Louis Charles d'Albert, 2nd

Duke of Luynes The Duke of Luynes (french: duc de Luynes ) is a territorial name belonging to the noble French house d'Albert. Luynes is, today, a commune of the Indre-et-Loire ''département'' in France. The family of Albert, which sprang from Thomas Alberti ( ...

(25 December 1620 – 10 October 1690), was a French nobleman and

peer of 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 ...

. He was a translator and moralist who was the first translator of the work of

René Descartes René Descartes ( or ; ; Latinized: Renatus Cartesius; 31 March 1596 – 11 February 1650) was a French philosopher, scientist, and mathematician, widely considered a seminal figure in the emergence of modern philosophy and science. Mathem ...

Early life

Blason Louis Charles d'Albert (1620-1690) alt

Louis-Charles d'Albert was born 25 December 1620 in the Louvre. He was a son of Charles d'Albert, 1st Duke of Luynes, a favorite of

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 Princess Marie Aimée de Rohan, Mademoiselle de Montbazon (1600–1679). After his father's death, his mother remarried to Claude of Lorraine, Duke of Chevreuse (a son of

Henry I, Duke of Guise Henry I, Prince of Joinville, Duke of Guise, Count of Eu (31 December 1550 – 23 December 1588), sometimes called ('Scarface'), was the eldest son of Francis, Duke of Guise, and Anna d'Este. His maternal grandparents were Ercole II d'Este, Du ...

), with whom she had three daughters. Upon Claude's death in 1655, the Chevreuse peerage became extinct and his mother bought the duchy. After her death in August 1679, Louis Charles inherited the duchy of Chevreuse, and his descendants have held it since. His maternal grandparents were Hercules de Rohan, Duke of Montbazon and, his first wife, Marie de Bretagne d'Avaugour. His paternal grandparents were Anne de Rodulf and Honoré d'Albert (1540–1592), ''

seigneur ''Seigneur'' is an originally feudal title in France before the Revolution, in New France and British North America until 1854, and in the Channel Islands to this day. A seigneur refers to the person or collective who owned a ''seigneurie'' (or ...

'' of Luynes (in today's ''département''

Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and large ...

Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...

), who was in the service of the three last Valois kings and of

Henry IV of France 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 ...

. His paternal uncle was Honoré d'Albert,

Duke of Chaulnes The title of Duke of Chaulnes (french: duc de Chaulnes), a French peerage, is held by the d'Albert family beginning in 1621. History First creation (1621–1698) The duchy of Chaulnes was established by letters patent in January 1621 and regi ...

Career

Luynes was received in Parliament as a

on 24 November 1639, provided on 6 January 1643 with the office of Grand Falconer and received knight of the king's orders on 31 December 1661. At the

Château de Vaumurier A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. Nowaday ...

, which he had built in the immediate vicinity of the abbey of

Port-Royal-des-Champs Port-Royal-des-Champs was an abbey of Cistercian nuns in Magny-les-Hameaux, in the Vallée de Chevreuse southwest of Paris that launched a number of culturally important institutions. History The abbey was established in 1204, but became fa ...

, he lived closely with the

Solitaires of Port-Royal During the 17th century, the Solitaires were Frenchmen who chose to live a humble and ascetic life in retreat at Port-Royal-des-Champs. One of the most typical movements of 17th century France, it was closely linked to Jansenism. Often from nob ...

, welcoming

Blaise Pascal Blaise Pascal ( , , ; ; 19 June 1623 – 19 August 1662) was a French mathematician, physicist, inventor, philosopher, and Catholic Church, Catholic writer. He was a child prodigy who was educated by his father, a tax collector in Rouen. Pa ...

and the young playwright

Jean Racine Jean-Baptiste Racine ( , ) (; 22 December 163921 April 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the three great playwrights of 17th-century France, along with Molière and Corneille as well as an important literary figure in the Western traditio ...

