Jean-Guillaume, baron Hyde de Neuville (24 January 1776 – 28 May 1857) was a French nobleman, diplomat, physician and politician who served as the French ambassador to the United States from 1815 to 1821.

Early life

Jean-Guillaume Hyde was born in

La Charité-sur-Loire La Charité-sur-Loire, known simply as La Charité until 1961, is a riverside commune in the western part of the French department of Nièvre. It is located on the departmental border with Cher, which is also the regional border with Centre-Val ...

Nièvre Nièvre () is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region, central-east France. Named after the river Nièvre, it had a population of 204,452 in 2019.English descent whose Jacobite ancestors fled from

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

with

Charles Edward Stuart Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (31 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, making him the grandson of James VII and II, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, ...

after the failure of the

rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745 was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. It took place during the War of the Austrian Succession, when the bulk of the British Army was fightin ...

. Growing up, he studied at the

Collège du Cardinal Lemoine Jean Lemoine, Jean Le Moine, Johannes Monachus (1250, Crécy-en-Ponthieu – 22 August 1313, Avignon) was a French canon lawyer, cardinal (Catholicism), Cardinal, bishop of Arras and papal legate. He served Boniface VIII as representative to Phil ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

before becoming involved in politics at the young age of 16. In 1793, after the outbreak of the French Revolution, Hyde successfully defended a man denounced by

Joseph Fouché Joseph Fouché, 1st Duc d'Otrante, 1st Comte Fouché (; 21 May 1759 – 26 December 1820) was a French statesman, revolutionary, and Minister of Police under First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte, who later became a subordinate of Emperor Napoleon. H ...

before the

Revolutionary Tribunal The Revolutionary Tribunal (; unofficially Popular Tribunal) was a court instituted by the National Convention during the French Revolution for the trial of political offenders. In October 1793, it became one of the most powerful engines of ...

Nevers Nevers ( , ; , later ''Nevirnum'' and ''Nebirnum'') is a city and the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Nièvre Departments of France, department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in central France. It was the pr ...

. From that year onwards, he worked as a

secret agent Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ''e ...

of the

French royal family France was ruled by monarchs from the establishment of the kingdom of West Francia in 843 until the end of the Second French Empire in 1870, with several interruptions. Classical French historiography usually regards Clovis I, king of the Fra ...

, taking part in a failed 1796

royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

uprising against the Republican regime in

Berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples of berries in the cul ...

. After the

Coup of 18 Brumaire The Coup of 18 Brumaire () brought Napoleon Bonaparte to power as First Consul of the French First Republic. In the view of most historians, it ended the French Revolution and would soon lead to the coronation of Napoleon as Emperor of the Fr ...

on 9 November 1799, using the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

"Paul Xavier", he unsuccessfully attempted to persuade

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

to allow the

House of Bourbon The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a dynasty that originated in the Kingdom of France as a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Kingdom of Navarre, Navarre in the 16th century. A br ...

to return to France.

Exile and return

During the periods of the

French Consulate The Consulate () was the top-level government of the First French Republic from the fall of the French Directory, Directory in the coup of 18 Brumaire on 9 November 1799 until the start of the First French Empire, French Empire on 18 May 1804. ...

and the

First French Empire The First French Empire or French Empire (; ), also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. It lasted from ...

, he practised medicine in

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

using the pseudonym "Roland", and was awarded a

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have b ...

by the authorities for promoting

vaccination Vaccination is the administration of a vaccine to help the immune system develop immunity from a disease. Vaccines contain a microorganism or virus in a weakened, live or killed state, or proteins or toxins from the organism. In stimulating ...

efforts among the general public. After a failed

assassination Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

attempt against Napoleon, known as the

plot of the rue Saint-Nicaise The Plot of the rue Saint-Nicaise, also known as the plot, was an assassination attempt on the First Consul of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, in Paris on 24 December 1800. It followed the of 10 October 1800 and was one of many Royalist and Catho ...

, occurred on 24 December 1800, Hyde was briefly accused of being involved with the plotters before the accusation was withdrawn. In 1806, Napoleon offered him monetary compensation for his estates which were confiscated during the French Revolution on the condition that he emigrate to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Accepting the offer, Hyde settled down near

New Brunswick, New Jersey New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.French royalist exiles in the U.S. In 1813, he helped his friend

Jean Victor Marie Moreau Jean Victor Marie Moreau (, 14 February 1763 – 2 September 1813) was a French general who helped Napoleon Bonaparte rise to power, but later became his chief military and political rival and was banished to the United States. He is among the f ...

accept an offer to serve in the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army () was the army of the Russian Empire, active from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was organized into a standing army and a state militia. The standing army consisted of Regular army, regular troops and ...

in the ongoing

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

. After the

War of the Sixth Coalition In the War of the Sixth Coalition () (December 1812 – May 1814), sometimes known in Germany as the Wars of Liberation (), a coalition of Austrian Empire, Austria, Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia, Russian Empire, Russia, History of Spain (1808– ...

ended with a

Bourbon Restoration in France The Bourbon Restoration was the period of French history during which the House of Bourbon returned to power after the fall of Napoleon, Napoleon Bonaparte in 1814 and 1815. The second Bourbon Restoration lasted until the July Revolution of 183 ...

in 1814, Hyde returned to his country of birth from the United States.

