Gaspard de Clermont-Tonnerre (1715-1781) Maréchal de France

Gaspard de Clermont-Tonnerre (16 August 1688 at

Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earlies ...

– 16 March 1781 at the Hôtel Matignon,

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 ...

), was a French noble, descendant of a family which traced its origins to the 12th century. His chief title was that of Marquis of Cruzy and Vauvillers, later 1st Duc de Clermont-Tonnerre, a new creation which elevated him to the Peerage of France. He was

Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

, hereditary Grand-Master of Dauphiné and

Marshal of France Marshal of France (french: Maréchal de France, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished (1 ...

. He had a successful military career in the armies of

Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (french: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reache ...

, notably at defeat of Cumberland's Anglo-Dutch-Hanoverian forces at

Battle of Fontenoy The Battle of Fontenoy was a major engagement of the War of the Austrian Succession, fought on 11 May 1745 near Tournai in modern Belgium. A French army of 50,000 under Marshal Saxe defeated a Pragmatic Army of roughly the same size, led by th ...

in 1745 alongside Marshal de Saxe. Clermont-Tonnerre led the decisive

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

charge which defeated the tenacious but ill-led allied forces. After the Battle of Lauffeld in 1747 he was named Marshal of France. Gaspard, marquis de Clermont-Tonnerre

In 1718 he had married Antoinette de Saint-Germain Novion (1685-1754). They had three children: * Jules Charles Henri, (1720–1794), 2nd Duc de Clermont-Tonnerre. * Madeleine-Louise Jeanne (1722–1769). * François Joseph (1727–1809), Marquis de Clermont-Tonnerre. He remarried in 1756 with Marguerite Pauline de Prondre. Between 1715 and 1723 the château of Vauvillers was built for him. It was his principal residence between campaigns. In later years he worked to improve the economy of his domain, opening a

forge A forge is a type of hearth used for heating metals, or the workplace (smithy) where such a hearth is located. The forge is used by the smith to heat a piece of metal to a temperature at which it becomes easier to shape by forging, or to th ...

. A new church was built in Vauvillers in 1773 and remains largely unchanged today. He was made a Chevalier of the

Order of Saint Louis The Royal and Military Order of Saint Louis (french: Ordre Royal et Militaire de Saint-Louis) is a dynastic order of chivalry founded 5 April 1693 by King Louis XIV, named after Saint Louis (King Louis IX of France). It was intended as a rewar ...

in 1717 and admitted to the

Order of the Holy Spirit The Order of the Holy Spirit (french: Ordre du Saint-Esprit; sometimes translated into English as the Order of the Holy Ghost), is a French order of chivalry founded by Henry III of France in 1578. Today, it is a dynastic order under the House of ...

in 1724. At the

coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a coronation crown, crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the ...

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 ...

in 1775, by then aged 87 and the senior living Marshal of France, Clermont-Tonnerre, served as the sword-bearer. It was on this occasion that he was named Duc de Clermont-Tonnerre and elevated to the peerage.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clermont-Tonnerre, Gaspard de Marshals of France Gaspard de 1688 births 1781 deaths Marquesses of Cruzy Marquesses of Vauvillers Knights of the Order of Saint Louis Military personnel from Dijon Peers created by Louis XVI