Philis de La Charce, also called Philis de La Tour, (born 5 January 1645 in Montmortin; died 4 June 1703 in Nyons) was a French war hero in the Dauphiné region of France during the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War (1688–1697), often called the War of the Grand Alliance or the War of the League of Augsburg, was a conflict between France and a European coalition which mainly included the Holy Roman Empire (led by the Habsburg monarch ...

, which was waged 1688–1697.

Biography

Her birthname was Philippe de la Tour du Pin de La Charce and she was born in Montmortin as the fifth child of the

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

noble family La Tour du Pin. The family was particularly influential in the Dauphiné and they lived in the Château de La Charce. Her parents were Catherine Françoise de La Tour du Pin-Mirabel, and Pierre III de la Tour du Pin-Gouvernet, the Margrave of Charce and Lieutenant General or Field Marshal of the King's army of the Dauphiné. Between 1672 and 1674, Philippe stayed in Nyons, where she met the scholar and poet

Antoinette Deshoulières Antoinette is a given name, that is a diminutive feminine form of Antoine and Antonia (from Latin ''Antonius''). People with the name include: Nobles * Antoinette de Maignelais, Baroness of Villequier by marriage (1434–1474), mistress of Ch ...

and subsequently, Philippe changed her name to Philis after one of the characters in the novel ''

L'Astrée ''L'Astrée'' is a pastoral novel by Honoré d'Urfé, published between 1607 and 1627. Possibly the single most influential work of 17th-century French literature, ''L'Astrée'' has been called the "novel of novels", partly for its immense leng ...

'' by Honoré d'Urfé's. When King

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 ...

revoked the

Edict of Nantes The Edict of Nantes () was signed in April 1598 by King Henry IV and granted the Calvinist Protestants of France, also known as Huguenots, substantial rights in the nation, which was in essence completely Catholic. In the edict, Henry aimed pr ...

in 1685, which caused an exodus of Protestants from the country, Philis converted to Catholicism and remained in the area. In 1692, Viktor Amadeus II, Duke of Savoy and King of Sardinia, invaded the Dauphiné to take the French Alpine town of Grenoble. Marshal Nicolas Catinat is credited with thwarting the effort as commander of the French army. According to legend, Philis de La Charce helped in this action by arming herself with a sword and leading a quickly raised peasant army against the invaders.Du Boys, Albert. Philis de la Charce, ou une héroïne du Dauphiné au XVIIe siècle. France, éditeur non identifié, 1865. Other legends attribute several great victories to her, but historians say that she fought only a few local skirmishes. Still, it is popularly imagined that she was on horseback with sword in hand when she headed her peasant army to liberate the towns of Gap, the Diois and the

Baronnies The Baronnies, in French Les Baronnies, is a historic name for the area East and North of Mont Ventoux in Southern France. Today most of the Baronnies is part of the ''département'' Drôme (a part of the ''région'' Rhône-Alpes). Smaller areas ...

(which includes Nyon). Afterward, Philis was called to Paris to "receive the favor of

King Louis XIV Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was List of French monarchs, King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the Li ...

" for her loyal services.

During her stay in Paris, she was awarded a pension by King Louis XIV of 2,000 pounds, a portrait by
Pierre Mignard Pierre Mignard or Pierre Mignard I (17 November 1612 – 30 May 1695), called "Mignard le Romain" to distinguish him from his brother Nicolas Mignard, was a French painter known for his religious and mythological scenes and portraits. He was a ...
and a dedication by
Charles Perrault Charles Perrault ( , also , ; 12 January 1628 – 16 May 1703) was an iconic French author and member of the Académie Française. He laid the foundations for a new literary genre, the fairy tale, with his works derived from earlier folk tales ...
. A quote by
Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his ...
, three other portraits, three novels, a statue, a street name in three cities, not to mention the Homeric historical dispute since the end of the 19th century and her systematic presence in local and regional publications at the end of the 20th – beginning 21st centuries show the perpetuation of the legendary gesture of Philis.

Her sword and portrait are kept in the Bourbon crown treasure, and she is sometimes referred to as "the Joan of Arc of Dauphiné." Philis died in Nyons, where her remains were originally buried in the parish church. In 1857, they were transferred to a mausoleum built for her by the city.

References

External links

* Film in French
MADEMOISELLE DE LA CHARCE
(2016) {{DEFAULTSORT:La Charce, Philis de 1645 births 1703 deaths Women in 17th-century warfare Women in European warfare People from Nyons Women in war in France