Eustace Chapuys

Eustace Chapuys (

Eustace Chapuys was the second son, and one of six children, of Louis Chapuys, a notary and syndic, and Guigonne Dupuys, who may have been of noble birth.^[1][3][4] It was believed that he was born between 1490 and 1492 in Annecy, then in the Duchy of Savoy,^[1] however his biographer, Lauren Mackay, has argued that this is far too late, and that it was more likely to be 1489. This would make him a more plausible eighteen years old when he entered university in 1507.^[5] Chapuys began his education at Annecy and from 1507, attended the University of Turin, where he remained for at least five years. Around 1512, having chosen law as a career, he continued his studies at the University of Valence.^[3] In early 1515, he attended the Sapienza University of Rome, where he attained the degree of doctor of civil and canon laws, and received the Pope's blessing.^[3]

Chapuys was a

Chapuys' attempts to defeat English machinations against Catherine eventually failed and Henry married Anne Boleyn. Catherine died in January 1536. It has been traditionally thought that Chapuys despised Anne and could never bring himself to say her name, referring to her only as the "whore" or "concubine".^[10][11] Eric Ives, however, suggests that the ambassador's use of the term was not from his disdain for Anne but because he failed to appreciate that she could ever become Henry's wife.^[12]

Chapuys was a faithful servant to Charles V, an astute observer of men, and although he spoke and wrote fluently in French, he was a staunch opponent of France and the French, whom he loathed because of their designs on his homeland, Savoy.^[9] On one occasion, he threatened to disinherit his niece if she married a Frenchman.^[1] Although it was to support Catherine in her cause that he first came to England, it was her daughter, Mary, to whom he rendered the greater service. Chapuys, who had been devoted to Catherine, strongly disapproved of the king's treatment of his daughter. He developed an affection for Mary, who trusted him and relied on him during some of the most difficult years of her life.^[13]

In 1539, Chapuys began to suffer from gout.^[1] Nevertheless, he remained as resident ambassador in England, except for brief absences, keeping his master informed on English affairs, until May 1545. He was recalled to Antwerp, in April 1539, when diplomatic relations soured, where he remained until July 1540.^[1] On his return, he worked to restore Anglo-Imperial relations and was involved in the negotiations for the alliance of February 1543, which led to Henry VIII and Charles V declaring war on France.^[14] Chapuys accompanied Henry VIII's men to France.^[1] His health had continued to worsen in 1544 and he asked to be relieved of his post, but the Emperor allowed him to leave only after introducing his successor, François van der Delft, to the post.^[1] Chapuys was then sent to Bourbourg, near Gravelines, to negotiate until July 1545, when he was finally released from service.^[1]

Later years

After his retirement, Chapuys resided in Leuven, in the Low Countries, now Belgium and was, by 1545, a man of considerable wealth. His income was derived from his ambassadorial pensions, the inheritance of an estate at Annecy, and various ecclesiastical sinecures, which included the deanery at Vuillonnex, canonries at Toledo, Osma and Málaga, ecclesiastical posts in Flanders and the profitable abbacy of Sant'Angelo di Brolo in Sicily, which he acquired in 1545. He had increased his wealth over the years through prudent investments in Antwerp.^[15]

Chapuys used his wealth to set up a college in May 1548, for promising students from his native Savoy.^[15] This College of Savoy, in Leuven, of which now only the gateway survives, is incorporated into M – Museum Leuven, the city's museum.^[16] He also founded a grammar school at Annecy in December 1551.^[1][15]

During his retirement, Chapuys acted as an advisor to

Chapuys had a son, Césare, who was made legitimate in 1545, and who died in 1549.[15]^[18] The death of his son ensured that the college and grammar school that he had founded would benefit from his vast fortune on his own demise.^[15] In 1555 he decided that his English pension should go towards setting up a scholarship for English students at Leuven.^[1]

Death

Eustace Chapuys died on 21 January 1556 and was buried in the chapel of the College of Savoy.^[1][3] A portrait of Chapuys, which may be contemporary, is located at the musée-château d'Annecy at Annecy.^[19]

Fictional portrayals

• Chapuys appears as a character in William Shakespeare's play The Famous History of the Life of King Henry VIII under the name of Capucius.
• He is a major character in Robert Bolt's play A Man for All Seasons, though he is excised from the film version.
• Chapuys is portrayed by
  The Six Wives of Henry VIII
  .
• Chapuys, portrayed by Anthony Brophy, is a supporting character in all four seasons of Showtime's series The Tudors where he is depicted (accurately) as a staunch supporter of Catherine of Aragon who openly despised Anne Boleyn. He develops a strong, protective friendship with Mary Tudor before leaving England and is shown as dying much earlier than he did in real life.
• He figures largely in Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall, Bring Up the Bodies, and The Mirror and the Light, and was portrayed by Mathieu Amalric in the television adaptation.
• Chapuys' role in Henry VIII's reign is dramatised in David Starkey's documentary, Henry VIII: Mind of A Tyrant. He is portrayed by actor Andrew Havill.

References