Edmond de Talleyrand-Périgord, 2nd

Duke of Talleyrand Duke of Talleyrand was a French noble title that was created in 1814 for the House of Talleyrand-Périgord. The title became extinct in 1968. Creation of the title Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord was a statesman of the end of the 18th ...

, 2nd

Duke of Dino Duke of Dino (Italian: ''Duca di Dino'') was a noble title of the Kingdom of Naples, later the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. The title referred to Dino, Calabria, the island of Dino in the Tyrrhenian Sea, off Praia a Mare in Calabria. It was crea ...

(1 August 1787 – 14 May 1872), was a French general of the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

Early life

He was born 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 ...

, the son of Archambaud de Talleyrand-Périgord (1762–1838) and Madeleine Olivier de Senozan de Viriville (1764–1794), and was the nephew of the minister

Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (, ; 2 February 1754 – 17 May 1838), 1st Prince of Benevento, then Prince of Talleyrand, was a French clergyman, politician and leading diplomat. After studying theology, he became Agent-General of the ...

(1754–1838), the 1st

Career

In 1812, Edmond also received a regiment in

Brescia Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo. ...

(north Italy) from Talleyrand, and on 19 September 1813 was promoted to

oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedish ...

. He served in the

War of the Sixth Coalition In the War of the Sixth Coalition (March 1813 – May 1814), sometimes known in Germany as the Wars of Liberation, a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Sweden, and a number of German States defeated F ...

, commanding three Chasseur regiments under major-general

Leopold Wilhelm von Dobschütz Leopold Wilhelm von Dobschütz (1 January 1763 in Brzeg, Brieg, Niederschlesien – 3 February 1836 at Gut Zölling, Landkreis Freystadt i. Niederschles., Kreis Freystadt, prev. Landkreis Sagan, Kreis Sagan, Niederschlesien) was a Prussian "general ...

(1763–1836) at the battle of Mühlberg in 1813, where he was captured. By October 1823 he had become lieutenant-general. His uncle Talleyrand sought a high position for Edmond. He could not rise in France, since

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 who ...

had banned all French heiresses from marrying outside the French nobility and since Talleyrand had fallen from favor in 1807 after his resignation as Foreign Minister. Thus, at the

Congress of Erfurt The Congress of Erfurt was the meeting between Napoleon, Emperor of the French, and Alexander I, Emperor of All Russia, from Tuesday 27 September to Friday 14 October 1808 intended to reaffirm the alliance concluded the previous year with the Tre ...

in 1808, he approached Tsar

Alexander I of Russia Alexander I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1801, the first King of Congress Poland from 1815, and the Grand Duke of Finland from 1809 to his death. He was the eldest son of Emperor Paul I and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg. The son of ...

for permission for a marriage between Edmond and

Dorothea von Biron Dorothea von Biron, Princess of Courland, Duchess of Dino, Duchess of Talleyrand and Duchess of Sagan, known as Dorothée de Courlande or Dorothée de Dino (21 August 1793 – 19 September 1862), was a Baltic German noblewoman, and the ruling Du ...

, as a reward for Talleyrand's diplomatic services. Talleyrand was certain of gaining permission from the bride's mother, since he was on friendly terms with her and since payment of her annual

apanage An appanage, or apanage (; french: apanage ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture. It was common in much o ...

was dependent on Russia.

Personal life

On 21 April 1809, Edmond married Princess Dorothea Biron von Kurland (1793–1862) in Frankfurt am Main. Though Edmond was indifferent about the match, she was from German-Baltic nobility, as the illegitimate daughter of Count Alexander Batowski and

Dorothea von Medem Countess Anna Charlotte Dorothea von Medem (3 February 1761 – 20 August 1821) was born a Gräfin (Countess) of the noble German Baltic Medem family and later became Duchess of Courland. Popularly known as Dorothea of Courland after her marria ...

though her mother's husband,

Peter von Biron Peter von Biron (15 February 1724 – 13 January 1800) was the last Duke of Courland and Semigallia, from 1769 to 1795. Life and reign Peter was born in Jelgava (german: Mitau) as the oldest son of Ernst Johann von Biron, future Duke of Courl ...

, the last

Duke of Courland The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia ( la, Ducatus Curlandiæ et Semigalliæ; german: Herzogtum Kurland und Semgallen; lv, Kurzemes un Zemgales hercogiste; lt, Kuršo ir Žiemgalos kunigaikštystė; pl, Księstwo Kurlandii i Semigalii) was ...

, who acknowledged her as his own. Edmond and his wife had children, but by 1812 their married life was over, with Dorothea having become his uncle's lover and (after his death in 1838) his sole heir. They first separated in March 1816 and their official separation from Edmond came in 1824. Their children were: *

Napoléon Louis de Talleyrand-Périgord 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 who ...

, 3rd

, Duke of Valençay (1811–1898) * Dorothée de Talleyrand-Périgord (1812–1814), who died young * Alexandre Edmond de Talleyrand-Périgord (1813–1894), who married Marie Valentine Joséphine de Sainte-Aldegonde (1820–1891) * Joséphine Pauline de Talleyrand-Périgord (1820–1890), who married

Henri de Castellane Henri Charles Louis Boniface, Marquis de Castellane (23 September 1814, Paris – 16 October 1847, château de Rochecotte) was a French politician and nobleman. Early life He was the eldest son of marshal Boniface de Castellane. Personal life H ...

(1814–1847). Talleyrand died on 14 May 1872 in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, where he had lived for the past 40 years.

References

External links

Family tree with portraits
{{DEFAULTSORT:Talleyrand 1787 births 1872 deaths

Edmond Edmond is a given name related to Edmund. Persons named Edmond include: * Edmond Canaple (1797–1876), French politician * Edmond Chehade (born 1993), Lebanese footballer * Edmond Conn (1914–1998), American farmer, businessman, and politician ...

French generals French commanders of the Napoleonic Wars 2 People of the July Monarchy People of the Second French Empire Talleyrand