Michel de Gast
Château de Clos Lucé, Amboise.
Michel de Gast* was Captain of the famous Forty-Five** bodyguards of Henry III.
Pushed to the limits by the duke of Guise and his brother, Cardinal Guise, well aware they were plotting to usurp his throne, angered by the insults and public humiliations they heaped upon him, Henry, not unreasonably, decided to get rid of them.
The Guise brothers were most definitely guilty of treason. Why didn't the King have them arrested and put on trial? If they were judged by their peers, he had no chance. Paris worshipped the duke of Guise.
The assassination of the duke went according to plan. Members of the Forty-Five butchered him, although how he fell for such a simple trick*** is astonishing. He was even warned by those closest to him but laughed it off saying – to paraphrase - the king is a wimp, he wouldn't have the guts.
Assassinating the duke’s brother was far more problematic. Each of the Forty-Five baulked at the thought of murdering a man of the cloth, a Cardinal nominated by the Pope.
In the end, Michel de Gast agreed to do the dirty deed.
The Cardinal met his Maker on Christmas Eve 1588 in Château Blois.
Château Royal de Blois
Michel de Gast owned Clos Lucé in Amboise. How, one wonders, did the locals feel about having an assassin living among them?
To begin with, this area, because of its close association with successive kings of France – Charles VII, Louis XI, Charles VIII, Louis XII, Francis I and Henry II – was pro-royalty. When Henry III assassinated the Guise Brothers he was blackballed by the nobility so set up his HQ in Tours.
Then there was the appalling massacre in Amboise for which Francis, the second duke of Guise, father of the assassinated brothers, was responsible. 1560 was still fresh in people’s memories when Francis and his brother Charles slaughtered over a thousand Protestants. The hanging, drawing and quarterings went on day after day for a week. Mutilated bodies were hung from the Château walls or thrown in the Loire. The streets literally ran with blood. The stench was unbelievable.
After gracing this pretty little town for a hundred years, the royal family left Amboise and never returned. Artisans and tradesmen lost their income. People had to witness its beloved Royal Chateau fall into ruins.
The Guise family was responsible for the bloodshed which ensued in France during the Wars of Religion for the next fifty years so few would have shed tears over the Guise brothers. No doubt many old timers shook the hand of Michel de Gast.
De Gast was more than just accepted. In 1589, just one year after the assassination, he was appointed Governor of Amboise and of The Royal Château.
He married into the famous Montmorency family after which he and his descendants did very well for themselves. One bought Château Tourballière near Loches. Another bought Château Pintray in Lussault-sur-Loire near Amboise which stayed in the family for more than a hundred and fifty years. So no. No mud was attached to Michel de Gast. His grand-daughter even married into the illustrious House of Amboise, one of the oldest families of the French nobility dating back to the twelfth century which took its name from the town.
* Guast in some sources
** Many owned little more than a horse, a sword, and a few acres. In the king's service, they were paid a lavish wage. Fifteen rotated for 24/7 duty. Ironically they were unable to prevent the King’s own assassination nor that of his successor Henry IV.
*** Henry sent a message to the duke saying he would like to see him in his bedroom.
Post by Pamela (BA History of Art), Photography by Mark.
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