Vidame de Chartres was a title in the

French nobility The French nobility (french: la noblesse française) was a privileged social class in France from the Middle Ages until its abolition on June 23, 1790 during the French Revolution. From 1808 to 1815 during the First Empire the Emperor Napol ...

. There are a few

vidame Vidame () was a feudal title in France, a term descended from mediaeval Latin . Like the ''avoué'' or ''advocatus'', the ''vidame'' was originally a secular official chosen by the bishop of the diocese—with the consent of the count—to ...

titles in France, of which that of Chartres is probably the best known, because a number of holders have been notable in widely different ways over the centuries. Vidame was originally the name for the commander of a bishop's military force in the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th or early 6th century to the 10th century. They marked the start of the Mi ...

, when bishops, like other great lords, needed troops for security. The title eventually developed into a heritable noble title, like others linked to a specific estate. The title therefore passed to the new owner when the estate was sold, as happened a number of times in this case. By the later Middle Ages, the title was held by the owner of the chateau and estate of La Ferté-Vidame (documented by 985),

Eure-et-Loir Eure-et-Loir (, locally: ) is a French department, named after the Eure and Loir rivers. It is located in the region of Centre-Val de Loire. In 2019, Eure-et-Loir had a population of 431,575.Bishop of Chartres The oldest known list of bishops of Chartres is found in an 11th-century manuscript of Trinity Abbey, Vendôme. It includes 57 names from Adventus (Saint Aventin) to Aguiertus (Agobert) who died in 1060. The most well-known list is included in the ...

(for holding the land associated with the role, while not performing the duties), ceremonially presented during the mass in

Chartres Cathedral Chartres Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres (french: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres), is a Roman Catholic church in Chartres, France, about southwest of Paris, and is the seat of the Bishop of Chartres. Mostly con ...

on the feast day of the Purification of the Virgin.

Middle Ages

The vidame of the day took part in the

First Crusade The First Crusade (1096–1099) was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Islamic r ...

(1095–1099). The title was held by the de Ferrières family by the 12th century. They had acquired it through marriage with the sister and heiress of the 10th vidame of the family of the lords of Étienne. Confusingly, this was an entirely different de Ferrières family to that holding the title in the 16th century. Holders included Guillaume de Ferrières (grandson of the first de Ferrières vidame, c.1150 – ?April 1204), who took part in the Third (1188–92) and Fourth Crusades (1201–4), and died in

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

as part of the latter. He is assumed to be the

trouvère ''Trouvère'' (, ), sometimes spelled ''trouveur'' (, ), is the Northern French ('' langue d'oïl'') form of the '' langue d'oc'' (Occitan) word ''trobador'', the precursor of the modern French word ''troubadour''. ''Trouvère'' refers to poet ...

(north French troubador poet-composer) recorded only as the "Vidame de Chartres", to whom eight songs have been attributed. Through his sister the title passed to the lords of Meslay-le-Vidame,

Eure-et-Loir Eure-et-Loir (, locally: ) is a French department, named after the Eure and Loir rivers. It is located in the region of Centre-Val de Loire. In 2019, Eure-et-Loir had a population of 431,575.Vendôme family, a well-connected junior branch of the House of Bourbon. The Vendômes held the title until 1560. They largely rebuilt the chateau to give it the impressive feudal appearance, with eight towers, that it kept until the 1770s.

Renaissance to French Revolution

The title passed to François de Vendôme (c. 1522 – 22 December 1560), who was a successful soldier who figures largely in accounts of the brilliant but decadent French court of the period. The account in the colourful memoirs of Brantôme (1540–1614) place him in the centre of intrigues with Queen Catherine de' Medici (1519–1589),

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 famil ...

(1499–1566), and the

Guise Guise (; nl, Wieze) is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. The city was the birthplace of the noble family of Guise, Dukes of Guise, who later became Princes of Joinville. Population Sights The remains ...

brothers,

Francis, Duke of Guise Francis de Lorraine II, the first Prince of Joinville, also Duke of Guise and Duke of Aumale (french: François de Lorraine; 17 February 1519 – 24 February 1563), was a French general and statesman. A prominent leader during the Italian War of ...

(1519–1563),

Charles, Cardinal of Lorraine Charles de Lorraine (c. 1525 – 26 December 1574), Duke of Chevreuse, was a French Cardinal, a member of the powerful House of Guise. He was known at first as the Cardinal of Guise, and then as the second Cardinal of Lorraine, after the death o ...

(1524–1574) and

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 ...

