Claude de Bourdeille, comte de Montrésor (c. 1606–1663) was a French aristocrat and Count of Montrésor, who played a role in the intrigues of the first half of the 17th century, and was also a memoir-writer. He left his ''Mémoires'', published posthumously in 1663. The Eleventh Edition of the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' notes in its entry on the Count of Montrésor that "His ''Mémoires'' have preserved his name from the oblivion otherwise awaiting such intriguers; they are written with naīve frankness and are extremely interesting."

Biography

The Count of Montrésor was the grandnephew of Brantôme, the famous French writer. He became the second favorite of Gaston d'Orléans (younger brother of King

Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown. ...

) in 1635. Along with Gaston d'Orléans and the

Count of Soissons This is a list of those who bore the title Count of Soissons () and ruled Soissons and its ''civitas'' or diocese as a county in the Middle Ages. The title continued in use into modern times, but without ties to the actual Soissonnais. Carolingia ...

, he planned the assassination of Richelieu at the camp of

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; , or ) is a city and Communes of France, commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme (department), Somme Departments of France, department in the region ...

in 1636, a plan which eventually failed. In 1637, he had the Hôtel de Montrésor built in Paris by Michel Villedo and Claude Dublet. The Count of Montrésor was forced to spend the next six years on his estate, but in 1642 he entered into the plot of Cinq-Mars against Richelieu. On the failure of the plot, he escaped to England, and his estates were confiscated. Returning after Richelieu's death in 1643, he entered into the intrigues of the period just preceding the

Fronde The Fronde () was a series of civil wars in the Kingdom of France between 1648 and 1653, occurring in the midst of the Franco-Spanish War, which had begun in 1635. The government of the young King Louis XIV confronted the combined opposition ...

. He was exiled for his involvement in the '' cabale des Importants'' in 1643. He later returned from the safety of his exile in

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former provinces of the Netherlands, province on the western coast of the Netherland ...

to aid the duchesse de Chevreuse. He allied with the cardinal de Retz during the Fronde, and was eventually imprisoned in the

Bastille The Bastille (, ) was a fortress in Paris, known as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. It was stormed by a ...

, and then in

Vincennes Vincennes (; ) is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Vincennes is famous for its castle: the Château de Vincennes. It is next to but does not include the ...

. Mazarin attempted to win him over in vain, but in 1653 he made his submission to the victorious minister, and from that time on played no part in public life.

Publication of his ''Mémoires''

The Count of Montrésor's ''Mémoires'' were published posthumously in 1663. In subsequent years, they were occasionally reprinted in one and two volume editions, as noted by Louis Monmerqué in his 1826 biographical sketch of the Count of Montrésor. Since then, the Count of Montrésor's ''Mémoires'' have been reprinted in large collections spanning multiple volumes. The first such collection was by A. Petitot and Louis Monmerqué in the ''Collection des mémoires relatifs a l'histoire de France'' (Paris, 1819) and the second such collection was by Joseph François Michaud and Jean Joseph François Poujoulat in the ''Nouvelle collection des mémoires pour servir à l'histoire de France'' (Paris, 1836). The first editions of the ''Mémoires du Comte de Montrésor'' from 1663 can be found in the special collections of several libraries around the world. * Claude de Bourdeille, Count of Montrésor (1663). ''Mémoires''. * Petitot, C. B., Petitot, A., Monmerqué, L.-J., & Delbare, F.-T. (1819). Collection complète des mémoires relatifs à l'histoire de France, depuis le règne de Philippe-Auguste, jusqu'au commencement du dix-septième siècle; avec des notices sur chaque auteur, et des observations sur chaque ouvrage. Paris: Foucault. * Michaud, J. F., & Poujoulat, J. J. F. (1836). Nouvelle collection des mémoires pour servir à l'histoire de France, depuis le XIIIe siècle jusqu'à la fin du XVIIIe; précédés de notices pour caractériser chaque auteur des mémoires et son époque; suivi de l'analyse des documents historiques qui s'y rapportent. Paris: L'Éditeur du commentaire analytique du code civil.

Other

Poe scholar Richard P. Benton has stated his belief that "Poe's protagonist n the story "The Cask of Amontillado"">The_Cask_of_Amontillado.html" ;"title="n the story "The Cask of Amontillado">n the story "The Cask of Amontillado"is an Englished version of the French Montrésor" and has argued forcefully that Poe's model for that protagonist was the Count of Montrésor. The protagonist was called Montresor in the story. The Count was first linked to "The Cask of Amontillado" by Poe scholar Burton R. Pollin.

Biography

Publication of his ''Mémoires''

Other

Online full-text resources

Biographical sketches

''Mémoires''

References and notes

Further reading