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Les Seigneurs de la Berthonnière
La Berthonnière is a Chateau and hamlet in the commune of Viennay in what is now the Department of Deux-Sèvres in France.
The founder of the House of de la Court de la Berthonnière was Guillaume de la Court.
Guillaume de la Court was nominated Capitaine and Governor of the City and Chateau of Parthenay by Jean II L'archevêque, the Sire of Parthenay, on 19 November 1401. He was also Seigneur de la Berthonnière [1407-1428], Fonteniou,Tennesus and le Petit Vernay (Viennay). The period of his governorship was marked by turbulence and divided loyalties from which he emerged with honour and distinction.
Jean II L'archevêque was in serious trouble at the time. He had taken the side of the Burgundians during the conflict between the Armagnacs and the Burgundians and in 1414 was charged with rebellion and felony by the king of France, Charles VI, who ordered his possessions to be confiscated. The Burgundians had by then become the adversaries of the Dauphin, Charles who immediately moved his forces against Jean. The siege of Parthenay was led between 1415 and 1419 by Jean de Torzay, master of the king's crossbowmen and by the Comte de Vertus. Guillaume de la Court successfully held out against the siege, and the failure of the French forces to capture the city led to the treaty of Poulli between the regent and John the Fearless on 11 July 1419 which suspended the conflict. Another treaty signed between the Comte de Vertus and the Sire of Parthenay on 31 August resulted in the lifting of the siege of Parthenay. But the siege proved to be the financial ruin of Jean L'archevêque. He was obliged to sell his possessions to his enemy, the Dauphin who lost no time in dispensing with the services of Guilliaume de la Court.
Guillaume retained the fiefs of la Berthonnière Tennessus, Fonteniou and le Petit Vernay (Viennay) until his death in 1928.
His descendants held the seigneurie of la Berthonnière until the de la Courts died down in France. The chateau was sold in 1745 and the title went into abeyance.
One branch of the family did survive however. Guillaume's great-great-grandson, Jacques de la Court became a knight of St John in 1547 (See Preuves) and was accompanied to Malta by his nephew Pierre who settled in Malta and married Aurélie Grillon in the parish church of St Paul, Valletta on 8 Sep 1603. The lingua franca in Malta at the time was Italian and the surname was italianised into della Court, di la Curti, della Corte and, ultimately, La Corte.
DESCENDANTS OF
GUILLAUME DE LA COURT
1 Guillaume de la Court, Capitaine et Gouverneur de Parthenay, Seigneur de la Berthonnière, Tennessus, Fonteniou et Petit Viennay ?- 1428+Jeanne Ameline de Quinge
.2 Bertrand de la Court, Seigneur de la Berthonnière, Fonteniou et Petit Viennay ?- 1476+Perrette Roigne
..3 Guillaume de la Court
..3 Antoine de la Court, Seigneur de la Berthonnière, ?- 1498+Jacquine de Maumusson (Mausson) de la Michelière
…4 François-Elysée de la Court
…4 Dominique de la Court
…4 Jehan de la Court, Seigneur de la Berthonnière +Marie Darrot de la Poupelinière
.…5 Pierre de la Court
….5 Jean de la Court
.... 5 Jacques de la Court, Chevalier de l'Ordre de St-Jean 1529 -?
.... 5 Michel de la Court, Seigneur de la Berthonnière 1530 - 1583 +Claude Chambret de Viellefonds et Rigné
......6 Claude de la Court, Seigneur de la Berthonnière 1552 - 1615 +Marie Dumoutier
...... 7 Michel de la Court, Seigneur de la Berthonnière +Louise de Coussiere (Coustiere)
........8 Isabelle de la Court, Dame de la Berthonnière +François du Pin, Seigneur de la Berthonnière
.........9 René du Pin, Seigneur de la Berthonnière +Marie Texier
.........10 René-Louis du Pin, Seigneur de la Berthonnière +Catherine Elisabeth de Gitton
(Title went into abeyance when René-Louis du Pin sold the chateau in 1745)
.....6 Pierre de la Court (della Court) c 1555 -? +Aurélie Grillon
......7 Dominique (Domenico) de la Court (della Corte) 1604 -? +Catarinuzza Parmegiano 1605 -
.......8 Francesco Aloisio della Corte (di la Curti ) dsp
.......8 Orazio della Corte dsp
.......8 Simone della Corte dsp
.......8 Filippo della Corte dsp
.......8 Francesco della Corte 1639 -? +Anna Calamatta 1640 -?
........9 Salvatore La Corte 1678 -? +Petronella Zara
....... 10 Michele La Corte (Reverend) dsp
........10 Andrea La Corte (Reverend) dsp
........10 Rosa La Corte1705 -? +Gregorio Pajas
..........11 Filippo Pajas La Corte 1735 -? +Teresa Zammit
...........12 Clementina Pajas La Corte 1776 -? +Giuseppe Cilia 1772 -?
.............13 Pietro Paolo Cilia La Corte, Monsignore
.............13 Vincenzo Cilia La Corte 1808 - 1888 +Caterina Borg
..............14 Pietro Paolo Cilia La Corte 1838 - 1907 +Filomena Sceberras 1840 - 1927
...............15 Vincenzo Cilia La Corte 1864 - 1930 +Giorgina DuPont 1882 - 1963
................16 Peter Paul Cilia La Corte 1907 - 1993 +Violet Tonna Biasini 1908 - 1981
..................17 John Cilia La Corte 1934 - +Helen Zammit Tabona 1935 - 1989
...................18 Mark Cilia La Corte 1961 - +Charmaine Xuereb 1964 -
...................18 Anne Cilia La Corte 1963 - 1988
...................18 Paul Cilia La Corte 1966 -
..................17 Victor Lacorte 1943 - - +[1] Patricia Hendrick 1943 - (+[2]Marilyn Rowland 1944 -)
....................18 Michael Lacorte 1966 - +Suzanne Penington 1965 -
......................19 Rebecca Claire Lacorte 1998 -
Sources:
Arnaud, Etienne: RÉPERTOIRE DE GÉNÉALOGIES FRANÇAISES IMPRIMÈES, tome II, éd. Berger-Levrault, Paris, 1979
Beauchets-Filleau, H; de Chargè, Ch: DICTIONNAIRE HISTORIQUE ET GÉNÉALOGIQUE DES FAMILLES DU POITOU [Imprimé Paul Oudin, Poitiers 1889]
Ledain, Bélisaire: LA GÂTINE HISTORIQUE ET MONUMENTALE (Édition de Parthenay 1887; Lafitte Reprints, Marseille 1978)
MOYENNE AGE [No 32 - janvier/février 2003] (published by SARL Editions Heimdal, Bayeaux)
Rabouam-Bourdin, Th, Généalogiste, St-Loup-sur-Thouet, Deux-Sèvres : DE LA COURT, SEIGNEURS DE LA BERTHONNIERE; NOTES SUR LA BERTHONNIERE, COMMUNE DE VIENNAY and DARROT, BRANCHE DE LA POUPELINIERE (1961 - unpublished)
Richard, Alfred: INVENTAIRE ANALYTIQUE DES ARCHIVES DU CHATEAU DE LA BARRE (Archives Seigneuriales du Poitou) [Ch. Reversé, Imprimeur - Éditeur, Paris & Niort 1868]
