Louis Phélypeaux de Pontchartrain

See also: Louis Phélypeaux

Louis Phélypeaux , marquis de Phélypeaux (1667), count de Maurepas (1687), count de Pontchartrain (1699), known as also the chancellor of Pontchartrain , is a French statesman born in 1643 and died in 1727.

After having been First president of the Parliament of Brittany, it joins together until September 1699 the functions of General inspector of finances (starting from 1689), of Secretary of State to the Navy (starting from the November 7th 1690) and of Secretary of State at the House of the King.

Its management of its department, a long time décriée, was revalued by the recent historiography which shows that, during one difficult period, it managed with competence an immense department which joined together the marine, the trade, the colonies, the Clergy, Paris, the house of the King and the public purses. It made carry out the Recensement French Population of 1693, the first after that of Vauban of 1678. It fought the influence at the Court of the Quiétisme, propagated by Fénelon and M {{me}} Guyon.

One charges to him however a certain error count in the use of the French fleet, carried to very an high level by Colbert and Seignelay, in particular a share of responsibility in the disaster for Hougue.

It was then Chancelier of France September 5th 1699 at July 1st 1714. According to François Bluche, “it redonn with the chancellery an importance and a glare forgotten since the old age of Pierre Séguier”.

Saint-Simon draws up a flattering portrait of it: “Of promptitude to be never included/understood so much, so much lightness and of approval in the conversation, so much of accuracy and promptitude in distributed, so much of facility and solidity in work, so much of forwarding, so much of sudden knowledge of the men, nor more turn to take them. ” Its discretion was extremely appreciated of Louis XIV.

He was clerk of the Ordre of the Holy Spirit in May 1700.

He married in 1668 Marie de Maupeou of which he had a son, Jerome Phélypeaux (1674 - 1747), count de Pontchartrain.

He resigned of his load not to have to affix the seals on the stop of the council of July 5th, 1714 condemning a text of the bishop of Metz, Mgr Henri-Charles de Coislin, like opposite with the Bulle Unigenitus . For some time, it felt badly at ease in front of the drift autoritarist of Louis XIV and wished to be devoted to the hello of its heart. It was withdrawn at the institution of the Oratory where it died in 1727.

The Lake Pontchartrain in Louisiana, bears its name, and the current city of Détroit in the Michigan was founded with the name Fort Pontchartrain of the Strait to its honor.

Random links: