Pierre Gaspard Marie Grimod d'Orsay
Encyclopedia
Pierre Gaspard Marie Grimaud d'Orsay (14 December 1748 - 3 January 1809, Vienna
), comte
d'Orsay
, was a collector of sculptures, paintings and drawings (which he left to the Louvre).
(1698-1772), who had won the Prix de Rome
in 1722 and was admitted to the Royal Academy of Architecture in Paris in 1732. When the ambitious garden scheme was completed on August 1, 1764, two years before his majority, an inventory of the d'Orsay family holdings declared:
He acquired in 1768 the hotel de Saissac (now hotel de Clermont), 69 rue de Varenne, Paris. This had been built for Jeanne Therese Pelagie d'Albert de Luynes, marquise de Saissac, in 1708, and Pierre had it rebuilt by Pierre Convers, Jean Augustin Renard et Charles Joaquim Benard, with the old bedroom made into a salon, for example. This phase of the hotel – of which nothing remains today – constituted an important step in the evolution of the taste, and contributed to his entry into aristocratic circles of the Faubourg Saint-Germain.
He married Marie Louise Amélie de Croÿ
(1748-1772), princesse de Croÿ-Molembais, daughter of Prince Guillaume François de Croÿ
et Princess Anne Françoise Amélie de Trazegnies, on December 31, 1770. Earlier in 1770 Pierre Gaspard had been raised to the title of comte by Louis XV.
Marie-Louise and Pierre had one child, Albert-Jean-François-Louis-Marie Grimaud (June 15 1772-1843). (Albert was later called "the beau d'Orsay", and was in turn father of the dandy Alfred Guillaume Gabriel, Count d'Orsay
.) Marie Louise died giving birth to him, and Pierre (a patron of the arts like his father) began travelling Europe for consolation, gathering famous collections of paintings and sculptures. On his travels he also found a new wife, Marie Anne de Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Bartenstein, of the house of Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Battenstein, whom he married on August 22, 1784. The couple moved to Germany in 1787, meaning that - on the outbreak of the French Revolution
two years later - Gaspard's property in France was seized, he was declared an Émigré
, and they were left in the poverty in which he died.
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
), comte
Count
A count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
d'Orsay
Orsay
Orsay is a commune in the Essonne department in Île-de-France in northern France. It is located in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France, from the center of Paris.Inhabitants of Orsay are known as Orcéens.-History:...
, was a collector of sculptures, paintings and drawings (which he left to the Louvre).
Biography
He was the only son of the "fermier général" Pierre Grimaud du Fort (1692-1748). In 1766, 18 years after his father's death, he reached his majority and assumed control of his enormous inheritance from his father, making him one of the richest men of his day. Work on the gardens of the family chateau at Orsay, begun by his father and continued by Pierre Gaspard's guardians, including, in 1758, extensive work under the direction of the talented architect Jean-Michel ChevotetJean-Michel Chevotet
Jean-Michel Chevotet was a French architect. He and Pierre Contant d'Ivry were among the most eminent Parisian architects of the day and designed in both the restrained French Rococo manner, known as the "Louis XV style" and in the "Goût grec" phase of early Neoclassicism...
(1698-1772), who had won the Prix de Rome
Prix de Rome
The Prix de Rome was a scholarship for arts students, principally of painting, sculpture, and architecture. It was created, initially for painters and sculptors, in 1663 in France during the reign of Louis XIV. It was an annual bursary for promising artists having proved their talents by...
in 1722 and was admitted to the Royal Academy of Architecture in Paris in 1732. When the ambitious garden scheme was completed on August 1, 1764, two years before his majority, an inventory of the d'Orsay family holdings declared:
- "The greatest artists and a large number of workers have changed the face of nature which was not agreeable near the chateau, and created a park that may be considered one of the most beautiful of the environs of Paris. . .especially for its beautiful plants, terraces, and the large quantities of water distributed via a superb canal and in basins of every form."http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1026/is_n3_v152/ai_20050942
He acquired in 1768 the hotel de Saissac (now hotel de Clermont), 69 rue de Varenne, Paris. This had been built for Jeanne Therese Pelagie d'Albert de Luynes, marquise de Saissac, in 1708, and Pierre had it rebuilt by Pierre Convers, Jean Augustin Renard et Charles Joaquim Benard, with the old bedroom made into a salon, for example. This phase of the hotel – of which nothing remains today – constituted an important step in the evolution of the taste, and contributed to his entry into aristocratic circles of the Faubourg Saint-Germain.
He married Marie Louise Amélie de Croÿ
House of Croÿ
The House of Croÿ is an international family of European mediatized nobility which held a seat in the Imperial Diet from 1486, and was elevated to the rank of Imperial Princes in 1594...
(1748-1772), princesse de Croÿ-Molembais, daughter of Prince Guillaume François de Croÿ
House of Croÿ
The House of Croÿ is an international family of European mediatized nobility which held a seat in the Imperial Diet from 1486, and was elevated to the rank of Imperial Princes in 1594...
et Princess Anne Françoise Amélie de Trazegnies, on December 31, 1770. Earlier in 1770 Pierre Gaspard had been raised to the title of comte by Louis XV.
Marie-Louise and Pierre had one child, Albert-Jean-François-Louis-Marie Grimaud (June 15 1772-1843). (Albert was later called "the beau d'Orsay", and was in turn father of the dandy Alfred Guillaume Gabriel, Count d'Orsay
Alfred Guillaume Gabriel, Count D'Orsay
Alfred d'Orsay, known as the comte d'Orsay was a French amateur artist, dandy, and man of fashion in the early- to mid-19th century.-Life:...
.) Marie Louise died giving birth to him, and Pierre (a patron of the arts like his father) began travelling Europe for consolation, gathering famous collections of paintings and sculptures. On his travels he also found a new wife, Marie Anne de Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Bartenstein, of the house of Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Battenstein, whom he married on August 22, 1784. The couple moved to Germany in 1787, meaning that - on the outbreak of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
two years later - Gaspard's property in France was seized, he was declared an Émigré
Émigré
Émigré is a French term that literally refers to a person who has "migrated out", but often carries a connotation of politico-social self-exile....
, and they were left in the poverty in which he died.