Comte Antoine-François Bertrand de Molleville ( 20 October

1746 Events January–March * January 8 – The Young Pretender Charles Edward Stuart occupies Stirling, Scotland. * January 17 – Battle of Falkirk Muir: British Government forces are defeated by Jacobite forces. * February ...

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

30 December Events Pre-1600 *534 – The second and final edition of the Code of Justinian comes into effect in the Byzantine Empire. *999 – Battle of Glenmama: The combined forces of Munster and Meath under king Brian Boru inflict a crushing ...

1818 Events January–March * January 1 ** Battle of Koregaon: Troops of the British East India Company score a decisive victory over the Maratha Confederacy, Maratha Empire. ** English author Mary Shelley publishes the novel ''Frankenstein ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

) was a

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

. A staunch monarchist, he was known as the ''enfant terrible of the

monarchy A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, reigns as head of state for the rest of their life, or until abdication. The extent of the authority of the monarch may vary from restricted and largely symbolic (constitutio ...

''. He was first conseiller to the Parlement de Toulouse in 1766, then

maîtres des requêtes A Master of Requests () is a counsel of the French ''Conseil d'État'' (Council of State), a high-level judicial officer of administrative law in France. The office has existed in one form or another since the Middle Ages. The occupational titl ...

in 1774 and finally Intendant de Bretagne, in 1784. Bertrand de Molleville was then charged in 1788 with the difficult task of dissolving the

Parlement of Rennes The Parlement of Rennes or Parlement of Brittany (, ) was one of the , a court of justice under the French , with its seat at Rennes. The last building to house the Parlement still stands and now houses the Rennes Court of Appeal, the natural succ ...

. Favourable to the gathering of the estates general in 1789, he advised

Louis XVI Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir- ...

after the dissolution of the Assemblée. Made

ministre de la Marine et des Colonies One of France's Secretaries of State under the Ancien Régime was entrusted with control of the French Navy ( Secretary of State of the Navy (France).) In 1791, this title was changed to Minister of the Navy. Before January 1893, this position als ...

from 1790 to 1792, he organised the mass emigration of officers. Due to numerous denunciations, he retired from his functions and became chief of the royal secret police. Before and after the

10 August Events Pre-1600 * 654 – Pope Eugene I elected to succeed Martinus I. * 955 – Battle of Lechfeld: Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor defeats the Magyars, ending 50 years of Magyar invasion of the West. * 991 – Battle of Maldon: The ...

1792, he tried to organise an escape for the king, but he was eventually forced to resolve to flee to England himself. Despite his dedication and his friendship for, he was one of his most untalented servants.

Family

Life

Youth

Antoine-François Bertrand de Molleville was received as a conseiller to the Parlement de Toulouse in 1766. His secretary was Bernard François Balssa, father of

Honoré de Balzac Honoré de Balzac ( , more commonly ; ; born Honoré Balzac; 20 May 1799 – 18 August 1850) was a French novelist and playwright. The novel sequence ''La Comédie humaine'', which presents a panorama of post-Napoleonic French life, is ...

, still in de Moleville's service in 1771. Bertrand de Molleville served his apprentice in the school of minister Maupeou. He was

in 1774. In 1775, Bertrand de Molleville defended the memoir of his ancestor chancellor

Jean Bertrand, seigneur de Frazin Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jean ...

, attacked by

Condorcet Marie Jean Antoine Nicolas de Caritat, Marquis of Condorcet (; ; 17 September 1743 – 29 March 1794), known as Nicolas de Condorcet, was a French philosopher, political economist, politician, and mathematician. His ideas, including suppo ...

in his ''Éloge du chancelier de L'Hôpital'', but he only published this apology after having communicated it to Condorcet lui-même. Bertrand de Molleville was made Intendant de Bretagne in 1784.