(1526–1573), with all of whom he was at odds by the end of his life. Although not apparently a

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...

himself, he became attached to the Huguenot convert Louis, Prince of Condé (1530–1569) as the strongest anti-Guise figure. The Vidame was put in the

Bastille The Bastille (, ) was a fortress in Paris, known formally as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. It was stor ...

after the Amboise conspiracy of 1560, in which he seems to have not been involved, and died days after the death of Francis II of France, which would probably have led to his release. François de Vendôme, always referred to as the Vidame de Chartres, is a major character in ''

La Princesse de Clèves ''La Princesse de Clèves'' is a French novel which was published anonymously in March 1678. It was regarded by many as the beginning of the modern tradition of the psychological novel and a classic work. Its author is generally held to be Mada ...

'', an anonymous French novel published in March 1678, which mixes historical and fictional characters. It is regarded by many as the beginning of the modern tradition of the

psychological novel In literature, psychological fiction (also psychological realism) is a narrative genre that emphasizes interior characterization and motivation to explore the spiritual, emotional, and mental lives of the characters. The mode of narration exami ...

, and as a great classic work. Its author is generally held to be

Madame de La Fayette Marie-Madeleine Pioche de La Vergne, Comtesse de La Fayette (baptized 18 March 1634 – 25 May 1693), better known as Madame de La Fayette, was a French writer; she authored ''La Princesse de Clèves'', France's first historical novel and one ...

. The action takes place between October 1558 and November 1559 at the court of

Henry II of France Henry II (french: Henri II; 31 March 1519 – 10 July 1559) was King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I and Duchess Claude of Brittany, he became Dauphin of France upon the death of his elder bro ...

, and the account of the Vidame's character broadly agrees with that of Brantôme. The Vidame was further depicted, in similar terms, in ''

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 H ...

'' by

Honoré de Balzac Honoré de Balzac ( , more commonly , ; born Honoré Balzac;Jean-Louis Dega, La vie prodigieuse de Bernard-François Balssa, père d'Honoré de Balzac : Aux sources historiques de La Comédie humaine, Rodez, Subervie, 1998, 665 p. 20 May 179 ...

, as "the first and only amour" of the widowed queen. When Vendôme died the title passed to

Jean de Ferrières Jean de Ferrières (1520–1586), Vidame de Chartres, Seigneur de Maligny, was an influential Huguenot in the French Wars of Religion in the 16th century. He died a prisoner in a galley, unable to pay his ransom, and was succeeded by his nephew, ...

(1520–1586), a leading Huguenot politician and military commander in the

French Wars of Religion The French Wars of Religion is the term which is used in reference to a period of civil war between French Catholics and Protestants, commonly called Huguenots, which lasted from 1562 to 1598. According to estimates, between two and four mi ...

, who was forced to spend periods in exile in England. He was eventually captured when fighting for the future

Henri 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 ...

by the crown's Catholic forces, and died in captivity when he could not raise the ransom demanded. After de Ferrières died, the title passed by descent to Préjean de la Fin (d. 1624), another plotter, this time against the Bourbon dynasty.

Dukes of Saint-Simon, and after

Claude de Rouvroy de Saint-Simon (1607-1693)

By the time ''La Princesse de Clèves'' was published the chateau and title belonged to

Claude de Rouvroy, duc de Saint-Simon Claude de Rouvroy, duc de Saint-Simon (August 1607 – 3 May 1693), was a French soldier and courtier, and favourite of Louis XIII of France, who created his dukedom for him. His only son Louis de Rouvroy, Duke of Saint-Simon (1675–1755) was t ...

(1607–1693), who had bought La Ferté-Vidame in 1635, the same year his dukedom was created. His son Louis, the second and last duke and famous

memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobiog ...

ist (1675–1755), used it as a courtesy title at court until his father's death; the contrast between the debonair fictional character and the very short teenager may have given rise to some amusement. In turn it was used by his sons. According to the second duke, his father (a younger son) had bought the estate at the request of

King 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 perhaps with his funds, to give him a seat befitting his new rank as a ducal peer of France. La Ferté-Vidame passed to the

Grimaldi family The House of Grimaldi ( , also , , ) is the current reigning house of the Principality of Monaco. The house was founded in 1160 by Grimaldo Canella in Genoa and became the ruling house of Monaco when Francesco Grimaldi captured Monaco in 1297 ...

when Saint-Simon's grand-daughter married a younger son of

Jacques I, Prince of Monaco Jacques I (Jacques François Léonor Goyon de Matignon Grimaldi; 21 November 1689 – 23 April 1751) was Prince of Monaco from 1731 to 1733. He was also Duke of Valentinois from 1716 until 1733, and Count of Thorigny. Life and reign Jacque ...