Diplomatic career

After arriving in France, Hyde was appointed as a diplomat by the newly restored King

Louis XVIII Louis XVIII (Louis Stanislas Xavier; 17 November 1755 – 16 September 1824), known as the Desired (), was King of France from 1814 to 1824, except for a brief interruption during the Hundred Days in 1815. Before his reign, he spent 23 y ...

and sent to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in order to persuade the

Liverpool ministry Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool was invited by the Prince Regent to form a government on 8 June 1812. This is a list of members of the government of the United Kingdom in office under the leadership of Lord Liverpool from 1812 to 1827. ...

to transfer the defeated Napoleon to a remoter place of exile than

Elba Elba (, ; ) is a Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino on the Italian mainland, and the largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago. It is also part of the Arcipelago Toscano National Park, a ...

, where he had been sent to. However, his negotiations with the British were cut short by Napoleon's return from Elba to France on March 15. After Napoleon was defeated at

Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, 1815 battle where Napoleon's French army was defeated by Anglo-allied and Prussian forces * Waterloo, Belgium Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Australia * Waterloo, New South Wale ...

, he was exiled to

Saint Helena Saint Helena (, ) is one of the three constituent parts of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, a remote British overseas territory. Saint Helena is a volcanic and tropical island, located in the South Atlantic Ocean, some 1,874 km ...

instead. In January 1816, Hyde was appointed to serve as the French ambassador to the United States, moving to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

where he negotiated a commercial treaty with the

U.S. government The Federal Government of the United States of America (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States. The U.S. federal government is composed of three distinct branches: legislative, executi ...

as his first action in office. Hyde grew to have a hostile relationship with U.S. President

James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American Founding Father of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. He was the last Founding Father to serve as presiden ...

, who "despised" him, with Monroe referring to Hyde on one occasion as "disagreeable and ill tempered" and on another as "overly delicate" and "obscene". Hyde's diplomatic career was also punctuated with other such mishaps, including offending

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

senator

James Barbour James C. Barbour (June 10, 1775 – June 7, 1842) was an American politician, planter, and lawyer. He served as a delegate from Orange County, Virginia, in the Virginia General Assembly and as speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates. He was t ...

when he invited Barbour to dinner and proceeded to arrive drunk and several hours late. He also offended Ann Preston, wife of Governor

James Patton Preston James Patton Preston (June 21, 1774May 4, 1843) was a U.S. political figure who served as the 20th Governor of Virginia. Biography James Patton Preston was born at Smithfield Plantation, in what is now Blacksburg, Virginia. He attended the C ...

, when he allowed a door to slam into her face when Ann had expected Hyde to hold it open. On another occasion, while dining with

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

senators

William Smith William, Willie, Will, Bill, or Billy Smith may refer to: Academics * William Smith (Master of Clare College, Cambridge) (1556–1615), English academic * William Smith (antiquary) (c. 1653–1735), English antiquary and historian of University C ...

and

John Gaillard John Gaillard (September 5, 1765 – February 26, 1826) was a U.S. Senator from South Carolina. Gaillard was born in St. Stephen's district, South Carolina, on September 5, 1765. He was of Huguenot descent. He was elected to the United States Se ...

in January 1817, Hyde grew verbally abusive and loudly belched after consuming large amounts of alcohol. After the dinner, both Smith and Gaillard refused to acknowledge Hyde ever again. In 1820, Secretary of State

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was the sixth president of the United States, serving from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States secretary of state from 1817 to 1825. During his long diploma ...

suggested he be sent back to France, and in the following December, Hyde was relinquished of his posting after almost coming to blows with

British ambassador to the United States The British ambassador to the United States is in charge of the British Embassy, Washington, D.C., the United Kingdom's diplomatic mission to the United States. The official title is His Britannic Majesty's Ambassador to the United States of A ...

Stratford Canning over a long-simmering dispute stemming from political and personal differences. After Hyde returned to France, he declined an offer to serve as the

French ambassador to the Ottoman Empire France had a permanent embassy to the Ottoman Empire beginning in 1535, during the time of King Francis I and Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. It is considered to have been the direct predecessor of the modern-day embassy to the Republic of Turk ...

, and in November 1822 was elected to the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...

