Comtesse de la Motte

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jeanne de Valois, Jeanne de Saint-Rémy-de Luz, Comtesse de la Motte (Lamotte) (1756–1791) was a French noblewoman. She is known for her role in the affair of the diamond necklace, one of many scandals that led to the French Revolution and destroyed the monarchy of France.

1 Her youth and marriage
2 The affair of the diamond necklace
3 See also
- 3.1 External links

[edit] Her youth and marriage

Jeanne de Valois was born in 1756 in Fontette (northeastern France near Bar-sur-Aube) to a very poor family. While her father had royal Valois blood, being descended from Henry de Saint-Rémy (1557-1621), illegitimate son of King Henry II and Nicole de Savigny, he was known to live from expedients and the mother was a prostitute. Their three children, Jacques (1751-1785), Jeanne and Marie-Anne (1757-1786) had at times to beg for food. According to Count Beugnot as written in his Mémoires, they were rescued by his father and the abbot of Langres. According to another source, the family moved to Boulogne near Paris where a priest and one of his rich parishionners, Madame de Boulainvilliers, took care of them.

In any case, their Valois ancestry was ascertained, and thanks to legal dispositions set up to help children from poor nobilty, Jacques was granted a yearly stipend of 1000 pounds and a place in a military academy, Jeanne and Marie-Anne went to a boarding school in Passy and were given a stipend of 900 pounds. They were supposed to become nuns in the Longchamps monastery, but instead chose to go back to Bar-sur-Aube where they lived with the Surmont family. In 1780, Jeanne married Antoine-Nicolas de la Motte (1755-1831), Mr Surmont's nephew. While the de la Motte family's claim to nobility was dubious, both husband and wife assumed the title Comte and Comtesse de La Motte Valois. Jeanne would be the only one to "make history". Jacques died on duty on Saint-Louis Island, Marie-Anne went back to religious life. None of the three saint-Remy children had descendants.

[edit] The affair of the diamond necklace

When it became clear that Nicolas was unable to meet the couple's financial needs, the Comtesse aimed to ask a more generous pension from the Royal Family due to her royal blood. She set her sights on Queen Marie Antoinette as she felt the Queen, being a woman, would be more sympathetic to her plight. She was frequently seen in Versailles trying to catch her attention. At the time, any ordinary citizen clothed in proper attire could walk into the castle and the gardens and try to catch a glimpse of the royal family. Nevertheless, Marie-Antoinette had been told of Jeanne's less-than-perfect lifestyle and refused to meet her.

The marriage between Jeanne and her husband was unsuccessful although they continued to live together. Jeanne took a lover, Rétaux de Villette, a common gigolo. Around 1783, the Comtesse met the Cardinal of France, Prince Louis de Rohan. She became aware that the Prince, already one of the richest men of France, wanted nothing more than one more financial favour from Marie Antoinette. Nevertheless, the Queen shuned the Cardinal as he had spread rumours about her when she was the dauphine and she was aware of his flawed character.

At the same time, the jeweller Charles Auguste Boehmer was trying to sell a particularly expensive and luxurious diamond necklace originally designed for Madame du Barry. He had invested a fortune into this piece of jewelry and had to sell it fast to avoid banckrupty. He soon realised that only the King could possibly buy such an item. But Louis XVI and the Queen refused the necklace.

The Comtesse, with the active help of her husband and de Villette, planned to use this opportunity to gain finances. Rétaux de Villette was a master forger and wrote letters from 'the Queen' to the Comtesse. She stated that she wanted the necklace, but was aware of the reluctance of the King to buy it due to the current dismal financial situation of the country. She hoped that the cardinal could lend her the money, and she would grant him the stipend he wished for. Jeanne de la Motte was named as the Queen's agent. The Cardinal believed these letters to be authentic and agreed to buy the necklace for the Queen. A late night rendezvous was arranged, where the Cardinal met 'the Queen' (really a prostitute called Nicole le Guay d'Oliva) and received forgiveness. The jeweller was contacted and asked to bring the necklace.

The necklace was given to the Comtesse to pass on to the Queen. The Comte de Lamotte promptly began selling the diamonds in Paris and London. The affair only came to light when the Cardinal was arrested. The Comtesse de Lamotte, Rétaux de Villette, Nicole d'Oliva and Count Cagliostro (a self-proclaimed holy man who had helped the Comtesse persuade the Cardinal to purchase the necklace) were all arrested. The Comte de Lamotte stayed in London.

While they were not directly implicated and could have tried the conmen and women without publicity, the King and the Queen insisted on a public try. Their objective was to put an end to the rumor that Marie-Antoinette and Jeanne were lovers. The whole scam was actually based on this belief. The Cardinal knew very well that the Queen never met Jeanne in public, but believed that she was her trusted agent due to their secret liaison. The Queen's popularity with the French public was waning and many were willing to believe that she was a homosexual, a scandalous behaviour at the time.

Nevertheless, the trial actually had the opposite effect and destroyed the reputation of the French Queen, as the public saw her as the guilty party. The Cardinal was found not guilty and acquitted. King Louis XVI promptly had him exiled. Rétaux de Villette was found guilty of forgery and exiled. Nicole d'Oliva was acquitted. Count Cagliostro was exiled. The Comtesse was found guilty and sentenced to be whipped, branded and imprisoned. The public sympathised with the Comtesse. She was condemned to prison for life in the Salpêtrière.The Comtesse soon escaped from her prison and made her way to London, where she published her memoirs, recalling false sexual encounters with the Queen.

The Cardinal survived the revolution and lived out his life in exile. Rétaux de Villette also lived and died in exile in Italy. Nicole d'Oliva faded into obscurity and died at age 28. Count Cagliostro was imprisoned during the Italian Inquisition and died in prison. Nicholas de Lamotte returned to Paris after the Revolution. The Comtesse died in London after falling from her hotel room window. Some people believed she was killed by royalists, but she was probably trying to hide from debt collectors when she fell. She died in 1791, before Marie Antoinette, who went to the guillotine in 1793.

The story was turned into a movie in 2001. The Affair of the Necklace stars Hilary Swank as the Comtesse de Lamotte with Jonathan Pryce, Adrien Brody, Simon Baker and Joely Richardson as Marie Antoinette.