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Louis de Saint-Gelais, seigneur de Lanssac and baron de La Mothe-Saint-Héray

Louis de Saint-Gelais was born in 1512 (perhaps at Cornefeu near Cognac), perhaps the illegitimate son of François I and Jacquette de Lansac, as was the belief during his lifetime. The Saint-Gelais were a Poitevin family that had historically been servants of the kings of Navarre before entering royal service in the fifteenth century. For the historian Le Roux, the success of Lanssac in royal service would reflect the integration of the noblesse seconde (secondary nobility) into the administration of the state in this period. As the son of François I he was the half-brother of king Henri II. Jacquette de Lansac possessed the seigneuries of Lanssac, d'Ambès, Clérac and Saint-Savin. Jacquette de Lansac was married to Alexandre de Saint-Gelais (–1522), the seigneur de Cornefou, Romefort and Breuil du Loup, who was often absent. Alexandre served as a chambellan and advisor at the Navarrese court before transferring to the service of Louis XII to whom he served the same roles.

Around 1543 he married Jeanne de La Roche-Andry who brought the lands of La Roche-Andry around Angoulême with her to the marriage.

With Jeanne de La Roche-Andry, Louis had the following issue:

• Guy de Saint-Gelais (3 December 1544–) married Antoinette Raffin in 1571 and had issue.
• Charles de Saint-Gelais, sieur du Précy.
• François de Saint-Gelais, sieur de Vernou.
• Claude de Saint-Gelais, married the comte de Luxe in 1564.

Claude's marriage to the comte de Luxe was a design of the queen mother Catherine's. By this marriage she hoped to secure the loyalty of an important Protestant seigneur who served as the lieutenant-general of La Soule in Navarre in the absence of the king of Navarre and capitaine de Mauléon.

Jeanne died in 1563. On 8 October 1565, Lanssac remarried to Gabrielle de Rochechouart. At the time of this marriage, Lanssac ceded to his son Guy his seigneuries in the Angoumois, Poitou and Guyenne for a value of 135,000 livres, but maintained control of the usufruct.

While pursuing a military career, he had an illegitimate son of his own:

• Urbain de Saint-Gelais (1540–), bishop of Comminges and ambassador to Portugal.

In 1576, Lanssac purchased the baronnie de La Mothe-Saint-Héraye in Poitou (valued at 140,000 livres in 1604) from Françoise de Birague, thereby acquiring possessed château de La Mothe-Saint-Héraye. He would play host at this château to the queen mother Catherine and the king of Navarre. He also had a Parisian hôtel (grand residence) on the rue Saint-Honoré composed of several buildings and gardens. At Catherine's request he hosted foreign ambassadors here. A man of culture, he also welcomed poets, artists, painters and sculptors to this hôtel. It would be his lands around Paris that became the focus of his attentions as opposed to those he held in the south-west of the kingdom. The centre of his new territory was Précy-sur-Oise where he bought up plots of land from 1570 to 1587.

He enjoyed friendly relations with the seigneur de Saint-Sulpice, the principal baron of Quercy and ambassador to España. In 1576 the eldest son of Saint-Sulpice was assassinated by the vicomte de Tours during the meeting of the Estates General. Lanssac wrote his sympathies to the baron and proffered his support in attaining revenge against the vicomte. He wrote again to Saint-Sulpice to let him know that the vicomte de Tours had been beheaded in absentia (i.e. a model of Tours had been beheaded due to the actual Tours' flight from the court to escape punishment). Another associate of Lanssac's was maréchal de Matignon. Lanssac sent the maréchal (marshal) letters assuring him of the good favour in which the queen mother Catherine held him. In return for Matignon scouting out vacant abbeys in his governate for Lanssac and his sons, Lanssac intervened with Catherine to ensure that the governor received the proceeds of property seized from Protestants in his province.

The Saint-Gelais family served as the patrons for Isaac Habert (poète), a poet, securing for Isaac a position as a sécretaire du roi (secretary of the king). Lanssac himself was a recipient of epistles and verses written in Italian. The poet du Bellay honoured him with an ode celebrating his eloquence. In addition to competency with Italian, he was well versed in Castilian, German, English and Latin. Due to his linguistic skill with Castilian he often participated in the Spanish diplomatic audiences with the French king as an interpreter. His constant presence was greatly to the irritation of the Spanish ambassador Álava who complained about it to the Spanish king.

Lanssac had much concern for his honour. He opined that his honour was based on two sources, himself, and god.

In total his annual incomes from the crown for his various offices totalled around 16,000 livres. 10,000 livres of this was his pension. His personal lands brought him a further 11,000 livres a year, with another 10,000 of rentes (annuities) on the hôtel de ville (town hall) and 10,000 from the lands of the bishopric of Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges. Thus his ordinary incomes equalled around 47,000 livres. Beyond these revenues he was a recipient of many royal gifts between 1565 and 1583, totalling around 171,000 livres. For example in 1568 he shared in a royal gift of 10,544 livres. As a result of this advantageous financial position he was able to make a loan of 16,000 livres to the trésorier de la récette générale (treasurer of the general revenues) of Bordeaux in 1567.

In his capacity as capitaine de la seconde compagnie des cent gentilhommes de la maison du roi (captain of the second company of a hundred gentleman of the king's household) in the year 1576–1577 Lanssac enjoyed a royal pension of 200 livres. In 1573, it would be as this officer that he would be provided 140 livres to distribute as alms during the holy week. One of the soldiers in his compagnie, the sieur de Riches, would serve as an agent of Lanssac's for the collection of money owed to him by the tenant farmers on his lands.

Royal favour was not a one way flow of money, and Lanssac was among those Henri expected to make loans to the crown. The repayment of the money to the officials from which it was loaned was not always a guarantee.

Of a moderate Catholic disposition, in 1566 he even found himself accused of having eaten meat during Lent. His daughter Claude married a Protestant seigneur. In royal council he was far more concerned with the re-establishment of royal authority than religious considerations.

Lanssac was frequently turned to as a diplomat for the crown, and according to the memoirist Brantôme undertook around thirty embassies during his life.

In the absence of Alexandre, Lanssac's mother Jacquette often resided at Cognac, where the mother of François I held her court. She became a prominent staple of the Cognac court, where the duc de Valois (future king François) resided until 1512 when he moved to Amboise. In that year he is supposed to have had an affair with Jacquette, who thus gave birth to a son named Louis in 1513.

Upon the death of his mother's husband, Alexandre on 20 June 1552, the rights and wages of the office of garde des sceaux de la chancellerie de Bordeaux (holder of the seals of the chancellery of Bordeaux) that Alexandre had enjoyed in his lifetime reverted to his putative son, Lanssac. While Lanssac was still a minor, the office was exercised by Sauvat de Pommiers in his stead.

At some point his mother remarried to the baron de Mirambeau.

Upon the death of the sieur de Langoiran who held the captaincy of Bourg and its château, Lanssac was invested in these charges by king François by letters patent of 28 June 1536. Upon the death of his mother he assumed the name of one of her seigneuries, that of Lanssac, by which he would be known for the rest of his life. In an earlier agreement he had made he had been known as the seigneur d'Ambérac. When he was not residing in Guyenne he spent his time at the French court where his education was furthered by masters.

He undertook military service in the Italian Wars against the Holy Roman Emperor, and it was in this context in 1540 that he fathered an illegitimate son.

Upon the death of François I in 1547, he continued to enjoy great favour at the French court as his half-brother Henri II ascended to the French throne. Henri saw the valuable diplomatic qualities that Lanssac possessed. Thus when his reign was quickly troubled by a revolt against the Gabelle (salt text) known as the Revolt of the Pitauds, which spread out from Guîtres to Guyenne, Saintonge and the Angoumois, it was to Lanssac he turned to appease the anger. Lanssac kept the peace in Bourg at a time when disorders rocked Saintes, Cognac, Ruffec and Saint-André. Indeed he formed a company known as the Mandillots blancs for the purpose of combatting the peasants.

After the revolt had been suppressed, Lanssac took a mission for the duc d'Aumale (then duc de Guise in 1550) in March 1549 with bringing him news of the king of Navarre. He then returned to court. According to Lhoumeau at this time Lanssac was in the clientele of the Lorraine-Guise family.

By the year 1550, Lanssac was in the service of the royal favourite the connétable de Montmorency, the historian Le Roux highlights the intense correspondence between the two men at this time. The historian Romier describes Lanssac as Montmorency's 'creature and favourite' during the early 1550s.

It being clear Lanssac had a greater proclivity for statecraft than the bearing of arms, Henri entrusted him with an extraordinary ambassadorial mission to England in 1550 for the purpose of soothing the discord between England and Scotland. Henri gave him a letter for the English ambassador the seigneur de Chemault dated to 23 January. He arrived in London on 30 January. Whilst in England he examined the grievances of the English and the Scottish, before expressing Henri's determination to continue his support of the Scottish demands, which were in his opinion 'just'. He was present for the privy council meetings of 1 and 14 February, at which the English claims were presented to him and the ordinary ambassador Chemault. This accomplished he returned to France to report on the nature of affairs to Henri. With a firm position presented to England, the English crown resolved to adopt a conciliatory path. Sir William Pickering was sent as an English representative to France, where he assured Henri of the good intentions of Edward VI. Lanssac presented Pickering with a fine necklace at Henri's instigation, before his return to Scotland.

