François de la Chaise

For the Paris cemetery, seePère Lachaise Cemetery.

François de la Chaise(August 25, 1624 – January 20, 1709) was a FrenchJesuitpriest, the father confessor of KingLouis XIV of France.

Biography

François de la Chaise was born at the Château of Aix inAix-la-Fayette,Puy-de-Dôme,Auvergne,being the son of Georges d'Aix, seigneur de La Chaise, and of Renée de Rochefort.

On his mother's side he was a grandnephew ofPierre Coton,the confessor ofHenry IV.He became a novice of theSociety of Jesusbefore completing his studies atLyon,where, after taking final vows, he lectured on philosophy to students attracted by his fame from all parts of France.

Through the influence ofCamille de Villeroy,Archbishop of Lyon,Père de la Chaise was in 1674 nominated confessor of Louis XIV, who entrusted him during the lifetime ofHarlay de Champvallon,archbishop of Paris,with the administration of the ecclesiastical patronage of the crown. The confessor united his influence with that ofMadame de Maintenonto induce the king to abandon his liaison withMadame de Montespan.More than once atEasterhe is said to have had a convenient illness which dispensed him from granting absolution to Louis XIV.

François de La Chaise (1624–1709)

With the fall of Madame de Montespan and the ascendancy of Madame de Maintenon his influence vastly increased. The marriage between Louis XIV and Madame de Maintenon was celebrated in his presence atVersailles,but there is no reason for supposing that the subsequent coolness between him and Madame de Maintenon arose from his insistence on secrecy in this matter. During the long strife over the temporalities of theGallican Churchbetween Louis XIV andInnocent XI,Père de la Chaise supported the royal prerogative, though he used his influence at Rome to conciliate the papal authorities. He was largely responsible for the revocation of theEdict of Nantes.

He exercised a moderating influence on Louis XIV's zeal against theJansenists,andSaint-Simon,who was opposed to him in most matters, does full justice to his humane and honorable character. Père de la Chaise had a lasting and unalterable affection for ArchbishopFénelon,which remained unchanged by the papal condemnation of theMaximes.

In spite of failing faculties he continued his duties as confessor to Louis XIV to the end of his long life.

Legacy

The name of Father de la Chaise became attached to theJesuithouse where he lived – at the time outside the boundaries of Paris – and to the plot of land near that house. In 1804,Napoleonestablished a cemetery there – the well-knownPère Lachaise Cemetery(literally "The Father la Chaise Cemetery" ). Thus, his name lives on in the Paris landscape.

The lexicographerPhilibert-Joseph Le Rouxhad to flee to Brussels after he publishedHistoire du père La Chaize, jésuite et confesseur du roi Louis XIV où l'on verra les intrigues secrettes qu'il a eues à la cour de France et dans toutes les cours de l'Europe,a pamphlet against de la Chaise.

William Hurtportrayed Father de la Chaise in the fantasy-adventure filmThe King's Daughter(2022).

References

• This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911). "La Chaise, François de".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 16 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 48.
• Ott, Michael (1910)."François d'Aix de la Chaise".In Herbermann, Charles (ed.).Catholic Encyclopedia.Vol. 8. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
• Régis Chantelauze,Le Père de la Chaize. Etudes d'histoire religieuse(Paris and Lyon, 1859).