Antoine Philippe de La Trémoïlle, Prince of Talmont (; 27 September 1765 – 27 January 1794) was a French noble and

royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

notable for his military involvement against the French Revolution.

Early life

Antoine Philippe de La Trémoïlle was Prince of Talmont (referred to as "Talmont") and second son of Jean Bretagne Charles de La Trémoille, 8th duc de Thouars, last count of Laval and baron de Vitré et de Marie-Maximilienne-Louise de Salm-Kyrbourg. He resided in the Castle of Laval, and was a commander of the cavalry of

catholic and royal armies The Catholic and Royal Armies () is the name given to the royalist armies in western France composed of insurgents during the war in the Vendée and the Chouannerie, who opposed the French Revolution. Catholic and Royal Army of Vendée The Ca ...

during the French Revolution. He married Henriette-Louise-Françoise-Angélique d'Argouges on 23 January 1785.

The Poitou Confederation and emigration

Until the end of 1791, Talmont was noticed for his restless character. He joined

counterrevolutionary A counter-revolutionary or an anti-revolutionary is anyone who opposes or resists a revolution, particularly one who acts after a revolution has occurred, in order to try to overturn it or reverse its course, in full or in part. The adjective "c ...

circles (the Poitou Confederation) in

Poitou Poitou ( , , ; ; Poitevin: ''Poetou'') was a province of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers. Both Poitou and Poitiers are named after the Pictones Gallic tribe. Geography The main historical cities are Poitiers (historical ...

at the end of 1791. It was a failure which resulted in his emigration to England to secure the interests of his party. He then went to the

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

and joined émigrés. He, together with the count

Marie Pierre Louis de Frotté Marie may refer to the following. People Given name * Marie (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name ** List of people named Marie * Marie (Japanese given name) Surname * Jean Gabriel-Marie, French composer ...

, took service with the Chevaliers-dragons de la couronne. His first campaign was as aide-de-camp to the Count of Artois (the future

Charles X of France Charles X (Charles Philippe; 9 October 1757 – 6 November 1836) was King of France from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. An uncle of the uncrowned Louis XVII and younger brother of reigning kings Louis XVI and Louis XVIII, he supported th ...

). He was sent to France with a new plan for insurrection in the western provinces. At the execution of the king,

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- ...

, he hoped to start a movement in Paris. Having failed in this, he settled in the village of

Boulogne Boulogne-sur-Mer (; ; ; or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Hauts-de-France, Northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Pas-de-Calais. Boul ...

, close to Paris, with his twin brother the abbot Charles-Godefroy de La Trémoille. Upon learning about the counterrevolution movement of a part of

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

and

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

, which preceded that of

Vendée Vendée () is a department in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France, on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, it had a population of 685,442.Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

, Maine and

Anjou Anjou may refer to: Geography and titles France *County of Anjou, a historical county in France and predecessor of the Duchy of Anjou **Count of Anjou, title of nobility *Duchy of Anjou, a historical duchy and later a province of France ** Du ...

to recruit partisans.

Royalist insurrection

Talmont was arrested on 20 May by the municipality of Noyant-sous-le-Lude, and sent from there to

Baugé Baugé () is a former commune in the Maine-et-Loire ''département'' in western France. On 1 January 2013, it was merged with the former communes of Montpollin, Pontigné, Saint-Martin-d'Arcé and Le Vieil-Baugé to create the commune of Baug ...

, then transferred to a prison in

Angers Angers (, , ;) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the Prefectures of France, prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Duchy of Anjou, Anjou until the French Revolution. The i ...

; the

Committee of Public Safety The Committee of Public Safety () was a committee of the National Convention which formed the provisional government and war cabinet during the Reign of Terror, a violent phase of the French Revolution. Supplementing the Committee of General D ...

was informed of his confinement there. His brother, abbot of Trémoille, managed to organize a conspiracy to free him within the

National Convention The National Convention () was the constituent assembly of the Kingdom of France for one day and the French First Republic for its first three years during the French Revolution, following the two-year National Constituent Assembly and the ...

Chambon A chambon is a piece of horse tack. It is a strap that runs forward from the bottom of the girth or surcingle, and forks. The forks continue to a ring on either side of the bridle or halter, at the base of the crownpiece. Running through those ...

, a member of

The Mountain The Mountain () was a political group during the French Revolution. Its members, called the Montagnards (), sat on the highest benches in the National Convention. The term, first used during a session of the Legislative Assembly, came into ge ...

, was designated to interrogate the prince and, under the pretext of bringing him back to Paris, to deliver him to the Vendeans. He managed to escape through this plan conceived by his brother. During his transfer from

to Laval, Talmont's own guards allowed his escape, and peasants escorted him towards

Saumur Saumur () is a Communes of France, commune in the Maine-et-Loire Departments of France, department in western France. The town is located between the Loire and Thouet rivers, and is surrounded by the vineyards of Saumur itself, Chinon, Bourgu ...

