Nicolas Chalon du Blé

Nicolas Chalon du Blé, marquis d'Uxelles and Cormatin (24 January 1652 – 10 April 1730) was a French general and Foreign Minister. He was also created a knight and Marshal of France by Louis XIV, and was a diplomat for Louis XIV and Philippe II, Duke of Orléans.

du Blé was born at Chalon-sur-Saône.

His appearance was described as tall and ruddy, with a huge wig and a hat pulled down over his eyes. He tended to hide his military orders and decorations under a plain, tightly-buttoned coat.

Second heir of Louis Chalon du Blé, marquis of Uxelles (who died in 1658 at the siege of Gravelines), and of Marie Le Bailleul (1626–1712), Nicolas Chalon du Blé was a protégé of Camille le Tellier de Louvois.

He was granted military leadership in 1688, during the Nine Years' War; he served as lieutenant general at the siege of Philippsburg, and was charged with holding the Place de Mayence fortress in Mainz, when the French army was forced to retreat.

He initially defended during the Siege of Mainz against the Grand Alliance, from 1 June to 8 September 1689, but had to surrender, and was publicly booed upon his return to Paris. He retained the favor of François-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois and Louis XIV of France, and was rewarded with the fief of Rougemont-le-Château (1696), and he received the baton of Marshal, in 1703.

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