Henri d'Harcourt

Henri d'Harcourt, Marquis de Beuvron et de Thary-Harcourt (since 1700 duc) (* April 2, 1654 , † October 19, 1718 ) was Marshal of France , Peer of France and Envoy Plenipotentiary to Spain.

family

He came from the Harcourt family and was the son of Francois Marquis de Beuvron et de Thary-Harcourt. In 1687 he married Anne Claude Brulart de Genlis. He had a total of eleven children with her. His son Francois († 1750) was peer and marshal of France, Henri Claude († 1769) was lieutenant-général , Anne Pierre († 1784) was marshal of France and governor of Normandy .

Life

In 1672, at the age of eighteen, he joined the regiment of his uncle, the Marquis Louis de Thury, as an ensign. He served as aide-de-camp under Barnardin Gigault, Marquis de Bellefonds. He was adjutant of Turenne in 1674 and took part in the Battle of Sinsheim and the Battle of Türkheim (1675) during the Dutch War . In the same year he was appointed colonel in an infantry regiment. He took part in the siege of Cambrai (1677) and the conquest of Freiburg im Breisgau (1677). From 1683 he was Brigadier des armées du roi and from 1688 Maréchal de camp . As such, he took part in the capture of Philippsburg in the same year during the Palatinate War of Succession and contributed significantly to the fall of the fortress. In 1690 he became commander in chief in Luxembourg . He successfully defended the fortress city against Allied invaders. In 1693 he was appointed lieutenant général and governor before Tournai . In 1693 he commanded a corps in the Battle of Neerwinden and, after a forced march with his troops, made a decisive contribution to the French victory. In 1695 and 1696 he commanded the Moselle army. In 1696 he became the commander of a French army destined to restore James II to the English throne. However, this venture was not carried out.

Harcourt was appointed envoy to King Charles II of Spain in 1697. He helped ensure that King Philip of Anjou and not Archduke Charles chose his heir. Exactly what role he played in intrigues behind the scenes is not known. Louis XIV thanked him for this service in 1700 by raising him to the rank of duke. Harcourt was also the French ambassador to Philip until 1701. An illness forced him to return to France.

Tomb in Notre-Dame de Paris

After returning to France , he tried in vain to get into the cabinet with the help of Françoise d'Aubigné, marquise de Maintenon . In 1703 he was appointed Marshal of France. In 1709, 1711 and 1712 he commanded the Rhine Army during the War of the Spanish Succession . In 1711 he crossed the Rhine, but soon had to return to the French Alsace . The army of Eugene of Savoy prevented further advances . In 1712 Harcourt succeeded in repelling an attack by an imperial army under Eberhard Ludwig von Württemberg . He had to resign because of a stroke .

He then lived at the court in Versailles and is said to have received an annual pension of 60,000 livres for life. He was previously accepted into the Order of the Golden Fleece by Philip of Spain and became a knight of all French knightly orders. Harcourt became peer of France in 1709 or 1710 . He was last member of the Regency Council for the young Louis XV in 1715/1716 . Due to further strokes he lost his ability to speak and withdrew completely.

His tomb was created by Jean Baptist Pigalle and is located in a side chapel of Notre-Dame de Paris . It symbolizes marital fidelity.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Sigmund Hellmann (Ed.): From the letters of Duchess Elisabeth Charlotte von Orléans to Étienne Polier de Bottens (= Library of the Literary Association in Stuttgart. 231, ISSN  0340-7888 ). Literary association in Stuttgart, Tübingen 1903, p. 18 .
2. ^ Johann Heinrich Merck : Correspondence. Volume 1. Edited by Ulrike Leuschner. Wallstein, Göttingen 2007, ISBN 978-3-8353-0105-4 , p. 506.

literature

• Linda Frey, Marsha Frey: The treaties of the War of the Spanish Succession. An historical and critical dictionary. Greenwood Press, Westport CT et al. 1995, ISBN 0-313-27884-9 , pp. 198 f.
• New conversation lexicon for all stands. Volume 8: Grossenhain - Hysteron proteron. Bibliographisches Institut, Hildburghausen et al. 1858, p. 394 .
• Georg von Alten (Hrsg.): Handbook for Army and Fleet. Volume 4: G - Idstedt. Bong & Co., Berlin et al. 1912, p. 634 f.