Pierre-Denis, Comte de Peyronnet
Encyclopedia
Pierre-Denis, comte de Peyronnet (Bordeaux
, 9 October 1778) was the President of the Bordeaux
Court in France
in 1815, Minister of Justice
from 1821 to 1828 and four times Minister of Interior. Opposed to Napoleon's Empire
, he rallied himself to the Bourbons during the Restoration
. An Ultra-royalist
, he supported the Anti-Sacrilege Act
, the 1827 law restricting press freedom and the loi du droit d'aînesse.
. After law studies, Pierre-Denis de Peyronnet was received as a lawyer in 1796. On 26 October 1815, he was named President of the first instance Court of Bordeaux, and then, a year later, public prosecutor in Bourges
.
The Count of Peyronnet was elected deputy on 13 November 1820, and established himself in Paris. Nominated general prosecutor at the Royal Court of Rouen
, he was then called for on 14 December 1821 to become Minister of Justice
(and remained so until 1828). From 6 September to 29 October 1822, he was also interim Minister of Interior. There, he defended before the National Assembly the law project restricting press freedom (1822).
Reelected on 6 March 1824 as both deputy of the Cher and of the Gironde
, he chose to sit as a Gironde deputy.
He was again interim Interior Minister from 9 July to 2 August 1825, and defended the Anti-Sacrilege Act
. He was again Interior Minister from 30 August to 19 September 1826, and defended the loi de justice et d'amour (1827). The King named him pair of France on 4 January 1828, and he left the Ministry the following day.
On 19 May 1830, he became Interior Minister for the fourth time, and remained so until the fall of the regime. He counter-signed the 25 July Ordinances which provoked the 1830 July Revolution
. He was then charged of high treason
, alongside three other ministers of Charles X, Jules de Polignac
, Jean de Chantelauze and Martial de Guernon-Ranville, and was condemned by the Court of Pairs to a life sentence and civil degradation.
Detained in the fort of Ham, he benefitted from a collective pardon issued by the first Molé
government on 17 October 1836. He finally died on 2 January 1854 in the castle of Montferrand
in Gironde.
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
, 9 October 1778) was the President of the Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
Court in France
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...
in 1815, Minister of Justice
Minister of Justice (France)
The Ministry of Justice is controlled by the French Minister of Justice , a top-level cabinet position in the French government. The current Minister of Justice is Michel Mercier...
from 1821 to 1828 and four times Minister of Interior. Opposed to Napoleon's 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...
, he rallied himself to the Bourbons during the Restoration
Bourbon Restoration
The Bourbon Restoration is the name given to the period following the successive events of the French Revolution , the end of the First Republic , and then the forcible end of the First French Empire under Napoleon – when a coalition of European powers restored by arms the monarchy to the...
. An Ultra-royalist
Ultra-royalist
Ultra-Royalists or simply Ultras were a reactionary faction which sat in the French parliament from 1815 to 1830 under the Bourbon Restoration...
, he supported the Anti-Sacrilege Act
Anti-Sacrilege Act
The Anti-Sacrilege Act was a French law against blasphemy and sacrilege passed in January 1825 under King Charles X. The law was never applied and was later revoked at the beginning of the July monarchy under King Louis-Philippe.-The draft bill:In April 1824, King Louis XVIII's government, headed...
, the 1827 law restricting press freedom and the loi du droit d'aînesse.
Life
The Count of Peyronnet's father had bought a charge of secretary to the King, thus conferring himself a noble title. He was guillotined during the TerrorReign of Terror
The Reign of Terror , also known simply as The Terror , was a period of violence that occurred after the onset of the French Revolution, incited by conflict between rival political factions, the Girondins and the Jacobins, and marked by mass executions of "enemies of...
. After law studies, Pierre-Denis de Peyronnet was received as a lawyer in 1796. On 26 October 1815, he was named President of the first instance Court of Bordeaux, and then, a year later, public prosecutor in Bourges
Bourges
Bourges is a city in central France on the Yèvre river. It is the capital of the department of Cher and also was the capital of the former province of Berry.-History:...
.
The Count of Peyronnet was elected deputy on 13 November 1820, and established himself in Paris. Nominated general prosecutor at the Royal Court of Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
, he was then called for on 14 December 1821 to become Minister of Justice
Minister of Justice (France)
The Ministry of Justice is controlled by the French Minister of Justice , a top-level cabinet position in the French government. The current Minister of Justice is Michel Mercier...
(and remained so until 1828). From 6 September to 29 October 1822, he was also interim Minister of Interior. There, he defended before the National Assembly the law project restricting press freedom (1822).
Reelected on 6 March 1824 as both deputy of the Cher and of the Gironde
Gironde
For the Revolutionary party, see Girondists.Gironde is a common name for the Gironde estuary, where the mouths of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers merge, and for a department in the Aquitaine region situated in southwest France.-History:...
, he chose to sit as a Gironde deputy.
He was again interim Interior Minister from 9 July to 2 August 1825, and defended the Anti-Sacrilege Act
Anti-Sacrilege Act
The Anti-Sacrilege Act was a French law against blasphemy and sacrilege passed in January 1825 under King Charles X. The law was never applied and was later revoked at the beginning of the July monarchy under King Louis-Philippe.-The draft bill:In April 1824, King Louis XVIII's government, headed...
. He was again Interior Minister from 30 August to 19 September 1826, and defended the loi de justice et d'amour (1827). The King named him pair of France on 4 January 1828, and he left the Ministry the following day.
On 19 May 1830, he became Interior Minister for the fourth time, and remained so until the fall of the regime. He counter-signed the 25 July Ordinances which provoked the 1830 July Revolution
July Revolution
The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution or in French, saw the overthrow of King Charles X of France, the French Bourbon monarch, and the ascent of his cousin Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orléans, who himself, after 18 precarious years on the throne, would in turn be overthrown...
. He was then charged of high treason
High treason
High treason is criminal disloyalty to one's government. Participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplomats, or its secret services for a hostile and foreign power, or attempting to kill its head of state are perhaps...
, alongside three other ministers of Charles X, Jules de Polignac
Jules, prince de Polignac
Prince Jules de Polignac, 3rd Duke of Polignac , was a French statesman. He played a part in ultra-royalist reaction after the Revolution...
, Jean de Chantelauze and Martial de Guernon-Ranville, and was condemned by the Court of Pairs to a life sentence and civil degradation.
Detained in the fort of Ham, he benefitted from a collective pardon issued by the first Molé
Mole
- Animals :* Mole or "true mole", many of the mammals in the family Talpidae, found in Eurasia and North America* Golden moles, southern African mammals, similar to but unrelated to Talpidae moles...
government on 17 October 1836. He finally died on 2 January 1854 in the castle of Montferrand
Montferrand
Montferrand may refer to the following places in France:* Montferrand, Puy-de-Dôme, a former town, now part of Clermont-Ferrand* Montferrand, Aude, a commune in the department of Aude* Montferrand-du-Périgord, a commune in the department of Dordogne...
in Gironde.
Works
- Esquisse Politique (1829)
- Pensées d'un Prisonnier (1834)
- Satires (1854)
- Histoire de France (1855)
Sources
- Archives familiales Peyronnet
- Archives départementales de Bordeaux
- Dictionnaire des Parlementaires, Tome IV (gallica.fr)