page_title: Robert Cloche de La Malmaison
section_title: King's lieutenant in Guadeloupe (1684–1705)
hierarchical_section_title: Robert Cloche de La Malmaison / King's lieutenant in Guadeloupe (1684–1705)
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Entrée du fort Delgrès et monts Caraïbes dans le fond. (Basse-Terre, Guadeloupe)
context_page_description: Georges Robert Cloche de Mont-Saint-Rémy de La Malmaison was a French soldier and colonial administrator who was governor of Guadeloupe from 1705 until his death in 1717. In 1713–15 he was acting governor general of the French Antilles
context_section_description: Pierre Hincelin was governor of  Guadeloupe from 5 July 1677 until 1694, when he was replaced by Charles Auger.
  On 19 September 1684 La Malmaison was appointed king's lieutenant in Guadeloupe. 
  He became a knight of the Order of Saint Louis.
  He brought two of his nephews to Guadeloupe, George and Nicolas, sons of his younger brother George.
  During the Nine Years' War (1688–97) the governor general of the Windward Islands Charles de Courbon de Blénac resigned on 29 January 1690 after criticism of his lack of response to the English attacks on Saint Barthelemy, Marie-Galante and Saint Martin, and returned to France to defend himself at court.François d'Alesso d'Éragny was appointed his successor in May 1690, but the marquis de Seignelay did not treat his departure as a matter of urgency.
  D'Eragny arrived in Martinique on 5 February 1691 with 14 ships and began to strengthen the defenses.
  At the end of May 1691 the English under Christopher Codrington, who had taken Marie-Galante, appeared off Guadeloupe.
  Governor Hincelin was suffering from severe hydropsy, which limited his mobility, and retired into the interior.
  400 men under La Malmaison as king's lieutenant delayed the English for a day before being forced back.
  The French troops retreated into Fort Saint-Charles and were besieged there by the English.
  La Malmaison led the resistance of the fort at Basse-Terre for 36 days, when d'Eragny arrived in Guadeloupe with a force of buccaneers and other troops, at which Codrington hastily reembarked leaving behind cannons and some of his wounded.
  By early 1701 it was clear that another European war was imminent, since the Duke of Anjou had just become King Philip V of Spain, and the other powers of Europe would not allow one family to hold the crowns of France and Spain.
  In July 1701 the governor general of the French West Indies, Charles Desnotz, came to Guadeloupe to consult with governor Charles Auger, and to urge him to immediately start preparations for war.
  La Malmaison was commander of Guadeloupe in the absence of the governor in 1701 and 1702.
   
  On 19 March 1703 an English invasion fleet under Hovenden Walker and Christopher Codrington was sighted off the south of Guadeloupe.
  Over the next few days the English disembarked over 4,000 troops at three landing points.
  La Malmaison was second in command to Governor Auger.
  Their 1,400 French militiamen were forced back to Fort Saint Charles in Basse-Terre.
  On 3 April 1703 a French fleet arrived under Jean Gabaret, lieutenant general for the French Antilles, with 820 men from Martinique.
  The subordinate commanders included Bonnaventure-François de Boisfermé, Louis Gaston Caquery de Valmenière, Jean Clair Dyel Du Parquet, François de Collart and Jean Du Buc.
  An attempt to hold Fort Francis failed, and the French were forced to the east.
  The English left Guadeloupe on 15 May 1703 after causing great material damage but few French casualties.
caption: Entrance to Fort Saint-Charles, Basse-Terre
exif: {"Image Make": "EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY", "Image Model": "KODAK Z740 ZOOM DIGITAL CAMERA", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "QuickTime 7.6.4", "Image DateTime": "2013:06:18 18:37:02", "Image HostComputer": "Mac OS X 10.5.8", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "280", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "3336", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "4902", "Thumbnail YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/1000", "EXIF FNumber": "14/5", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "80", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2013:06:01 15:23:37", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2013:06:01 15:23:37", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "10", "EXIF ApertureValue": "3", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "3", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "63/10", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2576", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1932", "EXIF ExposureIndex": "80", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "0", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "38", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF Contrast": "Normal", "EXIF Saturation": "Normal", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal", "EXIF SubjectDistanceRange": "0"}