Stéphen François Emile Liégeard (29 March 1830 – 29 December 1925) was a French lawyer, administrator, deputy, writer and poet. He gave the name "

Côte d'Azur The French Riviera (known in French as the ; oc, Còsta d'Azur ; literal translation " Azure Coast") is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France. There is no official boundary, but it is usually considered to extend fro ...

" ( Azure Coast) to the French Riviera.

Life

Early years (1830–67)

Stéphen François Emile Liégeard was born on 29 March 1830 in

Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earlies ...

, Côte-d'Or. His parents were Jean Baptiste Liégeard (1800–87), Mayor of Dijon, and Catherine Emilie Vallow (). His family was extremely wealthy. He studied at the Lycée in Dijon, then attended the Dijon Faculty of Law. He published his first collection of poems and short theatrical plays, ''Memories of some summer evenings'', when he was 22, and throughout his life published many other works that were well-received by the critics. He enrolled at the bar in Dijon in 1854. He was awarded a gold medal for his doctorate in law. In 1856 Liégeard entered the administration as a counselor to the prefecture of Drôme. He published a poem, ''The Golden Bees, in honor of the Empire and the Emperor'' in 1859. He was appointed sub-prefect of

Briey Briey (; german: Brietz) is a former commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department in northeastern France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Val de Briey.Augny he married Jeanne Mathilde Labbé. Their daughter Jeanne M Adélaïde was born in 1861. Liégeard was appointed sub-prefect of

Parthenay Parthenay () is an ancient fortified town and Communes of France, ''commune'' in the Deux-Sèvres Departments of France, department of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Regions of France, region in western France. It is sited on a rocky spur that is ...

, Deux-Sèvres in 1861, then of

Carpentras Carpentras (, formerly ; Provençal Occitan: ''Carpentràs'' in classical norm or ''Carpentras'' in Mistralian norm; la, Carpentoracte) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. ...

, Vaucluse in 1864.

Deputy (1867–70)

In 1867 Liégeard gave up his position as sub-prefect of Carpentras to run for election to the legislature. On 24 March 1867 he was elected deputy as official candidate for the second district of Moselle, replacing

Charles de Wendel Charles de Wendel (13 December 1809 – 15 April 1870) was a French steel manufacturer in Lorraine and a deputy in the French legislative assembly. Origins The de Wendel family can be traced back to Jean Wendel of Bruges, who married Marie de Wan ...

, who had resigned. He sat with the dynastic majority. He was reelected as the government candidate in the general elections of 24 May 1869. He signed the request for interpellation of the 116. He voted with the liberals. He was in favour of selection of mayors in municipal councils, in favour of ministerial responsibility, against hidden loans and in favour of lower railway tariffs. In July 1869 he voted for a subsidy of 100,000 francs to Gustave Lambert to undertake an expedition to the North Pole.

Later years (1870–1925)

Liégeard returned to practice at the bar in Dijon when the legislation was dissolved on 4 September 1870 during the Franco-Prussian War. He joined the

Dijon Academy Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earliest ...

and

Clémence Isaure Clémence Isaure is a quasi-legendary French medieval figure credited with founding or restoring the Acadèmia dels Jòcs Florals or Academy of the Floral Games. She is supposed to have left a legacy to fund awards in the form of gold and silver ...

Académie des Jeux Floraux The Consistori del Gay Saber (; "Consistory of the Gay Science") was a poetic academy founded at Toulouse in 1323 to revive and perpetuate the lyric poetry of the troubadours. Also known as the Acadèmia dels Jòcs Florals or Académie des Jeux ...

. Liégeard had a property in

Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions I ...

where he spent his winters, and loved the beauty of what he called the "Côte-d'Azur" by analogy with his birthplace, the "Côte-d'Or". The name substituted the azure blue color of the Mediterranean for the gold of Côte-d'Or. His best known work, ''La Côte d'azur'', was written at Brochon in 1887 and published in Paris in 1888. 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 ...

awarded the book the prix Bordin. The name "Côte d'Azur" became a common alternative to the "

French Riviera The French Riviera (known in French as the ; oc, Còsta d'Azur ; literal translation " Azure Coast") is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France. There is no official boundary, but it is usually considered to extend fro ...

". Liégeard was ambitious to be admitted to the Académie française, but abandoned that hope after attempts in 1891, 1892 and 1902 all failed. His attempts to be elected to the Academy were rejected in favour of

Pierre Loti Pierre Loti (; pseudonym of Louis Marie-Julien Viaud ; 14 January 1850 – 10 June 1923) was a French naval officer and novelist, known for his exotic novels and short stories.This article is derived largely from the ''Encyclopædia Britannica El ...

Edmond Rostand Edmond Eugène Alexis Rostand (, , ; 1 April 1868 – 2 December 1918) was a French poet and dramatist. He is associated with neo-romanticism and is known best for his 1897 play ''Cyrano de Bergerac''. Rostand's romantic plays contrasted with t ...

and

Émile Zola Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, also , ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of naturalism, and an important contributor to the development of ...

. Stéphen Liégeard built the Château de Brochon in an estate near

Brochon Brochon () is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France. Population Wine Some of the vineyards in Brochon are part of the ''appellation d'origine contrôlée'' Gevrey-Chambertin, and some are part of Fixin appellation. Most are ...

