François de Montmorency, sieur de La Rochepot (1496/8, Paris–20 August 1551 Péronne) was a French noble, military commander, courtier, and governor during the latter Italian Wars of François I. A younger son of Guillaume de Montmorency and Anne Pot, La Rochepot's career was elevated by the meteoric rise in royal favour that was enjoyed by his elder brother Anne de Montmorency. Starting out in 1515 La Rochepot served as the captain of Beauvais in Picardie. He served as a hostage to England for the treaty that saw the return of Tournai to France in 1518. His first sign of royal favour came in 1520 when he was made a gentilhomme de la chambre du roi (gentleman of the king's chamber) granting him a degree of privileged access to the king. La Rochepot accompanied the vanguard for the French invasion of Italia in late 1524, and was present at the disastrous Battle of Pavia at which the royal army was destroyed, and the king made captive. La Rochepot was likewise made captive, but was able to raise his ransom quickly and returned to France to inform the Paris Parlement of the king's condition. The Parlement granted him authority in the Île de France.
The Parlement was dissatisfied with the state of affairs by which Picardie, a border province, lacked a governor who was present in the province at this time of crisis. Therefore, first the comte de Brienne (count of Brienne) and then La Rochepot were appointed as deputy governor of the province in 1531. Around this time he also became bailli du Palais (bailiff of the royal palaces) and received the honour of the Ordre de Saint-Michel (Order of Saint-Michel). In Picardie he shared responsibilities for administration with the duc de Vendôme (duke of Vendôme) until Vendôme's death in 1537. At this time, with Vendôme's son too young to immediately succeed to the office, La Rochepot was temporarily granted the responsibility of governing Picardie as a full governor. He held this office through the royal campaign in the area, before the new duc de Vendôme succeeded to the role in 1538. Relieved of his authority, La Rochepot was compensated with the governate of the Île de France while he returned to the position of deputy governor in Picardie. In 1541 he and his brother were disgraced by the king, and removed from their governates. Until the end of François' reign he would hold only his captaincy of Beauvais. With the ascent of Henri II he returned to favour, and was restored to his governate and deputy governate responsibilities. He had a central role to play in the efforts to recover Boulogne from the English occupation, both in the raising of troops for the military recovery of the town, and when this did not work out, the diplomatic efforts that eventually brought about its ceding). La Rochepot died on 20 August 1551, and was succeeded as governor of the Île de France by his nephew Admiral Coligny
Early life and family Birth
François de Montmorency was born around 1496–1498 in Paris the third son of Guillaume de Montmorency, the premier baron of the Île de France and Anne Pot. The Pot family was originally from Bourgogne, and had served both the king's of France and Valois ducs de Bourgogne (dukes of Bourgogne). His elder brothers were Jean de Montmorency, sieur d'Écouen (who died young in 1516) and Anne de Montmorency. He had a younger brother, Phillipe de Montmorency, bishop of Limoges, who also died young in 1519. Before the death of his eldest brother, La Rochepot may have been destined for a life in the church.
Charlotte d'Humières
La Rochepot was betrothed to Charlotte d'Humiėres in 1522, and in April 1525 the marriage contract was drawn up. Charlotte was a daughter of Jean II d'Humières and Françoise de Contay. The Humières family had a prominent place among the Picard nobility and had been allies of the Montmorency since the turn of the century. Thus the match complemented the power of the Montmorency in the province. As a result, her father found himself more closely tied to Montmorency, with whom his relationship had prior solely been one of friendship.
La Rochepot and Charlotte would not have any children, though La Rochepot may had have a daughter out of wedlock, if a later claimant is to be believed.
For La Rochepot, his new bride brought the Picard lands of Offrémont, Mello, Ancre and Bray upon the death of Louise de Nesle who had possessed them. From 1525 Louise allowed the couple to settle her inheritance in their joint favour. By this means upon Nesle's death in 1530, La Rochepot became a great Picard lord. He had already purchased some of Louise's lands from her in 1526 so he could begin exercising control of them more promptly. If La Rochepot died without producing an heir, the Picard lands Louise provided would revert to the Humières, while the Montmorency would retain possession of the Beauvaisis lands. La Rochepot also agreed to settle Louise's debts and took care of her in her old age.
Charlotte would jointly administer the couples lands with her husband, issuing payment orders in her own name.
Religious temperament Religiously, La Rochepot was drawn towards mystical exaltation. He had a particular attachment to a fragment of the true cross that was kept at Offrémont. He ensured it was used in exorcism to release his brother in law Charles d'Humières from an 'evil spirit'. La Rochepot was a great advocate for the Celestine house that held the relic.
La Rochepot enjoyed residences in Paris, Abbeville and Amiens, with another residence potentially in Beauvais. He further possessed his châteaux at Mello and Offrémont. The territory surrounding which he worked assiduously to aggrandise and consolidate.
