Léonor d'Orléans, duc de Longueville (1540 – 7 August 1573) was prince de Châtellaillon, marquis de Rothelin, comte de Montgommery et

Tancarville Tancarville () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. Geography Tancarville is a farming village surrounded by woodland, by the banks of the river Seine in the Pays de Caux, some east of Le Hav ...

, vicomte d'Abbeville,

Melun Melun () is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region, north-central France. It is located on the southeastern outskirts of Paris, about from the centre of the capital. Melun is the prefecture of Seine-et-Marne, ...

, comte de Neufchâtel et

Valangin Valangin () is a former Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Val-de-Ruz (district), Val-de-Ruz in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Neuchâtel (canton), Neuchâtel in Switzerland. On 1 January 2021 the former municip ...

. Longueville was governor of Picardy, the leader of one of the

Prince étranger ''Prince étranger'' (English: "foreign prince") was a high, though somewhat ambiguous, rank at the French royal court of the ''Ancien Régime''. Terminology In medieval Europe, a nobleman bore the title of prince as an indication of sovereignty, ...

families of France and a descendant of the bastard of Orléans who was in turn a descendant of

Charles V of France Charles V (21 January 1338 – 16 September 1380), called the Wise (; ), was King of France from 1364 to his death in 1380. His reign marked an early high point for France during the Hundred Years' War as his armies recovered much of the terri ...

. By Longueville's time his family was close to that of another princely house, that of the Guise, the Guise had controlled much of his family's estates during the life of his cousin, but when he died in 1551 the title of Longueville reverted to Léonor, and his mother championed his re-acquisition of the family estates. He fought in the later Italian Wars serving at the battle of Saint-Quentin in which he was captured. Close to the Guise, he received little help from court in paying off his ransom, but his mother petitioned the Guise to help him, who obliged. His mother, Jacqueline de Rothelin, was an open Protestant and Longueville adopted his mother's faith, corresponding with Calvin. Upon the death of Henri II Longueville found himself slighted by the ascendant Guise, who took the title of ''grand chambellan'' from him. Nevertheless a betrothal was arranged between him and the duke's daughter. This engagement was broken off by

François, Duke of Guise François de Lorraine, 2nd Duke of Guise, 1st Prince of Joinville, and 1st Duke of Aumale (17 February 1519 – 24 February 1563), was a French general and statesman. A prominent leader during the Italian War of 1551–1559 and French Wars of Re ...

upon it becoming clear that Longueville would refuse to attend Mass. Despite these increasingly sour relations, Longueville was with Guise in his departure from court that October, leaving the regency government under

Catherine de Medici Catherine de' Medici (, ; , ; 13 April 1519 – 5 January 1589) was an Italian Florentine noblewoman of the Medici family and Queen of France from 1547 to 1559 by marriage to King Henry II. She was the mother of French kings Fran ...

perilously thin in terms of support. He remained loyal when civil war erupted between much of the Protestant nobility and the crown in early 1562, one of many princely Protestants whose sympathies with the reform ended at rebellion. By 1563 he had abjured his Protestantism and was welcomed back by the Guise with open arms. A new marriage was arranged for him by the family, this time with Marie de Bourbon, Duchess of Estouteville. Longueville supported the Guise in their feud with the

House of Montmorency The House of Montmorency () was one of the oldest and most distinguished noble families in France. Origins The family name Montmorency derived from their castle in the ''pays de France'', recorded in Latin as ''Mons Maurentiacus'', in 993. '' ...

over the assassination of the duke of Guise, a murder they blamed on Anne de Montmorency's nephew

Gaspard II de Coligny Gaspard de Coligny, seigneur de Châtillon (; 16 February 1519 – 24 August 1572), was a French nobleman, Admiral of France, and Huguenot leader during the French Wars of Religion. He served under kings Francis I and Henry II during the ...