Back in England again, Lanssac presented Edward with a letter from Henri and participated in the privy council meeting of 5 April. He participated alongside Chemault in negotiations again. Shortly after arriving in Edinburgh, the treaty of Boulogne was signed on 20 April. Lanssac then served as the chief negotiator for Henri in further negotiations with a host of English commissioners that produced the subsidiary treaty of Norham on 16 June. This treaty settled the dispute between England and Scotland over their shared border. The establishment of this peace did not end unease in England as to French designs as regarded Scotland, indeed Lanssac was asked by the earl of Warwick whether Henri referred to the young Scottish queen Mary as his daughter.

Thanks to the patronage of Montmorency, Lanssac was made a panetier du roi (king's baker) in 1551.

In early 1552, Henri entered into alliance with several Protestant German princes. He subsequently launched a campaign into the Empire that saw the capture by France of Toul, Verdun and Metz. Lanssac participated in this campaign. While campaigning, Henri became aware that the herzog von Sachsen (duke of Sachsen) intended to leave the French alliance and join with the Holy Roman Emperor. Lanssac was dispatched to entreat with Sachsen. Departing Saverne on 3 May he united with Sachsen on 10 May at Gundelfingen. The herzog apologised for causing Henri to doubt his fidelity, but that he had promised the King of the Romans that he would assist for three months in the campaign against the Osmanlı İmparatorluğu (Ottoman Empire). When he reported back his discussions to Henri, the king was in no doubt that Sachsen had betrayed him.

There had been war between France and the Papacy in 1551 in the form of the War of Parma. In early 1552, the cardinal de Tournon was in Roma to undertake negotiations between the French crown and the Papacy. On 29 April he entered into a treaty with the pope Julius III. Through this agreement hostilities between France and the Holy See were suspended for a two year period. The Pope hoped to see this agreement broadened to include Piemont and Milano. The duca di Parma (duke of Parma) was to be maintained in the possession of his ducato (duchy), and his brother Orazio restored to possession of the ducato di Castro. the conti di Mirandola (count of Mirandola) was similarly assured as to the possession of his territories. The measures that had been taken to prejudice the families of Strozzi, Orsini and Fregosi who had allied themselves with the French king Henri (including sentences of execution and confiscations) were similarly abolished for a two year period. Diplomatic relations were restored between France and the Holy See, with the bishop of Mirepoix to serve as the Frencha ambassador in Roma. The Pope assured Tournon he would work towards the liberation from Imperial captivity of the Montmorency's nephew the seigneur d'Andelot.

On 18 May, Tournon departed from Roma to make his way back to France. He hoped to see a more general peace that go beyond the one he had negotiated to create peace also between the French king and the Holy Roman Emperor. Tournon made a triumphal entry into Lyon on 28 September. Arches had been erected in the city to celebrate the lifting of the siege of Mirandola and the throwing off of Spanish occupation by the Siennese. Aware of the terms negotiated by his representative before his return to France, Henri endeavoured to send an extraordinary diplomatic mission to Roma to indicate his assent to the terms. This had initially been intended to be undertaken by the sieur de Langey, brother to cardinal du Bellay. However instead it would be Montmorency's man, Lanssac who was entrusted with taking Henri's ratification of the treaty to Roma. Lanssac departed from the court at Damvilliers to this end on 4 June 1552. In addition to this extraordinary mission, the new ordinary diplomatic representative appointed by Henri in May the bishop of Mirepoix travelled to Roma.

Lanssac arrived in Roma on 25 June, he found the Pope in good humour. In addition to the ratification he brought with him he also sought to achieve the elevation to the cardinalate of the bishop of Albi. Lanssac made a good impression upon the people of the city, and Julius thanked Henri for the good graces of his extraordinary ambassador. At the time of his departure from Roma on 28 July, the Pope offered Lanssac a diamond from his finger.

With a French thrust into Lorraine planned by the king, the French agents and allies in the Italian peninsula met at Chioggia from 15 to 18 July 1552 to (according to Cloulas) plan how to best create a suitable diversion from the main attack. The historian Lhoumeau attests to the involvement of Lanssac in these talks. Durot interprets the meeting differently, as reflecting Henri's desire to realise a grand plan of universal domination. The prospect of an invasion of the kingdom of Napoli by an expeditionary force was considered and dismissed. The representatives at Chioggia were cautious, and had failed to secure the backing of Venezia. It was thus rather resolved for there to be a French intervention in the republic of Siena. Siena boasted a strong position well flanked by hill country, had good disembarkation points for naval landings and inhabitants who chafed under their Spanish garrison.

Not long after the meeting at Chioggia, the French bore witness to the population of Siena (buoyed by French money) rise up on 26 July against their Spanish garrison and drive them from the city to cries of 'Francia! Francia!' Romier sees the cardinal de Tournon as the architect of this uprising. Lanssac arrived in the city on 30 July, on his way back from his extraordinary mission in Roma, with money, expressions of Henri's gratitude and assurances of French support for the uprising of the inhabitants. The revolution came at an opportune time for Henri, coinciding as it did with the raising of forces by the Emperor to besiege Metz. He received a very warm reception, with the inhabitants gifting him twelve écus on 31 July despite their great poverty. On 1 August he was spontaneously invested by the people of Siena with military command of the city. The day that followed, four deputies were chosen to keep him appraised of internal and external developments. Lanssac succeeded in securing the love of the French cause from the inhabitants of Siena by offering them possession of the citadel which in Spanish hands had been the cause of their rebellion. By this means he avoided the risk that the French arrival would be seen as a transfer from being under one yoke to under another. The citadel was thus destroyed, with the French representatives the first to take their tools to it. He further distributed the funds of the king that he had with him generously, to the garrison, people and 'public needs'. His generosity was such that several days after his arrival he was urged to moderate his generosity, lest he make it difficult for Siena to repay him. On 4 August the people of Siena wrote to Henri expressing their gratitude to him for restoring their 'ancient liberties'. Lanssac had only intended to pass through Siena, and thus a few days after his arrival followed the seigneur de Thermes, alongside the exiled Spanish noble, the duque de Soma (duke of Soma) on 11 August who assumed the military leadership of Siena. Thermes did not possess the same magnetic quality Lanssac enjoyed, but found himself quickly able to secure favour in Siena. On 16 August as Lanssac was about to depart from Siena, the citizens of the city voted 383 to 29 to to grant Lanssac and Thermes citizenship of the city, with all the priveliges this entailed. Meanwhile cardinale d'Este was entrusted with acting as lieutenant-general for the French king in Siena. Thermes was to prepare the city for a Spanish counter-stroke, which was surely to follow.

On 20 August, Lanssac's letter informing of the seizure of the citadel of Siena from the Spanish, arrived at Villers-Cotterêts where the court was stay. Word of this development was greeted with great joy by all the courtiers with the exception of the connétable de Montmorency.

Both the Pope, and the duca di Firenze were unnerved by the French move to assume overlordship of Siena. When the Sienese sent an ambassador to the latter on 28 July he responded with an ambassador of his own offering insincere friendship. On 5 August Firenze received the honour of Sienese citizenship. The duca di Firenze was given to understand that the queen of France, Catherine desired to see the recent revolution in Siena expanded to Firenze. Firenze preferred to operate discreetly and attempted to negotiate a capitulation with the city of Siena independent of French agents. However Lanssac discovered this manoeuvre and alerted Tournon who thus oversaw negotiations for Siena which regulated relations with Firenze. Firenze thus took on a new policy which he would maintain for the coming year by which he professed his great friendship to Siena and France in the hopes that feeling secure the French would reduce the support they provided to Siena. On his way back to France on 18 August Lanssac passed through Firenze. The duca di Firenze put on a good face for Lanssac, assuring him he intended to support the newfound freedoms enjoyed by Siena. According to Romier this was entirely disingenuous.

In private correspondence with the comte du Lude in September, Lanssac spoke excitedly about the military advantage the French could gain from Siena. He noted that there were several good sea ports, and that it represented around a third of Toscana.

After the defection of the herzog von Sachsen from the French cause, (he had signed the Peace of Passau with the Emperor in September), there began to be unease about the other German French ally the Herzog in Preußen (duke in Preußen) who brought his force outside Metz, which was imminently to be besieged by the Emperor. He claimed to still be in the service of Henri, however this being in doubt he was refused entry into the city, and had to retire to Pont-à-Mousson. The nephew of Montmorency, the seigneur de Coligny made an offer to the herzog of 150,000 écus in return for his service to France through September and October, or 50,000 écus for his withdrawal from the Metz area. The herzog rejected these proposals as beneath him, and he was thus offered 100,000 écus to fight against the Emperor in Nederland. This he accepted, but only if he could immediately have word of Henri's designs as concerned him. Lanssac was thus dispatched to negotiate with him on 23 September. Negotiations would continue until 11 October. Montmorency had provided Lanssac instructions to get the German prince to head away to Nederland to make war against the Emperor. He was to receive 40,000 écus up front, and when he arrived at a predetermined location he would be granted the other 60,000. He was to enjoy the provisions of food until his departure from Lorraine. The herzog in Preußen did not follow along with these negotiations and the talks collapsed. Indeed, when the army of the Emperor arrived, the herzog would participate in the failed attempt to capture French held Metz.

