Louis Antoine de Gontaut, 6th Duke of Biron (1700–1788) was Duke of Biron and a French military leader who served with distinction under

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 ...

, and was made 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) ...

in 1757. He was the fourth son of Charles-Armand de Gontaut, duc Biron, and Marie Antoinette, Duchess of Lauzun. He joined the army as an adolescent. He fought in Italy (attack on the

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

castle,

Tortona Tortona (; , ; ) is a ''comune'' of Piemonte, in the Province of Alessandria, Italy. Tortona is sited on the right bank of the Scrivia between the plain of Spinetta Marengo, Marengo and the foothills of the Ligurian Apennines. Its ''frazione'' of ...

and the

Battle of San Pietro The Battle of San Pietro, also known as the Battle of Crocetta or the Battle of Parma was fought on 29 June 1734 between troops of France and Sardinia on one side, and Habsburg Austrian troops on the other, as part of the War of Polish Succe ...

). In the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession was a European conflict fought between 1740 and 1748, primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italian Peninsula, Italy, the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Related conflicts include King Ge ...

, he participated in 1741 in the invasion of

Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...

and the Siege of Prague, where he was badly wounded. In 1745, during the

Battle of Fontenoy The Battle of Fontenoy took place on 11 May 1745 during the War of the Austrian Succession, near Tournai, then in the Austrian Netherlands, now Belgium. A French army of 50,000 under Maurice, comte de Saxe, Marshal Saxe defeated a Pragmatic Ar ...

, he became a hero, when he took over the command of a regiment of

Gardes Françaises The French Guards (, ) were an elite infantry regiment of the French Royal Army. They formed a constituent part of the maison militaire du roi de France ("military household of the king of France") under the Ancien Régime. The French Guards, ...

after its commander had been killed, and saved the difficult situation the regiment was in. He became Marshal of France at the beginning of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

. Biron was very popular amongst his soldiers. It is said that some of his men risked their lives to save his, when in 1770 Biron was caught in a

stampede A stampede () is a situation in which a group of large animals suddenly start running in the same direction, especially because they are excited or frightened. Although the term is most often applied to animals, there are cases of humans stamped ...

caused by fireworks. In 1753, he bought the

Hôtel Biron The Hôtel Biron (), known initially as the Hôtel Peyrenc-de-Moras and later as the Hôtel du Maine, is an located at 77 rue de Varenne, in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, that was built from 1727 to 1732, to the designs of the architect Jean ...

from Anne, Duchess of Maine, which still can be visited today as it houses the

Musée Rodin The Musée Rodin () of Paris, France, is an art museum that was opened in 1919, primarily dedicated to the works of the French sculptor Auguste Rodin. It has two sites: the Hôtel Biron and surrounding grounds in central Paris, as well as just ...

. After his death, the title of ''Duc de Biron'' passed to his nephew

Armand Louis de Gontaut Armand Louis de Gontaut (), duc de Lauzun, later duc de Biron, and usually referred to by historians of the French Revolution simply as Biron (13 April 174731 December 1793), was a French soldier and politician, known for the part he played in t ...

External links

Dynasty of Gontaut
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gontaut, Louis Antoine De 1700 births 1788 deaths Biron, Louis Antoine de Gontaut

Louis Antoine de Gontaut Louis Antoine de Gontaut, 6th Duke of Biron (1700–1788) was Duke of Biron and a French military leader who served with distinction under Louis XV, and was made a Marshal of France in 1757. He was the fourth son of Charles-Armand de Gontaut ...

Louis Antoine Louis Antoine (23 November 1888 – 8 February 1971) was a French mathematician who discovered Antoine's necklace, which J. W. Alexander used to construct Antoine's horned sphere. He lost his eyesight in the first World War, at the age of 29. Ear ...

18th-century peers of France French military personnel of the Seven Years' War