. During the third civil war he commanded the rear-guard of the royal army at the battles of

Jarnac Jarnac (; ; Saintongese: ''Jharnat'') is a commune in the Charente department, southwestern France.Moncontour. After the murder of Louis, Prince of Condé at the end of the former, he salvaged the prince's body from where it had been displayed. Condé had been governor of Picardy, and with his death Longueville became the governor of the critical region. In 1572 he was ordered in his capacity as governor of Picardy to prevent Protestants from crossing the border to militarily assist their co-religionists in the

Spanish Netherlands The Spanish Netherlands (; ; ; ) (historically in Spanish: , the name "Flanders" was used as a '' pars pro toto'') was the Habsburg Netherlands ruled by the Spanish branch of the Habsburgs from 1556 to 1714. They were a collection of States of t ...

. His efforts in this regard were undermined by Charles IX who covertly supported an expedition, hoping to weaken Spanish power. During the

Massacre of Saint Bartholomew The Saint Bartholomew's Day massacre () in 1572 was a targeted group of assassinations and a wave of Catholic mob violence directed against the Huguenots (French Calvinist Protestants) during the French Wars of Religion. Traditionally believed ...

he opposed the expansion of the killings into his territory as they spread across France. The following year he partook in the

siege of La Rochelle The siege of La Rochelle (, or sometimes ) was a result of a war between the French royal forces of Louis XIII of France and the Huguenots of La Rochelle in 1627–1628. The siege marked the height of Huguenot rebellions, the struggle between ...

. Shortly after he died, with Henri, Prince of Condé succeeding him to the governorship of Picardy.

Early life and family

Born in 1540, he was the son of François, marquis of Rothelin, and

Jacqueline de Rohan, Marquise de Rothelin Jacqueline de Rohan, Marquise de Rothelin (c. 1520 – 1587) was a French court official and aristocrat. She was the daughter of Charles de Rohan and Jeanne de Saint-Severin, and regent of the Principality of Neufchâtel, Neufchâtel and of Valang ...

. His mother was openly Protestant, and she instilled her faith in her son, who privately converted, corresponding in secret with

Jean Calvin John Calvin (; ; ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French theologian, pastor and reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism, ...

. He was the grandson of

Louis I d'Orléans, duc de Longueville Louis I d'Orléans, Duke of Longueville (1480 – Beaugency, 1 August 1516), was a French aristocrat and general, Grand Chamberlain of France and governor of Provence. Louis was the second son of François d'Orléans, Count of Dunois and Agnes of ...

and he succeeded his first cousin,

François III d'Orléans François () is a French masculine given name and surname, equivalent to the English name Francis. People with the given name * François Amoudruz (1926–2020), French resistance fighter * François-Marie Arouet (better known as Voltaire; 169 ...

as duc de Longueville. A close, faithful supporter of the

Guise Guise ( , ; ) is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. The city was the birthplace of the noble family of Guise, Dukes of Guise, who later became Princes of Joinville. Population Sights The remains of t ...

, he was betrothed on 23 January 1559 to the six-year-old daughter of the duke,

Catherine Katherine (), also spelled Catherine and Catherina, other variations, is a feminine given name. The name and its variants are popular in countries where large Christian populations exist, because of its associations with one of the earliest Ch ...

. To offset the dowry the Guise highlighted the monetary assistance they had provided Longueville with his ransom from Spanish captivity. The engagement would be called off in April 1561, with

disgusted by Longueville's refusal to attend Mass. He married Marie de Bourbon, Duchess of Estouteville, daughter of the Comte de Saint-Pol and Adrienne d’Estouteville in 1563. The match was engineered by the Guise to reward Longueville for his recent return to the Catholic fold, and to open channels between the Guise and Condé with whom they hoped to ally against the Montmorency. For the wedding, Longueville ordered a suit of clothes in black velvet banded with gold embroidery sewn with pearls from a Parisian embroiderer, Guillaume Corbeau.Catherine Grodecki, ''Documents du Mintier Central des Notaires de Paris: Histoire de l'Art au XVIe Siécle'', 2 (Paris, 1986), p. 229 no. 879. Léonor and Marie had: *

Henri I d'Orléans, duc de Longueville Henri is the French form of the masculine given name Henry, also in Estonian, Finnish, German and Luxembourgish. Bearers of the given name include: People French nobles * Henri I de Montmorency (1534–1614), Marshal and Constable of France * H ...

