Étienne François de Choiseul, Duke of Choiseul

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Louis Charles César Le Tellier
Succeeded byCésar Gabriel de Choiseul
Personal details
Born(1719-06-28)28 June 1719
Royal French Army
Years of service1740 – 1770
RankLieutenant General
Battles/warsRusso-Turkish War
War of the Austrian Succession
Seven Years' War

Étienne François de Choiseul,

Foreign Minister of France and had a strong influence on France's global strategy throughout the period. He is closely associated with France's defeat in the Seven Years' War
and subsequent efforts to rebuild French prestige.

Biography

Rise

The eldest son of

Francis Stephen of Lorraine (the future Holy Roman Emperor Francis I) was pressured into giving up Lorraine and becoming ruler of Tuscany in Italy. Realising that continued loyalty to the House of Lorraine would limit his opportunities, Étienne François transferred his allegiance to France.[2]

After gaining experience during the

Austro-Turkish War,[2] the comte de Stainville entered the French army, and during the War of the Austrian Succession served in Bohemia (1741) and in Italy (1744), where he distinguished himself at the Battle of Coni.[1] He was also present at the Battle of Dettingen in Germany and carried news of the French defeat there to Paris.[3] He had been appalled by what he had witnessed of the French forces at Dettingen, particularly what he later described as their "indifference and ignorance", and his experiences motivated his later reforms of the French military.[4]

From 1745 to 1748, he was with the army in the

Antoine Crozat as well as his brother Pierre's grand Hôtel de Crozat on the rue de Richelieu, and proved a most devoted wife.[1][5]

Choiseul rose to power in part through the patronage of Madame de Pompadour.

Choiseul gained the favour of

Second Treaty of Versailles, signed in May 1757, which pledged the two states to a combined war in Germany against Prussia.[1]

Chief Minister

Seven Years' War

Further information: France in the Seven Years' War

His success in Vienna opened the way to a larger career in 1758, when he supplanted

Battle of Vellinghausen.[citation needed
]

Duke of Choiseul, depicted wearing armor and the Order of the Holy Spirit (blue) and the Order of the Golden Fleece (red, Spain n°756), Second half of 18th century

He was then made a

César Gabriel de Choiseul, duc de Praslin, was minister for foreign affairs, Choiseul continued to control the policy of France until 1770 and held most of the other important offices of state at the time. As author of the Pacte de Famille, he sought to retrieve the disastrous results of the alliance with Austria by an alliance with the Spanish House of Bourbon, but his action came too late. His vigorous policy in other departments of state was not, however, fruitless.[1]

Coming to power during the demoralization after the defeats of

banishment of the Jesuits and the temporary abolition of the order by Pope Clement XIV.[1]

Rebuilding French power

In the years following the

Lorraine to the crown of France. He directed the French conquest of Corsica. He also oversaw a failed scheme to settle Guiana.[6] By the late 1760s Choiseul was concerned by the growing strength of Russia around the Baltic Sea fearing that Britain was behind it. He believed they were planning a "northern league" against France. To counter this he hoped to depose or severely weaken the power of Catherine the Great by encouraging the Ottoman Empire to attack Russia.[7]

However, Choiseul's fall was caused by his action against the

Louis XVI, and the archduchess Marie Antoinette, a daughter of the Holy Roman Empress Maria Theresa and the Emperor Francis I. Choiseul considered the marriage a personal triumph and believed it would cement his position of power.[citation needed
]

In 1770, a

dispute between Britain and Spain over the Falkland Islands threatened to flare into open warfare. As part of his long-term strategy to overturn what he perceived as British hegemony, Choiseul strongly supported Spain and mobilised the French military in preparation for war. Louis XV, who sought peace after the wars that had dominated much of his reign, was angry when he discovered that.[9] At the height of the Falkland Crisis in 1770, Choiseul was dismissed and ordered to retire to his country estate, the Château de Chanteloup. The crisis was then settled peacefully by Britain and Spain.[citation needed
]

Retirement

Duc de Choiseul, Madame de Brionne and Abbé Barthélemy (1775)

The intrigues against him had, however, increased his popularity, which was already great, and, during his retirement, which lasted until 1774, he lived in the greatest affluence and was visited by many eminent figures.

