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Charles Pierre Claret, comte de Fleurieu (2 July 1738,
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of th ...
– 18 August 1810) was a French Navy officer,
explorer Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...
,
hydrographer Hydrography is the branch of applied sciences which deals with the measurement and description of the physical features of oceans, seas, coastal areas, lakes and rivers, as well as with the prediction of their change over time, for the primary ...
and politician. He served as Minister of the Navy under
Louis XVI Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was e ...
, and was a member of the
Institut de France The (; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the Académie Française. It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institut ...
. He was brother to botanist Marc Antoine Louis Claret de La Tourrette.


Life


Ancien Regime

Fleurieu was born in
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of th ...
. He joined the Navy on 31 October 1755 at
Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
as a
Garde-marine In France, under the Ancien Régime, the Gardes de la Marine (Guards of the Navy), or Gardes-Marine were young gentlemen undergoing training to be naval officers. The training program was established by Cardinal Richelieu in 1670 and lasted until Ad ...
, aged just 13 and a half. He subsequently took part in the campaigns of the
Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754– ...
— which ended in 1763— participating in the battles of Mahon,
Lagos Lagos ( Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 f ...
, and Les Sablettes and rising to brigadier in the ''gardes de la marine'' company, and then '' enseigne de vaisseau''. In suggesting de Fleurieu's promotion to ensign, on 23 March 1762, the Minister wrote to the king: On 1 July 1765 he was made Enseigne de port, and on 27 July he went to Paris to study
horology Horology (; related to Latin '; ; , interfix ''-o-'', and suffix ''-logy''), . is the study of the measurement of time. Clocks, watches, clockwork, sundials, hourglasses, clepsydras, timers, time recorders, marine chronometers, and atomic cl ...
with Ferdinand Berthoud. He took part in a one-year sea campaign to test Berthoud's first
marine chronometer A marine chronometer is a precision timepiece that is carried on a ship and employed in the determination of the ship's position by celestial navigation. It is used to determine longitude by comparing Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), or in the mode ...
, in an attempt to beat Britain in the race to find a reliable way to calculate
longitude Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east– west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek lette ...
. The chronometers he thus refined with Ferdinand Berthoud for their later experiments were the object of major struggles with the king's horologer, Pierre Le Roy. Finally Claret de Fleurieu and Berthoud were entrusted with the task, setting out on the testing expedition from autumn 1768 to 11 October 1769 on the corvette ''Isis'' under Fleurieu's command. The chronometers almost invariably indicated the hour as accurately after the ship had left port, as if they were still on land. Knowing the actual local time at each present location by astronomy, they could easily determine the ship's exact position and longitude on a chart. The results of their observations was published in 1773 under the title ''Voyage fait par ordre du roi, pour éprouver les horloges marines'' ("Voyage made by order of the king, to test marine chronometers"). We can also cite among his major works ''le Neptune du Nord'' or ''l'Atlas du Cattegat et de la Baltique'', an
atlas An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of maps of Earth or of a region of Earth. Atlases have traditionally been bound into book form, but today many atlases are in multimedia formats. In addition to presenting geographi ...
of the
Kattegat The Kattegat (; sv, Kattegatt ) is a sea area bounded by the Jutlandic peninsula in the west, the Danish Straits islands of Denmark and the Baltic Sea to the south and the provinces of Bohuslän, Västergötland, Halland and Skåne in Swede ...
and the
Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and ...
that took him 25 years. Made '' lieutenant de vaisseau'' on 1 October 1773, then deputy inspector of naval charts and plans, he also became deputy inspector of the
naval academy A naval academy provides education for prospective naval officers. See also * Military academy A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps. It normally pro ...
on 15 May 1776. He was presented to the king and named ''capitaine de vaisseau'' on 5 December 1776 and soon afterwards director of ports and arsenals in January 1777, a post heading the fleet's organization of matériel, works and movements created specially for him by
Louis XVI Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was e ...
and one he held for 15 years. In it he directed nearly all planning for naval operations in the 1778-83 war against England as part of France's involvement in the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
, as well as all the French voyages of discovery such as that of La Pérouse.


