Hugues de Lionne | |
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| Born | Hugues de Lionne (1611-10-11)11 October 1611 |
| Died | 1 September 1671(1671-09-01) (aged 59) |
Hugues de Lionne (11 October 1611 – 1 September 1671) was a French statesman.
He was born inGrenoble, of an old family ofDauphiné. Early trained fordiplomacy, he fell into disgrace underCardinal Richelieu, but his remarkable abilities attracted the notice ofCardinal Mazarin, who sent him as secretary of the French embassy to thecongress of Munster, and, in 1642, on a mission to thepope.[1][2]
In 1646, he became secretary to the queenregentAnne of Austria. In 1653, he obtained high office in the kings household and in 1654, he was ambassador extraordinary at the election ofPope Alexander VII.[2]
On the death ofFerdinand III, Hugues co-led the French effort to select an Emperor outside theHabsburg family. He and the Cardinal cultivated relationships with German nobility, includingFranz Egon of Fürstenberg, prime minister of Cologne, and his brotherWilhelm.[3] With their help, Hugues was instrumental in forming theleague of the Rhine, by whichAustria was cut off from theSpanish Netherlands, and, as minister of state, was associated with Mazarin in theTreaty of the Pyrenees (1659), which secured the marriage ofLouis XIV to the infantaMaria Theresa of Spain.[2]
At the cardinals dying request he was appointed hissuccessor in foreign affairs, a position he held from 3 April 1663 to 1 September 1671. Among his most important diplomatic successes were theTreaty of Breda (1667), theTreaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1668) and theSale of Dunkirk.[2]
He died inParis in 1671, leaving memoirs. His friendArnauld de Pomponne replaced him as secretary of State.[2]
He was a man of pleasure, but his natural indolence gave place to an unflagging energy when the occasion demanded it; and, in an age of great ministers, his consummate statesmanship placed him in the front rank.[2]
One of his sons,Artus de Lionne, became a missionary of theParis Foreign Missions Society, and was active inSiam (modern Thailand) andChina.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Lionne, Hugues de".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 16 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 739.