Charles de Marillac

Charles de Marillac (born circa 1510, died 2 December 1560 at Melun, France) was a French prelate and diplomat.

Career

De Marillac was, by the age of twenty-two, an advocate in parliament in Paris. Suspected, however, of sympathizing with the reformers, he deemed it prudent to leave Paris, and in 1535 went to the East with his cousin Jean de La Forest, the first French ambassador at Constantinople. Cunning and ambitious, he soon made his mark, and his cousin having died during his embassy, Marillac was appointed his successor.

He did not return from the East until 1538, when he was sent almost immediately to England, to replace Louis de Perreau, Sieur de Castillon at the court of Henry VIII where he remained until 1543. He is known to have sent dispatches back to France detailing events such as the king's first meeting with Anne of Cleves and the demise of Thomas Cromwell. He retained his influence during the reign of Henry II, fulfilling important missions in Switzerland and later at the imperial court (1547-1551), and at the courts of the German princes (1553-1554).

In 1555 he was one of the French deputies at the conferences held at Mark near Ardres to discuss peace with England. His two last missions were at Rome (1557) and at the Diet of Augsburg (1559). In 1550 he was given the bishopric of Vannes, and in 1557 the archbishopric of Vienne; he also became a member of the privy council. He distinguished himself as a statesman at the Assembly of Notables at Fontainebleau...
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