Pierre Aycelin de Montaigut or Montaigu, Montagu, known as Cardinal de Laon, born between 1320 and 1325 and died 8 November 1388, was a fourteenth-century

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

cardinal, who was the

bishop of Nevers The Diocese of Nevers (; ) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in France. The diocese comprises the department of Nièvre, in the Region of Bourgogne. Suppressed by the Concordat of 1801 and united to the See of Autun, it was re ...

(1361–1371) and bishop of the

Diocese of Laon The diocese of Laon in the present-day département of Aisne, was a Catholic diocese for around 1300 years, up to the French Revolution. Its seat was in Laon, France, with Laon Cathedral. From early in the 13th century, the bishop of Laon was ...

(1371-1386), advisor to the king of

Charles V Charles V may refer to: Kings and Emperors * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise Others * Charles V, Duke ...

and peer of France. He took part in the Council of King Charles V, acting as regent during the minority of King

Charles VI of France Charles VI (3 December 136821 October 1422), nicknamed the Beloved () and in the 19th century, the Mad ( or ''le Fou''), was King of France from 1380 until his death in 1422. He is known for his mental illness and psychosis, psychotic episodes t ...

who ascended to the throne after his uncle's death. He was known then as one of the marmousets. His autopsy proved that he was poisoned on 8 November 1388, being buried in the abbey church of the

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...

of Saint-Martin-des-Champs in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Biography

Family

Pierre Aycelin de Montaigut descended from a family of minor nobility originally from

Auvergne Auvergne (; ; or ) is a cultural region in central France. As of 2016 Auvergne is no longer an administrative division of France. It is generally regarded as conterminous with the land area of the historical Province of Auvergne, which was dis ...

who owned land near

Billom Billom (; Auvergnat: ''Bilhom'') is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in central France. Population Notable natives Billom was the birthplace of the philosopher Georges Bataille. It was also the birt ...

, acquired in 1295 by the house of Aycelin. The last representative, who also owned the manor of Châteldon (Puy Dome), died in 1427. The coat-of-arms of this house was of sand, three golden torn Lyon langued gules. Brother of Cardinal

Gilles Aycelin de Montaigu Gilles II Aycelin de Montaigu or Montaigut, Montagu, was a French religious and diplomat who became Lord Chancellor of France, Cardinal (Catholicism), Cardinal from 1361 and bishop of Frascati from 1368. He was the chief negotiator for John II o ...

,Both were nephews of

Gilles I Aycelin de Montaigu Gilles I Aycelin de Montaigu or Montaigut (1252 – 23 June 1318), was a French Archbishop and diplomat who became Lord Chancellor of France. Gilles I Aycelin de Montaigu was Archbishop of Narbonne (1287–1311) and Archbishop of Rouen (1311– ...

, archbishop of

Narbonne Narbonne ( , , ; ; ; Late Latin:) is a commune in Southern France in the Occitanie region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. It is located about from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and was ...

and the archbishop of

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine, in northwestern France. It is in the prefecture of Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one ...

. who was bishop of

Thérouanne Thérouanne (; ; Dutch ''Terwaan'') is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France west of Aire-sur-la-Lys and south of Saint-Omer, on the river Lys. Population History At the time of the Gauls, ''T ...

and

Lord Chancellor of France The Chancellor of France (), also known as the Grand Chancellor or Lord Chancellor, was the officer of state responsible for the judiciary of the Kingdom of France. The Chancellor was responsible for seeing that royal decrees were enrolled and ...

between 1357-1358 and again in 1361. His mother Mascaronne de La Tour d'Auvergne was the aunt of Guy de La Tour d'Auvergne, Lord of Olliergues, who married Martha Roger de Beaufort. She was the niece of

Pope Clement VI Pope Clement VI (; 1291 – 6 December 1352), born Pierre Roger, was head of the Catholic Church from 7 May 1342 to his death, in December 1352. He was the fourth Avignon pope. Clement reigned during the first visitation of the Black Death (1 ...

