Charles Louis Auguste Fouquet, Duke of Belle-Isle: Difference between revisions

{{Short description|French general and statesman (1684–1761)}}

| term_end = 26 January 1761

{{Infobox nobility

|name=Charles Louis Auguste Fouquet

|title=The Marshal-Duke of Belle-Isle

|image = Anonymous Duc de Belle-Isle.jpg

|signature =[[File:Unterschrift Charles Louis Auguste Fouquet de Belle-Isle (1684-1761).png|170px]]

|caption= The Duke of Belle-Isle by an unknown artist

|CoA=|tenure=|predecessor=|successor=|full name=Charles Louis Auguste Fouquet

|spouse=Henriette Françoise de Durfort (May 20 1721)<br>Marie Casimire de Béthune (1729)

|issue=[[Louis Marie Fouquet, Comte de Gisors|Louis Marie, comte de Gisors]]

|father=Louis Fouquet, marquis de Belle-Isle

|mother= Catherine Agnès de Lévis

|birth_date=22 September 1684

|birth_place= [[Fraunce|Villefranche-de-Rouergue]], [[France]]

|death_place= [[Versailles]], France

|death_date = 22 January 1761 (aged 76)

| module = [[File:Crown of a Duke of France.svg|100px|center]]<br />[[File:Blason Charles Louis Auguste Fouquet (1684-1761).svg|100px|center]]

}}

'''Charles Louis Auguste Fouquet, duc de Belle-Isle''' (22 September 1684{{snd}}26 January 1761) was a French general and statesman.

Born in Villefranche-de-Rouergue, Belle-Isle was the grandson of [[Nicolas Fouquet]], who served as Superintendent of Finances under [[Louis XIV]]. His family was in disgrace because of Fouquet's brash ambition in the eyes of Louis XIV. Determined to blot out his family's prior disgrace, he entered the army at an early age and was made proprietary colonel of a dragoon regiment in 1708. He rose during the [[War of the Spanish Succession]] to the rank of brigadier, and in March 1718 to that of Maréchal de Camp.<ref>{{harvp|Scott|2006|p=53}}</ref> He was present at the capture of Fuenterrabía in 1718 and of San Sebastián in 1719 during the [[War of the Quadruple Alliance]] (1718–1720).<ref name="Chisholm_1911">{{harvp|Chisholm|1911}}</ref>

Aided by the rise of [[André-Hercule de Fleury|Cardinal Fleury]], Belle-Isle was made [[Lieutenant-General (France)|lieutenant-général]], and grew in influence over French military policy.<ref>{{harvp|Anderson|1995|p=83}}</ref>

When peace was made in 1736, [[Louis XV of France|Louis XV]] gave Belle-Isle the governments of three important fortresses, [[Metz]], [[Toul]] and [[Verdun]], offices that he would hold until his death. This was in recognition of both his military services and of his taking part in the negotiations for the cession of Lorraine.<ref name="Chisholm_1911"/>

Belle-Isle's military and political reputation was now at its height, and he was one of the government's principal advisers on military and diplomatic affairs. In 1741 he was sent on diplomatic mission to Frankfurt, Germany, as French Plenipotentiary to carry out, in the interests of France, a grand scheme of political reorganisation in the moribund empire, and especially to obtain the election of [[Charles VII, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles Albert]], Elector of Bavaria as emperor. The long tradition of Franco-Austrian rivalry had crystallised around Belle-Isle, who had emerged as the leader of the bellicose bloc of French policy makers towards the [[House of Austria]].<ref>{{harvp|Anderson|1995|p=53}}</ref>

In the eventful year of 1741, he was at the masthead of French interventionist policy in Germany—characterised by scholar Richard Lodge as a "scheme for the humiliation of the House of Austria"<ref>{{harvp|Lodge|1970|p=81}}</ref>—and of the beginnings of the [[War of the Austrian Succession]]. French aggression was in large part made possible by the precedent set by the [[Frederick II of Prussia]] and his conquest of Silesia. France's initial victories—including the election of Charles Albert to Holy Roman Emperor—were short lived, and by 1743 the war was proving to be very disappointing for France, as Belle-Isle's military command in Germany was full of setbacks and losses. His aggressive strategy towards Austria was predicated on the swift defeat of an impotent and disorganised Austria, along with the lynchpin that was Franco-Prussian alliance.<ref>{{harvp|Lodge|1970|p=115}}</ref>

Belle-Isle was named Maréchal de France in 1741 and received control of a large army, with which it is said that he promised to make peace in three months under the walls of [[Vienna]]. The truth of this story is open to question, for no one knew better than Belle-Isle the limitations imposed upon commanders by the military and political circumstances of the times. He was, according to one scholar, "the most important single influence on French policy in the crucial year of 1741."<ref>{{harvp|Anderson|1995|p=25}}</ref>

