Henri II de Montmorency

Henri II de Montmorency (Born 1595-1617) was the incumbent Duc de Montmorency, Head of the Maison de Montmorency beginning in the year 1605. His peerage spanned the end of Charles IX & I's reign, that of François III & II's reign & into the reign of Charles X & II, bestowed the title Comte d'Ostremont upon birth, he would hold this title for a short 10 years, succeeding his father Henri I as Duc de Montmorency in 1605. Henri was born in his fathers 3rd marriage, therefore his age difference to his siblings was great and for much of his youth, this was spent alone and not with others.
== Biography ==
=== Birth of the Comte, 1595 ===
In the warm spring of 1595, Henri was born at the Chateau de Chantilly, Val-d'Oise, on the outskirts of Northern Paris.The extensive estate was naturally prepared for the education and growth of a young peer, Henri's mother, Louise de Budos had experienced a relatively relaxed carry of the child, with little problems throughout. However upon the night of the birth, there was extensive bleeding, before the birth, the tending physician, Monsieur Baptiste Féret, quickly used initiative to stop the blood loss before the Duchesse lost her consciousness, this ultimately proved successful although she was distressed and delirious for a prolonged period after this, causing further problems after the Duchesse "refused to give birth" as she began contractions, leading to her restraint and eventual compliance. 
Following the birth, as tradition, the child was handed to the wet nurse, a particular Claire Marais, daughter to the Head Groom of the Chateau. The child was expected to likely perish following the distress at birth, however the infant was quickly nursed to health and cried the night through, accounts recall. This heir was naturally awaited by his Father, who's previous 2 wives had failed to produce an heir to the family estates, this now left the Comte d'Ostremont sole heir to a vast area of land and estates, the Montmorency family being one of the oldest (roughly 612 years old in 1605) and distinguished houses in the Empire, now had an heir suitable to succeed. After his mothers delirium at birth, she failed to recover from this ailment, often spending her time locked away in her chambers, servants often recalled her reciting, "Mon bébé! Mon bébé! Mort et ensanglanté!" (My Baby! My Baby! Dead and Bloodied!), the apparent hysteria continued for 2 weeks, dying down, as the Duchesse came to terms with her newborn baby, however many courtiers recalled that she failed to ever come to mental terms with her own child, dying a mere 3 years later. 
=== Education of the Comte ===
Upon the Comte's 5th birthday, the necessary precautions were taken to ensure the Comte received the best education possible, for a Ducal peerage this involved 3 tutors, one of language, one of the physical nature and one of learning.
The first of the 3, was Monsieur Bosscher, often called "Dutch" by the Comte. Bosscher was originally of Dutch decent, from area of Antwerp, his father whom was a known Huguenot sympathy, employed him, as a protestant teacher and coach in language. By the age of 6 the Comte could speak perfect French and had an adept understanding of grammar and writing, however lacked in any extra skills, the teaching of latin proved pivotal, in 1605, after the execution of his father, Bosscher, was forcibly exiled by the Duchesse, her motives behind this were unknown however this task of language was taken up by a Jean-Yves Vérany, a known language tutor for many Catholic Parisian noble families. The entire scope of the now Ducs education changed dramatically, and latin became a key part of Henri's curriculum, all memory of Monsieur Bosscher was to be erased and Monsieur Vérany ruled with an "Iron Fist", exercising control over all 3 tutors and the Ducs education, often in close confidentiality with the now Duchesse douairière and his Oncle the Duc de Damville. This teaching of latin became near perfected and in 1607 the language of Italian was taken up by the Duc to learn. 
The second of the 3 tutors was that of a Claude Lebas, a known adept in dueling and sword fighting, it was unknown where Monsieur Lebas had originated from, however many believed he had came from unrighteous means, known for debauchery and cajoling in Parisian circles. His employment by Henri I was well excepted, upholding gentleman values of chivalry proved pivotal for the Comte and he continued to excel in the art of shooting, at the age of 10 often riding on horseback and shooting, a skill which the young Comte enjoyed to flaunt, known for his often unhinged episodes of depression, he would ride off into the nearby forests of the estates at which he lived, escaping the oppressive nature of his Mother and Uncle, Duc de Damville. In 1606, the Duc took part in his first estate hunt, which occurred in the Forêt Domaniale de Montmorency, the forest which surrounded the Chateau de Montmorency, which many remarked had existed for eternity. 
