Jacques de Lévis
French noble and favourite of King Henri III / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jacques de Lévis, comte de Caylus (c. 1554–29 May 1578)[1] was a French noble and favourite of King Henri III during the French Wars of Religion. Coming from a prominent Rouergue family, Caylus entered court life when dispatched by his father, the seneschal of Rouergue to court in 1572 to inform King Charles IX of the failure of the sieges of Montauban and Millau. The following year he began his association with the king's brother Anjou, future Henri III, fighting under his command during the siege of La Rochelle. With Anjou's election as king of the Commonwealth, Caylus travelled with his new patron to the country, being elevated to the position of 'gentleman of the chamber' in Anjou's capacity as king of the Commonwealth.
Jacques de Lévis | |
---|---|
comte de Caylus/Quélus | |
Born | 1554 |
Died | 29 May 1578, Paris |
Noble family | House of Lévis |
Father | Antoine de Lévis |
Mother | Balthazarde de Prez |
With Anjou's return to France as king Henri III in 1574, Caylus, increasingly close to the king, travelled with him. During the king's stay in Lyon he was elevated to the title of count. During the following civil war, he and his company fought under the authority of the Duke of Guise in a campaign that culminated at Dormans. In November 1575 he became a gentlemen of the chamber for Henri in his capacity as king of France. In the sixth civil war he fought near Brouage where he was captured by Protestant forces. An enemy of the seigneur de Bussy favourite to the king's brother Alençon he led the king's favourites in a showdown with the noble and his retinue in February 1578. Neither side delivered a fatal blow and Henri frustratedly insisted the two men make a show of reconciliation. In April of that year Caylus instigated the infamous 'duel of the Mignons', in which he with his seconds Maugiron and Livarot fought Entraguet and his seconds with rapiers. During the fight that followed, Maugiron, Ribérac and Schomberg were killed and Caylus was stabbed 19 times. Caylus lingered for another month while the king devoted daily attentions to him, but eventually he died on 29 May. The king mourned his loss to an extent that was viewed improper by contemporaries and commissioned an elaborate tomb for his dead favourites. This tomb was destroyed in 1589.