Charles Henri of Lorraine (, ; 17 April 1649 – 14 January 1723) was the legitimated son of

Charles IV, Duke of Lorraine Charles IV (5 April 1604 – 18 September 1675) was Duke of Lorraine from 1624 until his death in 1675, with a brief interruption in 1634, when he abdicated under French pressure in favor of his younger brother, Nicholas Francis. Life He came ...

, and Béatrix de Cusance. He was given the Principality of Commercy in 1708 by his cousin

Leopold, Duke of Lorraine Leopold the Good (11 September 1679 – 27 March 1729) was Duke of Lorraine and Bar from 1690 to his death. Through his son Francis Stephen, he is the direct male ancestor of all rulers of the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty, including all Emperor ...

. He was also the Count of Falkenstein.

Biography

Charles Henri was born in Brussels as the third child and only surviving son of the second marriage of

(there had been no children from his first marriage). This second marriage, contracted while Duke Charles was in exile, was not canonically recognized because the separation between the duke and his first wife, Nicole de Lorraine, was not recognized as a valid

annulment Annulment is a legal procedure within secular and religious legal systems for declaring a marriage null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning alm ...

by the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

. Charles Henri's claim to inherit Lorraine was therefore disputed, and rule of the duchy had been obtained by his father's younger brother through French intervention. On 27 April 1669, in

Bar-le-Duc Bar-le-Duc (), formerly known as Bar, is a commune in the Meuse département, of which it is the capital. The department is in Grand Est in northeastern France. The lower, more modern and busier part of the town extends along a narrow valley, ...

, he married a cousin, Princess Anne Elisabeth de

Lorraine Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...

,''Le grand dictionnaire historique'', p. 411. daughter of Charles de Lorraine,

Duke of Elbeuf The Seigneurie of Elbeuf, later a marquisate, dukedom, and peerage, was based on the territory of Elbeuf in the Vexin, possessed first by the Count of Valois, Counts of Valois and then the Counts of Meulan before passing to the House of Harcourt. ...

of the House of Guise. The princess was known as ''Mademoiselle d'Elbeuf'', a style derived from her father's title. They had one son, Charles Thomas de Lorraine (1670–1704), who later took his father's non-territorial title, Prince of Vaudémont. This son was killed in battle near

Ostiglia Ostiglia ( Mantovano: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Mantua in the Italian region Lombardy, located about southeast of Milan and about southeast of Mantua. History In Roman times, ''Hostilia'' was a trade hub from Emilia ...

. In exile like his father, Charles Henri served in the Spanish-Habsburg army against France, fighting in numerous battles. In 1675, he was made a knight of the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece (, ) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in 1430 in Brugge by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of Portugal, Duchess of Burgundy, Isabella of Portugal. T ...

. He served in the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...

in Flanders under

William III of England William III (William Henry; ; 4 November 1650 – 8 March 1702), also known as William of Orange, was the sovereign Prince of Orange from birth, Stadtholder of County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, Zeeland, Lordship of Utrecht, Utrec ...

. He was attached to the household of '' le Grand Dauphin'' along with his two nieces, the Princess of Epinoy and

Béatrice Hiéronyme de Lorraine Béatrice Hiéronyme de Lorraine (1 July 1662 – 9 February 1738) was a member of the House of Lorraine and was the Abbess of Remiremont. She was a member of the household of '' Le Grand Dauphin'' and was the supposed wife of her cousin the ...

, future Abbess of Remiremont. In 1698, he was appointed Governor of Milan. Two years later, the last Habsburg king of Spain, Charles II, died and was replaced by Louis XIV's grandson, Philip, Duke of Anjou. This triggered the

War of Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish ...

in which the territory around Milan was one of the major battlefields. The Prince of Vaudémont accepted the new king as sovereign of

Lombardy The Lombardy Region (; ) is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. Lombardy is ...

, but he was not trusted: Saint Simon suggests he passed on military information to the enemy. It is a fact that his son, Charles Thomas, became an Austrian commander. After the

Battle of Turin The siege of Turin took place from June to September 1706, during the War of the Spanish Succession. A French army led by Louis de la Feuillade besieged the Savoyard capital of Turin, whose relief by Prince Eugene of Savoy has been called th ...

, the French and Spanish were forced to withdraw from Italy, and Charles Henri signed a treaty with the Imperial commander,

Prince Eugene of Savoy Prince Eugene Francis of Savoy-Carignano (18 October 1663 – 21 April 1736), better known as Prince Eugene, was a distinguished Generalfeldmarschall, field marshal in the Army of the Holy Roman Empire and of the Austrian Habsburg dynasty durin ...

, putting Lombardy under Austrian rule. In 1708, the

Duke of Lorraine The kings and dukes of Lorraine have held different posts under different governments over different regions, since its creation as the kingdom of Lotharingia by the Treaty of Prüm, in 855. The first rulers of the newly established region were ...

, his cousin Leopold, gave Charles Henri the minuscule principality of

Commercy Commercy () is a Communes of France, commune in the Meuse (department), Meuse Departments of France, department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. History Commercy dates back to the 9th century, and at that time its lords were dependent on th ...

. He engaged the famous architect

Germain Boffrand Germain Boffrand () (16 May 1667 – 19 March 1754) was a French architect. A pupil of Jules Hardouin-Mansart, Germain Boffrand was one of the main creators of the precursor to Rococo called the ''style Régence'', and in his interiors, of the ...

to build the beautiful château de Commercy. The principality was later given to Élisabeth Charlotte d'Orléans, widow of Leopold. Charles Henri de Lorraine died at the château de Commercy at the age of seventy-three, his only son having predeceased him.

Issue

* Charles Thomas de Lorraine, Prince de Vaudémont (7 March 1670 – 12 May 1704) died unmarried.

Ancestry

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Charles Henri, Prince of Commercy 1649 births 1723 deaths Military personnel from Brussels Nobility from Brussels Princes of Lorraine Military personnel of the Franco-Dutch War French military personnel of the War of the Spanish Succession Governors of the Duchy of Milan Princes of Vaudémont Knights of the Golden Fleece Counts of Falkenstein Generals of the Holy Roman Empire