, Côte-d'Or that was partly acquired at the start of the 19th century by his grandfather, Étienne Liégeard. Étienne's son Jean-Baptiste completed the purchase in 1843, and Jean-Baptiste's son Stephen Liégeard bought the old castle that belonged to the estate from the family of the engineer

Henry Darcy Henry Philibert Gaspard Darcy (, 10 June 1803 – 3 January 1858) was a French engineer who made several important contributions to hydraulics, including Darcy’s law for flow in porous media. Early life Darcy was born in Dijon, France, on J ...

. Stéphen Liégeard had the château built as a monument to his wealth and good taste. Construction started in 1895 directed by the architects Louis Perreau and Leprince, a pupil of

Eugène Viollet-le-Duc Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (; 27 January 181417 September 1879) was a French architect and author who restored many prominent medieval landmarks in France, including those which had been damaged or abandoned during the French Revolution. H ...

. The artists Xavier Schanosky, Achille Cesbron and

Paul Gasq Paul Jean-Baptiste Gasq (30 March 1860 – 28 October 1944) was a French sculptor, born in Dijon. Life His father was a railway employee who was often absent. He began his studies at the School of Fine Arts in Dijon then, in 1879, enrolled at ...

decorated the château. Stéphen Liégeard was councilor-general of Moselle, a knight of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

(12 August 1866) and a

Knight of Saint-Grégoire The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great ( la, Ordo Sancti Gregorii Magni; it, Ordine di San Gregorio Magno) was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope. The order is one of ...

. He died on 29 December 1925 in

, Alpes-Maritimes. Gaston Liégeard, Stéphen's son, was a bachelor and died in 1953. His nephew refused to accept the château and it passed to the state, which decided to use it for a school. The

Lycée Stéphen Liégeard In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 15. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for children between ...

was opened in 1962.

Publications

* ''Souvenirs de quelques soirées d'été'', Dijon, Loireau-Feuchot, 1852, 32 p. oèmes, premier recueil édité.* ''De l'origine, de l'esprit et des cas d'application de la maxime Le partage est déclaratif de propriété ; Mémoire Couronné par la Faculté de Droit de Dijon, le 15 novembre 1854 dans la Séance solennelle de Rentrée'', Dijon, Loireau-Feuchot, 1854, 123 p. * ''Les abeilles d'or : chants impériaux'', Paris, E. Dentu, 1859, XX-264 p. oèmes. * ''Le verger d'Isaure'', Paris, Hachette, 1870, XXIII-234 p. oèmes.* ''Le crime du 4 septembre'', Bruxelles, J. Rozez, 1871, VIII-67 p. écit de la chute du Second Empire.* ''Une visite aux Monts Maudits (ascension du Néthou)'', Paris, Hachette et Cie, 1872, 92 p. ouvenirs de son ascension en septembre 1871.* ''Trois ans à la Chambre'', Paris, E. Dentu, 1873, XII-396 p. écit de son mandat de député.* ''Vingt journées d'un touriste au pays de Luchon'', Paris, Hachette et Cie, 1874, 556 p. * ''Livingstone'', Paris, E. Dentu, 1876, 33 p. oème, ayant reçu une mention honorable de l'Académie française.* ''À travers l'Engadine, la Valteline, le Tyrol du sud et les lacs de l'Italie supérieure'', Paris, Hachette, 1877, VI-491 p. ; texte sur Gallica
/small> * ''Les Grands cœurs'', Paris, Hachette et Cie, 1882, II-242 p. oèmes, couronnés par l'Académie française en 1894.Nouvelles éditions en 1883, 1894, 1905. * ''Au caprice de la plume'', Paris, Hachette, 1884, V-426 p. * ''La Côte d'azur'', Paris, Maison Quantin, 1887, 430 p. rix Bordin décerné par l'Académie française en 1888.Nouvelle édition : Paris, Ancienne maison Quantin Librairies-imprimeries réunies, 1894, III-626 p. http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k5698362j/f12.image.r=cote+d'azur * ''Rêves et combats'', Paris, Hachette, 1892, 243 p. * ''Les saisons et les mois'', Paris, Ancienne Maison Quantin,

899 __NOTOC__ Year 899 ( DCCCXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Summer – King Arnulf of Carinthia enlists the support of the Magyars, to ...

100 p. oèmes.* ''Pages françaises'', Paris, Hachette et Cie, 1902, VI-489 p. * ''Aimer !'' Paris, Hachette, 1906, 209 p. Nouvelle édition : Paris, J. Barreau, 1914, 223 p., avec 116 illustrations de

Job Work or labor (or labour in British English) is intentional activity people perform to support the needs and wants of themselves, others, or a wider community. In the context of economics, work can be viewed as the human activity that contr ...

. oèmes.* ''Brins de laurier'', Paris, Hachette et Cie, 1909, 170 p. oèmes.* ''Rimes vengeresses'', Paris, Hachette, 1916, 180 p. oèmes nationalistes.

Notes

Sources

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Liegeard, Stephen Francois Emile 1830 births 1925 deaths Writers from Dijon Politicians from Dijon Members of the 3rd Corps législatif of the Second French Empire Members of the 4th Corps législatif of the Second French Empire 19th-century French lawyers 19th-century French writers 20th-century French writers Officiers of the Légion d'honneur