Charles de Choiseul-Praslin
Encyclopedia
Charles Laure Hugues Théobald, duc
de Choiseul-Praslin (29 June 1804 – 24 August 1847) was a French
nobleman and politician, who served as a member of the Chamber of Deputies
in 1838–1842. Choiseul-Praslin's suicide, occurring while he faced trial for the murder of his wife, Fanny Sébastiani, caused a scandal which in turn contributed to the outbreak of the 1848 Revolution
and the fall of the July Monarchy
.
, he was the eldest son of Charles Raynart Laure Félix, duc de Choiseul, who had been a deputy and leader of the National Guard
under the First French Empire
, and his wife (née de Breteuil); the couple also had another son, Edgar Laure Charles Gilbert, and three daughters.
He became a member of the Chamber for the department of Seine-et-Marne
, and was later a chevalier d'honneur
to Hélène, wife of Ferdinand Philippe, Duke of Orléans. A duke since 1841, Choiseul-Praslin was created a Peer of France
on 6 April 1845.
On 18 October 1824, Choiseul-Praslin married Fanny Altarice Rosalba, the daughter of Marshal
Horace Sébastiani de La Porta
and his first wife Fanny Franquetot de Coigny. Fanny reportedly had a passionate love for her husband, which was recorded in her correspondence. The couple resided at the Choiseul estate in Vaux-le-Vicomte
, and had ten children together.
While traveling from Vaux-le-Vicomte to Dieppe
, the Choiseul-Praslin family spent the night of 17 August 1847 at its residence in Paris' Faubourg Saint-Honoré
. At five o'clock in the morning, servants were alerted by noises coming from the duchess' room, and discovered that she had been brutally attacked, and had struggled with the assailant while being prevented from screaming. She had been hit with a blunt object, then repeatedly stabbed; she died soon after staff rushed in to provide assistance. The duke was the last person to answer calls by the household staff, and raised suspicion almost immediately because, despite the uproar, the windows of his room had remained shut.
During searches in rooms adjacent to the duke's, Police
uncovered the blood-stained handle of a dagger (kept inside in a cabinet), a bathrobe partly washed but still stained with blood, as well as a leather sheath and various items of clothing and paper (all thrown inside a chimney and half-consumed by flames). A more extensive search for the dagger's blade produced no result. It was also found out that he was keeping a loaded pistol by his side: the theory on which police subsequently relied was that Choiseul-Praslin had intended to shoot Fanny, but had then realized that this would cause alarm; in his defense, the duke stated that he had attempted to defend his wife from an unknown assassin, but he could not indicate how the latter had escaped. A servant later alleged that, upon entering the duke's room to announce him the death of his wife, he found him washing his hands, and claimed that this was done to remove blood. A small blood stain was found inside a washing basin, and it was documented that Choiseul-Praslin's body displayed bitemarks and scratches.
In previous years, the Choiseul-Praslin household had been the scene of violent confrontations between the duke and his wife. Among others, Fanny de Choiseul-Praslin accused her husband of hiring a governess
, Henriette Deluzy-Desportes (or Henriette de Lucy, Henriette de Luzy), in order to estrange her from her children. Deluzy-Desportes, whom she had fired six weeks before being killed but who had only left the household two weeks before, was also alleged by Fanny to have been the duke's mistress (with whom, she suspected, the duke planned to elope). The duchess repeatedly threatened to separate from her husband.
After being held under house arrest
, the duke was transferred to the Luxembourg Palace
pending trial by the Court of Peers
(which was called upon by royal ordinance and reserved judgment for members of the nobility). The court was to be presided over by Étienne-Denis Pasquier
. On 18 August 1847, while in custody, he poisoned himself during a moment when guards were neglecting their duty, allegedly swallowing a large dose of what has been described as laudanum
or arsenic acid
. In agony, he generally refused to answer questions, and refused to eat. Nevertheless, he denied all accusations one final time before dying.
The trial was annulled due to the defendant's death, and a judicial action brought against the governess was dismissed in mid-November of the same year. In parallel, a major scandal erupted over the authorities' alleged corruption and the common perception that Peerage went against the equality of treatment in justice
: it was speculated that the Peers had allowed Choiseul-Praslin to commit suicide, or even poisoned him, as a means to avoid an uncomfortable verdict for one of their own.
. According to Nicaragua
n researcher Eddy Kühl, Choiseul-Praslin survived and made his way to Matagalpa
, where he fathered two sons, known locally as Jorge and Benjamín, and three daughters (Margarita, Eva and Gertrudis). According to this theory, the duke died in 1882 and was buried in Ciudad Darío
. Kühl's investigation, first published in 2000, reportedly raised interest from the Choiseul-Praslin descendants living in France, who are said to have made known their wish to meet with the Nicaraguan claimants.
