The first was for the most part kind and gracious, the second ambitious and ruthless, and the third arrogant, vindictive and cruel; or as I like to call him: The Spawn of Satan.
But, good or bad, all had a profound effect on my French heritage in Canada.
The story goes that while hunting in the forest north of Loudun, Foulques Nerra surprised a unicorn in a clearing full of yellow gorse, (genêts in French). He caught the unicorn, which immediately turned into a beautiful princess. They fell in love and he proposed to her in the nearby chapel.
However, when the shadow of the cross on the altar fell on the princess, she fled in fear. Foulques Nerra mobilised his serfs, soldiers and vassals to find his lost love, but to no avail. In desperation, he had all the gorse gathered from the clearings and paths of the forest to tempt the unicorn back, and though this attempt failed, it earned him the nickname of Plante à genêt, and the yellow gorse became the family emblem. Of course, there's another story, not nearly as romantic, that has to do with flower he wore in his hat, but I like this one better.
The actual link between the region and England was established in the 12th century, through Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry Plantagenet. However, while Eleanor was instrumental in uniting England and France, she would also sow the seeds of war between the two countries.
Her marriage was not a happy one though. Always ambitious for power, her relations with Louis steadily deteriorated. He managed to have the marriage annulled in 1152 and eight weeks later, Eleanor married Henry Plantagenet at Poitiers. He was Count of Maine, Anjou and Normandy and a great grandson of William the Conquerer. He was also the adopted heir of King Stephen of England (Etienne de Blois). A year after their marriage, King Stephen died and Eleanor and Henry rushed to London in terrible weather, where he was crowned Henry II of England and Eleanor made his Queen.
Throughout her reign she played a major part in establishing alliances between the European monarchies and was frequently involved in disputes and skirmishes. In 1202, she was forced to flee from her home at Fontevraud (20 kilometers north of Loudun), when an army of the Duke of Brittany, supported by the French King, Philippe-Auguste, came after her. She took refuge in the walled town of Mirebeau, but it wasn’t long before her enemies followed her there.
Fortunately her son, King John, was with his army at Le Mans. In a forced march, he reached Mirebeau within a day and captured the besieging forces. King John was no better liked by his barons in France than by those in England and his barbaric treatment of his captives did nothing to improve his reputation. Eleanor died in 1204 at Fontevraud. Her husband, Henry II, and her son, Richard the Lionheart, are buried with her there. In 1206, Loudun and it's surrounding area were reattached to the French crown by Philippe-August and he turned the town into one of the strongest fortresses in France; with an enormous round tower, thirty metres high and a wall over ten miles long. If you thought yourself fortunate and made it over the wall, you were met by a water-filled moat.
The Religious Wars that began in 1562, also had a major impact on the area. In 1569, the Catholic army led by the Duke of Anjou, the future Henri III, faced the Protestant army under the command of Admiral de Coligny. It resulted in a Catholic victory and established the Catholic religion as the dominant religion in France for the next two centuries.
The Edict of Nantes, signed in 1598, granted Huguenots freedom of worship and civil rights but the Protestants were still being persecuted by the Catholic majority, and the Valley of the Loire became the scene of mass emigrations. As a result, it lost many of his skilled tradesmen, as they made their way to Protestant England.
This was also the area where many of the French-Acadian settlers hailed, brought over from Charles D'Aulnay's mother's estate, and all would have still been in the region when the Devils of Loudun affair was taking place, and all would have no doubt had an opinion.
(1587-1635)
In his youth he joined a strict military/religous order that forbade him to marry, but his bravery in battle caught the attention of many and he would soon become a high ranking French naval officer. In one of his battles off the coast of La Rochelle, he lost an eye when a vessel blew up, but this did little to slow him down.
(1585-1642)
The town of Chinon, on the banks of the Vienne, was built outide the walls of one of the largest castles in France; once the residence of the King of England during the reign of Henry II. A major stronghold in the 12th and 13th centuries, it was here that Joan of Arc met the French crown prince (later Charles VII) and Richard the Lion Heart, is thought to have died at Chinon.
De Chariznay D'Aulnay
(1605-1650)
The old fortress-chateau of the Menous was enclosed by a great wall with pointed towers. The main gate opened to a large courtyard, edged by stables and guard houses. Men at arms patrolled the ramparts and horsemen manned the gates. Growing up in this environment would certainly give a child a feeling of self-importance.
D'Aulnay, as he was known, was the captain of the largest ship of the fleet, Esperance-en-Dieu. He also personally financed the initial 40 families who accompanied him and his cousin, Isaac Razilly. For three years he would act as a Lieutenant and Second in Command, to Isaac de Razilly at Acadia. After De Razilly’s death in 1635, he would assume the leadership placed upon him by Isaac’s brother and become embroiled in numerous battles with his nemesis Charles le Tour; in an effort to secure control of Acadia.
He married Jeanne Motin, the daughter of Louis Motin, Sieur de Courcelles and Nicole DeJousserand. It was an arranged marriage, contracted in France, and they were wed shortly after her arrival in 1636 with her sister Anne, brother Claude and brother-in-law Nicolas Le Creux du Breuil. Du Breuil had been one of de Razilly's lieutenants.
The couple had eight children, four boys and four girls. As a strange twist of fate all of the sons, who had joined the military, would be killed at the Siege of Luxembourg during it’s capture by French armies in 1684. All four of the daughters became nuns, so that ended the line of descent from Charles d”Aulnay, although there is a Metis family in Maine; by the name of Doney; who claim to be descendants of his "country marriage"
