Francis II (Lorraine)

Francis II of Lorraine (born February 27, 1572 in Nancy ; † October 14, 1632 ) was Count of Vaudémont and Duke of Lorraine and Bar for five days . He was a younger son of Duke Charles III. von Lorraine and his wife Claudia von Valois .

Life

As a younger son of Duke Charles III. he received the title of Count of Vaudémont . His father made him his deputy ( lieutenant general ) while he himself was out of the country in 1594. In the same year he became lieutenant general of the French king in Toul and Verdun . From September to October 1606 he was in England on a diplomatic assignment from his father. In 1621 he fell out with his brother Heinrich II , who had been duke since 1608, and went to Germany to fight for the emperor against the Protestants.

The reason for the rift was Heinrich's intention to leave Lorraine to his daughter Nicole , although the will of Duke René II provided for a purely male inheritance. After negotiations, the question was then resolved by the fact that Nicole was married to Karl von Vaudémont , Franz's eldest son.

After Henry II died on July 31, 1624, the situation became complicated. Heinrich's last stipulations stipulated that Karl von Vaudémont should only become Duke as Nicole's husband. In November 1625, however, Franz von Vaudémont appeared before the Lorraine General Estates and claimed the duchy, which was awarded to him on November 21, 1625. After he had paid his debts from the state treasury five days later, he resigned in favor of the son, who, by the above-mentioned decision of the Estates General as male successor to the father, putting aside the rights of his wife and cousin, became duke in his own right. In his will, Franz stated that he "never had ambitions to wear a crown in this world". After his resignation, Francis II withdrew to the administration of the County of Vaudémont and the rule of Salins . He died in less than a year.

progeny

In 1597 Franz II married Christine von Salm (* 1575; † 1627), daughter of Count Paul von Salm and heiress of half the county. Your children were:

• Heinrich (* 1602; † 1611), Marquis de Hattonchatel
• Charles IV (* 1604; † 1675), Duke of Lorraine
• Henriette (* 1605; † 1660) ⚭
  1. 1621 Louis de Guise († 1631), Prince of Pfalzburg and Lixheim ,
  2. 1643 Charles Guasco Marchese de Sallerio, 1644 Imperial Prince of Pfalzburg and Lixheim,
  3. 1649 Cristovão de Moura, Conde de Lumiares, son of Manuel de Moura , Marquês de Castelo Rodrigo
  4. 1652 Giuseppe Francesco de Grimaldi († 1693) Prince of Pfalzburg and Lixheim,
• Nikolaus Franz (* 1609; † 1670), cardinal , then Duke of Lorraine
• Margarete (* 1615; † 1672), ⚭ 1632 Jean-Baptiste Gaston de Bourbon , Duke of Orléans
• Christine (* 1621; † 1622)

literature

• Henry Bogdan: La Lorraine de ducs. Sept siècles d'histoire . Perrin, Paros 2005, ISBN 2-262-02113-9 .
• Georges Poull: La maison ducale de Lorraine . Self-published, Rupt-sur-Moselle 1991.
• Detlev Schwennicke: European family tables . Volume I.2, 1999, plate 208.

predecessor	Office	successor
Nicole	Duke of Lorraine 21. – 26. November 1625	Charles IV