Charles de Lorraine (22 February 1684 – 29 December 1751) was a member of the House of Guise, a cadet branch of the

House of Lorraine The House of Lorraine () originated as a cadet branch of the House of Metz. It inherited the Duchy of Lorraine in 1473 after the death without a male heir of Nicholas I, Duke of Lorraine. By the marriage of Francis of Lorraine to Maria Ther ...

. Succeeding his father as the Count of Armagnac, he also succeeded as Count of Brionne as well as the

Grand Squire of France The Grand Écuyer de France or Grand Squire of France or Grand Equerry of France was one of the Great Officers of the Crown of France and a member of the Maison du Roi ("King's Household") during the Ancien Régime. The name "écuyer", the French ...

Biography

Born to Louis de Lorraine, Count d'Armagnac, and his wife Catherine de Neufville-Villeroy (1639-1707), he was the couple's last child. His father Louis, was the ''

'', one of the

Great Officers of the Crown of France The Great Officers of the Crown of France () were the most important officers of state in the French royal court during the ''Ancien Régime'' and Bourbon Restoration. They were appointed by the King of France, with all but the Keeper of the S ...

and a member of the King's Household. The position was roughly equivalent to the United Kingdom positions of

Master of the Horse Master of the Horse is an official position in several European nations. It was more common when most countries in Europe were monarchies, and is of varying prominence today. (ancient Rome) The original Master of the Horse () in the Roman Rep ...

and the

Crown Equerry The Crown Equerry is the operational head of the Royal Mews of the Royal Household of the Monarch, Sovereign of the United Kingdom. As executive head of the Royal Mews Department, he is responsible for the provision of vehicular transport for the ...

. This entitled his father to be addressed as '' Monsieur le Grand'', a style which Charles would later use, after succeeding his father in his posts (at Charles' death, it was given to Louis' grandson, the Prince de Lambesc). Charles' mother was Catherine de Neufville, youngest child of Nicolas de Neufville, Maréchal de Villeroy, governor of the young

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

. Charles' uncle was the next Duke of Villeroy and the future governor of

Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached maturity (then defi ...

. His sister, Marie was the mother of Louise Hippolyte Grimaldi, the only Princess of Monaco to reign in her own right. His older brother Henri, Count of Brionne was expected to succeed to the Armagnac titles but died in 1713, five years before his father. On 22 May 1717 during the Regency of Philippe d'Orléans (1715–1723)Philippe d'Orléans was the Regent of France for the Infant

who had become King at the age of 5 in 1715 Charles married Françoise Adélaide de Noailles, the eldest daughter of

Adrien Maurice de Noailles Adrien Maurice de Noailles, 3rd Duke of Noailles (29 September 167824 June 1766) was a French nobleman and soldier. Biography Son of Anne Jules de Noailles, he inherited the title duc de Noailles on his father's death in 1708. He fought ...

, Duke de Noailles and his wife Françoise Charlotte d'Aubigné, the niece and heiress of Madame de Maintenon. The couple had no issue, and divorced in 1721. He died in Paris aged 67. With his death in 1745, the County of Armagnac reverted to the French king, who had only first given it away to the Guise-Lorrain family in 1645.

Ancestry

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Charles Of Armagnac 1684 births 1751 deaths House of Lorraine 18th-century French people House of Guise 17th-century French people Grand squires of France Counts of Armagnac Princes of Lorraine