Charles Maurice de Talleyrand

Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord was born in Paris into an aristocratic family that was not particularly prosperous. He had a congenital limp that prevented him from pursuing a military career. He studied theology and became a priest in 1779. He was appointed Agent-General of the Clergy in 1780 and Bishop of Autun in 1789. He supported the French Revolution and took part in the Estates General and the National Assembly. He renounced his clerical vows and married Catherine Grand in 1792. He became a member of the Directory in 1797 and Foreign Minister in 1799. He served under Napoleon as his chief diplomat and negotiated several treaties with European powers. He resigned in 1807 after disagreeing with Napoleon's policies. He secretly conspired with Tsar Alexander I of Russia and Austrian minister Metternich to overthrow Napoleon. He supported the Bourbon Restoration in 1814 and represented France at the Congress of Vienna, where he secured favourable terms for France. He became Prime Minister under Louis XVIII in 1815 and Foreign Minister again in 1821. He retired from politics in 1829 and spent his last years at his estate of Valençay. He died of pneumonia in 1838 at the age of 84. He was buried in the Chapel of Saint-Louis at Valençay. He is regarded as one of the most versatile, skilled and influential diplomats in European history, but also as a traitor who betrayed many regimes and causes. [2]