Guyonne de Breüil (died after 1562), was a French lady-in-waiting at the court of

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legit ...

in France and Scotland. She served as the

Dame d'atours ''Dame d'atour'' () was an office at the royal court of France. It existed in nearly all French courts from the 16th-century onward. The ''dame d'honneur'' was selected from the members of the highest French nobility. They were ranked between th ...

of queen Mary between 1553 and 1562. She was married to Jean de Beaucaire, who was also a courtier in service of Mary, as well as their daughter Marie de Beaucaire .

Early life

Guyonne de Breüil was a daughter of Henri Lyonnet de Breil, seigneur de Paluau and Anne de Baudreuil. In 1527 she married Jean de Beaucaire, sieur de Puyguillon or Puiguillon (1505-1578). The Château du Puy-Guillon is at Vernusse in the Auvergne. Gilbert de Beaucaire, sieur de Puigillon, (her brother or father-in-law), was involved in the negotiations for the marriage of

James V of Scotland James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of King James IV a ...

and

Mary of Guise Mary of Guise (; 22 November 1515 – 11 June 1560), also called Mary of Lorraine, was List of Scottish royal consorts, Queen of Scotland from 1538 until 1542, as the second wife of King James V. She was a French people, French noblewoman of the ...

in 1538. He was sent to ask

Francis I of France Francis I (; ; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once removed and father-in-law Louis&nbs ...

to make good his promises of a dowry for Mary of Guise. Jean de Beaucaire is said to have joined the household of the

Duke of Albany Duke of Albany is a peerage title that has occasionally been bestowed on younger sons in the Scotland, Scottish and later the British royal family, particularly in the Houses of House of Stuart, Stuart and House of Hanover, Hanover. History ...

and Anne de la Tour as a young man.

Court career

In June 1552, the Cardinal of Lorraine sent Jean de Beaucaire, Sieur de Puyguillon, to Scotland to address the financial affairs of

. He became one of masters of Mary, Queen of Scots' household, retiring in 1574. Guyonne de Breüil herself was appointed to the post of

(Lady of the Bedchamber) to Mary, Queen of Scots in succession to

Mahaut des Essartz Mahaut des Essartz or Mahanet des Essarts was a French courtier in the service of Mary of Guise and Mary, Queen of Scots. She taught the French language to the Scottish queen. Career She was a daughter of Antoine des Essarts, sieur de Saint-Chér ...

, Dame de Curel, in 1553, and remained for about a decade. In 1555, her wage was 300

Livres tournois The (; ; abbreviation: ₶ or £) was one of numerous currencies used in medieval France, and a unit of account (i.e., a monetary unit used in accounting) used in early modern France. The 1262 monetary reform established the as 20 , or 80. ...

and her husband was paid 400 with other sums and a pension. She was provided with three horses and a horseman. In September 1561 she and her spouse both came to Scotland with Mary, Queen of Scots. In 1562, the sieur de Puyguillon compiled a household roll and diet for the household, which was published in 1824 by Thomas Thomson as the ''Menu de la Maison de la Royne faict par Mons, de Pinguillon, MDLXII''. The manuscript is held by the

National Records of Scotland National Records of Scotland () is a non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government. It is responsible for civil registration, the census in Scotland, demography and statistics, family history, as well as the national archives and hist ...

. The couple returned to France for a visit in August 1562 with their son. Her husband, bringing letters from Mary, was a given a passport to come to London and meet

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...

. They were accompanied by Mademoiselle de Fonte-Pertuis and two more of Mary's gentlewomen. The passport issued at

Berwick-upon-Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census recor ...

mentions their 14 mounted servants and 12 footmen, and the colours and sizes of their horses and mares, measured in "handfuls". Their companion, Suzanne Constant, Mademoiselle de Fontpertuis, was one of the queen's maidens, she received bedlinen with the queen's four Maries in 1561, dined with them, and was given the "second dule" mourning clothes. She was given a crimson silk chamlet gown with gold embroidery to take back with her to France in August 1562, probably for her marriage to Jean Hurault, seigneur de Veuil. Her name appears in the treasurer's accounts as "Simpartew" or "Fimpartew". A menu was drawn up for the royal household in Scotland just before they left, specifying meals and allowances. The document noted that the budget for the table for the queen's gentlwomen could be reduced following the departure of "Pinguillon et Fontpertuis''.

Children

Guyonne de Breüil's daughter Marie de Beaucaire (1535-1613), was also a member of Mary's household in France. According to

Pierre de Bourdeille, seigneur de Brantôme Pierre de Bourdeille (, – 15 July 1614), called the seigneur et abbé de Brantôme, was a French memoirist, soldier and biographer. Life Born at Bourdeilles in the Périgord, Brantôme was the third son of the baron François de Bourdei ...

, she was a great favourite of Mary and was then known as "Mademoiselle de Villemontays". She married Sébastien, Duke of Penthièvre in 1556, a master of Mary's household. He came to Scotland as a soldier during the

siege of Leith The siege of Leith ended a twelve-year encampment of French troops at Leith, the port near Edinburgh, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland. French troops arrived in Scotland by invitation in 1548. In 1560 the French soldiers opposed Scottish supporter ...

in 1560 and was known as "Martigues" from his French title. He returned to Scotland in April 1562 to request that Mary be the godmother of their daughter, Marie (1562-1623). She married

Philippe Emmanuel, Duke of Mercœur Philippe-Emmanuel de Lorraine, Duke of Mercœur and of Penthièvre (9 September 1558, in Nomeny, Meurthe-et-Moselle – 19 February 1602, in Nürnberg) was a French soldier, a prince of the Holy Roman Empire and a prominent member of the Catholi ...

in July 1579. In 1566 Mary, Queen of Scots, made a will leaving some of her jewellery to the daughter of Martigues including a necklace with rubies, diamonds and pearls, a ''cottoire'' of pearls, a pearl headdress, and a pearl necklace.Joseph Robertson, ''Inventaires'' (Edinburgh, 1863), p. xxxvii. Another daughter of Guyonne de Breüil, Françoise de Beaucaire, married a Spanish aristocrat, Pierre de Salzedo. Another daughter, Maquize de Beaucaire (1533-1609) was a nun and Abbess of Saint Georges,

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 ...

References

{{s-end Court of Mary, Queen of Scots Date of death unknown 16th-century French women French ladies-in-waiting Scottish ladies-in-waiting