Louis, Duke of Blacas

Louis de Blacas d'Aulps, 2nd Duke of Blacas
Louis Charles de Blacas d´Áulps, Lithograph by Josef Kriehuber, 1851

Louis Charles Pierre Casimir de Blacas d'Aulps, 2nd Duke of Blacas, 2nd Prince of Blacas (15 April 1815, London – 10 February 1866, Venice) was a French nobleman and antiquarian. He was the son of Pierre-Louis de Blacas d'Aulps, 1st Duke of Blacas and of his wife Henriette-Marie-Félicité du Bouchet de Sourches de Montsoreau. His godfather was Louis XVIII, King of France.

Born in London during the Hundred Days, he was educated first in France and then in Austria where his father had followed the exiled royal family in 1836. He returned in France only in 1844. He became an antiquarian like his father, inheriting and expanding his father's extraordinary collection of Greek vases, engraved gems and antique coins, cameos (including the famous Blacas Cameo of Augustus) and jewels. He was particularly interested in numismatics. He translated into French, under the title Histoire de la monnaie romaine (Paris 1866), the Geschichte des Römischen Münzwesens (History of Roman Coinage) of Theodor Mommsen (Berlin 1860), with additional notes signed B. The book is still often quoted using the Blacas translation rather than the original German version. Blacas was a member of the Societé des Antiquaires de France and served as its secretary from 1864 to 1865.

After his father's death, Blacas defended him against allegations of unscrupulous gains made by the Duke of Ragusa.[1] He fully supported his father's political views. Like his father, he was an ardent Legitimist. He succeeded him as a premier gentilhomme de la chambre to the exiled Legitimist claimant, the duc d'Angoulême. Blacas was a devoted follower of the duc d'Angoulême's successor, the comte de Chambord, whom he had known since childhood and whom he served all his life. His brother, Count Stanislas de Blacas d'Aulps, served the comte similarly. However, contrary to his father and to his own son (who later served as mayor and deputy), Blacas did not directly take part in the political life of the Second Empire. He died in Venice at the Palazzo Cavalli, the residence of the comte de Chambord, after planning a study of Venetian coinage. His body was taken back to Aups where his funeral took place.

After the French government refused to pay for its acquisition, his collection was sold by his heirs to the British Museum in 1867 for 1,200,000 francs.[2]

Marriages and issue

The duke was married twice. Both wives were from Legitimist families of the French high nobility. He married first at Paris on 17 September 1845 Marie-Paule de Pérusse des Cars (3 February 1827, Paris - 18 September 1855, Pau), daughter of Amédée-François-Régis de Pérusse, 2nd Count and 1st Duke des Cars, Peer of France. They had four children:

On 28 July 1863, the Duke remarried with Alix-Laurence-Marie de Damas (1824–1879), daughter of Ange-Hyacinthe de Damas de Cormaillon, 1st Baron of Damas, Peer of France, who had been Minister of foreign affairs (1823–1828) and Minister of war (1823–1824) of Charles X. They had only one daughter:

Notes

  1. ↑ An extract of his letter to the editor of the Memoirs of the Duke of Ragusa is reproduced by Ponton d'Amécourt, p. 356-357.
  2. ↑ British Museum Collection

References

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