French Revolution

The king made him '' Ministre de la Marine et des Colonies'' on 26 October 1790. He and the king wanted to separate the naval and colonial ministries, but the
Assemblée nationale The National Assembly (french: link=no, italics=set, Assemblée nationale; ) is the lower house of the bicameral French Parliament under the Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate (). The National Assembly's legislators are known a ...
thought otherwise, and he resigned on 15 April 1791. Later that year he was made guardian of the Dauphin, later
Louis XVII Louis XVII (born Louis Charles, Duke of Normandy; 27 March 1785 – 8 June 1795) was the younger son of King Louis XVI of France and Queen Marie Antoinette. His older brother, Louis Joseph, Dauphin of France, died in June 1789, a little over a ...
. He remained in the
Tuileries The Tuileries Palace (french: Palais des Tuileries, ) was a royal and imperial palace in Paris which stood on the right bank of the River Seine, directly in front of the Louvre. It was the usual Parisian residence of most French monarchs, f ...
on 10 August 1792, in support of Louis XVI right up until the critical point, but fortunately for him the revolutionaries did not discover this. In the midst of the
Reign of Terror The Reign of Terror (french: link=no, la Terreur) was a period of the French Revolution when, following the creation of the First French Republic, First Republic, a series of massacres and numerous public Capital punishment, executions took pl ...
, in September 1793, Charles Pierre was arrested due to a letter of recommendation Louis XVI had sent to the Assemblée nationale, published in the '' Universal Monitor'' on 17 April 1791, in which he first demanded Charles' nomination as the Dauphin's governor. He remained imprisoned with his wife in the Madelonnettes for 14 months; they were finally released to find their homes, furniture, lands and resources dispersed and destroyed. A letter to the ''section des piques'' in the prison. discovered in
Robespierre Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre (; 6 May 1758 – 28 July 1794) was a French lawyer and statesman who became one of the best-known, influential and controversial figures of the French Revolution. As a member of the Est ...
's house. speaks of a first arrest, which may suggest Charles was arrested several times and transferred from prison to prison. After the fall of Robespierre he was made a member of the
Bureau des longitudes Bureau ( ) may refer to: Agencies and organizations *Government agency *Public administration * News bureau, an office for gathering or distributing news, generally for a given geographical location * Bureau (European Parliament), the administra ...
and of the Institut after M. de Bougainville's resignation in 1795. In 1797 (year V) he was elected deputy for the Seine in the
Council of Ancients The Council of Ancients or Council of Elders (french: Conseil des Anciens) was the upper house of the French legislature under the Constitution of the Year III, during the period commonly known as the Directory (French: ''Directoire''), fro ...
under the name Claret-Fleurieu. He remained so until the
coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...
of
18 Fructidor The Coup of 18 Fructidor, Year V (4 September 1797 in the French Republican Calendar), was a seizure of power in France by members of the Directory, the government of the French First Republic, with support from the French military. The coup wa ...
when he was excluded from the Council. He was elected a member of the Conseil d'État on 24 December 1799.