, representing the constituency of Cosne. Louis XVIII created a

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...

y for him in the

French peerage The Peerage of France () was a hereditary distinction within the French nobility which appeared in 1180 during the Middle Ages. The prestigious title and position of Peer of France () was held by the greatest, highest-ranking members of the Fr ...

and awarded him a

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

in 1821 as reward for his services and loyalty. In 1823, he was appointed as French ambassador to Portugal, where he helped release King John VI from imprisonment imposed by his son

Miguel --> Miguel is a given name and surname, the Portuguese and Spanish form of the Hebrew name Michael. It may refer to: Places * Pedro Miguel, a parish in the municipality of Horta and the island of Faial in the Azores Islands *São Miguel (disamb ...

and was rewarded with the Portuguese peerage of Comte de Bemposta. While in Portugal, his efforts to supplant British diplomatic influence there culminated (in connection with the

April Revolt The April Revolt () was an absolutist political revolt that took place in the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves in April 1824. It succeeded the 1823 '' Vilafrancada'' and foreshadowed the Liberal Wars which raged from 1828 u ...

led by Miguel on 30 April 1824) in his suggestion to the Portuguese government that a request to be sent to Britain for a military intervention. Hyde planned for the Liverpool ministry to refuse this due to the British having proclaimed a principle of

non-interventionism Non-interventionism or non-intervention is commonly understood as "a foreign policy of political or military non-involvement in foreign relations or in other countries' internal affairs". This is based on the grounds that a state should not inter ...

in European affairs, which would allow France to then be in a position to undertake an intervention that Britain had declined. However, Hyde's plans came to naught when

reactionary In politics, a reactionary is a person who favors a return to a previous state of society which they believe possessed positive characteristics absent from contemporary.''The New Fontana Dictionary of Modern Thought'' Third Edition, (1999) p. 729. ...

politicians in Paris, who disapproved of the

Portuguese Constitution of 1822 The Portuguese Constitution of 1822 (formally the Political Constitution of the Portuguese Monarchy) () approved on 23 September 1822 was the first Portugal, Portuguese constitution, marking an attempt to end Absolute monarchy, absolutism and int ...

, refused to support a French intervention in Portugal. This led to a collapse of Hyde's political influence in Portugal, and he soon returned to Paris and resumed serving in the Chamber of Deputies.

Later life and death

Though he had earlier been a fervent royalist, Hyde now gradually became a supporter of

liberalism Liberalism is a Political philosophy, political and moral philosophy based on the Individual rights, rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality, the right to private property, and equality before the law. ...

, opposing the

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

policies of the

ministry of Joseph de Villèle The Ministry of Joseph de Villèle was formed on 14 December 1821 after the dismissal of the Second ministry of Armand-Emmanuel du Plessis de Richelieu by King Louis XVIII of France. During this ministry King Louis XVIII of France died on 16 Sep ...

. In 1828, he began serving as Minister of the Navy and the Colonies in the relatively liberal ministry of Jean-Baptiste de Martignac. While in office, he supported the

Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...

, worked to improve the governance of the

French colonial empire The French colonial empire () comprised the overseas Colony, colonies, protectorates, and League of Nations mandate, mandate territories that came under French rule from the 16th century onward. A distinction is generally made between the "Firs ...

and implemented the

abolition Abolition refers to the act of putting an end to something by law, and may refer to: *Abolitionism, abolition of slavery *Capital punishment#Abolition of capital punishment, Abolition of the death penalty, also called capital punishment *Abolitio ...

of France's involvement in the

Atlantic slave trade The Atlantic slave trade or transatlantic slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of Slavery in Africa, enslaved African people to the Americas. European slave ships regularly used the triangular trade route and its Middle Pass ...

. He was elected a member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

in 1829. During the

ministry of Jules de Polignac The Ministry of Jules de Polignac was formed on 8 August 1829 in the last year of the reign of King Charles X of France. It was dissolved on 29 July 1830 during the July Revolution The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revo ...

from 1829 to 1830, he again became an opposition politician, advocating for continued observance of the

Charter of 1814 The French Charter of 1814 was a constitutional text granted by King Louis XVIII of France shortly after the Bourbon Restoration, in the form of a royal charter. The Congress of Vienna demanded that Louis bring in a constitution of some form b ...

. However, after the 1830

July Revolution The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution (), Second French Revolution, or ("Three Glorious ays), was a second French Revolution after French Revolution, the first of 1789–99. It led to the overthrow of King Cha ...

, he resigned from his position in the Chamber of Deputies in protest against the exclusion of the legitimate Bourbon family line from the French throne. During the reign of King

Louis Philippe I Louis Philippe I (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850), nicknamed the Citizen King, was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, the penultimate monarch of France, and the last French monarch to bear the title "King". He abdicated from his throne ...

, Hyde settled down to a quiet life on his estate near

Sancerre Sancerre () is a medieval hilltop town and commune in the department of Cher, Centre-Val de Loire, France, overlooking the river Loire. It is a member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France (The Most Beautiful Villages of France) Association, no ...

with his wife Anne Marguerite Hyde de Neuville. In 1837, he took part in the discussion over the possibility of the French government signing a new commercial treaty with the United States, writing and publishing several pamphlets, including one titled ''Observations on the commerce of France with the United States'', on the issue. On 28 May 1857, he died in

. His memoirs, titled ''Memoirs and souvenirs'', were compiled from his notes by his nieces and published in 1888 in three volumes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hyde de Neuville, Jean-Guillaume, baron 1776 births 1857 deaths 19th-century French diplomats Ambassadors of France to Portugal Ambassadors of France to the United States French barons French spies Royalist insurgents during the French Revolution Spies of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars Ministers of marine and the colonies People from Nièvre International members of the American Philosophical Society