The French ordinary ambassador in Roma, the bishop of Mirepoix found himself increasingly unpopular the French court by February 1553 due to his pro-Papal enthusiasm, which now seemed a sour thing at the French court where once it had been an asset.

An Imperial army under the command of the marqués de Villefranca (marquis of Villefranca) started an advance on Siena, and captured various villages. When he died in February 1553 he was replaced by his son in the command. The Imperial campaign was supported by the duca di Firenze. The Pope had reached an understanding with the duca di Firenze that would see his nephew, Fabiano del Monte carved out a principality from Siennese territory. When Henri learned of Papal logistic support for the Spanish effort in Siena, he was vexed that he had not learned of this development from his ambassador in Roma. The bishop found no one to defend him on the royal council, with the Lorraine-Guise family hostile to him due to his having been a rival candidate for the cardinal de Guise's elevation to the cardinalate, the fuorusciti (exiled Florentines) desired an ambassador who might see the Pope detached from the duca di Firenze and Montmorency subscribed to the hostile views of the ambassadors sécretaire Boucher. Therefore Mirepoix was disgraced, and Lanssac chosen to replace him in the charge. Having received instructions to bring Julius into the French alliance he departed Saint-Germain to take up the posting on 3 April. Lanssac's patron Montmorency in particular had settled on the position that France did not need a costly debacle, and that Lanssac should do what he could to protect the French treasury from expenditure through a negotiated settlement that preserved the liberty of Siena and the king's honour. While it had initially been intended that the cardinal de Châtillon would serve as his protector in the Papal capital, Châtillon demured from departing France on the grounds of an illness. Therefore it would be the cardinal du Bellay that travelled into Italia with Lanssac. The Pope was enraged to learn of the disgrace of Mirepoix and blamed Boucher. The bishop of Mirepoix would die in Roma on 26 April, of a ruptured blood vessel, a few days before Lanssac could arrive in the city. Though it had been intended for Lanssac to travel via Venezia, so that he might bolster the French cause there, the collapse of the health of the bishop of Mirepoix forced him to instead travel straight to Roma, stopping only in Ferrara to greet the duca di Ferrara and discuss terms as related to Siena with the Papal legate.

Concurrent to his elevation to the position of ambassador in March 1553 Lanssac was relieved of his posting as the capitaine of Bourg. This was due to his simultaneous elevation as a gentilhomme de la chambre du roi (gentleman of the king's chamber). This role is, according to Le Roux, indicative of his desire to pursue a national political career. Being a gentilhomme de la chambre afforded the offices holder free access to the king. This posting afforded him an income of 1,200 livres a year.

While Lanssac was being sent as the new ambassador, the Pope dispatched an agent named Federico Fantuzzi to treat with the Sienese. Arriving in Siena on 3 April he was well greeted. He extolled the virtues of peace to the magistrates of the city, and was promptly sent back to deal with the French representatives the maréchal de Thermes and cardinale d'Este. To the French representatives, the Pope's representative proposed a compromise, in return for the French soldiers departing Siena he assured them the Emperor would withdraw his soldiers from around Siena. Thermes and the cardinale thanked Fantuzzi for his peaceful inclinations, but inquired as to what guarantees there would be that the Emperor would withdraw in this proposal.

Strozzi, Lanssac and the Papal legates met in Ferrara in late April to discuss peace in Toscana. Lanssac opined during this conference that the chief members of the fuorusciti return to France so that negotiations with Julius could continue well. While in Ferrara, Lanssac crossed path with a representative the cardinale d'Este had dispatched to Henri to appraise him of the Papal proposal and seek instructions on how to proceed. Lanssac however declared that he had such instructions, and therefore he turned around Este's agent back to Siena. When Este learned of Lanssac's actions he was put out.

Lanssac arrived in Roma to take up his charge on 30 April and was greeted warmly by the Pope. The Pope assured him of his desire to bring about a worthy conclusion to the troubles in Siena. The new ambassador took up residence in the palazzo Montegiordano, a possession of the cardinale d'Este. He was further greeted by a host of Sienese citizens that lived in Roma. With pressure being brought to bear by Lanssac and du Bellay the Pope declared his neutrality in the conflict.

The position of ambassador to Roma was an expensive one for the ambassador. Over the course of his residency, Lanssac spent 20,000 livres more than he received in incomes.

While the naturalised French condotierri, Strozzi (sent into the peninsula at the request of Montmorency) worked to raise soldiers with money advanced by Henri, Lanssac and his protector cardinal du Bellay attempted to convince the Pope not to back an Imperial invasion.}

On 6 May, Lanssac wrote to the king, opining that all his agents and supporters in the region were disinclined to see a negotiated solution succeed and wanted a conflagration. Lanssac's patron, the duc de Montmorency, put out by the aggrandisements the Lorraine-Guise family were enjoying from the duc de Guise's triumphant defence of Metz allied himself with the belligerent policy of the fuorusciti. That same month, the duca di Firenze emerged from his concealed policy, driven into the open by Strozzi. He declared in a letter that he was dissatisfied by the French presence in Siena and he would not be moved on this point.

On 29 May the Pope declared to the cardinale d'Este his proposal for a settlement which would see the Papacy given the exclusive right to protect Siena's liberties. A few days later on 5 June the Pope arrived in Viterbo for a conference, he was joined by the French and Spanish ambassadors to the Papacy, and several cardinals. One of the cardinals who had travelled to Siena for the Pope explained the conclusion of his visit. Este had promised to come to Viterbo, but not as a minister of Henri, rather as an 'obedient cardinal'. A new representative was sent to bring Este to the meeting, and alongside securing his agreement, several Sienese representatives decided to meet with the Pope also. Lanssac wrote to hurry the cardinal du Bellay to rendezvous in Viterbo, however before du Bellay could join the ambassador (on 12 June) the Pope, feeling unwell, had already resolved to depart (9 June). During the talks that did take place, Lanssac complained about the behaviour of the duca di Firenze, arguing that he proffered military, monetary and moral support to the Imperial party. Shortly before his departure, the Pope had drawn up the main articles of his proposal: 1) a one month truce during which French and Spanish forces both departed from the republic of Siena, 2) the sending of cardinale di Santacroce to Siena to reconstitute the government of the republic 3) Siena is taken under the protection of the Papacy. Lanssac expressed his disapproval for these articles which diverged from those provided by the legate of Ferrara.

The Pope may have departed from Viterbo, nevertheless those who had already resolved to join him there continued their journeys. This included Francisco de Toledo, the nephew of the duca di Firenze, who had been dispatched by the latter to represent Spanish interests. He arrived, along with the cardinale di Perugia on 11 June. On 15 June arrived the cardinale d'Este and the representatives from Siena. Este hurried off to where the Pope had taken up residence nearby (Bagnaia, Viterbo|Bagnaia]]), while the Sienese representatives met with Lanssac. Having met with Lanssac, Este brought the Sienese to meet with Julius at Bagnaia, the meeting was a festive one, celebrated with feasts. Soon thereafter the Pope was called back to Roma.

The prospect of reaching some form of agreement was sunk by several factors. Firstly, the Sienese believed that only French protection would preserve their liberties (as his power was too far away to impose himself unjustly on them). Secondly their position in the Florentines was hostile. There were also wider developments or perceived developments that were hostile to a settlement: it was reported (falsely) in Roma that the Holy Roman Emperor had died and that the duc de Guise was intending to leave France and descend into Italia in Siena's favour. Finally the Spaniards had just lifted their siege of Montalcino. These various matters emboldened the Sienese representatives to act assertively. Thus the Sienese had the confidence to assert their belief that only French protection was in their interest and the Pope's peace proposal died. Julius was frustrated by this development.} Du Bellay and Lanssac returned to Roma, meanwhile the duca di Firenze schemed ever more to see to the destruction of the Sienese republic - which offered such a provocative example of alternative government to his own subjects.

Emboldened by his triumphs in Lorraine, Henri had committed himself to an aggressive posture in Italia by the summer of 1553. To this end he wrote to Lanssac and du Bellay on 30 July 1553. He dismissed the idea of abandoning Siena, arguing the protection had brought much benefit to the French crown. His ambassador and protector were to secure from the Pope not a negotiated settlement for Siena but rather an offensive alliance against the Emperor and duca di Firenze. Lanssac and du Bellay held out the benefits of French protection and a marriage for the Pope's nephew to Julius. Julius responded that his position necessitated he take a neutral position. He explained further that his nephew was already engaged to Lucrezia, daughter of the duca di Firenze. Lanssac and du Bellay communicated the Pope's response to the court in such a fashion as to blame the cardinale d'Este (through mentioning the engagement of his nephew to the duca di Firenze's oldest daughter Maria).

