Philippe de Chabot, seigneur de Brion

Philippe de Chabot, seigneur de Brion (born c. 1492—died June 1, 1543) was the grand admiral of France under Francis I, whose favour raised him from the petty nobility of Poitou to glory and the vicissitudes of power. As well as the seigniory of Brion, he held the titles of comte de Charny and comte de Buzançois.

A companion of Francis I in his childhood, he rose to prominence after that King’s accession (1515). In the war between Francis and the Holy Roman emperor Charles V, he took part in the defense of Marseille (1524) and was captured with Francis at the Battle of Pavia (1525). He was made admiral of France and governor of Burgundy after the negotiation of the Peace of Madrid (January 1526), being thereafter known as the Admiral de Brion. In 1535 he commanded the army for the invasion of Piedmont. Both at court and in military commands, however, he had the constable Anne, duc de Montmorency, as his rival; and his enemies, particularly the chancellor Guillaume Poyet, conspired to get him accused of peculation. He was sentenced to banishment, to the confiscation of his estates, and to the payment of a large fine in February 1541; but the King’s mistress, Anne de Pisseleu, duchesse d’Étampes, intervened to procure him the King’s pardon in March, and he was reinstated, Montmorency and Poyet being disgraced. He died shortly before the trial of Poyet.

Though he was no seaman, Chabot took some interest in his duties as admiral of France and did much to promote Jacques Cartier’s expedition to Canada.