Finally, the 3rd tutor, was that of Natanaël Toussaint, a man who had made a huge impact upon the life of the Comte, an educated man, originally from a family of nouveau-riche merchants in Bordeaux, he attended La Sorbonne and emerged a highly educated man, Henri I Duc de Montmorency employed him upon the 5th birthday of the Comte to oversee all else of the Ducs education. The impact of Toussaint is estimated however, under jurisdiction of Monsieur Vérany, he was allowed to flourish, the Comte excelled in Geography in particular, often able to recite maps upon maps of the known world. This skill was looked upon with positivism, His Eminence, the Cardinal de Guise, once reciting that he could be a great strategist in his adulthood. However, truthfully, the Comte in his youth had enjoyed drawing lines of paper and studying Empires of the past and their boundaries, often wishing to explore like men of old, the Vikings and Christopher Columbus, something which would never occur for a distinguished peer however this dream lived on throughout his life. 
=== Adolescence and Influences ===
[WIP as the Duc develops IRP]
From an early age, his father kept a tight grip over the Comte, often controlling his education to a large degree, the relationship between the two was often fragile, however, as a young peer he often did not see his father. The Comte found life solitary, often the only social interaction, which he had, was that of the servants and people around, the time spent with his mother made a lasting impact, out of both of the Comte's parents, in his memoirs, the Duchesse had the biggest impact on his character, her bouts of temporary insanity and abusive behaviour left a lasting impact on the Duc for all of his life, often recalling her insanity where she beat the young Count, although in contrast, she had expressed her deep love for her child and the adoration they felt for one another continued throughout his entire life, until the Duchesses death. 
On the 22nd of April 1609, the Duc de Damville passed, following the accident of the Loire Riverboat, in which Henri had lost his mother, this ended the influence his Oncle had played, plunging the Duc into governorship of the House of Montmorency, in which he was to take control of the affairs, the Ducs aunt, the Duchesse D. de Ventadour and Mother, the Duchesse D. de Montmorency conspired to continue their influence over the Duc. The Duc following his Oncles death was subjected to a bloody battle of influence, in which he found himself dragged between that of his Independence, His House and His Wife's house, the Guise. The sad reality was however, the Duc had been forced to live up to expectations and grow up faster than usual. 
=== Death of Francois III & II ===
At the time of the death, the Duc had been asleep as most of the court had, the final rights were given the evening before and the Duc had retired to his bed. In a frantic turn of events, he was awoken by a valet around 4:30AM, with little time to get dressed, the Duc threw his House Coat and made way for the Emperors Bedroom, as the situation began to become more and more dire, the court knew the time had come. The night before the Emperors death, the Duc had offered him his service and pledged his life to protecting his successor, in the morning after the late Francois had died, he attended the proclamation of Charles Dieudonné X &II as Emperor. During which, the Emperor was given to his governor and the Governess dismissed from service. 
=== Death ===
The unexpected death of the Duc occurred on the 23rd June 1617, upon return from the travel to Chenonceau via barge, the Seigneur de Chambonas arrived at court to give praise to the Duc de Guise, there, he deeply offended the Duc de Montmorency, making a comment of his father and indicating treason. The Duc de Montmorency therefore challenged Chambonas to a duel, this was a fatal mistake, the man keen and adept in military prowess, this event occurred on the Grass in the Tullieres gardens, at 6:40 the Duc was struck down by accident, stabbed directly through the chest after a mishap. The fatal wound caused serious internal bleeding, the immediate reaction was of horror and shock as the men rushed to aid the Duc, around the same time, the Ladies taking Coffee were informed who immediately rushed, courtly witnesses reciting that the women ran down the Grand Corridor, the Duchesse de Montpensier in particular was mostly upset, however the Duchesse de Montmorency of all, threw herself before the dying Duc, who passed away soon after the Ladies arrival. Immediately upon death, the Seigneur was arrested on orders of the Duchesse de Guise for the murder of the Duc de Montmorency and to be escorted to the Bastille.
