, who was in turn a daughter of

Theophilus Oglethorpe Theophilus is a male given name with a range of alternative spellings. Its origin is the Greek word Θεόφιλος from θεός (God) and φιλία (love or affection) can be translated as "Love of God" or "Friend of God", i.e., it is a theoph ...

, an English soldier and MP. The couple were married on 23 September 1722 and produced four children. His eldest son, known as ''Charles Jules'', was the father of

Charlotte Louise Dorothée de Rohan Princess Charlotte Louise Dorothée de Rohan (25 October 1767 – 1 May 1841) is reputed to have been the secret wife of Louis Antoine Henri de Bourbon, Duke of Enghien, Louis de Bourbon-Condé, ''Duc d'Enghien'', an important ''prince du san ...

, secret wife of

Louis Antoine, Duke of Enghien Louis Antoine de Bourbon, Duke of Enghien (''duc d'Enghien'' pronounced ) (Louis Antoine Henri; 2 August 1772 – 21 March 1804) was a member of the House of Bourbon of France. More famous for his death than for his life, he was executed on charg ...

. Charles Jules' son Charles Louis married Marie Louise de Rohan, daughter of

Henri Louis, Prince of Guéméné Henri Louis de Rohan, Prince of Guéméné (Henri Louis Marie; 30 August 1745 – 24 April 1809), was a French courtier and the penultimate Grand Chamberlain of France. Biography Henri Louis was born in Paris, a member of the House of Rohan ...

(of the mainline) and

Victoire de Rohan Victoire Armande Josèphe de Rohan, ''Princess of Guéméné'' (28 December 1743 – 20 September 1807) was a French noblewoman and court official. She was the governess of the children of Louis XVI of France. She is known better as ''Madame de G ...

Daughter of

Charles de Rohan, Prince of Soubise Charles de Rohan (16 July 17151 July 1787), Prince of Soubise, Duke of Rohan-Rohan, Seigneur of Roberval, and Marshal of France from 1758, was a soldier, and minister to kings Louis XV and Louis XVI. He was the last male of his branch of the ...

and Princess Anne Therese of Savoy (of the middle line). Charles' descendants also claim the

Duchy of Bouillon The Duchy of Bouillon (french: Duché de Bouillon) was a duchy comprising Bouillon and adjacent towns and villages in present-day Belgium. The state originated in the 10th century as property of the Lords of Bouillon, owners of Bouillon Castle. ...

through the marriage of Charles Louis and Marie Louise. His only daughter, known as Louise, was the wife of the Prince of Brionne, a Prince of Lorraine. Through their daughter Joséphine, who married the

Prince of Carignano The House of Savoy-Carignano ( it, Savoia-Carignano; french: Savoie-Carignan) originated as a cadet branch of the House of Savoy. It was founded by Thomas Francis of Savoy, Prince of Carignano (1596–1656), an Italian military commander who was t ...

, the present

House of Savoy The House of Savoy ( it, Casa Savoia) was a royal dynasty that was established in 1003 in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, the family grew in power from ruling a small Alpine county north-west of Italy to absolute rule of ...

are direct descendants of Charles and his wife. Charles died at the age of sixty nine. He was succeeded as head of the Rochefort line by his son, Charles Jules.

Issue

*Éléonore Louise Constance de Rohan, Mademoiselle de Rochefort (15 January 1728 – 1792) married Jean de Merode, son of Jean Philippe de Merode had issue (a daughter who had no further children); * Charles Jules Armand de Rohan, Prince of Rochefort and of Montauban (29 August 1729 – 18 May 1811) married Marie Henriette Charlotte d'Orléans-Rothelin and had issue; * Louise Julie Constance de Rohan (28 March 1734 – 20 March 1815) married Louis de Lorraine, Prince of Brionne and had issue; *Eugène Hercule Camille de Rohan (6 April 1737 – 1816) never married.

References and notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Charles Of Rochefort Princes of Rochefort French Roman Catholics 1693 births 1727 deaths House of Rohan 17th-century French people 18th-century French people French nobility