The cardinale d'Este, little aware of of the increasingly hostile reception his policy enjoyed at the French court maintained his connections to the duca di Firenze. Further complications were created by the fact that Este was very unpopular in Siena, where he still served as governor. Lanssac informed the cardinale that letters were being received in Roma which denounced his 'vexatious betrayals'. Lanssac's positive reputation with the Sienese ensured many of these letters complaining about Este's administration were addressed to him. The Florentine ambassador opined that some in Siena saw in the cardinale a similar character to that of the Spanish administration, or alternatively that he wished to impose himself on the administration of Sienese justice. Romier concludes that the greatest fear of the population was that Este would be less restrained in the use of powers granted to him by Henri than had been Lanssac and Thermes. As Este's position in Siena collapsed in August, the cardinale oversaw the arrest of several prominent Sienese men who had been involved in the overthrow of Spanish rule in the city. Lanssac wrote to Este deploring the situation, warning him to tread more carefully. The ambassador feared that if Este continued to provoke the Sienese the French could face a similar revolution as to that which had displaced the Spanish from the city. He informed the cardinale of the many complaints he received from Siena, including from people in the city Este did not believe to be hostile to him. Lanssac looked to the French court for a resolution (though he hoped to do so in such a way that would not turn the ire of the Lorraine-Guise family on him): he covertly asked the sécretaire Beauregard to alert Montmorency and sent a letter to the cardinal de Tournon. To Tournon he directly requested the relief of the cardinale d'Este. Despite this provocative act, he offered reassurances that he was sure Este was doing what he could, but that there was no way he could satisfy the people. Aware of the explosive nature of this letter, he urged Tournon to keep it private.

Este was little interested in altering his behaviour, indirectly blaming the troubles in the city on a 'handful of bad apples riling the people up'. By October the situation in Siena was so dire, Lanssac (likely with Montmorency's encouragement) threw off his discretion in his warnings about the cardinale's position. His complaints, and those of du Bellay, achieved little. The Sienese for their part had despaired of writing to Lanssac for relief, and instead wrote to the Pope to see them saved from the 'tyrant' that dominated them. The economic situation in the republic was also dire. Lanssac and du Bellay could do little to make an impression on the cardinale. By September, Este had even lost the royal French garrison of the city, including the duque de Soma who wrote complaints to the French court. Este received a final positive coup in his reputation with the French when he secured a marriage of his bastard daughter to the conti di Mirandola who was intimately tied to the French cause. However this was a temporary stay, and his position with Henri would become definitively compromised. It would only be due to the temporary eclipse of the connétable de Montmorency at court that he had remained in the court's good graces for so long. The cardinal de Lorraine, who was in charge of affairs in September and October was greatly desirous to protect the families ally and representative on the Italian peninsula.

From the Autumn of 1553, Lanssac, alongside the cardinal du Bellay worked to convince the Pope to extend the truce that had been agreed with the French in April 1552, that was due to expire in April 1554.

On 29 October 1553, Strozzi was selected by Henri as his new representative in Siena and he departed from Marseille in November flush with cash and soldiers. In a letter of 6 November, Lanssac was informed of the replacement of the cardinale d'Este in Siena by Strozzi. Lanssac was concerned that the provocative choice of this leader of the fuorusceti could lead to war with the duca di Firenze. On 16 November, the ambassador, who still enjoyed the warm graces of the Sienese population was gifted eight barrels of the cities finest wine in the hopes that he would aid them in relief from their governor. Landing at Porto Ercole on 16 December, Strozzi hurried to Roma where he received a rapturous reception from the fuorusceti of the city, who thronged him and presented him with a medal. From 22 to 23 December, Strozzi was received by the Pope Strozzi worked to allay the fears his appointment provoked, particularly those of Julius. He further indicated to the Pope, Henri's desires to see a renewal of the truce with the French that du Bellay and Lanssac had been working towards. When he was not meeting with the Pope, Strozzi spent his in the Papal capital in conversations with Lanssac. Lanssac, working from Montmorency's instructions elucidated for Strozzi local affairs. The two men reached a very close understanding with one another. On 26 December, Strozzi departed from Roma with a band of fuorusceti, entering Siena with great honours on 2 January 1554.

Henri was aware a sensitive time had arrived for policy as regarded Toscana. Therefore to aid du Bellay and Lanssac in their negotiations he ordered the cardinals de Tournon, d'Armagnac and de Lenoncourt to go to Roma to assist his representatives.

In November, Henri rewarded Lanssac for his services with the captaincy of Blaye.

Lanssac admitted to the Pope that the appointment of Strozzi to the position of governor of Siena made it impossible for the duca di Firenze to countenance de-escalation. Henri had put him in a position where to do such would be to compromise his honour. Indeed the Florentines and Spanish forces first surprised the fortress of Camollia and then set to work putting Siena to siege. The military threat of the siege forced the cardinale d'Este to drop his continued assertions to total authority in Siena in favour of Strozzi. Henri remained indecisive on the place the two men were to enjoy concerning Siena, ill inclined to alienate any faction of his court. Thus he dispatched the bishop of Riez to defuse the tension between Strozzi and d'Este. Riez worked out a compromise by which d'Este remained senior over civil affairs in Siena but Strozzi would have complete autonomy as concerned matters of war. This was a triumph for Strozzi as the whole government of Siena was tied to military affairs at this moment. D'Este was put out by this, but limited himself to quiet displeasure. Riez wrote to the French court of his success at the end of February. Lanssac wrote effusively on Riez's efforts as having been a great boon to the king's agents and friends in Siena and vexacious to the king's enemies. According to Lanssac the cause of the king's enemies displeasure was how well Riez had succeeded in his mandate.

As early as January, the cardinale d'Este had been requesting relief from his charge. While it had at that time been a false request to bring pressure to bear on Henri in favour of his position, the arrival of Riez transformed the request into a genuine one. On 26 February he sent away much of his family to Ferrara. Permission from the court granting relief was sent out on 4 March, arriving on 17 March. At this time, the cardinal du Bellay had been won over to the war party, and encouraged Henri to put the duca di Firenze in his place. Lanssac for his part had been driven along by the hawkish passions of the fuoruscoti in the French government.

After long negotiations a renewal of the truce between France and the Papal States was signed on 3 May 1554. At the Pope's request, the Emperor was excluded from being a party to the treaty, not wishing to impose a deal on him to which he was not a party. That same month Este made his departure from Siena. Embittered he decided against the return of the provisions the Sienese had afforded for his palazzo in the city, rather choosing to sell them off in auction. In a similar vein he demanded he be reimbursed for the sums he had forwarded Siena.

In June, Henri warned du Bellay and Lanssac of the imminent arrival of the cardinale di Farnese. He informed his representatives that it was Farnese's desire to see him reconciled with the duca di Firenze, as he was a fried of the duca.

With it having been determined that the Emperor and duca di Firenze were determined to see Siena reduced, Henri announced to Lanssac that he had raised 5,000,000 écus. Lanssac then aided in the preparations of the Sienese towns in terms of provisions, equipment, horses and personnel so that they might best resist any sieges. To facilitate the finance of the war, Lanssac enjoyed a busy correspondence with Dominique du Gabre the bishop of Lodève who served as trésorier (treasurer) to the forces gathered in Ferrara, de Selve the French ambassador to Venezia and the Lyonnais banker Joseph Nasi. He took on the risky role of seeing the transfer of the money that was loaned to the French cause. The commander of Siena, Strozzi, requested Lanssac's presence in the city so that it could be in good hands during Strozzi's absence. Lanssac liaised with du Bellay, and then departed for Siena on 12 June, arriving in the French held city on 13 June.

The war fervour reached its peak in July when Strozzi and his forces invaded the territory of the duca di Firenze. Firenze's regime was filled with discontent, and would soon throw him off to restore the republic, or so the fuorusciti believed. Indeed at this time treasonous inscriptions were to be found in the streets of Firenze. During the campaign, Strozzi's brother the priore di Capua (prior of Capua) was killed during the siege of a village near Piombino. When word reached Henri of this development on 20 July, he elevated Strozzi to the position of maréchal de France (marshal of France). Several days before his elevation, Strozzi held a council of war in Siena with Lanssac, the baron de Fourquevaux, the seigneur de Monluc, the conti di Mirandola and several others. The ambassador to Roma was needed back in the city of his charge, and thus he departed on 17 July. In the present circumstances this war council constituted the government of Siena. Henri considering victory assured turned his eyes south towards Napoli.

