Blason Famille fr de La Croix de Castries

The house of la Croix de Castries () is a French noble family from

Languedoc The Province of Languedoc (; , ; oc, Lengadòc ) is a former province of France. Most of its territory is now contained in the modern-day region of Occitanie in Southern France. Its capital city was Toulouse. It had an area of approximately ...

. The city of

Castries Castries is the capital and largest city of Saint Lucia, an island country in the Caribbean. The urban area has a population of approximately 20,000, while the eponymous district has a population of 70,000, as at May 2013. The city stretches o ...

in the Caribbean island of

Saint Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerindian ...

was named after one of its members.

History

Their heraldic shield is " azure, on a cross, or". Family tradition holds that one of the family's members was

saint Roch Roch (lived c. 1348 – 15/16 August 1376/79 (traditionally c. 1295 – 16 August 1327, also called Rock in English, is a Catholic saint, a confessor whose death is commemorated on 16 August and 9 September in Italy; he is especially invoked a ...

, the pilgrim apostle who dedicated his life to the service of the sick and plague-victims in the 13th century. The La Croix de Castries family, however, was not ennobled until the end of the 15th century, as

Nobles of the Sword The Nobles of the Sword (french: noblesse d'épée) were the noblemen of the oldest class of nobility in France dating from the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, and arguably still in existence by descent. It was originally the knightly cl ...

. It was admitted to the honours of court in 1744, 1753, 1776, and 1786.

Duc de Castries

The title of duc de Castries was conferred by brevet in 1784, with the promise that the title duc de Guines would revert to them, to Armand Charles Augustin de La Croix de Castries. Under the Bourbon Restoration, on 4 June 1817 he was re-created duc de Castries et

Pair de France The Peerage of France (french: Pairie de France) was a hereditary distinction within the French nobility which appeared in 1180 in the Middle Ages. The prestigious title and position of Peer of France (french: Pair de France, links=no) was ...

. *1784-1842 : Armand Charles Augustin de La Croix (1756–1842), first duc de Castries. *1842-1866 : Edmond Eugène Philippe Hercule de La Croix (1787–1866), second duc de Castries, son of the former. *1866-1886 : Edmond Charles Auguste de La Croix (1838–1886), third duc de Castries, nephew of the former. The ducal title, fallen into disuse due to the death of the third duke without issue, was re-created as a

courtesy title A courtesy title is a title that does not have legal significance but rather is used through custom or courtesy, particularly, in the context of nobility, the titles used by children of members of the nobility (cf. substantive title). In some co ...

in 1907 by René Edmond Marie Gabriel de La Croix de Castries (1842–1913), comte de Castries, an old diplomat belonging to a

cadet branch In history and heraldry, a cadet branch consists of the male-line descendants of a monarch's or patriarch's younger sons ( cadets). In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets— realm, title ...

of the family.

Notable members of the family

The house of Castries has included a

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 ...

, a navy minister, several

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

s and

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

s, knights knighted by the king, and masters of the royal bedchamber. By year of birth, notable members are: *

Armand Pierre de La Croix de Castries Armand refer to: People * Armand (name), list of people with this name *Armand (photographer) (1901–1963), Armenian photographer *Armand (singer) (1946–2015), Dutch protest singer *Sean Armand (born 1991), American basketball player *Armand, ...

(c. 1659-1747),

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Albi Albi (; oc, Albi ) is a commune in southern France. It is the prefecture of the Tarn department, on the river Tarn, 85 km northeast of Toulouse. Its inhabitants are called ''Albigensians'' (french: Albigeois, Albigeoise(s), oc, albig� ...

then of

Tours Tours ( , ) is one of the largest cities in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Indre-et-Loire. The Communes of France, commune of Tours had 136,463 ...

. * Jean-François de la Croix, first marquis de Castries (1663–1728), King's

lieutenant général Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

in Languedoc. *

Charles Eugène Gabriel de La Croix, marquis de Castries Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was " ...

(1727–1801), marshal of France and naval minister. * Louis Augustin de La Croix de Castries (1728–1737), knight of Malta. * Armand Charles Augustin de la Croix, duc de Castries and pair de France (1756–1842). * Eugène de la Croix, baron then comte de Castries (1790–1825). * Elisabeth de Mac-Mahon, born Elisabeth de La Croix de Castries (1834–1900), wife of

Patrice de Mac-Mahon Marie Edme Patrice Maurice de MacMahon, marquis de MacMahon, duc de Magenta (; 13 June 1808 – 17 October 1893) was a French general and politician, with the distinction of Marshal of France. He served as Chief of State of France from 1873 to 1 ...

, the second president of the

French Third Republic The French Third Republic (french: Troisième République, sometimes written as ) was the system of government adopted in France from 4 September 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed during the Franco-Prussian War, until 10 July 1940 ...

. * Henry Marie de La Croix de Castries (1850-1927) French explorer and cartograph. *

Christian de Castries Christian Marie Ferdinand de la Croix de Castries (11 August 1902 – 29 July 1991) was the French commander at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954. Biography Christian de Castries was born into a distinguished military family, the House o ...

(1902–1991), general, who commanded the defeated French army at the

Battle of Dien Bien Phu The Battle of Dien Bien Phu (french: Bataille de Diên Biên Phu ; vi, Chiến dịch Điện Biên Phủ, ) was a climactic confrontation of the First Indochina War that took place between 13 March and 7 May 1954. It was fought between the Fr ...

in 1954. * René de La Croix de Castries, marquis, called duc de Castries, (1908–1986), historian and member of the

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

. * Henri de La Croix de Castries (born 1954), president of the board of directors of

AXA Axa S.A. (styled as ''AXA'' or GIG in the Middle East) is a French multinational insurance company. The head office is in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France. It also provides investment management and other financial services. The Ax ...

External links

House of La Croix on ''www.heraldique-europeenne.org''

House of La Croix on the Armorial du pays d'Oc site

{{DEFAULTSORT:House Of Castries

History

Duc de Castries

Notable members of the family

See also

External links