* François III d'Orléans, comte de Saint-Pol * Antoinette d'Orléans (1572–1618), married Charles de Gondi, mother of Henri de Gondi, duc de Retz *Éléonore d'Orléans (1573–1639), married in 1596 Charles Goyon de Matignon (1564–1648). *Two unmarried daughters

Reign of Henri II

The Guise household had held a strong grip on the estates of the Longueville, during the life of Longueville's cousin, a lawsuit followed his death in 1551, which was settled in favour of Léonor and his mother for control of the estates. While the Guise no longer commanded the territories, they remained close as a family with the Orléans. Captured by the Spanish after the disastrous battle of

Saint-Quentin Saint-Quentin may refer to: Places Canada *Saint-Quentin, New Brunswick * Saint-Quentin Parish, New Brunswick * Saint-Quentin Island, in Trois-Rivières, in Québec France * Saint-Quentin, Aisne, in the Aisne department * Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines ...

, he was held by the imperial forces in the hope of a ransom. The crown did not rush to assist with his ransom, his proximity to the Guise at a time they were in disfavour making the king ill-inclined to support him. In 1558 Jacqueline de Rohan wrote to the Guise, whom she considered protectors of her son due to the close ties between the families, imploring them to intervene and supply the ransom for her captive son. As such the Guise themselves assisted in the payment of the ransom.

Reign of François II

After the sudden death of Henri II in 1559, the new Guise ascended to the pinnacle of their powers over the crown. the Duke of Guise took the office of ''grand maître'' from Henri's favourite, the Constable Montmorency; they further acquired the office of ''grand chambellan'' at Longueville's expense. This began to sour relations between the families, but they did not break from each other. Conscious of the religious and financial crisis facing the kingdom the Guise administration, responsible for the young

François II Francis II (; 19 January 1544 – 5 December 1560) was King of France from 1559 to 1560. He was also King of Scotland as the husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, from 1558 until his death in 1560. He ascended the throne of France at age 15 af ...

, decided to call an

Assembly of Notables An Assembly of Notables () was a group of high-ranking nobles, ecclesiastics, and state functionaries convened by the King of France on extraordinary occasions to consult on matters of state. Assemblymen were prominent men, usually of the aristo ...

. This assembly, comprising all the leading nobles of the kingdom, met at

Fontainebleau Fontainebleau ( , , ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Functional area (France), metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the Kilometre zero#France, centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a Subprefectures in Franc ...

in August 1560. Longueville was among the catalogue of grand nobles present, the only absentees being the renegade Bourbon princes Condé and Navarre who were conscious they would be arrested for their suspected involvement in the

Conspiracy of Amboise The Amboise conspiracy, also called Tumult of Amboise, was a failed attempt by a Huguenot faction in France to gain control over the young King Francis II and to reverse the policies of the current administration of Francis, Duke of Guise and C ...

if they showed. During the same year

Charles, Cardinal of Lorraine Charles de Lorraine (17 February 1524 – 26 December 1574), Duke of Chevreuse, was a French Cardinal, a member of the powerful House of Guise. He was known at first as the Cardinal of Guise, and then as the second Cardinal of Lorraine, after t ...

was named guardian of Longueville's estates until he reached his legal majority. Longueville held vast holdings in Normandy where the Guise were also expanding their reach. His château at Tancarville became a haven for Protestants who were fleeing persecution.

