Baron de Batz
| Jean Pierre de Batz, Baron de Sainte-Croix | |
|---|---|
Jean Pierre de Batz
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| Born | 26 January 1754 |
| Died | 10 January 1822 (aged 67) |
| Occupation | French royalist and businessman |
Jean Pierre de Batz, Baron de Sainte-Croix, known as the Baron de Batz or de Bance, (26 January 1754 – 10 January 1822), was a French royalist and businessman. He was born in Goutz-les-Tartas (Gers), and died in Chadieu, near Vic-le-Comte (Puy-de-Dôme).
His life and actions in the service of Louis XVI inspired several popular novelists, including Baroness Orczy (Eldorado, 1913), Rafael Sabatini (Scaramouche, 1921) and more recently Juliette Benzoni (Le Jeu de l'amour et de la mort series, 1999–2000).
Under the Constituent Assembly, de Batz's reputation as a financier led to his 28 May 1790 appointment to the liquidation committee, which was responsible for clearing public accounts. It appears that de Batz conducted liquidations of fraudulent debts, sold to his friends who then reimbursed him. At the same time, he became a secret adviser to Louis XVI, and organized the financing of a secret policy implemented at the Chateau de Tuileries under Armand Marc, comte de Montmorin to defend the monarchy, which continued until at least 10 August 1792. On his own account, de Batz advanced to Louis XVI a sum exceeding 500,000 livres. His best ally was the Minister of Finance, Étienne Clavière, and under the guise of missions Clavière entrusted to him, de Batz made several voyages abroad between March 1792 and January 1793.
On January 21, 1793, de Batz tried in vain to raise the crowd in boulevard de Bonne Nouvelle to save the king from execution. Several royalists were killed, though de Batz managed to escape. He remained partially in hiding until he obtained a certificate of non-emigration in June 1793.
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