Bauffremont

Bauffremont coat of arms

Bauffremont is a French family which derived its name from a village in the Vosges, outside of Orléans, now spelt Beaufremont. The family traces itself to Liébaud, sire de Bauffremont, in 1090. They are descended from the female line of the Courtenay.

History

In consequence of an alliance with the house of Vergy, the Bauffremonts established themselves in Burgundy and Franche-Comté. In 1448 Pierre de Bauffremont, lord of Charny, married Marie, a legitimized daughter of Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy. In 1527 the family acquired by marriage the properties of the Vienne-Listenois family.

Nicolas de Bauffremont, his son Claude, and his grandson Henri, all played important parts in the states-general of 1576, 1588 and 1614, and their speeches have been published.

On June 8, 1757 Louis de Bauffremont (1712–1769) was made a Prince of the Holy Roman Empire (inheritable by all male-line descendants); on August 21 and September 27 this title was recognised in France. In 1759 Louis was first styled as cousin du roi^{[citation needed]} by King Louis XV.

Alliance with the House of Courtenay

Coat of Arms of the House of Courtenay: Or three torteaux.

The House of Courtenay was a dynasty in medieval France originating from the castle of Courtenay in the Gâtinais (Loiret), in the 10th century. The dynasty descended from Athon, the first lord of Courtenay, apparently himself a descendant of the Counts of Sens and from [[Pharamond]^{[citation needed]}], reputed founder of the French monarchy in 420.

Their male-line descent from Louis VI of France induced the impoverished 17th-century members of the Courtenay family to seek to be acknowledged as "Princes du Sang" (Princes of the Blood Royal) and "cousins to the king". Three kings in a row - Henry IV, Louis XIII, and Louis XIV - turned down their petitions. Although the Courtenays protested, their claims to the princely title were never acknowledged by the Paris Court of Accounts.

The last male member of the French Courtenays committed suicide in 1727. However his sister married Louis de Bauffremont, and their descendants assumed the dubious title of Prince de Courtenay, which they bear to this day.

Coat of Arms of Antoine de Bauffremont

Alexandre Emmanuel Louis de Bauffremont - Courtenay (1773–1833), son of Louis served under the Bourbons. He fled France during the French Revolution and settled in the United States. He later returned to France and was made a Count of the French Empire by Napoleon. Louis XVIII made him a peer of France in 1817, and duke in 1818.

The current head of the house, Prince Jacques de Bauffremont-Courtenay, 8th Duke of Bauffremont (born 1922), is the president of the Institut de la Maison de Bourbon, the organisation which supports the claims of Louis Alphonse, Duke of Anjou to the throne of France.^[1] His sister Princess Claude de Bauffremont-Courtenay was honorary superintendent of the houses of education of the Legion of Honour.^[2]

The head of the house uses the following titles: prince-duc de Bauffremont, prince de Courtenay et de Carency, prince et marquis de Listenois et de Marnay, comte et duc de Pont de Vaux, vicomte de Marigny et de Salins, cousin du roi. The cadet members of the house use the titles, prince de Bauffremont, prince de Marnay.

Two members of the family have been members of the Order of the Golden Fleece: Louis Bénigne, Marquis of Bauffremont and Prince de Listenois (1684–1755) in 1711 and Charles Roger, Prince of Bauffremont-Listenois (1713–1795) in 1789.

References

• L'Institut de la Maison de Bourbon
• Hubert Cuny and Nicole Dreneau, Le Gotha français: état présent des familles ducales et princières (depuis 1940) (Paris: L'intermédiaire des chercheurs et curieux), 31.
• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
• Almanach de Gotha, 2008.

1. ^ L'Institut de la Maison de Bourbon
2. ^ Hubert Cuny and Nicole Dreneau, Le Gotha français: état présent des familles ducales et princières (depuis 1940) (Paris: L'intermédiaire des chercheurs et curieux), 31.

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.