Reign of Charles IX

Longueville was among those who departed court with the end of the Guise government, as the young François II died and was succeeded by his brother

Charles IX of France Charles IX (Charles Maximilien; 27 June 1550 – 30 May 1574) was List of French monarchs, King of France from 1560 until his death in 1574. He ascended the French throne upon the death of his brother Francis II of France, Francis II in 1560, an ...

and a formal regency under his mother

. In January

Claude, Duke of Aumale Claude II de Lorraine, duc d'Aumale (18 August 1526, Joinville – 3 March 1573, La Rochelle) was a Prince étranger, military commander and French governor, during the latter Italian Wars and the early French Wars of Religion. The son of th ...

and Longueville left court, Lorraine followed in February. As the regency of Catherine developed, the crown took on an increasingly tolerant policy towards Protestantism. In early 1561 a flashpoint developed over the Pré aux Clercs affair. Despite Protestantism still being illegal in France, the seigneur de Longjumeau hosted regular services for many of the nobles of Paris in his residence. Longueville was among those who regularly frequented his residence for services. Angry Catholic militants, frustrated at the crown allowing this to continue with their full knowledge in Paris, attacked the residence; many of the Protestant nobles caught inside during the service armed themselves in defence. A riot followed, the result of which was the ''Parlement'' of Paris ordering the exile of Longjumeau from Paris. Following this the Guise became aware that Longueville had converted to Protestantism.

Departure from court

Shortly after the

Colloquy of Poissy The Colloquy at Poissy was a religious conference which took place in Poissy, France, in 1561. Its object was to effect a reconciliation between the Roman Catholics and Protestants (Huguenots) of France. The conference was opened on 9 September i ...

in which the crown had sought to re-unite the two faiths, Guise and his brother decided to depart court, frustrated at the failure of the Colloquy and ill inclined to follow the crown's increasing tolerant policy. Accompanying them in their grand departure from court were Longueville,

Jacques, Duke of Nemours Jacques de Savoie, duc de Nemours (12 October 153115 June 1585) was a French military commander, governor and Prince étranger, Prince Étranger. Having inherited his titles at a young age, Nemours fought for king Henri II of France, Henri II duri ...

and several hundred horse. The presence of Longueville in this grand exit from court indicate that religious differences with the crown were not the sole reason for disillusion with the regency government. Montmorency joined the exodus from court, leaving a rump administration under Catherine, Navarre and a handful of Protestant councillors.

Loyalist

Despite his Protestantism, at the outbreak of the French Wars of Religion in 1562, the limits of Longueville's Protestantism were revealed. While he would offer concern and refuge to Protestants, he would not enter rebellion for them. In this regard he followed a similar path to his fellow princely Norman magnate the

duke of Bouillon The Duchy of Bouillon () was a duchy comprising Bouillon, Belgium, Bouillon and adjacent towns and villages in present-day Belgium. The state originated in the 10th century as property of the Lords of Bouillon, owners of Bouillon Castle. Crusad ...

Abjuration

By 1563 Longueville had abjured his Protestantism, returning to the Catholic fold and providing a reconciliation with the Guise. His name was among those signatories in a petition to the king for justice following the assassination of the duke of Guise. The Guise family blamed

for the murder, bringing the Guise network into conflict with the Montmorency network, Montmorency determined to defend his nephew.

Feud

He continued to support the Guise in their feud with Montmorency after the failure of legal channels to achieve satisfaction. His support alongside that of Nevers was counted on when the notion of forming a militant league was floated in 1565. Ultimately this would come to nought and the only armed confrontation would be during the attempted Guise entry into Paris that year, during which they were humiliated. As a provision of the

Peace of Longjumeau The Peace of Longjumeau (also known as the Treaty of Longjumeau or the Edict of Longjumeau) was signed on 23 March 1568 by Charles IX of France and Catherine de' Medici. The edict brought to an end the brief second war of the French Wars of Relig ...

the crown agreed to pay off the ''reiters'' that the Protestant rebels had hired for the campaign. To this end 500,000 ''livres'' were appropriated from the royal chest in

Amboise Amboise (; ) is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France. Today a small market town, it was once home to the French royal court. Geography Amboise lies on the banks of the river Loire, east of Tours. It is also about awa ...

. To ensure the full sum was delivered to Germany, Longueville and

François de Montmorency François () is a French masculine given name and surname, equivalent to the English name Francis. People with the given name * François Amoudruz (1926–2020), French resistance fighter * François-Marie Arouet (better known as Voltaire; 1 ...

went as security.