Escalating conflicts in a troubled period, the affair contributed to the outbreak of the 1848 Revolution
, which occurred six months after the suicide. Following the establishment of the Second Republic, all documents regarding procedures in the case, together with all other acts of the Chamber of Peers, were sent to the National Archives
.
Charles de Choiseul-Praslin is one of the main characters in Rachel Field
's novel All This and Heaven Too
(1938), which centers on the killing of Sébastiani's daughter, and which was the basis for a similarly titled 1940 film — starring Charles Boyer
as the Duc, Barbara O'Neil
as the Duchess, Montagu Love
as Horace Sébastiani
, and Bette Davis
as Henriette Deluzy-Desportes. It was also the basis for a historical novel by the English writer Marjorie Bowen called Forget-Me-Not, although the characters' names are changed.
site
Duke
A duke or duchess is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy...
de Choiseul-Praslin (29 June 1804 – 24 August 1847) was a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
nobleman and politician, who served as a member of the Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of France
Chamber of Deputies was the name given to several parliamentary bodies in France in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries:* 1814–1848 during the Bourbon Restoration and the July Monarchy, the Chamber of Deputies was the Lower chamber of the French Parliament, elected by census suffrage.*...
in 1838–1842. Choiseul-Praslin's suicide, occurring while he faced trial for the murder of his wife, Fanny Sébastiani, caused a scandal which in turn contributed to the outbreak of the 1848 Revolution
French Revolution of 1848
The 1848 Revolution in France was one of a wave of revolutions in 1848 in Europe. In France, the February revolution ended the Orleans monarchy and led to the creation of the French Second Republic. The February Revolution was really the belated second phase of the Revolution of 1830...
and the fall of the July Monarchy
July Monarchy
The July Monarchy , officially the Kingdom of France , was a period of liberal constitutional monarchy in France under King Louis-Philippe starting with the July Revolution of 1830 and ending with the Revolution of 1848...
.
Biography
Born in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, he was the eldest son of Charles Raynart Laure Félix, duc de Choiseul, who had been a deputy and leader of the National Guard
National Guard (France)
The National Guard was the name given at the time of the French Revolution to the militias formed in each city, in imitation of the National Guard created in Paris. It was a military force separate from the regular army...
under the First French Empire
First French Empire
The First French Empire , also known as the Greater French Empire or Napoleonic Empire, was the empire of Napoleon I of France...
, and his wife (née de Breteuil); the couple also had another son, Edgar Laure Charles Gilbert, and three daughters.
He became a member of the Chamber for the department of Seine-et-Marne
Seine-et-Marne
Seine-et-Marne is a French department, named after the Seine and Marne rivers, and located in the Île-de-France region.- History:Seine-et-Marne is one of the original 83 departments, created on March 4, 1790 during the French Revolution in application of the law of December 22, 1789...
, and was later a chevalier d'honneur
Page (servant)
A page or page boy is a traditionally young male servant, a messenger at the service of a nobleman or royal.-The medieval page:In medieval times, a page was an attendant to a knight; an apprentice squire...
to Hélène, wife of Ferdinand Philippe, Duke of Orléans. A duke since 1841, Choiseul-Praslin was created a Peer of France
Peerage of France
The Peerage of France was a distinction within the French nobility which appeared in the Middle Ages. It was abolished in 1789 during the French Revolution, but it reappeared in 1814 at the time of the Bourbon Restoration which followed the fall of the First French Empire...
on 6 April 1845.
On 18 October 1824, Choiseul-Praslin married Fanny Altarice Rosalba, the daughter of Marshal
Marshal of France
The Marshal of France is a military distinction in contemporary France, not a military rank. It is granted to generals for exceptional achievements...
Horace Sébastiani de La Porta
Horace François Bastien, baron Sébastiani
Horace François Bastien Sébastiani de La Porta was a French soldier, diplomat, and politician, who served as Naval Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Minister of State under the July Monarchy. Joining the French Revolutionary Army in his youth, he rose in its ranks and became a supporter...
and his first wife Fanny Franquetot de Coigny. Fanny reportedly had a passionate love for her husband, which was recorded in her correspondence. The couple resided at the Choiseul estate in Vaux-le-Vicomte
Vaux-le-Vicomte
The Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte is a baroque French château located in Maincy, near Melun, 55 km southeast of Paris in the Seine-et-Marne département of France...
, and had ten children together.