On 2 August 1554 Strozzi's army (supplemented by a force under Fourquevaux which had been force marched to save Strozzi's position in Siena) clashed with the Imperial army before Siena. The battle was a catastrophe with 4,000 left dead, and a further 2,000 made captives. Among the captives was Fourquevaux. Monluc, who had been left in charge of Siena was very sick at this time, and requested Lanssac come back to the city to lead the defence while he was convalescing. Lanssac indicated his acceptance of this charge to Strozzi on 30 July.

The battle offered the troubling spectre of the collapse of the French position in Italia. Strozzi, who had not been captured, held up in Montalcino. He was not able to assume leadership in Siena both due to the damage of defeat to his prestige and his injury. In his absence, and the illness of the seigneur de Monluc, Lanssac was chosen to take at least temporary command of Siena. Having returned to Roma in late July he made his way to Montalcino to liaise with the injured maréchal de Strozzi. He then made his way forward to Siena, accompanied by 200 arquebusiers. In this state, he almost fell into an ambush on 7 August, and it was only barely that he was able to extricate himself. He then made a new attempt to gain entry to Siena, disguised as a peasant at night with only a small group of followers, however he found himself surprised by forces of the duca di Firenze shortly before he could enter Siena on 11 August. He was taken back to Firenze where he was locked up like a common criminal in the fortress of San Miniato. His capture was a great satisfaction to the duca di Firenze, for his role in the revolution in the city. Du Bellay protested in his favour without success. When word arrived in Siena of Lanssac's capture, Monluc was reinvigorated by the needs of the moment, he later opined that had Lanssac made it he would have died due to having no other purpose.

The French captain Monluc opined that it was the the hope of the Spanish that Fourquevaux and Lanssac's captivity would be a cause of discord for the French presence in the region, and force a more general withdrawal. Passions were inflamed at the thought of Lanssac's capture, and the (false) rumour that Strozzi had died. Indeed at this time, the provision of supplies for the besieged in Siena were only secured for the city after pressure was brought to bare on the duca di Parma. Meanwhile the French cardinals went back to the drawing board for who should lead the defence of Siena, deciding upon the maréchal de Strozzi's brother, Roberto Strozzi.

On 29 August, de Selve, the French ambassador to Venezia arrived in Roma, where he was to replace Lanssac. This temporary substitution for Lanssac necessitated the filling of the post of Venezia in turn which was given to Dominique du Gabre the bishop of Lodève. Despite his anger, Henri was open to the possibility of entering into a deal with the duca di Firenze. As he explained to the duca di Ferrara, this was a product of the fact that accord was the lesser evil given he could not provide the support to Siena the city needed quick enough.

Lanssac's captivity lasted until 14 November when he was exchanged for a captive of Strozzi's, della Corgna, the nephew of the Pope. This was despite the opposition of the Imperial party to the transfer. It would only be in August 1555 that Lanssac was discharged of his obligations towards the duca di Firenze (and della Corgna's obligations to Henri II). With few funds to his name, Lanssac made his way to Ferrara where he was provisioned for a return to France by the bishop of Lodève and provided with letters for Montmorency and Henri. He thus arrived back at the French court on 20 December, and was tasked only three days later with informing the ambassadors of the comte de Brissac's recent capture of Ivrea.

With the Pope dead, a conclave was to be held to elect his successor. Henri desired the electoral victory of either the archbishop of Cantebury or the archbishop of Napoli. The regular ambassador of the French king in Roma, Avançon (who had succeeded de Selve to the charge in March 1555) was provided 25,000 écus towards this end. Meanwhile the extraordinary ambassador Lanssac was tasked with preventing the selection of the bishop of Gubbio and to see to the selection of the archbishop of Canterbury (a task it was feared Avançon would struggle with alone). Despite these ambitions, the bishop of Gubbio would be elected Pope, and take the name Marcellus II. Lanssac left Roma with his election, his mission a failure. However, fortunately for Henri, Marcellus died only a few weeks into his pontificate, and on 23 May 1555 the archbishop of Napoli was elected as Paul IV. His elevation was not unpleasant for the French court, and was celebrated by the Neapolitan fuorusciti, the Lorraine-Guise family also saw great advantage in Paul's elevation. To provide Henri's oath of obedience to the new Pontiff, the king dispatched Lanssac who was then at Saint-Germain as his extraordinary ambassador to the city. He departed on 9 July, and was in Ferrara on 22 July. Finally he arrived in Roma at the end of July.

The new Pope's nephew the cardinale di Carafa proposed to Henri a plan for the French reconquest of Siena. Around Porto Ercole there were many exiles from Firenze, Siena and Napoli. At the French court, the duc de Guise felt it was important to bring the situation under control as soon as possible. Lanssac and Avançon were best placed to do this at this moment due to the difficult situation of the senior French clergy in the Italian peninsula.

Having arrived in Roma for the purpose of his extraordinary mission, Lanssac was present for the affair of the galleys in August 1555. Around this time, the Carlo Sforza, thegran priore della Lombardia (grand prior of Lombardia) defected from French service to the Imperial cause. In revenge, Henri had his galleys sequestered and placed them with Niccolò Alamanni under the protection of the Pope. The gran priore would not allow this to stand and on 6 August 1555 his ships were seized from Papal protection at Civitavecchia by the Sforza family who took them to Napoli via Gaeta, i.e. placing them under Imperial control. The Pope was furious at this insult his to his temporal dignity and ordered the gran priore to return them to Papal waters within three days, something the admiral refused to consider. The gran priore's brother, the cardinale di Santa Fiora, alongside the Imperial ambassador spoke before the Pope in his favour. They condemned the Pope's position, and went as far as to threaten the Pontiff. This enraged Paul, who had the cardinale and some other members of the Imperial party arrested. Lanssac and Avançon arrived in the Vatican to ensure that Paul committed to the anti-Imperial path, offer their solidarity to the Pope and congratulations to his nephew the cardinale di Carafa. They offered Paul, 100,000 écus to aid him in the destruction of his Imperial aligned vassals so that he might assert himself over the feudal lords of his territory.

To quickly secure the Pope for their party, the French immediately advanced him 50,000 écus. D'Avançon and the cardinal d'Armagnac looked to Venezia for the provision of more royal funds to continue the effort. Meanwhile Lanssac undertook the corrupt practice of buying the loyalty of various cardinals to the French cause. The cardinale di Marsiglia to whom he offered 1,500 écus is supposed to have angrily retorted that he did not wish to be a 'slave' and that his loyalty was to the Papal curia. The money Lanssac, Avançon and Armagnac spread about had a positive effect for the strength of their party in Roma.

Lanssac departed Roma in the first days of September and excitedly spread the news of what had transpired in Roma in Venezia and Ferrara on his way back to France. In Venezia he informed the republics government of Henri's intention to enter into a military alliance with the Papacy. He arrived back at the French court on 28 September. During his time in Italia, he had kept the French court appraised of the development of affairs by his despatches.

The Pope was charmed by the offers he had received from the French representatives, and urged Henri to show his family the same good favour they had showed the Farnese and city of Siena. On 30 September, Henri tasked the cardinal de Lorraine with going to Roma to make a defensive and offensive alliance with the Holy See. At the same time, Lanssac who had just arrived back at the French court was tasked with going to Venezia to win over the republic then travel onwards to Roma to announce the coming arrival of the cardinals (Lorraine and Tournon) and invest Avançon with full powers. Negotiations with the Pope would be conducted by the cardinals Lorraine, Tournon (and nominally Este) with the assistance of Avançon, Lanssac and the bishop of Orléans. Lorraine in particular was invested with total authority over the affairs of the French in Italia.

Henri explained to the Pope in a letter of 23 July that it was necessary before returning to a war footing to be assured of the support of the duca di Ferrara. When, soon after Henri received word that Ferrara had joined the defensive French alliance on the terms negotiated in November 1555, he gave permission on 11 August for maréchal de Strozzi, Avançon and Lanssac to enter into negotiations with Italian bankers for the receipt of loans. Strozzi and the seigneur de Monluc were further given tasks of military preparation to undertake. Meanwhile as reward for his joining of the league, Ferrara was granted 100,000 écus, a pension and an array of soldiers.

On 29 September, Avançon met with the cardinale di Carafa, cardinale di Farnese and the duca di Parma in Roma. The conclusion of their discussion was that the duca di Parma would assume the position of king Henri's representative in Toscana, that he would raise troops and as soon as was practical attempt to seize places on the border with Siena. Meanwhile the duca di Urbino would menace the Neapolitan border with Papal troops. The duca di Parma however quickly got cold feet on the proposal as word of the arrangement leaked and its success became less assured. On 2 October the duca di Urbino arrived in Roma to tend his resignation as the Pope's capitano generale (captain-general). He was followed by his brother-in-law the duca di Parma, however he withdrew from the arrangement far more discreetly. On 3 November Lanssac and Avançon reproached him for his attitude, the diplomats arguing he was damaging not only the king of France but also the Pope by his behaviour. The French governor of Montalcino, who had been preparing for Parma's expedition piled onto the critique of Lanssac and Avançon.