Inheritance and title The early deaths of his brothers complicated the matters of the family inheritance, and therefore La Rochepot's title. From 1510 to 1522, La Rochepot's elder brother, Anne held the title of La Rochepot. La Rochepot was therefore known as La Prune au Pot. For a brief window towards the end of this period, La Rochepot was known as the sieur de Thoré. In September 1522 he and his brother undertook an agreement at Poissy in the presence of Chancellor Duprat, Admiral Bonnivet and others. With no surviving brothers, and the death of their brothers only daughter, Anne and François worked out a partage for the death of their father. La Rochepot received a quarter of the ancestral Montmorency and Écouen domains and the seigneuries of Anne Pot: La Rochepot, Châteauneuf, Saint-Romain, Mersault, Thoré and La Prune au Pot. As a recognition of this agreement, La Rochepot quartered his arms with those of Pot.
Though a lord in Bourgogne, La Rochepot would be entirely absentee, with not even one of his acts dated from Bourgogne.
Reign of François I Beauvais From 1515, La Prune au Pot (as he was then known) held the captaincy of Beauvais in Picardie. Prior to his exercise of the office it had been held by his father Guillaume de Montmorency. As captain of Beauvais, La Prune au Pot on occasion received lavish gifts from the town, as in November 1534. He was expected in return to champion the towns issues at court. This could involve requests to remove garrisons, aid in disputes against local ecclesiastical authorities (including the bishop of Beauvais, his cousin Charles de Villiers) or protect the town from marauding troops. In his absence, La Prune au Pot appointed deputies from the Boileau family to exercise authority.
In the 1518 treaty established with Henry VIII for the return of Tournai to France, there was an exchange of hostages as guarantee of the terms agreed. La Prune au Pot was among those sent as a hostage to England. Though he was originally intended to remain in the kingdom until 1521 when four hostages on each side would be exchanged back he was likely returned early in 1519.
Upon his return he took charge of a compagnie d'ordonnance (ordinance company) and mustered it for the first time. This gave him responsibility over a group of gentlemen hommes d'armes (men-at-arms), the number of which varied from 30 in the wake of the Pavia campaign, to 100 in 1549.
With his elder brothers establishment as premier gentilhomme de la chambre du roi (first gentleman of the king's chamber) in 1520, La Prune au Pot followed in the wake of this royal favour, becoming a gentilhomme de la chambre du roi (gentlemen of the king's chamber) at this time. This brought the two men proximity to the king to differing degrees. It also brought La Prune au Pot an income of 1200 livres.
At the time of the English invasion of October 1523, La Rochepot (as he was now titled after the partage with his brother) was in the north, and sent out orders to ensure that all supplies were brought within the walls of Beauvais so they could not be seized.
Pavia
La Rochepot had travelled south to the Italian front by 1524. Holding a position in Italia he was warned by Admiral Bonnivet that his position was threatened. La Rochepot consulted with his captains and concluded their position was acceptable and just required some reinforcements.
His time in Italia was short, and he was back on the Picard front in July 1525. Here he rendezvoused with the duc de Vendôme for the aim of an attack against Thérouanne.
For the royal campaign of 1525, La Rochepot was in the armies vanguard of 500 lances under the authority of Marshal Chabannes. He was therefore present at the disastrous battle of Pavia where he was captured, as the king and his elder brother were. La Rochepot would not long be in captivity, and upon his bail he was granted permission (as no other captain of men-at-arms was) to meet with the captive king first before he departed back to France. La Rochepot recorded his observations of the sad state of his king. François provided him with a letter to give the Parlement such that they would expend all their energies in support of the regency government. By the time he was back in Paris in March 1525 he joined forces with his father and recounted the events that had transpired before the entire court, at this time his entire ransom had been collected.
La Rochepot made a good impression on the Parlement and was named for the government of the Île de France alongside his father. La Rochepot was primarily concerned in this period with his governate of Beauvais, and he sought to ensure its defences were in good condition. The artillery was inspected and an agreement made to undertake refounding.
In the coming years, La Rochepot served as an intermediary between the French and English courts. This included meeting with Cardinal Wolsey in July 1527 to discuss a planned meeting of the Cardinal and François. When François was obstructed by an accident from this meeting, La Rochepot informed Wolsey of the delay to the plans.
From 1528 La Rochepot got involved in a long running dispute with the municipal authorities of Beauvais over a cognisance of a criminal case involving the theft of firearms from the hôtel de ville (town hall). La Rochepot claimed it fell under his jurisdiction but was resisted by both the city grandees and ecclesiastical grandees of Beauvais. He used his influence at court to evoke the case to the conseil privé (privy council) but matters would drag on to 1532, neither side willing to back down.
Deputy governor The crisis brought about by Pavia created a situation in which the absence of Picardie's governor (the duc de Vendôme) at court was unacceptable to the Parlement of Paris. The Parlement demanded that Picardie be governed by a substitute in Vendôme's absence, a 'deputy governor'. At first the comte de Brienne filled the charge, but he died in late 1530. On 1 May 1531 the king therefore appointed La Rochepot to assume the role of governor in Picardie during the absence of Vendôme.
The following year, in August, La Rochepot succeeded François Robertet to the office of bailli du Palais (bailiff of the royal palaces). For this office he would receive an income of 600 livres (pounds).