Third war of religion

During the third civil war, with the Protestant nobility operating out of the west, the main royal army under the nominal command of the king's young brother

Anjou Anjou may refer to: Geography and titles France *County of Anjou, a historical county in France and predecessor of the Duchy of Anjou **Count of Anjou, title of nobility *Duchy of Anjou, a historical duchy and later a province of France ** Du ...

joined the king's cousin

Louis, Duke of Montpensier Louis III de Bourbon, Duc de Montpensier (10 June 1513 – 23 September 1582) was the second Duke of Montpensier, a French Prince of the Blood, military commander and governor. He began his military career during the Italian Wars, and in 1557 ...

in an abortive attack on

Poitiers Poitiers is a city on the river Clain in west-central France. It is a commune in France, commune, the capital of the Vienne (department), Vienne department and the historical center of Poitou, Poitou Province. In 2021, it had a population of 9 ...

before the onset of winter. Longueville found himself in command of the royal force's rear-guard. Longueville's forces continued to support the main royal body during the battles of

Jarnac Jarnac (; ; Saintongese: ''Jharnat'') is a commune in the Charente department, southwestern France.Moncontour over the remaining Protestant forces the following year. At the former battle, the Protestant leader the

prince of Condé A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The f ...

was killed in cold blood after his capture. As a result his governorship of Picardy became vacant, and Longueville was selected to fill the office. Longueville was disgusted at the treatment of the prince and retrieved his mutilated corpse from where it had been displayed by Anjou.

Crisis in the Netherlands

By 1572 the situation in the

was deteriorating for the authorities as rebellion spread. French Protestants, sympathetic for their compatriots abroad, began crossing the border in Picardie under arms to militarily support them. The Spanish protested vehemently to the crown about this provocation, and Charles instructed Longueville to prohibit crossings of the frontier. The king's opposition to border crossings was however circumspect and he covertly agreed to an unofficial expedition under the sieur de Genlis, however this was met with disaster and crushed by the duke of Alva. As the

Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre The Saint Bartholomew's Day massacre () in 1572 was a targeted group of assassinations and a wave of Catholic mob violence directed against the Huguenots (French Calvinist Protestants) during the French Wars of Religion. Traditionally believed ...

which had exploded 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 ...

spread out into the

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

, Longueville in his capacity as governor of

Picardy Picardy (; Picard language, Picard and , , ) is a historical and cultural territory and a former regions of France, administrative region located in northern France. The first mentions of this province date back to the Middle Ages: it gained it ...

used his influence to oppose attempts to introduce subsidiary massacres in his governorate.

La Rochelle

After the massacres across France,

La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle'') is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime Departments of France, department. Wi ...

broke its submission to the crown, holding it responsible for orchestrating the massacres. As a result the city was put to

siege A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict charact ...

, though it proved resilient. Frustrated, the crown entrusted Longueville to reach out to La Noue, one of the leading Protestant nobles in rebellion, to convince him that a settlement was in their best interest. While La Noue was successfully convinced, he in turn was unable to persuade the leaders of

Death

Léonor died in 1573. at Blois and was buried at

Châteaudun Châteaudun () is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. It was the site of the Battle of Châteaudun during the Franco-Prussian War. Geography Châteaudun is located about 45 ...

. His office of governor of Picardy was succeeded by the young Condé who had inherited his father's Protestantism. This appointment frustrated

Louis de Gonzague, Duke of Nevers Louis de Gonzague, Duke of Nevers ( or Luigi di Gonzaga-Nevers; 18 September 1539 – 23 October 1595) was a soldier, governor and statesman during the French Wars of Religion. His father and brother were reigning dukes of Mantua. He came to ...

who had hoped for the office.

Ancestry

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Leonor Dorleans, Duc De Longueville 1540 births 1573 deaths House of Valois Dukes of Longueville Princes of Neuchâtel Counts of Saint-Pol Counts of Dunois People of the French Wars of Religion