First French Empire

On 30 September 1800, as
Minister Plenipotentiary An envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary, usually known as a minister, was a diplomatic head of mission who was ranked below ambassador. A diplomatic mission headed by an envoy was known as a legation rather than an embassy. Under the ...
, he signed a treaty of friendship and commerce between France and the United States at Morfontaine, alongside
Joseph Bonaparte it, Giuseppe-Napoleone Buonaparte es, José Napoleón Bonaparte , house = Bonaparte , father = Carlo Buonaparte , mother = Letizia Ramolino , birth_date = 7 January 1768 , birth_place = Corte, Corsica, Republic of ...
. A member of the
Council of State A Council of State is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head ...
in 1800, he presided over its naval section and was interim Minister of the Navy several times during 1803 and 1804. He was named Quartermaster General of the emperor
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...
's household and of the Imperial
civil list A civil list is a list of individuals to whom money is paid by the government, typically for service to the state or as honorary pensions. It is a term especially associated with the United Kingdom and its former colonies of Canada, India, New Zeal ...
on 10 July 1804. On 24 July 1805 he was elected a member of the
Sénat conservateur The (from French: "Conservative Senate") was an advisory body established in France during the Consulate following the French Revolution. It was established in 1799 under the Constitution of the Year VIII following the Napoleon Bonaparte-l ...
and made a Grand Officer of the
Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...
. On 1 August 1805, he was made Governor of the
Tuileries The Tuileries Palace (french: Palais des Tuileries, ) was a royal and imperial palace in Paris which stood on the right bank of the River Seine, directly in front of the Louvre. It was the usual Parisian residence of most French monarchs, f ...
and the
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the '' Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central ...
, taking the oath before the Emperor on 8 September that year. On 2 February 1806 he was elected one of the seven senators who composed the Council of Administration within the Senate for that year. In 1808 he was made Councilor of State for life and an
Imperial Count Imperial Count (german: Reichsgraf) was a title in the Holy Roman Empire. In the medieval era, it was used exclusively to designate the holder of an imperial county, that is, a fief held directly ( immediately) from the emperor, rather than from ...
. On 7 September of that same year, Napoleon put him in charge of the investigation into the French defeat at the
Battle of Trafalgar The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval engagement between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies during the War of the Third Coalition (August–December 1805) of the Napoleonic Wars (1 ...
. He died in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
from a devastating
cerebral hemorrhage Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as cerebral bleed, intraparenchymal bleed, and hemorrhagic stroke, or haemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into the tissues of the brain, into its ventricles, or into both. It is one kind of bleed ...
, a few seconds after embracing his two daughters. Napoleon rewarded his services by giving him a state funeral and having his remains transferred to the Panthéon.


Marriage and issue

At 54 he married Aglaé-Françoise Deslacs d'Arcambal; they had one son who died young, Caroline (Madame de Saint-Ouen, from whom his descendants trace their line) and a second daughter.


Works

* ''Mémoires sur la construction des navires'', 1763 ; * ''Histoire générale des navigations de tous les peuples'' ; * ''Examen critique d'un mémoire publié par Mr Leroy, horloger du roi, sur l'épreuve des horloges propres à déterminer les longitudes en mer, et sur les principes de leur construction'', London and Paris. * ''Voyage entrepris en 1768 et 1769 pour éprouver les horloges marines'' (2 vols., Paris, 1773); * ''Une carte du grand Océan Atlantique'', 1776 ; * '' Découvertes des Français en 1768 et 1769 dans le sud-est de la Nouvelle-Guinée, et reconnaissance postérieure des mêmes terres par des navigateurs anglais qui leur ont imposé de nouveaux noms ''; précédées de ''l'abrégé historique des navigations et des découvertes des Espagnols dans les mêmes parages'', Paris, 1790, with 12 maps * ''Longitude exacte des divers points des Antilles, et de l'Amérique du Nord'' (1773); * ''Les Antilles, leur flore et faune'' (1774); * ''Le Neptune Américo-septentrional'', 1780 ; * ''Découvertes des Français dans le Sud Est de la Nouvelle-Guinée en 1768 et 1769'', Paris, 1790 ; * ''Précis de l'affaire relative à la dénonciation de Fleurieu, ministre de la marine, par un commis de la marine'', Paris, 1791. * '' Voyage autour du monde par Étienne Marchand, précédé d'une introduction historique ; auquel on a joint des recherches sur les terres australes de Drake, et un examen critique de voyage de Roggeween, avec cartes et figures'', Paris, years VI-VIII, 4 vol. *
Vol I
(Archive.org) *
Vol II
(Archive.org) *
Vol III
(Archive.org) *
Vol IV
(Archive.org) * ''Le Neptune des mers du Nord'', 1794. * ''Histoire des aventuriers espagnols, qui conquérirent l'Amérique'' (1800). * '' Sous sa direction, rédaction par Rigobert Bonne du Neptune américo-septentrional, 1778-1780, et par Buache du Neptune du Cattégat et de la Baltique'', 65 f., 1809 * He also revised Jean Nicolas Demeunier's 1775 translation of ''Voyage de Phipps au pôle boréal'', and edited the ''Notes géographiques et historiques'' printed with accounts of La Pérouse's voyage. * He died before finishing his ''Histoire générale des Navigations''. He also edited the ''Voyage autour du monde'' which was written in 1790 and 1792 by Étienne Marchand, year VI (1798).