== Marriage & The Duchess ==
=== The Marriage ===
The ceremony arrangements took place in the early January of 1609, with the Duc & Duchesse de Guise, heavily involving the young Duc's uncle, Damville. The arrangement of the engagement between the Duc and Mademoiselle de Guise was formalized in the February of 09. At first, this was a harsh arrangement, taking place at the Cathedral and Reims and the ceremony performed by the Cardinal de Lorraine, the Mademoiselle's uncle. The after celebrations were held at the Chateau de Joinville and a large gift giving ceremony, the ball which continued was revered and that evening, the creation of Henri Cesar de Montmorency was to take place.
The initial marriage was rather distrustful, The Duc who was 13 at the time was unusual and different to that of the 19 Year old Mademoiselle he had married, yet he still came from a prestigious and powerful family and so duty was to be upheld. However as time progressed, the two began to grow close to one another, often sharing heart felt conversations and displaying actions of affection, something the Duc & Duchesse would continue to live with the rest of their lives. The Duchesse was particularly pleasant and adapted well into one of the oldest Houses in France, a family ridden with morals and authority, the marriage also helped cement the House of Montmorency in court following the execution of the Duc's father. 
=== Empress' Favourite ===
In the years of 1611-1613 the Empress in particular took a direct liking to the Montmorency couple, often doting on them and providing them council, invitations for Coffee & Cocoa to the Empress privately were constantly given and the political nature of the Duc & Empress developed, in 1614 the regency for Francois III & II was formalized, with the Empress as said Regent. Her new found power and de facto sovereignty meant she was a prize for any courtier to have on their side. In 1614, the Duc requested that Henri Cesar be bestowed the honor of Enfant d'Honneur, which was granted with the dry-stamp of Francois III & II, The Duc also frequently gave political council to the Empress in her times of need and was known for coming in and out of the Empress' quarters especially during the regency. In particular, upon moving to Vaucressons in 1614, the allocation of rooms within the Imperial Quarter to the Duc & Duchesse de Montmorency was highly valued and many courtiers looked upon this with jealousy. 
=== Birth of Henri Cesar ===
The Golden child of the Montmorency couple was born in the may Spring of 1610, the Duc himself only at the age of 15 & the couple had only been married a year when the child was born, this was pleasing for both families as many now believed she had fulfilled her job and done as expected. Henriette had doted on the child and been a caring mother constantly, as she fell into labour around 12pm she had a rather quick birth, It was relatively painless and the Duc remained with her all throughout, due to familiar tradition, the birth occurred in the Chateau de Chantilly and that is where Henri Cesar remained until he reached the age to accompany the Dauphin & receive formal education along side him as an Enfant d'Honneur, something the little boy would grow up to love within himself, the Duc & Duchesse hoping the two growing up along side each other would lead to friendships being formed and a lasting bond between the two young boys.
== Appearance ==
=== Personal Features ===
The Duc had a rather specific hair-style in court, often having it cleanly kept with his curls remaining, his access to a bath at court meant that his enjoyment for bathing could be fulfilled. The Duc was often known for carrying an assortment of perfumes, trying out a range of different variants, his favorite was remarked as that of Rosée rosée , a Parisian perfume made from Rose petals. He also sported a lovely set of Greenish-Hazel eyes that shone with excellence, this feature was inherited by all of his sons however not by his daughter who looked much more like that of the Guise side of the family.
=== Titles & Styles ===
* Sa Seigneurie, le Comte de Ostremont (1595-1605)
* Sa Grâce, le Duc de Montmorency (1605-Present)
Category:House of Montmorency
Category:16th Century Births
Category:Grandelumièrian Nobility
Category:Grandelumièrian Dukes
Category:Imperial Courtiers
Category:Grandelumièrian Military Officers
Category:Gouverneurs