Henri Masers de Latude
Jean Henri Masers de Latude (born March 23, 1725 in Montagnac , Département Hérault , † January 1, 1805 in Paris ) was a Frenchman who became known for his multiple escapes from the Bastille and the Donjon of Vincennes .
Life
After completing military training, Henri Masers de Latude studied mathematics in Paris. There he took a liking to Madame de Pompadour , a mistress of Louis XV. He gave her poison unnoticed and at the same time informed her of a planned attack on her life. His ruse did not go unnoticed, and Madame de Pompadour had him thrown into the Bastille dungeon on May 1, 1749.
He was transferred to Vincennes, from where he managed to escape in 1750. After he was arrested again and taken to the Bastille, he made another attempt to escape in 1756, which also succeeded, but resulted in another arrest. In 1764 he came back to Vincennes. He escaped for the third time the following year and was detained again for the third time. He was now sent to the Charenton hospice by Malesherbes as a mentally ill person . In 1777 he was released on condition that he did not leave the city of his birth.
However, Jean Henri Masers de Latude stayed in Paris and was captured again. However, under the influence of a certain Legros he was able to leave prison in 1784. He died in Paris in 1805.
Though without merit, Latude received much attention as a victim of despotism , and Madame de Pompadour's heirs were sentenced to compensation of 60,000 francs , of which Latude received little.
literature
- Henri Masers de Latude: Mémoires authentiques de Latude. Écrits par lui au donjon de Vincennes et à Charenton . Fayard, Paris 1790.
- M. Thierry: Le despotisme dévoilé, ou Mémoires de Latude. Paris 1791–92, 3 volumes.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Latude, Henri Masers de |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Latude, Jean Henri Masers de (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French Bastille refugee |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 23, 1725 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Montagnac (Hérault) |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 1, 1805 |
| Place of death | Paris |