Mike Talbot’s discussion of the Mius d’Entremont controvery origin:
The first known
mention of the Acadian Mius d’Entremont ancestry follows in a letter (in
italics, later to become a controversy as to whether Philippe Mius d’Entremont
and wife, Madeleine Helie, were the same people as
Francois Virgine Bon, baron de Meuillon
et de Montauban, ct. d’Entremont and wife, Madeleine
du Tillet).
Note: Others
translated the letter from a copy of a letter in French, found at the residence
of
I don’t know if the
original letter or a true photocopy of the letter still exists. I have seen it in typed form, only. I don’t know the identity of the
translator(s) to give proper credit.
Please contact me if you do (mtaht@aol.com). The
translation is a bit awkward to read, made more awkward by my editorial
comments.
The letter_in Italics (with my editorial comments)_________________________ _
It is with great pleasure that I tell you I have been
successful in finding the complete d'Entremont genealogy, a task that the
greatest historians of
In this letter,
I will just recount the ancestors of Philippe Mius; later, I hope to write the
complete history in a book. I will start with the great grandfather of
Philippe, as history dictates.
Sebastien de
Montbel, Count
d'Entremont of Montbel, Lord of Montellier and of Nottage, Knight in the Order
of Savoie, was born around 1490 (ed. probably around 1500, parents married in 1499). He had become
heir to Charles de Montbel, Count d'Entremont, his cousin (sic. ed: his
father), and married Beatrix Pacheco on 17 September 1539 at the Castle of
Chambour; Beatrix Pacheco was lady-in-waiting of Queen Eleanore, wife of King
François I, and daughter of the Duke of Escalona (sic. ed: actually
great-granddaughter of the past duque).
From this marriage he had the following offspring:
Leonor, died as an infant.
Jacqueline,
who followed.
Sebastien was
also the counsellor d'Entremont (of Emmanuel?) Philibert, Duke of Savoie, and
he died in June 1572.
Jacqueline
de Montbel,
Countess of d'Entremont and of Nottage, heiress of the branch, was born in 1541;
she first married in 1561, Claude de Batarnay, Count of Boushage, Baron
d'Anthon, who was killed in the battle of Saint-Denis in 1567 (ed. new death data to me), leaving no
posterity.
Jacqueline then
married Gaspard, second, Count of Coligny, Lord of Chatillon, Admiral of
France, on 25 March 1571. Four months after the death of her husband,
Jacqueline gave birth to a girl, Beatrix de Coligny. Jacqueline died in 1599(ed. Others say 6
Jul 1600).
Beatrix,
Countess of Montbel
and d'Entremont, Marchioness of Montellier and of Saint-André-de-Briord,
Lady-in-waiting of Catherine, Infanta of Spain, Duchess de Savoie, married
Claude Antoine Bon on 30 November 1600; Claude Antoine Bon was
Baron of Meuillon (ed.
and Montauban), Governor of Marseilles. This
marriage resulted in several children, to our knowledge:
François
Virginie, said
Philippe Mius, Count d'Entremont and de Montbel, Marquis of Montellier, Lord of
Chatillon, heir to the legacies of his mother, born in 1603 (ed. interesting, others say 1601 and 1609);
he married Madeleine Elie, daughter of Elie du Tillet, Lord of Nogeage (ed.
note: Nogent) and Francoise de Faucon. Philippe
left on a voyage for
N.............
de Meuillon, says Abbot d'Entremont. The Baron of Nottage.
And n....... de
Meuillon, Carmelite of Chaumont, founder of this convent. (the
males of this house were obliged to carry the arms of Montbel d'Entremont [ed. both males and females according to
the will of Jacqueline cts.d’Entremont de Montbel]).
François
Virginie, said
Philippe Mius d'Entremont, and his wife, who came to
Marie, born in
(ed. note: If ID is true, add Francoise Bon, cts. d’Entremont de Montbel, b. ca.1650/1, married 21 Apr
1670 to Louis de Romilley/Romille, mq.de La Chesnaye/ Chesnalaye). See Chesnaye-Desbois, ROM-579.
She and posterity remained in
Jacques Mius
d'Entremont, born around 1654, married Marguerite de La Tour.
Philippe Mius
d'Entremont, born around 1657, married Anne de La Tour.
Abraham Mius d'Entremont, born around 1660, married an unidentified woman.
Madeleine, born
in 1670, was at Port-Royal in 1686; no further records.
(ed. The author has the names of the above three Mius wives
shuffled, but they are not relevant to his ancestry topic. Anne was wife of Jacques, then
flip the other two wives.)
We know the remainder of their history since then. It is my
understanding that, d'Entremonts who remained in
End of letter.
Unfortunately, the author gave no references and did not publish the book. Hopefully, his sources have not been destroyed. The known facts in his letter seem quite accurate for a casual correspondence with a sibling. The only unverified and most important part of the letter equates Philippe Mius with Francois Virginie Bon and equates their respective wives. The stature of H. Leander d’Entremont as a recognized historian would have probably been enough to satisfy genealogical standards had Father Clarence d’Entremont commented more positively about the authenticity of the letter origin (probable date, Leander’s handwriting verification, etc.).
Leander’s nephew, Father Clarence d’Entremont (d.1998), while a gifted, often published Canadian genealogist and historian, always seemed to loose interest “at the boat” (xenophobic? Huguenot bias?) with his own ancestry as well as with the European origins of other Canadian families. So, we are left with much circumstantial evidence and no documented facts linking the Acadian lieutenant governor Philippe Mius d’Entremont (lieutenant to governor Charles de Latour) to Beatrix cts. d’Entremont de Coligny.
It is believed that Philippe Mius d’Entremont deliberately
hid his true identity in Acadia to avoid complications from his past Huguenot
activities in
It is noted that there was a branch of the Bon family in Isere, Savoie (home of the Montbel d’Entremont), possibly related to the prominent Bon de Meuillon family of Marseilles, Cote d’Azur, Provence. The Norman origin of Philippe Mius, often mentioned, might stem from the du Tillet de Nogent family. Spelling of Meuillon, an old title and dominant spelling, varies: Meuilhon, Mouillon, Meouillon, etc. It does not have a common derivation with the name Mius, Meusse.
Francois Virgine Bon descended
from Kings Louis VIII of
The full, unmodified translated letter is in italics. Editorial notes and comments by
Mike Talbot, 20 Feb 2006.