, and participating in many of the intellectual works of the scholars "Messieurs de Port-Royal", including the translation of the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

. In 1647, he translated into French

' '' Méditations Métaphysiques'', with Descartes' supervision. He also and wrote several works on morality and piety. As

Mestre de camp Mestre de camp or Maître de camp (; "camp-master") was a military rank in the Ancien Régime of France, equivalent to colonel. A mestre de camp commanded a regiment and was under the authority of a Colonel General, who commanded all the regiment ...

(equivalent to colonel), he distinguished himself at the head of his regiment attacked by the Spaniards in front of Arras on August 2, 1640 as well as on several other occasions.

Personal life

On 23 September 1641, Louis Charles married Louise Marie Séguier, Marquise of O (1629–1651), a relative of

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

Pierre Séguier Pierre Séguier (; 28 May 1588 – 28 January 1672) was a French statesman, chancellor of France from 1635. Biography Early years Séguier was born in Paris to a prominent legal family originating in Quercy. His grandfather, Pierre Séguier (15 ...

. Together, they were the parents of six children: # Hercule Louis d'Albert (1644–1645), who died young. # Marie Louise d'Albert (1645–1728) # Charles Honoré d'Albert, 3rd Duke of Luynes (1646–1712), who married Jeanne Marie Colbert, the daughter of French statesman

Jean-Baptiste Colbert Jean-Baptiste Colbert (; 29 August 1619 – 6 September 1683) was a French statesman who served as First Minister of State from 1661 until his death in 1683 under the rule of King Louis XIV. His lasting impact on the organization of the countr ...

, who served as First Minister of State from 1661 until 1683 under

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 ...

. # Henriette Thérèse d'Albert (1647–1699) # Thérèse d'Albert (b. 1651) # Félix Paul d'Albert (b. 1651) After the death of his first wife, he married his aunt Princess Anne de Rohan-Montbazon (1640–1684) on 4 September 1661. She was the younger half-sister of his mother from his grandfather's second marriage to Madeleine de Lenoncourt. Together, they were the parents of: # Françoise Paule Charlotte d'Albert (1662–1670), who died young. # Marie Anne d'Albert (1663–1679), who married her second cousin,

Charles III, Prince of Guéméné Charles de Rohan (30 September 1655 – 10 October 1727) was a French nobleman. His primary title was Duke of Montbazon, and before acceding to that title he was known by his other title, prince de Guéméné. He was the son of Charles de Roh ...

. # Marie Charlotte Victoire d'Albert (1667–1701), who married Alexandre Albert François Bathélemy, 4th Duke and 2nd Prince of Bournonville. # Catherine Angélique d'Albert (1668–1746), who married Charles Antoine II Gouffier, Marquis of Heilly. #

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 ...

, comtesse de Verrue (1670–1736), who married Giuseppe Ignazio Scaglia, Conte di Verua; today she is best known as the mistress of

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

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 ...

. # Louis-Joseph d'Albert de Luynes, 3rd Prince of Grimberghen (1672–1758), who married Magdeleine Marie de Berghes. * Charles-Hercule d'Albert de Luynes,

Duke of Chevreuse Duke of Chevreuse ( French ''Duc de Chevreuse'') was a French title of nobility, elevated from the barony of Chevreuse in 1545. Originally created for Jean de Brosse, Duc d'Étampes, it was transferred in 1555 to Charles of Guise, the Cardinal of L ...

(1674–1734) * Jeanne Thérèse d'Albert de Luynes (1675–1756) After Anne's death in 1684, he married, thirdly, to Marguerite d'Aligre (1641–1722) on 23 July 1685. The Duke died on 10 October 1690 in Paris. After his death, his body was transported and buried in the church of the Luynes hospital that he had founded. His widow died on 26 September 1722.

References

External links

Maison d'Albert de Luynes
at www.europeanheraldry.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Luynes, Louis-Charles d'Albert, Duke of 1620 births 1690 deaths Louis-Charles Louis-Charles Peers of France French hunters Dukes of France