Philippe de Croÿ, 3rd Duke of Aarschot, 4th Prince of Chimay, Count of Porcean (

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...

, 10 July 1526

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

, 11 December 1595), was

Stadtholder In the Low Countries, a stadtholder ( ) was a steward, first appointed as a medieval official and ultimately functioning as a national leader. The ''stadtholder'' was the replacement of the duke or count of a province during the Burgundian and ...

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

, and inherited the estates of the ancient and wealthy family of Croÿ. Becoming a soldier, he was made a Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece by Philip II, king of

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 ...

, and was afterwards employed in diplomatic work.

Life

He was the second son of Philippe II de Croÿ (1496–1549) and Anna de Croÿ (1501–1539).
After the death of his elder brother

Charles II de Croÿ Charles II de Croÿ (31 July 1522 – Quiévrain, 24 June 1551) was Seigneur de Croÿ, 2nd Duke of Aarschot, 3rd Prince of Chimay and 3rd Count of Beaumont, Belgium, Beaumont. Early life Charles, born on 31 July 1522, was the eldest son of Philipp ...

in 1551, he became 3rd

Duke of Aarschot The Duke of Aarschot (or ''Aerschot'') was one of the most important aristocratic titles in the Low Countries, named after the Brabantian city of Aarschot. The title was held by the House of Croÿ and the House of Arenberg. The present Duke is Leo ...

, 4th

Prince of Chimay Prince of Chimay is a title of Belgian nobility, Belgian and Dutch nobility associated with the town of Chimay in what is now Belgium. The title is currently held by Philippe de Caraman-Chimay, 22nd Prince de Chimay (b. 1948). The main residence ...

and 4th Count of Beaumont. He took part in the troubles in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, and in 1563 refused to join

William the Silent William the Silent or William the Taciturn (; 24 April 153310 July 1584), more commonly known in the Netherlands as William of Orange (), was the leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish Habsburg Netherlands, Habsburgs that set off the ...

and others in their efforts to remove Cardinal Granvelle from his post. This attitude, together with Aarschot's devotion to the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, which he expressed by showing his delight at the Massacre of St. Bartholomew, led Philip of Spain to regard him with still greater favor, which, however, was withdrawn in consequence of Aarschot's ambiguous conduct when welcoming the new governor,

John of Austria John of Austria (, ; 24 February 1547 – 1 October 1578) was the illegitimate son of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. Charles V recognized him in a codicil to his will. John became a military leader in the service of his half-brother, King Phi ...

(''Don Juan de Austria''), to the Netherlands in 1576. In spite, however, of his being generally distrusted by the inhabitants of the Netherlands, he was appointed governor of the citadel of Antwerp when the Spanish troops withdrew in 1577. After a period of vacillation he deserted Don John towards the end of that year. Jealous of the

Prince of Orange Prince of Orange (or Princess of Orange if the holder is female) is a title associated with the sovereign Principality of Orange, in what is now southern France and subsequently held by the stadtholders of, and then the heirs apparent of ...

, he was then the head of the party which induced the Archduke Matthias (afterwards emperor) to undertake the sovereignty of the Netherlands, and soon afterwards was appointed Stadtholder of Flanders by the state council. A strong party, including the burghers of

Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

, distrusted the new stadtholder and Aarschot, who was taken prisoner during a riot at Ghent, was only released on promising to resign his office. He then sought to regain the favor of Philip of Spain, and having been pardoned by the king in 1580 again shared in the government of the Netherlands; but he refused to serve under the count of Fuentes when he became governor-general in 1594, and retired to

, where he died in December 1595.

Family

Philip III married on 24 January 1558, to Johanna Henriette van Halewyn, daughter of Jean III de Halewyn, Vicomte de Nieuwpoort and Jossyne de Lannoy. They had 3 children: * Charles III de Croÿ (1560–1612), Duke of Aarschot, married 1) Marie de Brimeu and 2) Dorothée de Croy-Havré. No issue. *Anne de Croÿ (1563–1635), married Charles de Ligne, 2nd Prince of Arenberg *Margareth de Croÿ (1568–1614), married 1) Pierre de Henin Bossu and 2) Wratislaw of Fürstenberg. After the death of his first wife, on 1 May 1582 he married Jeanne de Blois-Trélon († 1605), daughter of Louis II de Blois, Seigneur de Trélon, and Charlotte d'Humières.

References

;Attribution *

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Croy, Philippe de 1526 births 1595 deaths People from Valenciennes Flemish nobility Philippe Knights of the Golden Fleece Military personnel from the Netherlands in the Spanish army during the Eighty Years' War Recipients of Spanish royal pardons Stadtholders of Flanders House of Croÿ