Namesakes

* the
Fleurieu Peninsula The Fleurieu Peninsula () is a peninsula in the Australian state of South Australia located south of the state capital of Adelaide. History Before British colonisation of South Australia, the western side of the peninsula was occupied by the ...
to the south of
Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
in Australia was named after him by the French explorer
Nicolas Baudin Nicolas Thomas Baudin (; 17 February 1754 – 16 September 1803) was a French explorer, cartographer, naturalist and hydrographer, most notable for his explorations in Australia and the southern Pacific. Biography Early career Born a comm ...
as he mapped the south coast of Australia in 1802. * an island (discovered in 1798 by
Matthew Flinders Captain Matthew Flinders (16 March 1774 – 19 July 1814) was a British navigator and cartographer who led the first inshore circumnavigation of mainland Australia, then called New Holland. He is also credited as being the first person to u ...
, then explored by Louis Claude de Saulces de Freycinet) at the northwest extremity of
Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...
was also named after him.


Sources

* * "M. le Comte de Fleurieu" by M. Frédéric Chassériau * Archives nationales, 2 JJ 92 à 103. – Fastes de la Légion d'Honneur. * Delambre, Notice sur la vie et les ouvrages de M. le comte de Fleurieu. – * Discours sur Fleurieu par Raillon, 1810. * Notice sur Fleurieu par Salverte, s. d. et par. Chassériau, 1856. * ''Archives biographiques françaises'', I, 403, p. 354-377 * ''Bulletin des voyages, de la géographie et de l'histoire'', N° XXXVI, p. 373, by Eusèbe Salverte -- * ''Annales des voyages, de la géographie et de l'histoire'', vol. 4 of the 3rd subscription, and 12th of the collection. Article from the bulletin signé Eusèbe Salverte. * ''Annales maritimes coloniales'', p. 85-102, by the Chevalier Delambre. Recueilli par M. Bajot. * ''Journal de l'armée navale'', journal "le moniteur", Archives nationale de la marine. * ''Biographie nouvelle des contemporains'' 787-1820de Antoine-Vincent Arnault page 170-171 * ''Dernières années du règne et de la vie de Louis XVI'', de François Hue, René Du Ménil de Maricourt, Henri de L'Epinois (p. 328-329) * ''La vie et les mémoires du général Dumouriez'', de Charles François Du Périer Dumouriez, p. 175-177. * ''Mémoires secrets pour servir à l'histoire de la dernière année du règne de Louis XVI'', d'Antoine François Bertrand de Moleville * ''Nouvelle biographie générale depuis les temps les plus reculés à nos jours'', par P. Levot * ''Mémoires inédits de madame la comtesse de Genlis pour servir à l'histoire des XVIIIème et XIXème siècles''.


External links

* *
Family site
*
His genealogy on Geneanet de samlap
{{DEFAULTSORT:Claret de Fleurieu, Charles Pierre 1738 births 1810 deaths Military personnel from Lyon French explorers French hydrographers Scientists from Lyon Members of the French Academy of Sciences Burials at the Panthéon, Paris Counts of the First French Empire Members of the Sénat conservateur Ministers of Marine and the Colonies French Navy admirals Members of the Council of Five Hundred French military personnel of the American Revolutionary War French military personnel of the Seven Years' War Grand Officiers of the Légion d'honneur