Robert Picard Robert Picard ( pronounced as the French " ro - BARE " ) was the son of Maurice and Yvette Picard , and the elder brother of Starfleet Captain Jean - Luc Picard . ( ) His mother had died by 2364 . ( ) Robert always refused to own replicator s , and would not allow their use anywhere in his home or property . ( ) Robert ' s relationship with Jean - Luc was tumultuous . As children , Robert often bullied and picked on Jean - Luc . Robert , who his parent s considered the responsible one , always resented that Jean - Luc broke all the rules and got away with it . Robert was jealous of Jean - Luc ' s success and resented him for it . He had to remain on Earth to tend to the Picard family vineyard s in La Barre , France , while Jean - Luc went off to Starfleet , gaining fame . The brothers were reconciled in 2367 , when Jean - Luc returned to La Barre to recuperate shortly after being assimilated by the Borg . At first , the Picard reunion was filled with animosity , since Robert still felt that Jean - Luc was arrogant . Relations between them worsened , particularly as the subject of Jean - Luc ' s recent problems came up . After Jean - Luc was offered a new job and had to decide whether to leave Starfleet , Robert tormented him , telling Jean - Luc that he had become unsure of himself and asking him what had happened to him . The argument led to a brawl in the vineyards that eventually left the sibling rivals laughing and covered in mud . Once Jean - Luc admitted to Robert that he felt guilty over his inability to fight the Borg after they had kidnapped him and for subsequently having caused numerous death s , Robert notified Jean - Luc that he himself had to come to terms with his own guilt and realized that it was not Jean - Luc ' s fault . ( ) Like his younger brother , Robert suffered from Shalaft ' s Syndrome . ( ) Robert died in a fire at the family home in 2371 , along with his only son , René . He was survived by his wife , Marie . ( ) Appendices . Background information . Robert Picard was played by Jeremy Kemp in " Family " . A different actor played him in " Generations " , where he appeared only in the form of photograph s in Jean - Luc Picard ' s photo album . British actor Ian Abercrombie provided ADR voiceover work for Jeremy Kemp in " Family " , especially in several scenes shortly before the fight . According to the for " Family " , Robert was six to eight years older than his brother Jean - Luc , placing his birth sometime between 2297 and 2299 . In " Family " , Robert Picard ' s outfit was inspired by the many references to his insistence on retaining the old - fashioned ways and rejecting futuristic methods of caring for the Picard vineyards . " " Now , in the 24th century , the ' old ways ' may just be the 20th century way of doing things , " " reckoned Costume Designer Robert Blackman , " " but to make that image come across in an individual form , we had to keep him fairly rustic - looking . " " As a personal touch of his own , Blackman designed the costume to feature a loose blouse which had an asymmetrical opening , and odd pants with leather patches on top of them . Though the fabrics looked homespun , they actually weren ' t . The fabricated costume arrived as a neatly finished garment at the costume shop . " " Then we roughed it up so it didn ' t look like it came from a sewing machine , was neatly pressed , and taken to Jeremy Kemp ' s trailer , " " said Blackman . To distress and age the clothing , the costume department essentially attacked the costume , using such tools as sandpaper , shredders , and spray cans . ( ) Apocrypha . In the TNG Relaunch novel " Paths of Disharmony " , Jean - Luc Picard and Doctor Beverly Crusher have a son who they name , in honor of Robert and Rene . " The Autobiography of Jean - Luc Picard " gives his birth year as 2099 .