Étienne Chevalier (c.1410 in
Melun
Melun () is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the ÃŽle-de-France region, north-central France. It is located on the southeastern outskirts of Paris, about from the centre of the capital. Melun is the prefecture of Seine-et-Marne, ...
– 1474) was a major civil servant of the French kings
Charles VII and
Louis XI
Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revolt known as the ...
. He is also notable for commissioning two major works by
Jean Fouquet - the
Melun Diptych (which he gave to the
Collégiale Notre-Dame de Melun) and the
Hours of Étienne Chevalier (in which he is shown twice praying before the Virgin, to whom he is presented by his patron saint
Stephen
Stephen or Steven is an English given name, first name. It is particularly significant to Christianity, Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; he is w ...
).
Life
The son of a secretary to Charles VII, he was twice sent to England with
Guillaume Cousinot de Montreuil before becoming secretary to the king, then conseiller and ''maître des comptes'', ''contrôleur de la recette générale des finances'' and finally treasurer of France (1452).
Chevalier,
Jacques CÅ“ur and the doctor Robert Poitevin were made executors of the king's favourite
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 ...
, probably the model for the Virgin Mary in the second panel of the Melun Diptych.
Sources
* Pierre Clément, ''Jacques Cœur et Charles VII, ou La France au XVe siècle'', Guillaumin, Paris, 1853, pp. 76–7
* Press dossier for the exhibition ''L'enluminure en France au temps de Jean Fouquet'', 26 March - 22 June 2003, musée Condé,
château de Chantillybr>
.
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People from Melun
1410s births
1474 deaths
People of the Hundred Years' War