Henri de Lorraine (15 November 1661 – 3 April 1713) was the Count de Brionne. He was a member of a

cadet branch A cadet branch consists of the male-line descendants of a monarch's or patriarch's younger sons ( cadets). In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets (realm, titles, fiefs, property and incom ...

of the House of Guise and 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 of Armagnac, and his wife Catherine de Neufville-Villeroy (1639-1707), he was the couple's first 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 ...

. 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 ...

. At Louis' death, the post, as well as style of '' Monsieur le Grand'' was taken by Henri's youngest brother, Charles of Lorraine, Count of Armagnac (at Charles' death, it was given to Henri's son, the Prince of Lambesc). Henri's mother was Catherine de Neufville, youngest child of the '' 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 ...

. Henri's first cousin was François de Neufville, Duke de 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 ...

. On 23 December 1689, Henri married Marie Madeleine d'Éspinay and had two children, the future Prince of Lambesc and a daughter styled Mademoiselle de Brionne. Only the former married. His great-granddaughter Joséphine of Lorraine, "Princess of Carignan" was the grand mother of King Charles Albert of Sardinia thus an ancestor of the present

House of Savoy The House of Savoy (, ) is a royal house (formally a dynasty) of Franco-Italian origin that was established in 1003 in the historical region of Savoy, which was originally part of the Kingdom of Burgundy and now lies mostly within southeastern F ...

and thus the pretender to the modern Italian throne. In 1696, Henri escorted Marie Adelaide of Savoy from the frontier to her wedding with Louis, Duke of Burgundy. Henri died in 1713, five years before his father and thus the countship of Armagnac was given to his youngest brother, Charles. Henri died at Versailles, his wife outliving him by over a year. Henri had an illegitimate child by an unknown mistress, Mademoiselle Pothenot; the child was called ''bâtard de Brionne'' and styled as "le Chevalier d'Orgon".

Issue

# Louis de Lorraine, Prince de Lambesc (13 February 1692 – 9 September 1743) married Jeanne de Durfort (grand daughter of Jacques de Durfort #Marie Louise of Lorraine, Mademoiselle de Brionne (24 October 1693 – 18 October 1724) died unmarried.

References and notes

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Henri Of Brionne 1661 births 1713 deaths House of Lorraine 18th-century French nobility 17th-century French nobility Grand squires of France Counts Princes of Lorraine