Jean d'Estrées (; 1666 – 3 March 1718) was a French

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

. He was the son of

Jean II d'Estrées Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * J ...

and his wife Marie Marguerite Morin. He was born in

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 ...

, the nephew of Cardinal César d'Estrées and brother of Marshal Victor Marie d'Estrées, both academics. In 1691, Jean d'Estrées was abbot of Villeneuve, and in that capacity attended the States of Nantes.Pierre-Hyacinthe Morice, ''Histoire ecclesiastique et civile de Bretagne'' (1756)
p. 154 (cliv)
/ref> In 1692, he was given his first diplomatic mission, being responsible for the assurance of Portuguese neutrality during the

War of the Grand Alliance The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...

. Earning a doctorate in

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

in 1698, he became the abbot of Évron. In 1703, he joined his uncle in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, who was the ambassador to France, and succeeded him after two years. In 1711 he was elected to l'

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

, which had searched for a suitable candidate to replace his well-known predecessor, Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux. Jean d'Estrées was also named to the ''

Conseil d'État In France, the (; Council of State) is a governmental body that acts both as legal adviser to the executive branch and as the supreme court for administrative justice, which is one of the two branches of the French judiciary system. Establ ...

'' (Council of State) and the Archbishopric of Cambrai in 1716, but died before his coronation.

References

Biography from l'Académie française, in French
{{DEFAULTSORT:Estrees, Jean D' 1666 births 1718 deaths Clergy from Paris 18th-century French Roman Catholic priests 17th-century French Roman Catholic priests French abbots Members of the Académie Française 17th-century French diplomats Diplomats from Paris Ambassadors of France to Spain