, which was then held by the royalist Vendéens since June 1793 (see Battle of Saumur). In one of his interrogations, he said he was simply ''released by the

Maine-et-Loire Maine-et-Loire () is a department in the Loire Valley in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France. It is named after the two rivers, Maine and the Loire. It borders Mayenne and Sarthe to the north, Loire-Atlantique to the west, Indr ...

department''. His arrival in Saumur caused a huge sensation. Talmont was named commander of the cavalry of the

Catholic and Royal Army The Catholic and Royal Armies () is the name given to the royalist armies in western France composed of insurgents during the war in the Vendée and the Chouannerie, who opposed the French Revolution. Catholic and Royal Army of Vendée The Ca ...

and took part in the superior council of the army.

Vendée

At the victory in Nantes, on 28 June 1793, Talmont proved his courage along with

Jacques Cathelineau Generalissimo Jacques Cathelineau (; 5 January 1759 – 14 July 1793) was a French Vendéan insurrectionist leader during the Revolution. He was known among his followers as the Saint of Anjou. He was a well known peddler in Anjou. When the ...

and

Maurice d'Elbée Maurice-Joseph-Louis Gigost d'Elbée (; 21 March 1752 – 6 January 1794) was a French people, French Royalist military leader. Initially enthusiastic about the Revolution, he became disenchanted with the Civil Constitution of the Clergy and ret ...

, by checking the ranks, bringing back to combat discouraged Vendéens and by being wounded whilst leading the charge of the royal cavalry. Back in Vendée, he participated in nearly every action in the first stages of the war. After the First Battle of Châtillon, and the repeated defeats of the Vendéens, he insisted that they should at least become masters of the

Loire The Loire ( , , ; ; ; ; ) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône. It rises in the so ...

passage and entrance in

. During the crisis in which the army of Vendée was pushed back towards the Loire, the Prince of Talmont was detached with 4,000 royalists to guard the Saint-Florent post. After the Battle of Cholet, he concentrated on protecting the road of the Vendéens on the right bank of the Loire.

Virée de Galerne

In the council, Talmont opposed the resolution of entering Vendée, thinking it better to head to

Saint-Malo Saint-Malo (, , ; Gallo language, Gallo: ; ) is a historic French port in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany (administrative region), Brittany. The Fortification, walled city on the English Channel coast had a long history of piracy, earning much wealth ...

, where they could receive aid promised by the English. The ancient authority of his family in the country around Laval ordered the army to march in that direction. The first

Chouans Chouan (, "the silent one", or "owl") is a French nickname. It was used as a nom de guerre by the Chouan brothers, most notably Jean Cottereau, better known as Jean Chouan, who led a major revolt in Bas-Maine against the French Revolution. Pa ...

joined the Vendéens at their arrival at Laval, and a considerable troop was recruited called ''Petite-Vendée'', which followed the army under the son of the previous count of Laval. Antoine Philippe, along with Donnissant and the abbot Bernier, signed at Laval for £900,000 in paper money. He participated in the victory of the Battle of Entrames. Their determination being successful, with Fleuriot he took command of the column marching from Laval to Vitré, where he hoped to recruit more troops, and retreated back to the royal army in

Fougères Fougères (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Foujerr'') is a Communes of France, commune and a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Ille-et-Vilaine Departments of France, department, located in Brittany (administrative region), Brittany, no ...

which marched to the

Cotentin The Cotentin Peninsula (, ; ), also known as the Cherbourg Peninsula, is a peninsula in Normandy that forms part of the northwest coast of France. It extends north-westward into the English Channel, towards Great Britain. To its west lie the Gu ...

and besieged Granville. Taking the town depended on the issue of Francis Rawdon-Hastings' expedition, in charge of helping the royalists, who was one day before sailing from England to

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

. But already the Vendéens were pushed back during their attack on Granville. Discouraged they wanted to retreat back to

Vendée Vendée () is a department in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France, on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, it had a population of 685,442.Beauvollier, de Solérac and

Étienne-Alexandre Bernier Étienne-Alexandre Bernier or ''Abbé Bernier'' (; 31 October 1762 – 1 October 1806) was a French religious figure and Royalist politician during the French Revolution. Born in Daon, Mayenne, Bernier was a professor of theology at the Univer ...

, took the coast to sail off. Hearing the news, the Vendéens were indignant, considering the prince's act as desertion. They detached a cavalry unit under Stofflet to stop him. The detachment encircled the prince and returned him to the camp with those who had followed him. "They had only chartered," they said, "a fishing boat for Jersey, in order to hasten the arrival of help from England, and to save some women." Other testimonies differed on the intention of the projected escape of the prince. A few days later, the prince gave new examples of his valor in the

Battle of Dol A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force c ...

; he alone, when most divisions of the royal army were fleeing to Dol, held firmly with a few men until Henri de La Rochejaquelein joined him. Talmont followed the army at the siege of Angers, which was as disastrous as in Granville. In the

Battle of Le Mans The Battle of Le Mans was a German victory during the Franco-Prussian War that ended French resistance in western France. Background After capturing the armies of the Second French Empire, French Empire at Battle of Sedan, Sedan and Siege of M ...

on 14 December, he charged under fire the enemy

hussars A hussar, ; ; ; ; . was a member of a class of light cavalry, originally from the Kingdom of Hungary during the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely adopted by light cavalry ...

at the entrance of the town. After his defeat, the royal army, unable to retreat to the Loire, had lost 7,000 men.

