André de Montalembert (1483–1553), Seigneur d' Essé, was a French nobleman and officer of the 16th century. As a young boy he fought in the

Italian Wars The Italian Wars were a series of conflicts fought between 1494 and 1559, mostly in the Italian Peninsula, but later expanding into Flanders, the Rhineland and Mediterranean Sea. The primary belligerents were the House of Valois, Valois kings o ...

. When King Francis I met with

Henry VIII of England Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...

at the Field of the Cloth of Gold in 1420, he chose Montalembert as one of his three brothers-in-arms in the accompoanying tournaments.

Constantinople

France allied with the Ottoman Empire in 1536 against the Habsburgs. In 1542, André de Montalembert was sent to

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

to assess However, Sultan Suleiman, partly under the anti-alliance influence of Suleyman Pasha, was unwilling to send an army that year, and promised to send an army twice as strong the following year, in 1543.

Scotland

In 1548, he was sent at the head of 6,000 men to

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

to support Regent Arran against

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in the war known as the

Rough Wooing The Rough Wooing (; December 1543 – March 1551), also known as the Eight Years' War, was part of the Anglo-Scottish Wars of the 16th century. Following the English Reformation, the break with the Catholic Church, England attacked Scotland ...

. There he became well known, usually as d'Essé, Lieutenant-General of the Army and Navy.''The North British review'' by Allan Freer p.87
/ref> On 7 July 1548, D'Essé addressed

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

at Haddington Abbey, proposing the marriage of

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legit ...

to the Dauphin. The Scots unanimously agreed to this in the Treaty of Haddington. The nearby town of Haddington had been occupied and fortified by the English. D'Essé took charge of the on-going Siege of Haddington. In October 1548 he suffered a reverse with a failed night attack on the town. A notable success for d'Essé was his capture of Inchkeith on 20 June 1549. In july, he was relieved by Paul de la Barthe, sieur de Termes. He returned to France in triumph and presented seven captured English banners to King

Henry II of France Henry II (; 31 March 1519 – 10 July 1559) was List of French monarchs#House of Valois-Angoulême (1515–1589), King of France from 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I of France, Francis I and Claude of France, Claude, Du ...

. ''Calendar State Papers, Spain: 1547-1549'', vol. 9 (London, 1912), p. 404, "Yesterday five banners taken by the French and Scots from the English were presented to the King. They were surprised and defeated in an ambush on the island they call Horse Island towards Scotland. The King has made a great fuss and rejoicing over it, and given 100 crowns each to the soldiers who brought him the banners, and three payments of 12 crowns each a year for the rest of their lives. The captain received 100 crowns." For his service in Scotland, d'Essé was made a knight of the

Order of Saint Michael The Order of Saint Michael () is a French dynastic order of chivalry, founded by King Louis XI of France on 1 August 1469, in response to the Order of the Golden Fleece founded by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, Louis' chief competitor fo ...

Death

He died at the siege of Therouanne in 1553.

Notes

References

* Garnier, Edith ''L'Alliance Impie'' Editions du Felin, 2008, Paris
Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montalembert, Andre De French soldiers 1483 births 1553 deaths 16th century in Scotland French people of the Rough Wooing