Emmanuel-Armand de Richelieu, duc d'Aiguillon whose foreign policy was similar to that of Choiseul. D'Aiguillon favoured a more absolute monarchy than Choiseul did, and was strongly connected to the faction grouped around Madame Du Barry.[10] Choiseul enjoyed widespread popularity and many people came to bid him farewell, as a gesture of support, as he prepared to leave Paris for his Chanteloup estate.[citation needed] In 1771, he participated in the unsuccessful attempt to arrange a secret marriage between the king and Albertine-Elisabeth Pater in order to depose Madame du Barry.[11]

Greatly to Choiseul's disappointment,

Louis XVI did not restore him to his former position although the king allowed him to come back to Paris in 1774. Choiseul died in his private residence, the Hôtel Delaunay, in Paris, on 8 May 1785 and was buried in Chanteloup. He left a huge accumulation of debts, which was scrupulously discharged by his widow.[1] Choiseul's widow, a woman "in whom industrious malice could not find an imperfection",[12] lived in retirement until her death, on 3 December 1801.[12]

Assessment

Choiseul possessed both ability and diligence, and though lacking in tenacity, he showed foresight and liberality in his direction of affairs.[citation needed] In appearance he was a short, ill-featured man, with a ruddy countenance and a sturdy frame. His Mémoires were written during his exile in Chanteloup, and are merely detached notes upon different questions.[1]

English writer

Catherine II and says of his foreign policy: "he would project and determine the ruin of a country, but could not meditate a little mischief or a narrow benefit.... He dissipated the nation's wealth and his own; but did not repair the latter by plunder of the former". In reference to Choiseul's private life, Walpole asserts that "gallantry without delicacy was his constant pursuit".[13]

Art collection

Choiseul was interested in music, theatre, and art. He created one of the most important collections of paintings in France and was a generous patron of many French artists. The items in his collection are known with some accuracy because of two important visual records: first, a

Hôtel de Choiseul on the Rue de Richelieu; and second, a 1771 catalog of his collection with engravings created by Pierre-François Basan.[14]

Choiseul's collection of paintings mainly consisted of

Museo de Arte, Ponce).[15]

Choiseul also owned a large number of engraved views of France (including works by

Talleyrand, Franz von Wolff-Metternich, and Edmond Adolphe de Rothschild, that has been attributed to the ébéniste Antoine Gaudreau and the bronze-chaser Jacques Caffieri.[15]

Commemoration and popular culture

Choiseul Island, the largest island of the Solomon Islands is named after him.

Choiseul Sound, a major inlet on East Falkland is named after him.

Choiseul appears in the 1934 film Madame du Barry where he is played by Henry O'Neill.

Choiseul appears in the 2006 film

Sophia Coppola, where he is played by Jean-Christophe Bouvet
.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Chisholm 1911, p. 261.
  2. ^ a b Soltau (1909), p.6.
  3. ^ Soltau (1909), p.7.
  4. ^ Blaufarb (2002), p.25.
  5. ^ Pons 1996, p. 151.
  6. ^ Dull (2005), p.246.
  7. ^ Murphy (1982), p.151.
  8. ^ Williams, Hugh Noel, Madame Dubarry, Beijer, Stockholm, 1905 [page needed]
  9. ^ Black (1999), p.116.
  10. ^ Lever (2000), p.38.
  11. ^ Fleury, Maurice & comte, Louis XV intime et les petites maîtresses., Paris, 1909 [page needed]
  12. ^ a b Chisholm 1911, p. 262.
  13. ^ Chisholm 1911, pp. 261, 262.
  14. ^ Anonymous 1996; Watson 1966; Basan 1771. [page needed]
  15. ^ a b Anonymous 1996.

Sources

Attribution:  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Choiseul, Étienne François". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 6 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 261–262.

External links

Media related to Étienne François de Choiseul at Wikimedia Commons


Political offices
Preceded by
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs

1758–1761 		Succeeded by
César Gabriel de Choiseul, duc de Praslin
Preceded by
Charles Louis Auguste Fouquet de Belle-Isle
Secretary of State for War

1761–1770 		Succeeded by
Louis François, marquis de Monteynard
Preceded by
Secretary of State for the Navy

1761–1766 		Succeeded by
César Gabriel de Choiseul, duc de Praslin
Preceded by
César Gabriel de Choiseul, duc de Praslin
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs

1766–1770 		Succeeded by


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