While traveling from Vaux-le-Vicomte to Dieppe
Dieppe, Seine-Maritime
Dieppe is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in France. In 1999, the population of the whole Dieppe urban area was 81,419.A port on the English Channel, famous for its scallops, and with a regular ferry service from the Gare Maritime to Newhaven in England, Dieppe also has a popular pebbled...
, the Choiseul-Praslin family spent the night of 17 August 1847 at its residence in Paris' Faubourg Saint-Honoré
Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré
The rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré is a street in Paris, France. Although relatively narrow and nondescript , it is cited as being one of the most fashionable streets in the world, thanks to the presence of virtually every major global fashion house...
. At five o'clock in the morning, servants were alerted by noises coming from the duchess' room, and discovered that she had been brutally attacked, and had struggled with the assailant while being prevented from screaming. She had been hit with a blunt object, then repeatedly stabbed; she died soon after staff rushed in to provide assistance. The duke was the last person to answer calls by the household staff, and raised suspicion almost immediately because, despite the uproar, the windows of his room had remained shut.
During searches in rooms adjacent to the duke's, Police
French National Police
The National Police , formerly the Sûreté Nationale, is one of two national police forces and the main civil law enforcement agency of France, with primary jurisdiction in cities and large towns. The other main agency is the military Gendarmerie, with primary jurisdiction in smaller towns and rural...
uncovered the blood-stained handle of a dagger (kept inside in a cabinet), a bathrobe partly washed but still stained with blood, as well as a leather sheath and various items of clothing and paper (all thrown inside a chimney and half-consumed by flames). A more extensive search for the dagger's blade produced no result. It was also found out that he was keeping a loaded pistol by his side: the theory on which police subsequently relied was that Choiseul-Praslin had intended to shoot Fanny, but had then realized that this would cause alarm; in his defense, the duke stated that he had attempted to defend his wife from an unknown assassin, but he could not indicate how the latter had escaped. A servant later alleged that, upon entering the duke's room to announce him the death of his wife, he found him washing his hands, and claimed that this was done to remove blood. A small blood stain was found inside a washing basin, and it was documented that Choiseul-Praslin's body displayed bitemarks and scratches.
In previous years, the Choiseul-Praslin household had been the scene of violent confrontations between the duke and his wife. Among others, Fanny de Choiseul-Praslin accused her husband of hiring a governess
Governess
A governess is a girl or woman employed to teach and train children in a private household. In contrast to a nanny or a babysitter, she concentrates on teaching children, not on meeting their physical needs...
, Henriette Deluzy-Desportes (or Henriette de Lucy, Henriette de Luzy), in order to estrange her from her children. Deluzy-Desportes, whom she had fired six weeks before being killed but who had only left the household two weeks before, was also alleged by Fanny to have been the duke's mistress (with whom, she suspected, the duke planned to elope). The duchess repeatedly threatened to separate from her husband.
After being held under house arrest
House arrest
In justice and law, house arrest is a measure by which a person is confined by the authorities to his or her residence. Travel is usually restricted, if allowed at all...
, the duke was transferred to the Luxembourg Palace
Luxembourg Palace
The Luxembourg Palace in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, north of the Luxembourg Garden , is the seat of the French Senate.The formal Luxembourg Garden presents a 25-hectare green parterre of gravel and lawn populated with statues and provided with large basins of water where children sail model...
pending trial by the Court of Peers
Peerage of France
The Peerage of France was a distinction within the French nobility which appeared in the Middle Ages. It was abolished in 1789 during the French Revolution, but it reappeared in 1814 at the time of the Bourbon Restoration which followed the fall of the First French Empire...
(which was called upon by royal ordinance and reserved judgment for members of the nobility). The court was to be presided over by Étienne-Denis Pasquier
Étienne-Denis Pasquier
Étienne-Denis, duc de Pasquier , Chancelier de France, , was a French statesman...
. On 18 August 1847, while in custody, he poisoned himself during a moment when guards were neglecting their duty, allegedly swallowing a large dose of what has been described as laudanum
Laudanum
Laudanum , also known as Tincture of Opium, is an alcoholic herbal preparation containing approximately 10% powdered opium by weight ....
or arsenic acid
Arsenic acid
Arsenic acid is the chemical compound with the formula H3AsO4. More descriptively written as AsO3, this colorless acid is the arsenic analogue of phosphoric acid. Arsenate and phosphate salts behave very similarly. Arsenic acid as such has not been isolated, but only found in solution where it...
. In agony, he generally refused to answer questions, and refused to eat. Nevertheless, he denied all accusations one final time before dying.
