Constant d'Aubigné (; 158531 August 1647) was a French

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

, son of Théodore-Agrippa d'Aubigné, the poet, soldier, propagandist and chronicler.

Life

Born into a

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

family, Constant led a less structured life, first embracing

Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

and then the

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

causes, visiting England and then in 1626 betraying the Protestants by revealing English plans to take

La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle'') is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime Departments of France, department. Wi ...

. As a result, he was disinherited by his father.

Final days

Richelieu had d'Aubigné and his family imprisoned at

Niort Niort (; Poitevin: ''Niàu''; ; ) is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department, western France. It is the prefecture of Deux-Sèvres. The population of Niort is 58,707 (2017) and more than 177,000 people live in the urban area. Geography T ...

in 1629 for correspondence with the English. Released in 1639 following the death of Richelieu, the family went to the

French West Indies The French West Indies or French Antilles (, ; ) are the parts of France located in the Antilles islands of the Caribbean: * The two overseas departments of: ** Guadeloupe, including the islands of Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Les Saintes, Ma ...

, where d'Aubigné had been made governor of

Marie-Galante Marie-Galante (, or ) is one of the dependencies of Guadeloupe, an overseas department of France. Marie-Galante has a land area of . It had 11,528 inhabitants at the start of 2013, but by the start of 2018 the total was officially estimated to ...

, though he and his family remained on

Martinique Martinique ( ; or ; Kalinago language, Kalinago: or ) is an island in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It was previously known as Iguanacaera which translates to iguana island in Carib language, Kariʼn ...

. d'Aubigné returned around 1645, nearly destitute, and died in

Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...

in 1647. His wife and children returned to France the same year.

Legacy

Constant was twice married. His first wife, Anne Marchant, left a son, Theodore. His second wife, Jeanne de Cardilhac, was the mother of Charles (father of

Françoise Charlotte d'Aubigné Baroness Francoise Charlotte Amable d'Aubigne-Maintenon, Duchess of Noailles (5 May 1684 – 6 October 1739) was a French aristocrat, the wife of Adrien Maurice de Noailles, 3rd Duke of Noailles. She was the niece of Françoise d'Aubigné, Madame ...

), Mme. de Maintenon and the Chevalier d'Aubigné; the latter was never married. The d'Aubigné line was continued through Anne Marchant's son, Theodore (1613–1670) .

Notes

Resources

* Haag, Eugéne & Émile. "La France Protestante". Paris, 1877. * Smedes, Susan Dabney. "A Southern Planter: Social Life in the Old South". Pott, 1887; p. 7,8 * Bellet, Jaquelin & Jaquelin. "Some Prominent Virginia Families". J.P. Bell company, 1907; pp. 87–93 1580s births 1647 deaths French knights Baron of Surimeau Constant {{France-noble-stub