Louis de Maugiron information

Louis de Maugiron
marquis de Saint-Saphorin
Sketch of Maugiron, drawn after the loss of his eye in May 1577
Born	c. 1560
Died	27 April 1578, Paris
Noble family	House of Maugiron
Father	Laurent de Maugiron
Mother	Jeanne de Maugiron

Louis de Maugiron, marquis de Saint-Saphorin (c. 1560-27 April 1578) was a French courtier and noble during the French Wars of Religion. Louis was the son of Laurent de Maugiron, a key power broker in Dauphiné who became lieutenant-general of the province in 1578, and held the position until his death. Louis entered the service of the king's brother Alençon in 1576, securing the position of 'chamberlain of affairs' the most senior position in the household despite only being sixteen. The king recognised that he was a valuable figure to secure, and as such peeled him off from his service of Alençon into his own service, granting him the role of gentilhomme de la chambre du roi that same year, doubling his income. After the Peace of Monsieur broke down and civil war resumed, the young Maugiron fought in the campaign led by Alençon, seeing combat at the capture of La Charité-sur-Loire and Issoire. At the latter engagement, he received an arrow through his eye during an assault, causing him to lose the eye.

Alençon who had been avoiding court, decided to return in 1578. He and his favourites spent the next month engaged in skirmishes with the favourites of Henri III. Maugiron, now representing the king harassed his former patron, leading a legal case against one of his favourites, La Châtre and insulting the prince during a ball in early February. Several days later Alençon declared his intention to depart court, and eventually succeeded in doing so. No longer having the king's brother's favourites to intimidate, Maugiron and the other clients of the king turned their attention to those loyal to the duke of Guise and were narrowly kept away from a duel on 2 April 1578, before engaging in one on 27 April under the respective leaderships of Caylus for the king and Entraguet for the duke. During the combat that followed, Maugiron fighting as a second for Caylus was killed by one of Entraguet's seconds, Ribérac. The king was distraught at the death of Maugiron and Caylus, and commissioned an elaborate tomb for his favourites. The tomb was destroyed by a Parisian mob in 1589 at the urgings of radical Catholic preachers.