Avançon had already significantly advanced the state of negotiations in Italia before the arrival of the French representatives. On 14 October he signed an agreement on the formation of a league with the Pope. This was 6 days before Lanssac would arrive in the city. By this agreement, in return for large subsidies from France, Paul promised to invest both the ducato di Milano and regno di Napoli in the hands of sons of the French king Henri. The majority of the clauses concerned the southern project, due to the Carafa family (of which Paul was a member) being Neapolitan by origins.

When the remains of the son of the seigneur de Monluc, named Marc-Antoine were sent to Roma by his father for burial, Lanssac ensured they were buried with great honours. Le Roux compares the burial to that of a prince.

On 13 November, Lorraine arrived in Ferrara. During the two days that he spent there he negotiated a league treaty between France and Ferrara. The cardinale d'Este served as the representative of his brother the duca di Ferrara for the treaty. By its terms Ferrara was carved out an estate in the ducato di Milano of Cremona and its surrounds to a value of 50,000 écus. This flew in the face of the agreement Avançon had negotiated with the Pope.

Having become aware of what Lorraine had negotiated, the king was led by Montmorency towards hatred of his representatives actions. The sieur de Villandry was sent to reproach him on 6 December, in particular for what he had negotiated as regards Cremona which Henri felt prejudiced the rights of France to the ducato di Milano. Lorraine was caught off guard by this hostile reaction, he reasoned against the objections on several grounds to the crown: if the duca di Ferrara died Henri would be released from his obligations. He further argued for a scenario by which Ferrara would not receive the fortifications of Cremona. This provoked a new explosion of fury from Montmorency at the French court.

Lorraine arrived in Roma on 21 November, and was followed by Tournon on 22 November. Lanssac and the bishop of Orléans had already appraised Paul of the plans of the French cardinals though the Pope resolved to keep their arrival secret. Though he had derided Avançon's earlier negotiated treaty with the Pope, the treaty that Lorraine signed with the Pope on 15 December would substantively be the same agreement. His about face in opinion on the agreement was likely the result of promises from the Pope in favour of the Lorraine-Guise family. For example, article VI of the treaty invested leadership of the league army in the prince who would come to Italia (i.e. the duc de Guise). The treaty agreed, Lanssac departed Roma on 18 December to take the terms back to France, arriving back at the French court with the treaty by the end of the year. By the time of Lanssac's return to the French court, the crowns' policy had swung against the hawkish policy of Lorraine. Montmorency had secured the pushing forward of his policy of seeking a truce with the Emperor. When Lorraine learned of this he was furious. However, Henri continued to flip in policy, and on 10 January authorised a courier to provide the ratification of Lorraine's treaty. Matters had swung again before Lorraine could arrive back in the French court, with the signing of the Truce of Vaucelles to the delight of Montmorency.

The truce of Vaucelles would not live out its intended duration. The Pope provoked the Spaniards to arms. War preparations were thus underway in the Autumn of 1556. On 1 September, the duque de Alba (duke of Alba), who was serving as the Spanish virrey de Napoli (viceroy of Napoli) crossed the border with the Papal states at the head of a large army of around 13,500 men. He seized Pontecorvo without the need for fighting, and assumed control of various other positions. The Pope's nephew, the cardinale di Carafa, who had been in France made fast to hurry back to the Papal States. He embarked on a ship at Antibes on 5 September alongside Lanssac, the baron de La Garde, and the sickly maréchal de Strozzi. Lanssac in particular had been charged by Henri with ensuring the military support he proferred to the Papacy at this dire moment was financially compensated. In return for providing seven Gascon ensignes to the Italian theatre (primarily for Montalcino and the Papal lands), Lanssac was to extract 350,000 écus. The party arrived in Roma on 7 September. While some of the French captains were intended for Toscana, the military needs of the moment recommended their participation in the defence of Roma. Lanssac took charge of the area from the Porta del Popolo to the Porta Pinciana while other sections of the defence were put under the authority of the seigneur de Monluc, Strozzi, the Orsini and the cardinale di Carafa. Having taken Anagni, Alba advanced to cut Roma from Ostia.

The marching orders from Montmorency, who was then ascendant in policy, was that the Pope make whatever concessions were required to get Alba to withdraw from his attack. For Avançon this was a difficult position to take. Lanssac had only recently returned to Roma and therefore found pushing this policy a far simpler matter. The cardinale di Carafa was furious at the attempts to get a peace with Alba established, denouncing it as something prejudicial to both the Papal States and France. To aid the cause of peace, the French representatives in the city looked for support to the Farnese-Parma family and liaisied with the duque de Alba's uncle the cardenal de Toledo. Du Bellay also became a champion of peace at Montmorency's instruction. When he had encouraging words in favour of peace from Alba he rushed to the Pope to try and sway him. This irritated Paul who forbade talk of peace with him. Thus du Bellay moved over to the residence of the cardinale di Carafa and made the same case. Lanssac reported the deal to Montmorency as follows: Alba would withdraw from Papal territory and disarm in return for Papal disarmament and the handover of Imperial captives.

By the end of September, French policy had changed towards one in favour of war. Avançon was now faced with having to pull off an about face in policy. The cardinale di Carafa, resolved to pursue peace with Alba regardless (something that was now regarded as a betrayal by the French), and due to the opposition of the Pope to his efforts conducted his negotiations secretly. From 24 to 28 November he met with Alba at the Isola Sacra. He was accompanied by Strozzi and the comte de Dammartin who were in Roma for an unrelated private business. A prior agreed 10 day truce, was extended to 40 days while a more permanent peace could be hammered out. In Roma, Lanssac and de Selve were outraged. They decried that Carafa appeared to be in a position to betray the cause due to his contact with Alba and lack of communication with them. Their communications to the French court on this subject, and a related trouble where the Pope had forbidden French troops to enter Civitavecchia caused a weakening of the war party in the French court. Guise dispatched his brother the duc d'Aumale back to the French court to determine whether new orders were required for him. However, Catherine, the maréchal de Saint-André and the king's mistress Diane held the line firm in favour of war. They were aided by a letter arriving from Carafa which justified his conduct. Romier argues that the cardinale was driven to consider peace with Alba by the instability of the French position as regards the possibility of war. Carafa later explained his conduct at this time as working to stall Alba until such time as Henri could proffer his support.

Lanssac had frustrated the cardinale di Carafa, and in December he requested of Henri that he recall this ambassador, Henri complied to this request on 4 December. Though he would not yet depart, Romier argues that the loss of Lanssac (and Avançon) from Roma represented the departure of the 'most distinguished' agents of Henri's policy in the peninsula.

The duc de Guise was to be sent to Italia for the coming campaign, he departed Lyon to this effect on 20 December alongside the comte de Brissac. Meanwhile, the son of the connétable de Montmorency (constable of Montmorency), |the comte de Dammartin was in Roma petitioning the Pope to agree to an annulment of his secretly arranged marriage. Lanssac and de Selve warned the king that the young noble wished to go to Civitavecchia to face off against the Spanish. Indeed, the comte would participate in the Papal recapture of Ostia in January 1557. This would not win him the annulment of his marriage, the college of cardinals ruling unfavourably, and leading to Henri to declare the marriage void by other means so that his illegitimate daughter Diane might marry the comte.

At the start of January, Guise was in Torino, where he established his plan of attack. Lanssac, who was in Roma sent him despatches about what faced him for an invasion of Napoli. Romier argues that the sending of Guise was a mistake for the campaign, as he was a simple man of war, who was naïve in non-military arts. The historian contrasts him in this field with the cardinal de Tournon, bishop of Valence and Lanssac who had built the capacity to operate in a region where agreements were fickle.

Yielding to Carafa's request, the cardinal de Lorraine oversaw the effecting of Lanssac's recall in February. The historian Romier argues this was a great loss at a time when his counsel would have been of great value, noting that his replacement was little experienced in Italian affairs. Lanssac departed Roma forlornly on 5 February.

Guise hurried to Reggio in Italia for the meeting with the duca di Ferrara, his father-in-law which transpired from 13 to 16 February. For the conduct of this meeting with the French ally, Guise received the assistance of Lanssac who had been recalled from Roma with the cardinale di Carafa, and the archbishop of Vienne who had been sent by Henri to replace Lanssac. Both the archbishop and Lanssac came to the meeting with inopportune news. The duca di Ferrara hoped to secure from Guise a commitment for the conquest of Cremona, by which he could aggrandise his Italian territories. Neither Carafa nor Henri were favourable to this attack which would create hostilities with the duca di Milano. For Carafa this attack would mean the departure of the French army back northwards. Ferrara made an alternate proposal for an attack against Parma, which was under the dominion of the duca di Parma. This was indeed what Guise had been ordered to undertake by Henri before his departure. However on his way south he had observed the strong fortifications that had been placed throughout the ducato, and he was aware his army was not geared towards a campaign of sieges. He trusted his father-in-law the duca di Ferrara to provide siege equipment and promised he would conquer Parma within 40 days. This proposal ran into strong opposition from cardinale di Carafa, who argued that this would be an act of aggression the Pope could not assent to, he proposed instead the original project of Guise seeing to the defence of the Papal States and then invading Napoli.