. In 1764 La Ferté-Vidame was bought by Jean-Joseph de Laborde (1724–1794), a very wealthy businessman, who became a '' fermier général'', politician and banker to the king. Laborde built the neo-classical mansion (architect Antoine Matthieu Le Carpentier, from 1771) whose ruined shell remains today. In politics, he was ahead of his time and of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

, and (with

Mirabeau Mirabeau may refer to: People and characters * Mirabeau B. Lamar (1798–1859), second President of the Republic of Texas French nobility * Victor de Riqueti, marquis de Mirabeau (1715–1789), French physiocrat * Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, com ...

) was one of the only noble députés (from the bailliage d'Étampes) to accept demotion to the

Third Estate The estates of the realm, or three estates, were the broad orders of social hierarchy used in Christendom (Christian Europe) from the Middle Ages to early modern Europe. Different systems for dividing society members into estates developed and ...

upon the Revolution. However, this was not enough to save him from being guillotined under the "loi des suspects" on the orders of Louis de Saint-Just, in one of the last fits of the Reign of Terror in May 1794. After only 20 years the estate was sold to

Louis Jean Marie de Bourbon, Duke of Penthièvre Louis Jean Marie de Bourbon (16 November 1725 – 4 March 1793) was the son of Louis Alexandre de Bourbon and his wife Marie Victoire de Noailles. He was therefore a grandson of Louis XIV of France and his mistress, Madame de Montespan. From ...

(1725–1793), grandson of

Louis XIV of France , 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 ...

by Louis Alexandre, Count of Toulouse, his legitimized son with

Madame de Montespan Madame may refer to: * Madam, civility title or form of address for women, derived from the French * Madam (prostitution), a term for a woman who is engaged in the business of procuring prostitutes, usually the manager of a brothel * ''Madame'' ( ...

(and incidentally, along with his brother, especially detested by Saint-Simon). The sale was in 1784 for 5.5 million francs, a very large sum. The duke died of natural causes in 1793, the last vidame of the

Ancien regime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for "ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word fo ...

. At the Bourbon Restoration, the chateau was restored to his daughter, Louise Marie Adélaïde de Bourbon, Duchess of Orléans. On her death in 1821, the

domaine An estate is a large parcel of land under single ownership, which would historically generate income for its owner. British context In the UK, historically an estate comprises the houses, outbuildings, supporting farmland, and woods that s ...

passed to her eldest son Louis-Philippe I, future

king of the French The precise style of French sovereigns varied over the years. Currently, there is no French sovereign; three distinct traditions (the Legitimist, the Orleanist, and the Bonapartist) exist, each claiming different forms of title. The three styles ...

.Formel (1990)

Holders of the title

Notable holders before the revolution include: * Guillaume de Ferrières (c.1150 – ?April 1204), crusader and

* François de Vendôme (c. 1522 – 22 December 1560), soldier and courtier *

(1520–1586), Huguenot politician and military commander *

(1607–1693), royal favourite *

Louis de Rouvroy, duc de Saint-Simon Louis de Rouvroy, duc de Saint-Simon, GE (16 January 16752 March 1755), was a French soldier, diplomat, and memoirist. He was born in Paris at the Hôtel Selvois, 6 rue Taranne (demolished in 1876 to make way for the Boulevard Saint-Germain). Th ...

, (1675–1755) the second and last duke and famous

ist * Jean-Joseph de Laborde (1724–1794), businessman turned politician *

(1725–1793), grandson of

Notes

References

*Formel-Levavasseur, François, ''Le duc de Saint-Simon, comte de la Ferté-Vidame, mémorialiste et épistolier'', 2012, BoD – Books on Demand France, {{ISBN, 2810626316, 9782810626311
google books
in French *Formel, François (1982),

, extracted from the ''Bulletin Municipal de La Ferté-Vidame'' (1982 p. 9-10), in French *Formel, François (1990), "Diner de Têtes à La Ferté-Vidame: Le mari d’une impératrice chez le banquier du Roi", extracted from the ''Bulletin Municipal de La Ferté-Vidame'' (1989–1990, p. 38-50), in French *Formel, François (1995),

extracted from the ''Bulletin Municipal de La Ferté-Vidame'' (1994–1995, p. 63–66), in French *de Pétigny, Jean
"Testament de François de Vendôme, Vidame de Chartres"
''Bibliothèque de l’école des Chartes'', 1850, Paris, pp. 327–349, in French French titles of nobility Chartres