Louis Rene Edouard de Rohan

Louis René Édouard de Rohan was a French cardinal, bishop, politician, and cadet of the Rohan family, which traced its origin to the kings of Brittany. He was born in Paris on 25 September 1734, as the second son of Hercule Mériadec, Prince of Guéméné and Louise Gabrielle Julie de Rohan. He was destined for a high office in the Church from birth, as his family had filled the office of Bishop of Strasbourg since 1704, which made them princes of the Holy Roman Empire. He took orders in 1756 and was nominated coadjutor to his uncle, Louis Constantin de Rohan-Rochefort, who then held the bishopric. He was also appointed titular bishop of Canopus, Egypt. However, he preferred the elegant life and the gaiety of Paris to his clerical duties, and had also an ambition to make a figure in politics. In 1761 he was elected to seat 36 of the Académie Française. Louis de Rohan was a member of the palace cabal opposed to the Austrian alliance. This party was headed by the Duc d'Aiguillon who, in 1771, sent Rohan on a special embassy to find out what was being done in Vienna with regard to the partition of Poland. Rohan arrived at Vienna in January 1772, and made a great spectacle of himself with his lavish entertainments. Empress Maria Theresa was hostile to his intrigues; not only did he attempt to thwart her alliance with France, but as a vicar of the Church, he made little secret of his venal lifestyle. On the death of Louis XV in 1774, Rohan was recalled from Vienna, and coldly received in Paris; but his family's influence was too great for him to be neglected; in 1777 he was made Grand Almoner of France, and in 1778, abbot of St. Vaast. In 1778, he was made a cardinal on the nomination of Stanislaus Poniatowski (the king of Poland). In 1779, Louis de Rohan succeeded his uncle as bishop of Strasbourg. Rohan's reputation was further damaged by his involvement in the Affair of the Diamond Necklace in 1785. He was duped by a woman claiming to be Marie Antoinette's confidante into purchasing an expensive necklace for the queen, who had no knowledge of the transaction. The affair became a public scandal that tarnished both Rohan's and the monarchy's prestige. He was arrested and tried before the Parlement of Paris, which acquitted him but also branded him as a dupe. He was exiled to his abbey of Chaise-Dieu. During the French Revolution, he refused to take the oath to the Civil Constitution of the Clergy and emigrated to Ettenheim in Germany. He died there on 16 February 1803 at the age of 68.