The trial was annulled due to the defendant's death, and a judicial action brought against the governess was dismissed in mid-November of the same year. In parallel, a major scandal erupted over the authorities' alleged corruption and the common perception that Peerage went against the equality of treatment in justice
Equality before the law
Equality before the law or equality under the law or legal egalitarianism is the principle under which each individual is subject to the same laws....
: it was speculated that the Peers had allowed Choiseul-Praslin to commit suicide, or even poisoned him, as a means to avoid an uncomfortable verdict for one of their own.
Legacy
A persistent and popular rumor indicated that Choiseul-Praslin's death had been faked, and he had been allowed to leave the country, with many arguing that he lived the rest of his life in EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. According to Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
n researcher Eddy Kühl, Choiseul-Praslin survived and made his way to Matagalpa
Matagalpa
Matagalpa is a city in Nicaragua, the capital of the department of Matagalpa. The city has a population of 109,100 , while the population of the department is more than 480,000. Matagalpa is Nicaragua's fifth largest city and one of its most commercially active outside of Managua...
, where he fathered two sons, known locally as Jorge and Benjamín, and three daughters (Margarita, Eva and Gertrudis). According to this theory, the duke died in 1882 and was buried in Ciudad Darío
Ciudad Darío
Ciudad Darío is a municipality in the Matagalpa department of Nicaragua. It is the birthplace of poet Rubén Darío.Previously known as Metapa and Chocoyos even before that, Ciudad Darío is located 90 km from Managua...
. Kühl's investigation, first published in 2000, reportedly raised interest from the Choiseul-Praslin descendants living in France, who are said to have made known their wish to meet with the Nicaraguan claimants.
Escalating conflicts in a troubled period, the affair contributed to the outbreak of the 1848 Revolution
French Revolution of 1848
The 1848 Revolution in France was one of a wave of revolutions in 1848 in Europe. In France, the February revolution ended the Orleans monarchy and led to the creation of the French Second Republic. The February Revolution was really the belated second phase of the Revolution of 1830...
, which occurred six months after the suicide. Following the establishment of the Second Republic, all documents regarding procedures in the case, together with all other acts of the Chamber of Peers, were sent to the National Archives
Archives nationales (France)
The Archives nationales preserve the national archives of the French state, apart from the archives of the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as these two ministries have their own archive services, the Service historique de la défense and the Archives diplomatiques...
.
Charles de Choiseul-Praslin is one of the main characters in Rachel Field
Rachel Field
Rachel Lyman Field was an American novelist, poet, and author of children's fiction. She is best known for her Newbery Medal–winning novel for young adults, Hitty, Her First Hundred Years, published in 1929. She won the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award twice...
's novel All This and Heaven Too
All This and Heaven Too
All This, and Heaven Too is a 1940 American drama film made by Warner Bros.-First National Pictures, produced and directed by Anatole Litvak with Hal B. Wallis as executive producer. The screenplay was adapted by Casey Robinson from the novel by Rachel Field...
(1938), which centers on the killing of Sébastiani's daughter, and which was the basis for a similarly titled 1940 film — starring Charles Boyer
Charles Boyer
Charles Boyer was a French actor who appeared in more than 80 films between 1920 and 1976. After receiving an education in drama, Boyer started on the stage, but he found success in movies during the 1930s. His memorable performances were among the era's most highly praised romantic dramas,...
as the Duc, Barbara O'Neil
Barbara O'Neil
-Early life and career:Barbara O'Neil was born in St. Louis, Missouri. She began her acting career in summer stock. In July 1931 Bretaigne Windust, Charles Leatherbee , and Joshua Logan, the three directors of the University Players, a three-year old summer stock company at West Falmouth on Cape...
as the Duchess, Montagu Love
Montagu Love
Montagu Love , also known as Montague Love, was an English screen, stage and vaudeville actor.Born Harry Montague Love in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, and educated in Great Britain, Love began his career as an artist and military correspondent. His first important job was as a London newspaper...
as Horace Sébastiani
Horace François Bastien, baron Sébastiani
Horace François Bastien Sébastiani de La Porta was a French soldier, diplomat, and politician, who served as Naval Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Minister of State under the July Monarchy. Joining the French Revolutionary Army in his youth, he rose in its ranks and became a supporter...
, and Bette Davis
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
as Henriette Deluzy-Desportes. It was also the basis for a historical novel by the English writer Marjorie Bowen called Forget-Me-Not, although the characters' names are changed.
External links
Les députés français depuis 1789: Choiseul-Praslin, at the French National AssemblyFrench National Assembly
The French National Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of France under the Fifth Republic. The upper house is the Senate ....
site