, and his brother was

Pope Gregory XI Pope Gregory XI (; born Pierre Roger de Beaufort; c. 1329 – 27 March 1378) was head of the Catholic Church from 30 December 1370 to his death, in March 1378. He was the seventh and last Avignon pope and the most recent French pope. In 1377, ...

Religious

Like his uncle, Pierre Aycelin Montaigut was a doctor of

canon law Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...

. He was a

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

monk and

prior The term prior may refer to: * Prior (ecclesiastical), the head of a priory (monastery) * Prior convictions, the life history and previous convictions of a suspect or defendant in a criminal case * Prior probability, in Bayesian statistics * Prio ...

of the abbey of Saint-Martin des Champs. In 1359 he became chancellor to

Jean de Berry John of Berry or John the Magnificent (French language, French: ''Jean de Berry'', ; 30 November 1340 – 15 June 1416) was Duke of Berry and Rulers of Auvergne, Auvergne and Count of Poitiers and Montpensier. His brothers were King Charles ...

, son of the King of France Jean II, le Bon. In 1361 he was appointed

, succeeding Renaud II de Moulins. In 1368 he became

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

to King Charles V with

Pope Urban V Pope Urban V (; 1310 – 19 December 1370), born Guillaume de Grimoard, was head of the Catholic Church from 28 September 1362 until his death, in December 1370 and was also a member of the Order of Saint Benedict. He was the only Avignon pope ...

. On 8 January 1371 he was promoted to bishop-duke of Laon by

. In 1379 he played a role in the support given by France to the antipope

Clement VII Pope Clement VII (; ; born Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici; 26 May 1478 – 25 September 1534) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 November 1523 to his death on 25 September 1534. Deemed "the most unfortunate of ...

. In 1383 he tried to bring the county of

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

, under the authority of the papacy, to Avignon. Pierre Aycelin Montaigut was created a cardinal by Pope Clement VII of the Avignon Obedience in the Consistory of 23 December 1383. Conradus Eubel, ''Hierarchia catholica medii aevi'' Tomus I, editio altera (Monasterii 1913), p. 28 no. 14. In 1385, he gave up his position as bishop of Laon. On 15 January 1388 the abbot of Saint-Denis, Guy de Monceau, accept the arbitration of the cardinal of Laon in the proceedings against the bishop of Paris, locked in the prison of the abbey. On 1 November 1388 Charles VI attended the

All Saints' Day All Saints' Day, also known as All Hallows' Day, the Feast of All Saints, the Feast of All Hallows, the Solemnity of All Saints, and Hallowmas, is a Christian solemnity celebrated in honour of all the saints of the Church, whether they are know ...

mass in Reims. He stopped in

Champagne Champagne (; ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, which demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...

after returning from an expedition against the

Duke of Guelders Guelders is a historical duchy, previously county, of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the Low Countries. Counts House of Wassenberg * before 1096–about 1129: Gerard I * about 1129–about 1131: Gerard II, son of Gerard I * about 1131–11 ...

, an ally of the English. On 3 November a large meeting of the council was held in the episcopal palace of Reims. The cardinal of Laon, Peirre Aycelin Montaigut, former advisor to Charles V, was the one to take the matter to the table. After him, the

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

of Reims and his

warlord Warlords are individuals who exercise military, Economy, economic, and Politics, political control over a region, often one State collapse, without a strong central or national government, typically through informal control over Militia, local ...

s decided that the young ruler was capable of governing France.

Notes

References

;Attribution *''This article is based on the translation of the corresponding article of the French Wikipedia. A List of contributors can be found there at the'
History
''section''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Pierre Aycelin de Montaigut 1320s births 1388 deaths 14th-century French cardinals Bishops of Nevers Bishops of Laon French Benedictines 14th-century peers of France 14th-century French politicians