MONTMORENCY
Valley of Oise, France
(Birthplace of Guillaume Baucher)
Some words on its history
By CH Rowe
Honorary Conservative
J. J. Rousseau Museum
Translation to English by Richard P. Morency using SYSTRAN presonal for Windows translation software.
Six conétables, twelve marshals, four admirals gloriously bore this name and many alliances were contracted by its members with royal families, one of which is still reigning in the Netherlands.
The city, which was built with the side of a hill dominating the distant valleys of the Seine and Oise, and was during all the Middle Ages an important strategic point.
Bouchard, first barons of France, originating before year 1 000, in the High-Seine, settled on the Island Basseth, currently known as St-Denis island, then, later, in sixteenth century, came in to our village, where they took on the name. Thus they very often had bloody confrontations with the monks of the large abbey near by, as well as with the royal troops.
While reinforcing unceasingly, this family thus knew the beginning of this glorious military tradition when it condescended to be interested in some noble cause.
As the first Christian barons, they soon became the trusty servants of the Crown. Already, with the battle of Bouvines, September 27, 1 214, MATHIEU II OF MONTMORENCY, known as MATHIEU the LARGE one, finally showing the measure of his military qualities, conquered twelve streamers with Imperial and, on the evening of this day, he deposited them at the feet of King PHILIPPE-AUGUSTE. The King, wanting to mark his gratitude, authorized his Conétable to add twelve additional eaglets to the four which he already had on his weapons. Since this date, those became perminant then, stating «d' gold with the cross of mouths confined of sixteen alérions of azur».
During the One hundred Year War, the city knew dark days. Plundered and brutalized in 1358 by Robert Knolles and his army, it had hardly time to raise its ruins when once again, in 1381, the Englishmen devastated it, massacring the inhabitants and destroying all on their passage. In 1411, JACQUES the first OF MONTMORENCY built ramparts whose ruins still remain. The city from then on was better protected and, calm returned. The city raised from its ashes and returned to prosperity under the protection of its lord, and by the ceaseless labour of its inhabitants.
In fifteenth century, it was quite other thing, for division emerges in the family. Jean II of Montmorency (1402-1477) saw the two sons of his first marriage, JEAN OF BUBBLE and LOUIS OF FOSSEUX, pass to the party the Burgundian ones, thus fighting against the royal cause. Their father, raising to the honor in spite of his age, fought in their place and disinherited them to the profit of the children of his second marriage of which Guillaume de Montmorency, the only son, by and large was the beneficiary. The act of exheredation had passed by front «Thomas the Mayor and Nicolas Billeroy, notaries of Chastelet of Paris, Sunday 24, day of July, 1463» , with the castle of the Hunting, which one thinks of being that which is located at the heart of the forest of Montmorency; of which old masonry still exists, though it is well disfigured.
In the borough as of 1520, the baron Guillaume built a vault on the site of the old Saint Martin's day church which was falling into ruin. Completed four years later, it was the crypt of his/her father JEAN II, as well as his, and it is now bedside our splendid Church
GUILLAUME OF MONTMORENCY had six children and one of its sons, ANNE (1493-1567), was destined for his turn, like his ancestor MATHIEU II, in thirteenth century, to become the Large Constable; fifth of the family to hold this high honor.
As a childhood companion of FRANÇOIS Of ANGOULEME, who was going to become king FRANÇOIS 1st, the biography of ANNE OF MONTMORENCY mingles closely with all our French history so rich and so various in the sixteenth century. Foreign wars, wars of religion, nothing misses with tormented chock of this man who is always faithful to the currency of the family: «Aplanos», meaning «sans dévier» and which had endorsed these words: my God, the King, the Law.
It was a mental pain because of his catholic beliefs for ANNE OF MONTMORENCY to see his sister Louise , marry in a second wedding to GASPARD 1st OF COULIGNY, and become a Huguenote, which threw this family once again into disunion, from which it never recovered.
As a large builder: in Ecouen, in Chantilly and everywhere in France, he decided to continue the intention of his father while building the nave of our Saint Martin's day church, which was completed into 1563. The Constable and his wife MADELEINE OF SAVOY thus had a necropolis worthy of their high status, for in 1551 king HENRI II made ANNE OF MONTMORENCY duke and par of France.
It is on November 10, 1567 where he was wounded in the battle of Saint-Denis per ROBERT STUART, one of the hugenots of the Prince of CONDE. He expired two days later in its Sainte-Avoye hotel, in Paris: his immense fortune was then shared between his wife and her twelve children. His son, FRANCOIS, became duke and even of France in his turn: but of succession in succession, the great line died out soon when HENRI II OF MONTMORENCY, without posterity, was decapitated on October 30, 1632 on the place of Capitole, in Toulouse, having failed in the currency of the family and to have conspired against the king LOUIS XIII and RICHELIEU.
Titles and goods were then confiscated for the profit of the Crown, but by letter-licences, in 1633, LOUIS XIII gave them, except for the park and the castle of Chantilly, to HENRI II OF the BOURBON, Prince of CONDE, who had married in 1609, CHARLOTTE MARGUERITE OF MONTMORENCY, the sister of the torture victim of Toulouse: The prince of CONDE having returned in the royal bosom.
This famous name of Montmorency thus does not remain by any more than by the collateral branches and it is hardly a great family throughout the world which does not have in its districts of nobility the red cross and alérions of azure.
When at our small city, already so famous, the recovered tranquility, its prosperity accroit and becomeing a center of attraction for all those which seek calm and the softness of living
Thus the great painter the BROWN (1619-1690), disgraced by LOUIS XIV with died of COLBERT, withdrew himself there. He built at the foot of the hill, with some steps from the Collegial of Montmorency, a splendid castle whose plans and drawing of the formal garden were mainly with her hand. Of all that, nothing remains, except for the Orangery completely disfigured to be converted in nineteenth century into popular residences. This large artist can thus be thus considered, rightly, like our first village.
It is as in seventeenth century, then in eighteenth, as many other castles emerged from our soil; but, unfortunately, the vandalism of the following centuries made the loss of it and, of all these beautiful fields, it does not remain with us any more except with old engravings in the museum attesting the magnificence.