Francis II, Duke of Lorraine

Francis II of Lorraine ( born February 27, 1572 Nancy, † October 14, 1632 ) was Count of Vaudémont and for five days the Duke of Lorraine and Bar He was a younger son of Duke Charles III. of Lorraine and his wife Claudia of Valois.

Life

As a younger son of Duke Charles III. He received the title of Count of Vaudémont. His father appointed him as his deputy ( Major General ), while he himself was out of the country in 1594. In the same year he became lieutenant-general of the French king in Toul and Verdun. From September to October 1606 he was in his father's diplomatic mission in England. In 1621 he fell out with his brother Henry II, who was Duke since 1608, and went to Germany to fight for the Emperor against the Protestants.

Reason for the disagreement was Henry's intention Lorraine to leave his daughter Nicole, even though the will of the Duke René II envisaged a purely male succession. After negotiations, the question was then clarified by the fact that Nicole was married to Charles of Vaudémont, Franz's eldest son.

After Henry II died on July 31, 1624, the situation was complicated. Henry's final provisions laid stated that Charles of Vaudémont should be as a husband Nicole Duke only. In November 1625, however, Francis of Vaudémont stepped in front of the Lorraine Estates-General, claimed the Duchy for himself and got it awarded on November 21, 1625. After five days later paid his debt from the Treasury, he resigned in favor of his son, who was now his wife and pushed aside as the sole Duke acted in its own right. In his will, Francis stated that he " never had ambitions to wear a crown in this world." After his resignation, Franz II withdrew to the management of the county Vaudémont and the rule of Salins. He died less than a year later.

Progeny

In 1597 Francis II Christina of Salm (* 1575, † 1627 ), married, daughter of Count Paul von Salm and heiress of half the county. Their children were:

  • Heinrich ( * 1602, † 1611), Marquis de Hattonchatel
  • Charles IV (* 1604, † 1675), Duke of Lorraine
  • Henrietta (* 1605, † 1660) ∞ 1621 Louis de Guise († 1631), Prince of Pfalz Castle and Lixheim,
  • 1643 Charles Marchese de Guasco Sallerio, 1644 Imperial Prince of Pfalz Castle and Lixheim,
  • 1652 Giuseppe de Francesco Grimaldi († 1693) Prince of Pfalz Castle and Lixheim,
  • Nicholas Francis (* 1609, † 1670 ), Cardinal, then Duke of Lorraine
  • Margaret (* 1615, † 1672), ∞ 1632 Jean-Baptiste Gaston de Bourbon, Duke of Orléans
  • Christine ( * 1621, † 1622)
Nancy, France Lorraine (duchy) Charles III, Duke of Lorraine Claude of Valois Henry II, Duke of Lorraine Nicole, Duchess of Lorraine Charles IV, Duke of Lorraine Phalsbourg Nicholas Francis, Duke of Lorraine Cardinal (Catholicism) Integrated Authority File
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