Jean Baptiste de Durfort, duc de Duras (28 January 1684 – Paris, 8 July 1770) was a French nobleman as duc de Duras and was created a

Marshal of France Marshal of France (, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to General officer, generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished (1793–1804) ...

while also having the additional rank of a Peer of France.

Biography

Jean-Baptiste de Durfort was the second son of

Jacques Henri de Durfort de Duras Jacques Henri de Durfort, 1st Duke of Duras (9 October 1625 – 12 October 1704) was Marshal of France. Early life Jacques Henri was the oldest son of Guy Aldonce de Durfort (1605–1665), Marquis of Duras, Count of Rauzan and of Lorges, m ...

, duc de Duras, Marshal of France, and Marguerite-Felice de Levis-Ventadour.
With the death of his older brother Jacques-Henri II in September 1697, he became duc de Duras; marquis de Blanquefort; comte de Rauzan; baron de Pujols, de Landrouet, et de Cypressac; seigneur de Chitain, d'Urbize, de Cambert etc. . His father resigned in 1689 and died in 1704. On 10 June 1702, he took part in the unsuccessful surprise attack on

Nijmegen Nijmegen ( , ; Nijmeegs: ) is the largest city in the Dutch province of Gelderland and the ninth largest of the Netherlands as a whole. Located on the Waal River close to the German border, Nijmegen is one of the oldest cities in the ...

as part of the

War of the 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 E ...

. On 30 March 1710, he was made Maréchal de camp and on 31 March, he was appointed Lieutenant-général des Armées du Roi. On 13 May 1731 he was accepted into the

Order of the Holy Spirit The Order of the Holy Spirit (; sometimes translated into English as the Order of the Holy Ghost) is a French order of chivalry founded by Henry III of France in 1578. Today, it is a dynastic order under the House of France. It should not be c ...

. In 1733 he passed his titles on to his son Emmanuel-Félicité de Durfort. During the

War of the Polish Succession The War of the Polish Succession (; 1733–35) was a major European conflict sparked by a civil war in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth over the succession to Augustus II the Strong, which the other European powers widened in pursuit of ...

, he took part in the

Siege of Kehl (1733) The siege of Kehl (14–28 October 1733) was one of the opening moves of the French Rhineland campaign in the War of the Polish Succession, at the fortress town of Kehl in the upper Rhine River valley in the Holy Roman Empire. A large French ar ...

and the

Siege of Philippsburg (1734) The siege of Philippsburg was conducted by French forces against troops of the Holy Roman Empire in the fortress of Philippsburg in the Rhine River valley during the War of the Polish Succession. The Duke of Berwick led 100,000 men up the Rhi ...

. In 1741 he was appointed

. In 1755 he became Governor of

Franche-Comté Franche-Comté (, ; ; Frainc-Comtou dialect, Frainc-Comtou: ''Fraintche-Comtè''; ; also ; ; all ) is a cultural and Provinces of France, historical region of eastern France. It is composed of the modern departments of France, departments of Doub ...

. In December 1755, the Duchy of Duras was raised to a peerage.

Marriage and Children

He married on 6 January 1706 Marie Angélique Victoire de Bournonville (1686-1764), daughter of Alexandre-Albert-François-Barthelemy, Duke and Prince de Bournonville (1662-1705). They had : #Victoire Félicité de Durfort (1706-1753), married **in 1720, Henry James Fitzjames, son of James FitzJames, duc de Berwick (died 1721) **in 1727, Louis-Marie-Augustin d'Aumont (1709–1782), Duc d'Aumont. # Emmanuel-Félicité de Durfort (1715-1789), duc de Duras.

Sources

*Père Anselme. Histoire généalogique et chronologique de la maison royale de France. T. V. — P., 1730., p. 739 *Père Anselme, Potier de Courcy, P. Histoire généalogique et chronologique de la maison royale de France. T. IX, partie 2. — P.: Firmin Didot Frères, 1879., p. 603 *Pinard F.-J.-G. Chronologie historique-militaire. T. III. — P.: Claud Herissant, 1761., pp. 316—320 *La Roque L. de, Catalogue historique des généraux français. — P.: 1902, pp. 27—29
Bouillet-Chassanggeneanet
{{DEFAULTSORT:Durfort, Jean-Baptiste 1684 births 1770 deaths 3 Marshals of France Peers created by Louis XV 18th-century French military personnel