In the field, the duc de Guise found himself frustrated by Antonio Carafa (marchese di Montebello) who had been sent to pay his Italian soldiers. Back in Roma, relations deteriorated between the French representatives and the cardinale di Carafa in the spring of 1557. De Selve entered dispute with the archbishop of Vienne. Meanwhile Carafa fell out with the duque de Soma who favoured a quick attack into Napoli, and Lanssac to whose intrigues he attributed the disappearance of his French secretary. Guise waited impatiently for the Pope to provide the legitimation for an invasion of Napoli, by investing the kingdom in the hands of a son of Henri II however Paul prevaricated on taking this step. In late May, Guise received orders from Henri to abandon a campaign against Napoli and turn his attentions to Lombardia and Toscana.

Arriving back at the French court on 1 March, Lanssac offered a dismissive report of the Carafa. Soon after, Guise's complaints about the poor support he had received in his campaign arrived at the court.

In 1559 Lanssac still maintained the courtly position of gentilhomme de la chambre du roi that he had been granted in 1553. During this year the number of holders of this post were downscaled from 111 to 37 as a cost saving measure. Lanssac survived the curtailing due to being a client of Catherine's. By the 1560s the gentilhomme de la chambre were divided into quarters of the year, and would only fulfil their function for 3 months a year, so they could be rotated.

Upon the death of Henri II, François II ascended to the throne, with his government led by the Lorraine-Guise brothers the cardinal de Lorraine and duc de Guise. This new administration were ill-inclined to share their control of the government with the princes du sang (princes of the blood). To ward off the danger of these descendants of the royal line, the conseil privé was expanded to around thirty figures so that they could be drowned out. Among the conseillers would be the clients of the Lorraine-Guise family and the queen mother Catherine: the premier président of the chambre des comptes L'Hôpital (first president of the chamber of accounts), the bishop of Orléans, the archbishop of Vienne, the bishop of Amiens, the bishop of Valence, du Mortier, the diplomat Avançon and the seigneur de Lanssac. Lanssac received his induction into the conseil on 16 July.

Cloulas argues this conseil was a polite fiction, only meeting once properly during the reign of François II (for the Assembly of Notables in August 1560), while real business was conducted by the Lorraine-Guise administration elsewhere.

Lanssac participated in the journey out of the French kingdom undertaken by the king's sister Élisabeth so that she might be united with her new Spanish husband king Felipe. Up to the Spanish border Élisabeth was also accompanied by the king of Navarre and his cousin the prince de La Roche-sur-Yon. In the kingdom of Navarre, on the way to Pamplona, a dispute arose among Élisabeth's entourage that Lanssac reported back to the French court. Having arrived with her in a foreign kingdom in January 1560, Lanssac then played a leading role in helping her adjust to the customs of the Spanish court alongside the French ambassador in the country the bishop of Limoges. The extraordinary ambassador (as Lanssac technically was) informed the cardinal de Lorraine of the great joy the Spaniards expressed at the presence of Élisabeth. Lanssac reported to the young queen's mother in March about the discontent of Élisabeth's French servants who had been dismissed in favour of Spanish servants.

During April both Lanssac and the bishop of Limoges worked hard towards the securing of the towns as dower that had been granted to the late empress Isabel (who had died in 1539). They received assurances the revenues of the towns in question would be secured for her for the next two years. They further argued that given the cost of living was now much greater than it had been in the time of Isabel, that Élisabeth's income be increased up to a value of 100,000 écus. They also pressed Felipe on several other financial points on Élisabeth's behalf. The two men had extraordinary success, with Felipe conceding to all their demands. The bishop of Limoges praised Lanssac highly in his reports to Catherine. He argued Lanssac had shown himself to be a man of great virtues and honour, who had devoted not only his body but his personal finances to the service of Élisabeth.

In the inductions into the Ordre de Saint-Michel (Order of Saint-Michel) (the highest order of French chivalry) undertaken by the Lorraine-Guise administration on 29 September 1560, eighteen new chevaliers (knights) were created. Many nobles who were close to the Lorraine family received the prestigious honour. In addition to their own men, some elevations were made through consultation with the queen mother Catherine. By this means the seigneur de Sipierre, governor of the king's brothers; Nicolas d'Anjou-Mézières; and the seigneur de Lanssac who by this point was an intimate advisor to Catherine, were made chevaliers.

In his correspondence, it would be to Catherine that he signed off his letters with the greatest deference, even more so than those to the king. He would function in her household as the intermediary through which those who wished to secure favour from the queen mother would have to pass.

As an advisor to Catherine, he played the role of an intermediary between her, the duchesse de Montpensier and the court of the king of Navarre in the hopes that the king of Navarre would accept the title of lieutenant-généraux du royaume (lieutenant-general of the kingdom) and cede the position of regent for the young king Charles to Catherine.

Catherine dispatched Lanssac to Guyenne in 1561 to see to the defence of the province. Over the winter of 1561–1562 Lanssac was sent to undertake an extraordinary diplomatic mission in Roma, a city in which he had diplomatic experience from the 1550s.

With the outbreak of hostilities between the crown and their Protestant rebels in April 1562, the Pope indicated to Lanssac, who was serving as an envoy, that he would be willing to devote a million écus d'or (gold crowns) to support the royalist-Catholic cause in France. Catherine would instead request of the Papacy that they act as a guarantor for a loan of 200,000 écus. In May the Pope would agree to donate 100,000 écus to the French crown, while a further 100,000 écus would be loaned.

Lanssac would serve as the leader of the French ambassadorial mission at the Council of Trento at the instigation of the queen mother Catherine. Supporting him would be the seigneur de Pibrac and du Ferrier. The cardinal de Lorraine would later be established as one of the French ambassadors in November. They presented their credentials on 26 May 1562. With their arrival they announced their priorities for the council. They were to end the improper use of wealth in the church and see to the clergy engaging in their proper duties. While serving as ambassador to the council, Lanssac received 15 letters from Catherine. The despatches Lanssac received during his service at Trento were among the longest Catherine produced for the diplomats of the period, averaging almost 750 words each. Gellard connects the length of the correspondence sent by Catherine to the importance she placed on the mission. Lanssac attempted to use the familial connection between the member of the French court Louis de Gonzague and his uncle cardinale di Gonzaga who held the presidency of the council of Trento, to gain more accommodations for France. The French delegation would find themselves in disagreement with the Spanish delegation at Trento over their relative precedence with the Pope. The French king's representative enjoyed precedence over the Spanish king's representative, much to the outrage of the latter. Lanssac hotly defended the status quo of French precedence, citing the various aids the French had rendered to the Pope over the years. To question this 'ancient honour' was an outrage for all the French ambassadors. This was challenged by the Spanish representative on the ground of their particular devotion to the Catholic faith. The dispute would ruminate for many more years, still actively causing disagreement in 1588 during the baron de Saint-Gouard's embassy in Roma. The contemporary author Brantôme praises Lanssac's firmness on the matter of precedence, and attributes it to his military background, arguing that a diplomat of the church or judiciary would not have been as effective as Lanssac.

In the final sessions of the council of Trento, the three diplomats made the queen's policy of religious moderation, and obedience to the peace edict of Amboise clear. Lanssac ceased to play the role of diplomat to the council in July 1563, several months before the other members of the mission ceased their roles.

At this time, Lanssac enjoyed a position of influence with the queen mother Catherine in matters of foreign policy. Alongside him in this circle of advisors were the ambassador to España, the baron de Saint-Sulpice and former ambassador the bishop of Limoges; the bishops of Orléans and Valence; and most centrally the sécretaire d'État the baron de Châteauneuf. Lanssac, and the bishops of Limoges and Orléans formed a triumvirate in control of the kingdoms financial affairs after the death of Châteauneuf in 1567.

In February 1564, Lanssac took on the role of extraordinary ambassador to España. The purpose of his mission was to testify to Charles' commitment to reinforcing the peace. Returning back to France he frequented the parlement of Toulouse, observing it to be in a state of discord, before moving on to the parlement of Bordeaux. In April he wrote to the French ambassador in España, the baron de Saint-Sulpice to warn him that the king and queen mother did not to hear requests from him to be relieved of his charge. The crown would however grant Saint-Sulpice 1,000 écus in return for this. Lanssac reported to the queen in the spring and summer of 1564 as to the tense religious situation in the south-west of France. In a letter of 28 July he informed Catherine that the country was not in the state of tranquillity it needed to be in, with men of different religions inflamed at each other, and inventing false stories of outrages. He further reported that in Carcassonne and particularly Montpellier he had born witness to destroyed churches and houses. While he noted that the garrisons in the area were a great imposition, he counselled they could not be removed until such time as greater harmony was in effect. He made it clear that the continuation of the grand tour was the only tonic to the troubles he witnessed and urged the crown not to be diverted from its progress. Lanssac reported disfavourably on the actions of the parlement of Toulouse as further inflaming affairs. He noted the poor enforcement of the peace edicts prohibition on the bearing of arms, not all men of the church had received the return of their benefices and that in Saintonge and Périgord gentleman take the revenues of the benefices by force.

