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 ...

Duke of Montbazon The Duchy of Montbazon is the area around Montbazon, near Tours, in France. During the Ancien Régime, Montbazon became a ''seigneurie'' held by the House of Rohan in the fifteenth century; was elevated to a '' comté'' in 1557, and raised to the ...

Princes of Guéméné A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

Rochefort-en-Yvelines Rochefort-en-Yvelines is a commune in the Yvelines department, part of the Rambouillet in the Île-de-France in France.maréchal de Bois-Dauphin''. Madeleine was the widow of his elder brother, Louis VII de Rohan-Guéméné. The couple were married on 24 October 1594 and had two children. His first son Louis, was the

Prince of Guéméné Prince of Guémené is a title of French nobility associated with the fiefdom of Guémené-sur-Scorff in Brittany and held within the House of Rohan. The fiefdom was bought on 26 May 1377, for 3,400 '' sous d'or'' by Jean de Rohan, Viscount of Roha ...

and thus the head of the surviving main line of the House of Rohan; his eldest daughter,

Marie Marie may refer to: People Name * Marie (given name) * Marie (Japanese given name) * Marie (murder victim), girl who was killed in Florida after being pushed in front of a moving vehicle in 1973 * Marie (died 1759), an enslaved Cree person in Tr ...

was later a woman of great personal charm who placed herself at the center of many of the intrigues of the first half of the 17th century in France. She married

Charles d'Albert, Duke of Luynes Charles d'Albert, Duke of Luynes (, 5 August 1578 – 15 December 1621) was a French courtier and a favourite of Louis XIII. In 1619, the king made him Duke of Luynes and a Peer of France, and in 1621, Constable of France. Luynes died of sc ...

, a favourite of King

Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...

, and had issue. Hercule's first wife Madeleine died in 1602. In 1628, he married , daughter of Claude de Bretagne, Count of Vertus and Catherine Fouquet de La Varenne. His second wife was hailed as one of the most beautiful and most notorious women of her time. Hercule and Marie had three children, of whom two, François and Anne, would have progeny. François founded the

Soubise Soubise can refer to: * Soubise, a salpicon of cooked and pureed rice and onions; used primarily "au gratin". (steaks, tournedos) * Soubise sauce, based on Béchamel sauce, with the addition of a ''soubise'' of onion and rice purée * Soubise, Ch ...

line of the Rohan's and married his cousin Anne de Rohan-Chabot (later mistress of

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Vers ...

) and Anne, his youngest child married

Louis Charles d'Albert de Luynes Louis-Charles d'Albert de Luynes, 2nd Duke of Luynes (25 December 1620 – 10 October 1690), was a French nobleman and peer of France. He was a translator and moralist who was the first translator of the work of René Descartes. Early life Loui ...

, her nephew by her older sister Marie. Hercule served

Henri III Henry III (french: Henri III, né Alexandre Édouard; pl, Henryk Walezy; lt, Henrikas Valua; 19 September 1551 – 2 August 1589) was King of France from 1574 until his assassination in 1589, as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of ...

and his successor

Henri IV Henry IV (french: Henri IV; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monarc ...

against the Catholic League. He was lieutenant-general of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

and then later, the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of

Nantes Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...

; he became the latter in 1598. Henri IV made him governor of

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 ...

and the Ile-de-France. He was also the master of the hounds. Hercule was riding in the carriage with Henri IV when the king was assassinated by

François Ravaillac François Ravaillac (; 1578 – 27 May 1610) was a French Catholic zealot who assassinated King Henry IV of France in 1610. Biography Early life and education Ravaillac was born in 1578 at Angoulême of an educated family: his grandfather Fr ...

on 14 May 1610. Hercule himself was wounded in the attack. Hercule commanded the funeral procession for Henri's heart. He died at the Château de

Couziers Couziers () is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France. Population See also *Communes of the Indre-et-Loire department The following is a list of the 272 communes of the Indre-et-Loire department of France. The commu ...

eighty-six years old. He was buried at

Rochefort-en-Yvelines Rochefort-en-Yvelines is a commune in the Yvelines department, part of the Rambouillet in the Île-de-France in France.

Issue

Issue with first wife: *Louis VIII, Prince of Guéméné, Prince de Guéméné (5 August 1598 – 18 February 1667) married Anne de Rohan, heiress of Guéméné; present

Princes of Guéméné A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

descend from this line; * ''Marie'' Aimée de Rohan, Mademoiselle de Montbazon (December 1600 – 12 August 1679) married Charles d'Albert de Luynes and had issue; married again to

Claude de Lorraine, Duke of Chevreuse Claude de Lorraine (5 June 1578 – 24 January 1657), also called ''Claude de Guise'', was a French noble and husband of Marie de Rohan. He was the Duke of Chevreuse, a title which is today used by the Duke of Luynes. Biography He was the thir ...

Issue with second wife: *Marie Eléonore de Rohan (1630 – 8 April 1682) died without issue; *

François de Rohan François () is a French masculine given name and surname, equivalent to the English name Francis. People with the given name * Francis I of France, King of France (), known as "the Father and Restorer of Letters" * Francis II of France, King o ...

,

Prince of Soubise Within the French nobility, the title of "Prince of Soubise" was created in 1667 when the '' sirerie'' of Soubise, Charente-Maritime was raised to a principality for the cadet branch of the House of Rohan. The first prince was François de Rohan ...

(1630 – 24 August 1712) married Cathérine Lyonne and had no issue; married again to Anne de Rohan-Chabot, ''

Princess of Soubise Within the French nobility, the title of "Princess of Soubise" was given to the current wife of the Prince of Soubise. The title was created in 1667 when the ''sire, sirerie'' of Soubise, Charente-Maritime was raised to a principality. The first pri ...

'', and had issue; founder of the Soubise line 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 ...

; *Anne de Rohan (1644 – 29 October 1684) married

Louis Charles d'Albert de Luynes Louis-Charles d'Albert de Luynes, 2nd Duke of Luynes (25 December 1620 – 10 October 1690), was a French nobleman and peer of France. He was a translator and moralist who was the first translator of the work of René Descartes. Early life Loui ...

, mother of

Jeanne Baptiste d'Albert de Luynes Jeanne Baptiste d'Albert de Luynes, ''comtesse de Verrue'' (18 January 1670 – 18 November 1736) was a French noblewoman and the mistress of Victor Amadeus II of Sardinia. Biography The daughter of Louis Charles d'Albert, Duke of Luynes (1620 ...

, mistress of

Victor Amadeus II of Sardinia Victor Amadeus II (Vittorio Amedeo Francesco; 14 May 166631 October 1732) was Duke of Savoy from 1675 to 1730. He also held the titles of Prince of Piedmont, Duke of Montferrat, Marquis of Saluzzo and Count of Aosta, Moriana and Nice. Louis XIV ...

;

References and notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Montbazon, Hercule, Duke of French Roman Catholics 1568 births 1654 deaths Hercule 17th-century peers of France 16th-century peers of France Peers created by Henry IV of France Hercule Ancien Régime office-holders Grand Huntsmen of France