Intendant de Bretagne (1784-89)

In 1788, along with the Commander of Rennes, Governor Molleville went to Brittany to announce the royal edict that the Breton Parliament was abolished. The entire town turned out, and rumors began to spread that it wasn't a royal edict but a power move by the governor. Fighting broke out, civilians fighting soldiers, and rioters were able to get a noose around Molleville's neck, but he was saved at the last second by the Commander throwing down his sword into the street, saying he refused to fight the people, and by fraternizing with the masses, cooling tensions and saving the governor. Later in the same year, when the

Pont Neuf The Pont Neuf (, "New Bridge") is the oldest standing bridge across the river Seine in Paris, France. It stands by the western (downstream) point of the Île de la Cité, the island in the middle of the river that was, between 250 and 225 BC, ...

was covered in troops preparing for the Revolution, he remarked he saw "those who later on took part in all the popular movements of the Revolution."

Minister for the Fleet and the Colonies

The Royalist secret police

Invention of the secateurs

In modern Europe, a scissors-type tool only used for gardening work has existed since the early 1800s. De Molleville is credited as the inventor of the secateurs in ''Figures pour l’almanach du bon jardinier: Répresentant les Utensiles le plus généralement employés dans la culture des Jardins'', published in 1813.

After 10 August 1792

On his death in 1818, he was buried in the church of

Ponsan-Soubiran Ponsan-Soubiran (; ) is a commune in the Gers department in southwestern France. Geography Localisation Hydrography The Petite Baïse flows north through the middle of the commune; then forms part of the commune's northern border. Popul ...

Works

Sources

* ''Histoire de la Révolution française'' by

Jules Michelet Jules Michelet (; 21 August 1798 – 9 February 1874) was a French historian and writer. He is best known for his multivolume work ''Histoire de France'' (History of France). Michelet was influenced by Giambattista Vico; he admired Vico's emphas ...

* Lapeyre et Rémy Scheurer, L''es notaires et secrétaires du roi sous les règnes de L. XI, Ch. VIII et L. XII (1461–1515)'', Tome 2. Paris, 1978, in-4, 91 tablx, B.n.F. : 4° L45. (4-II) *

Gustave Louis Chaix d'Est-Ange Gustave Louis Adolphe Victor Aristide Charles Chaix d'Est-Ange (11 April 1800, Reims - 14 December 1876, Paris) was a French lawyer and politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually ho ...

, ''Dictionnaire des familles anciennes ou notables à la fin du XIXe siècle'', Évreux, 1903–1929, 20 vol. in-8, e, tome : 4, p. 148 et suivantes, B.n.F. : 8° Lm1. 164 * Jules Villain, La France moderne, tome : 3, B.n.F. : 4° Lm1. 180 * Le

Père Anselme Anselm de Guibours (born 1625) (Father Anselm of the Blessed Mary, O.A.D., , or simply ''Père Anselme'') was a French Discalced Augustinian friar and noted genealogist. Biography He was born Pierre de Guibours in Paris in 1625, where he entered ...

, ''Histoire de la maison royale de France et des grands officiers de la couronne'', 3e éd. Paris, 1726–1733, 9 vol. in-fol, tome : 6, B.n.F. : Fol. Lm3. 398. * Marquis d’Aubais, ''Pièces fugitives pour servir à l’histoire de France'', Paris, 1759, 2 vol. in-4 (t. I, 2e partie, et t. II), tome : 2, B.n.F. : 4° L46. 11, * Waroquier de Combles, ''État de la France'', ou les vrais marquis, comtes..., Paris, 1783–1785, 2 vol. in-12, tome : 2, 168-9, B.n.F. : 8° Lm1. 34 * Waroquier de Combles, ''Tableau généalogique et historique de la noblesse'', Paris, 1786–1789, 9 vol. in-12, tome : 5, B.n.F. : 8° Lm1. 38

References

External links

*
Subdelegates and Subdelegations on the territory of the département, under the ancien régime
*
Letter from the king, to the Assemblée nationale, in reply to the observations addressed to his majesty on the conduct of M. Bertrand, minister for the navy. Letter from M. de Bertrand to the king
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bertrand de Molleville, Antoine-Francois French untitled nobility 1746 births 1818 deaths Ministers of marine and the colonies