Illusions

Bravely but without any illusions, he continued fighting with what was left of the Catholic and Royal Army which had been unable to recross the

. He joined with Henri de La Rochejaquelein who had crossed the river at

Ancenis Ancenis (; ) is a former Communes of France, commune in the Loire-Atlantique Departments of France, department in western France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the new commune Ancenis-Saint-Géréon. It is a former Subprefectures in France ...

with the other chiefs, and came to find his troops at Blain to bring them back. Upon Fleuriot's appointment as chief general, Talmont left the army, angry that Fleuriot was preferred over him. He considered himself free of any obligations and left through

Derval Derval (; Gallo: ''Derva'', ) is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France. Geography The river Chère forms all of the commune's northern border. Population International relations Derval is twinned with Llanidloes, ...

La Guerche La Guerche () is a Communes of France, commune in the Indre-et-Loire Departments of France, department in central France. Population People from La Guerche are called ''Guerchois'' in French. Popular culture Louis Amédée Achard, an author c ...

and the Pertre forest to join

Jean Chouan Jean Cottereau (), better known by his nom de guerre Jean Chouan (; Saint-Berthevin, 30 October 1757 – Olivet, 18 July 1794), was a French royalist and counter-revolutionary during the Chouannerie. Jean was the second-born of four brothe ...

or to head to the coast. Some

Bretons The Bretons (; or , ) are an ethnic group native to Brittany, north-western France. Originally, the demonym designated groups of Common Brittonic, Brittonic speakers who emigrated from Dumnonia, southwestern Great Britain, particularly Cornwal ...

enlisted by Joseph de Puisaye could not give him any information about the Chouans in Mayenne; Puisaye himself showed no eagerness to enter into relations with the prince. The latter continued his journey towards Normandy.

Arrest

On 31 December 1793, in the village of Malagra, Talmont was walking through fields near Laval and

, in the company of three men, dressed as a peasant, when he stumbled upon the national guard of

La Bazouge-du-Désert La Bazouge-du-Désert (; , Gallo language, Gallo: ''La Bazój-du-Dezèrt'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine Departments of France, department in Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in northwestern France. Populatio ...

. A sum of £30,000 was found on them, as well as a few luxury items, and a passport stamped four days before by the

Ernée Ernée () is a commune in the Mayenne department in north-western France. It is named after the river Ernée, which runs through the town and is situated about halfway between the towns of Laval and Fougères. Ernée is home to a purpose-bui ...

municipality. General Beaufort had them sent to him at Fougères, without anyone knowing who they were. A young girl in Saint-Jacques, seeing them pass, cried out: "it's the prince of Talmont!" Beaufort interrogated him first. He was transferred to

Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...

on 2 January 1794 and underwent a long interrogation by François Joachim Esnue-Lavallée, after which the prisoner asked for his transfer to Paris in a letter to the

. Chained, he was thrown into a cell where he wrote to general Rossignol. Administrators, generals, commissioners, insulted their victims, especially the prince. But they were frightened that the prince, infected with typhus, would die in prison. The order came to transfer him to Paris. Esnue-Lavallée put him on trial to the Vaugeois commission in Vitré, on 26 January. He arrived there almost dying, was subject to a new interrogation which he refused to sign, and waited to be trialed in front of the

. He was immediately sentenced to death, protested the following day and asked for a transfer to Paris having ideas of general pacification to present. Instead of that, the commission took six artillery horses to transport him to Laval. It is said that

attempted to save him, but he was misinformed. The convoy, heavily escorted, arrived in Laval at nightfall and the execution took place then and there. His head was subject to different desecration, it was placed on a chandelier by Jean-Louis Guilbert, former priest and member of the revolutionary commission, then it was put on a pike and exposed over the gates of the Laval castle. Two days later, the prince's head was buried in the courtyard of the castle. His only son became colonel of the 5th regiment of

Hussar A hussar, ; ; ; ; . was a member of a class of light cavalry, originally from the Kingdom of Hungary during the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely adopted by light cavalry ...

s, and died on 7 November 1815.

Ancestry

Sources

* "Antoine-Philippe de La Trémoïlle" in Louis-Gabriel Michaud, ed. ''Biographie universelle ancienne et moderne: histoire par ordre alphabétique de la vie publique et privée de tous les hommes avec la collaboration de plus de 300 savants et littérateurs français ou étrangers'', 2e édition, 1843–1865 * "Antoine-Philippe de La Trémoïlle" in Alphonse-Victor Angot; Ferdinand Gaugain, eds.,''Dictionnaire historique, topographique et biographique de la Mayenne'', Goupil, 1900–1910 {{DEFAULTSORT:La Tremoille, Antoine-Philippe De 1765 births 1794 deaths Politicians from Paris French Royalist military leaders killed in the French Revolutionary Wars Royalist military leaders of the War in the Vendée Antoine-Philippe French princes French people executed by guillotine during the French Revolution 18th-century French nobility People of Byzantine descent