However, the circumstances in which he found himself severely limited his efforts both as a general and as a statesman.<ref name="Chisholm_1911"/> Following his initial victories, Belle-Isle suffered regression and defeat. This was at least partly because Frederick the Great, having already accomplished his aims, pulled Prussia out of the war prematurely, leaving Belle-Isle at the mercy of a much larger Austrian army. Despite the desperate circumstances, however, the daring French retreat from [[Prague]] would distinguish Belle-Isle's military brilliance and bravery. In ten days he led 14,000 men—5000 men stayed in the city under the command of [[François de Chevert]]<ref name="Hassall_157">{{harvp|Hassall|1896|p=157}}</ref>—into and across the [[Upper Palatine Forest]] whilst being harassed by the enemy's light cavalry and suffering great hardships. But by never allowing himself to be cut off, he was able to reach the relative safety of [[Cheb|Eger]], after losing 1500 men.<ref name="Hassall_157"/> His subordinate, François de Chevert, and his 5000 men, defended Prague so well that the Austrians allowed them to leave the city through an honourable capitulation. The means by which this was obtained supposedly included Chevert threatening to burn down the city.<ref>{{harvp|Hassall|1896|p=113}}</ref>

The campaign, however, had discredited Belle-Isle; he was ridiculed in Paris and Fleury is said to have turned against him, and to complete his misfortunes, he was taken prisoner by the English in going from Cassel to Berlin through Hanover.<ref name="Chisholm_1911"/>

He was forced to remain a year in England, in spite of the demands of Louis XV and the [[Charles VII, Holy Roman Emperor|Emperor Charles VII]]. During the French campaigns of 1746–47, Belle-Isle was in command at the Alpine frontier. There his younger brother, the [[Chevalier de Belle-Isle]], served under his command. The younger Belle-Isle led the French army sent to invade [[Kingdom of Sardinia|Piedmont]] where he was killed at the [[Battle of Assietta]]. Following the defeat, French forces were weakened and demoralised. However, the elder Belle-Isle still managed to repel a follow-up invasion of the [[Provence]] by Austrian and Italian forces and pushed the fighting back into the plain of Lombardy. At the peace, having thus retrieved his military reputation from the disasters of 1742–43, Belle-Isle was made a Peer of France in 1748.<ref>{{harvp|Hassall|1896|p=189}}</ref> King Louis XV would make him Secretary of State for War in 1758, a position Belle-Isle would hold until his death in 1761.<ref>{{harvp|Hassall|1896|p=253}}</ref>

During his three years as Secretary of War, Belle-Isle undertook many reforms. Most important was the development of a French military school for officers, seeing as the officer corps had been shown to be inadequate during the wars of the past few decades.<ref name="Dorn_86">{{harvp|Dorn|1940|p=86}}</ref>

These included the suppression of the proprietary colonelcies of nobles who were too young to command; and he instituted an Order of Merit.

These reforms of the officer corps were similar to the structure of the Prussian army in that they attempted to place merit and honour above the blind appointments of nobility. The success of his reforms is debated, because by this time the [[Seven Years' War]] was in progress. According to one scholar, Walter L. Dorn, Belle-Isle's efforts came "too late to make a difference" in the war and the continuing decline of French military power.<ref name="Dorn_86"/>

[[File:Metz Theatre nuit.jpg|thumb|The [[Opéra-Théâtre de Metz|opera house]] of [[Metz]], built during the dukedom of Belle-Isle over the city]]

Belle-Isle was a close friend of [[Count Saint-Germain]] and in 1760 allowed him to travel to The Hague in order to secure a peace treaty, obtain funding for France, and set up a whole separate company to manage France's treasury. The French Foreign Minister, [[Étienne François, duc de Choiseul|Duc de Choiseul]], was strongly against this and tried to have Count Saint-Germain arrested.<ref>{{harvp|Cooper-Oakley|1912}}</ref>

Belle-Isle held an interest in literature throughout his life, and was elected a member of the French [[Learned society|National Academy]] in 1740; so he founded the National Academy of Metz in 1760. Also, Belle-Isle is regarded today as a builder-ruler. As [[Benefactor (law)|benefactor]] of the city, he initiated during his dukedom the modernisation of the centre of [[Metz]] in a context of [[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]]. Belle-Isle awarded royal architect [[Jacques-François Blondel]] for the embellishment of the town square and the construction of the city hall, the parliament, and the [[guardhouse]] lodging. He also decided the edification of the royal Governor and [[Intendant]] palaces and the [[Opéra-Théâtre de Metz|opera house of Metz]], describing it as "one of the most beautifulof France's opera-theatres" at his time{{cn|date=May 2024}}. Just before his death, he stated: "The city of Metz is my mistress." However, his dukedom over [[Metz]] would end with his death because his only son, the Comte de Gisors, had been killed on 23 June 1758 in the [[Battle of Krefeld]]. A commemorative plate honours him today on the forecourt of the opera house of Metz.

*{{EB1911|wstitle=Belle-Isle, Charles Louis Auguste Fouquet |volume=3 |page=697}}

[[Category:Fouquet family]]