Louis de Brézé, Seigneur d'Anet and Comte de Maulevrier (died 23 July 1531) was a French nobleman, the grandson of

King Charles VII of France Charles VII (22 February 1403 – 22 July 1461), called the Victorious (french: le Victorieux) or the Well-Served (), was King of France from 1422 to his death in 1461. In the midst of the Hundred Years' War, Charles VII inherited the throne of ...

by his natural daughter with his mistress

Agnès Sorel Agnès Sorel (; 1422 – 9 February 1450), known by the sobriquet ''Dame de beauté'' (Lady of Beauty), was a favourite and chief mistress of King Charles VII of France, by whom she bore four daughters. She is considered the first officially r ...

Early life

Louis was the son of Jacques de Brézé,

Sénéchal Senechal or Sénéchal may refer to: People * Florian Sénéchal Florian Sénéchal (born 10 July 1993) is a French racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Career He rode at the 2013 UCI Road World Championships, and was named i ...

of Normandy, and Charlotte de Valois, the second of Charles VII's three daughters by

. His paternal grandfather was

Pierre de Brézé Pierre de Brézé (or de Brezé) ( 1410 – 16 July 1465) was a French soldier and courtier in the service of kings Charles VII and Louis XI. Early life Pierre de Brézé was born circa 1410. Career De Brézé rose to prominence during the Hu ...

, noted for valour at

Formigny Formigny () is a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Formigny La Bataille. History *15 April 1450: Battle of Formigny. The battle of For ...

, a grand steward of Normandy.

Career

In 1523, Louis uncovered a plot against

King Francis I Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once ...

. He did not know at the time that his father-in-law,

Jean de Poitiers, Seigneur de Saint Vallier Jean de Poitiers, seigneur de Saint Vallier (c. 1475 – 1529) was a French nobleman best known as the father of Diane de Poitiers, mistress of King Henry II of France. He was the son of Aymar de Poitiers and Jeanne de La Tour d'Auvergne (si ...

, was involved in the plot. Jean was condemned to death over that involvement, but reprieved by the king due to his having no direct involvement.

Personal life

Louis was influential at court, being named Sénéchal of Normandy and Master of the Hunt. His home was the family seat, the

Château d'Anet The Château d'Anet is a château near Dreux, in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France, built by Philibert de l'Orme from 1547 to 1552 for Diane de Poitiers, the mistress of Henry II of France. It was built on the former château at the ...

, which stood in a royal hunting preserve in the valley of the

Eure Eure () is a department in Normandy in Northwestern France, named after the river Eure. Its prefecture is Évreux. In 2019, Eure had a population of 599,507.Château du Bec-Crespin The Château du Bec-Crespin is a historic castle in Saint-Martin-du-Bec, Seine-Maritime, Upper Normandy, France, 20 km north of Le Havre. It is now a luxury hotel. History An earlier castle stood here in the tenth century. The castle was inheri ...

. Before his death in 1531, Louis encouraged the marriage of

Prince Henry Prince Henry (or Prince Harry) may refer to: People *Henry the Young King (1155–1183), son of Henry II of England, who was crowned king but predeceased his father *Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal (1394–1460) *Henry, Duke of Cornwall (Ja ...

to the Pope's great-niece,

Catherine de' Medici Catherine de' Medici ( it, Caterina de' Medici, ; french: Catherine de Médicis, ; 13 April 1519 – 5 January 1589) was an Florentine noblewoman born into the Medici family. She was Queen of France from 1547 to 1559 by marriage to King ...

, thus setting up the triangle that was to continue until Henry's death, with his widow, Diane de Poitiers, becoming Henry's mistress. For Diane, King Henry II rebuilt the old

, which became one of the first

French Renaissance The French Renaissance was the cultural and artistic movement in France between the 15th and early 17th centuries. The period is associated with the pan-European Renaissance, a word first used by the French historian Jules Michelet to define th ...

châteaus, and she would be entrusted with much of the management of royal court business.

Marriage and children

Louis' first wife was Catherine de

Dreux Dreux () is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France. Geography Dreux lies on the small river Blaise, a tributary of the Eure, about 35 km north of Chartres. Dreux station has rail connections to Argentan, Paris and Granvi ...

. Later, he married

Diane de Poitiers Diane de Poitiers (9 January 1500 – 25 April 1566) was a French noblewoman and prominent courtier. She wielded much power and influence as King Henry II's royal mistress and adviser until his death. Her position increased her wealth and family' ...

on 29 March 1515; she was 15, and he 39 years older. They had: *

Françoise de Brézé Françoise de Brézé (ca. 1518 – 14 October 1577), ''Suo jure'' Countess of Maulévrier, was a French noblewoman and courtier. She served as ''Première dame d'honneur'' to Queen Catherine de' Medici from 1547 until 1560 and was the regent of ...

,(b.1518) married Robert IV de La Marck *Louise de Brézé,(b.1521) married

Claude, Duke of Aumale Claude of Lorraine, Duke of Aumale (18 August 1526, Joinville – 3 March 1573, La Rochelle) was the third son of Claude, Duke of Guise and Antoinette de Bourbon. He was a prince of Lorraine by birth. Biography As part of the Treaty of Boulog ...

Death and legacy

Louis died on 23 July 1531. It has been expressly stated in an old Norman manuscript, that his bowels were interred at Anet, his heart in the abbey of Coulombs near his father, and his body carried to Notre Dame at Rouen and placed near that of his grandfather Pierre. The tomb that his widow Diane erected for Louis in the cathedral of

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...

was one of the early projects of French Renaissance sculptor

Jean Goujon Jean Goujon (c. 1510 – c. 1565)Thirion, Jacques (1996). "Goujon, Jean" in ''The Dictionary of Art'', edited by Jane Turner; vol. 13, pp. 225–227. London: Macmillan. Reprinted 1998 with minor corrections: . was a French Renaissance sculpt ...

References

Sources

* * * *
Diane De Poitiers (1499–1566) Encyclopedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Breze, Louis de Year of birth unknown 1531 deaths French nobility Counts of Maulevrier Grand Huntsmen of France Burials at Rouen Cathedral