Catherine was at this time undertaking a grand tour of the kingdom with her son the king, to assure herself of the autonomy of the crown from the influence of the rival factions. This was a 27 month voyage around France. To aid the accomplishment of this, at this time Catherine concentrated more state power in the hands of men whose loyalty to the crown was assured. Among those elevated in this process were Louis de Gonzague, who was established as the duc de Nevers by marriage to the heiress Henriette, the comte de Retz and Lanssac. During the trip, the court arrived at Jarnac, where the Protestant baron de Jarnac was governor. He indicated his support for the edict of Amboise, to the pleasure of Catherine and the king. Lanssac, a friend of Jarnac's was entrusted with seeing to the maintenance of order in the region while the court was staying there. In August 1564 he convened the notables of La Rochelle urging them to uphold the edict of Amboise and suppress disorders in the city. The magistrates of the city were reminded of their obligations to the pacification edict, and he implored both the Protestant and Catholic clergy to avoid incendiary sermons and live in good peace with their neighbours even if they were another religion. Having left Jarnac the court made its way to Saintes, Marennes, Brouage and finally La Rochelle. These visits to places, many of which were dominated by Protestants, were accomplished without incident.

In 1565, while still in the progress of the grand tour, a meeting was negotiated between Catherine and her daughter Élisabeth at Bayonne. The baron de Saint-Sulpice travelled to Bayonne to prepare Catherine to best be able to defend the French crown's conciliatory policy as regarded the Protestants. On the road to Bayonne he crossed paths with Lanssac, who was travelling to España to offer the thanks of Charles to Felipe for agreeing to allow the interview to go ahead.

After the conclusion of the interview at Bayonne in July 1565, Lanssac received a new extraordinary diplomatic mission. This mission saw him head to the Holy Roman Empire. The purpose of this new mission was to reassure the German Protestant princes as to the nature of the discussions that had taken place at Bayonne. He was to assure them that no infringements upon the liberties granted to Protestants in the edict of Amboise had been discussed.

After the battle of Saint-Denis saw the triumph of the royal army over the Protestants, the war continued, but without further major engagements due to the lack of means of both sides. Therefore as early as December, the Protestants reached out to begin negotiations with the crown, sending Téligny to the court with Condé's proposal for peace. Soon thereafter, Coligny's brother cardinal de Châtillon met with the bishop of Orléans and Lanssac at Vincennes to conduct further negotiations. After meeting with them, Châtillon met with several parlementaires, then with the cardinal de Bourbon and Catherine. By mid March a peace deal had been reached. By which the edict of Amboise was restored, affording Protestants limited rights of worship.

The brother of the king, the duc d'Anjou departed from the capital to lead the royal army against the rebels on 4 October 1568.

Though the army was technically under the charge of the prince, Catherine selected the maréchal de Tavannes and Lanssac to jointly command the 'battle' of the army (the main body of soldiers between the vanguard and rearguard). Their shared command proved to be an issue, inducing paralysis in the army.

During these months therefore, the Protestant rebels were able to take the initiative.

As the duc d'Anjou reached adulthood and began to constitute his own household, Lanssac and the cardinal de Lorraine would often find themselves following him, despite not holding a position in the young prince's household. By 1570 his son Guy de Saint-Gelais would be entering the circle of the duc d'Anjou, alongside the son of another of Catherine's principle advisors, the baron de Saint-Sulpice.

Upon the death of the bishop of Aire and Dax, Lanssac made efforts to ensure that the benefice remained in the hands of the Foix-Candalle family, who were allied with the Montmorency. He wrote to the duc de Montmorency as soon as he learned of the death to assure him of this.

The peace of Saint-Germain which brought to a close the third French War of Religion through the provision of toleration to the Protestants opened up a new period of Spanish hostility. The Spanish ambassador in France, Álava denounced the French ambassador in España, Fourquevaux, by saying that he was like Lanssac (a man he particularly hated) in being of 'Turkish stock'. Lanssac was among the conseillers whose Catholic faith was doubted by Álava at this time (alongside the duc de Montmorency, the bishops of Orléans, Limoges and Rennes and the maréchal de Vielleville.

The queen mother saw to the elevation of Lanssac as a chambellan in the royal household in 1572. He would still be in possession of this post in 1575 at the start of the reign of Henri III. The post of chambellan was senior to that of the gentilhomme de la chambre, and traditionally there were four such officers at the head of the gentilhomme. Henri III would seek to dilute the dynasties that Catherine had put in place in the royal household, and expanded the post such that there were thirteen chambellan by 1580.

During the St Bartholomew's Day Massacre, in which many Protestants across France were murdered, Lanssac played the role of protector to the young La Rochefoucauld, the son of the prominent Protestant noble the prince de Marcillac who was killed during the massacre. Lanssac shielded La Rochefoucauld in his Parisian residence on the rue Saint-Honoré along with the young prince's governor and the memoirist Jean de Mergey. The La Rochefoucauld and Saint-Gelais families both claimed descent from the Lusignan family and thus were arguably of the same house.

On 17 July 1573, the comte de Retz resigned from the charge of capitaine de la compagnie des cent gentilhommes de la maison du roi, so that he might assume the post of maréchal, and the sieur de Chavigny was elevated to the prestigious charge. Lanssac had held the other of the two captaincies since at least 1564. This posting brought with it an income of 1,600 livres.

In August 1573 Lanssac received the prestigious post of chevalier d'honneur (knight of honour) to the queen mother Catherine upon the death of the previous holder of the office the duc d'Uzès. Le Roux argues that in the absences from the court of Lanssac, maréchal de Matignon served as a de facto chevalier d'honneur in his place. The posting of chevalier d'honneur brought with it an income of 1,200 livres and was held until the death of the incumbent.

In 1573, the duc d'Anjou was elected as king of the Rzeczpospolita Obojga Narodów (Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth). Having travelled to his new kingdom he would be coronated in February 1574. Lanssac, aware of local customs, advised the young king to make sure that during dinner he did not isolate himself away from the diplomats and local Polish nobility by ensuring they were seated at his table. The duc d'Anjou did not embody this advice during his time in the country, and gradually withdrew to a more close circle of his entourage.

Having returned to France on the death of his brother, Anjou now styled himself Henri III. He met with his conseil d'État at Lyon upon his re-entry into the kingdom in September 1574. This conseil contained a small set of grandees: the queen mother Catherine, the new king's younger brother Alençon, the king of Navarre, the cardinal de Lorraine and cardinal de Guise, the bishops of Orléans and Limoges, the parlementaire the comte de Cheverny and Lanssac. They ratified the decision Henri had made on his journey back to France to hand over the remaining French Piemontese lands to the duca di Savoia (duke of Savoia). He would still be a member of this conseil d'État when it met two years later in 1576. By this time, as a need to accommodate his brothers power and satisfy the grandees of the kingdom the conseil had expanded to containing 134 members. Le Roux argues that political power did not lie with the conseil d'État but rather with the conseil des affaires. The conseil des affaires by contrast to the conseil d'État afforded a prominent position to the members of the king's entourage.

On 18 July 1574 the captaine des gardes du corps the vicomte d'Auchy died. Catherine hoped to see her man, Lanssac succeed to the charge, however the new king Henri was determined to stamp his authority on such affairs and not simply accept his mothers clients. Thus he placed the sieur de Rambouillet (who had already begun exercising the responsibilities with the king in Torino on his way back to France) in the post instead of Lanssac. Neverhtheless, Lanssac and the sieur de Chavigny were confirmed in their positions as capitaines de cent gentilhommes.

With the pressing financial situation brought about by the civil war in 1575, Henri called together his financial advisers in June. This small group included the chancelier Birague, the intendant des finances Claude Marcel, the bishop of Orléans, the comte de Cheverny and Martin de Beaune. These figures conducted negotiations with various officials to see to the collection of the taille (direct land tax), gabelles (salt taxes) and various other taxes.

The king found himself in Poitiers at the time of the sixth war of religion in 1577. The regions of Poitou and Saintonge were feared to be home to armed bands of Protestants. Therefore, for the security of the court in Poitiers, a small city that was vulnerable to infiltration due to its overcrowding, the city was divided into military districts. These districts were placed under the responsibility of those close to Henri: Orsini, the sieur de Rambouillet, the seigneur de Villequier, de Fiesque and Lanssac. When the king returned to Paris he brought soldiers with him into the city.

With the return of peace prohibitions were put in place on the boarding of vessels. Lanssac's son Guy ignored these prohibitions and boarded both Rochelais and English vessels. This was an embarrasing situation for the French crown, and Henri disowned his rebellious governor. Meanwhile Lanssac had to apologise on his sons behalf to the English ambassador.

The king's brother, Alençon, who had been coaxed back to court undertook a dramatic escape from the court with his favourites in February 1578. Catherine quickly endeavoured to see her son returned to the court, and travelled to meet with the prince alongside Lanssac and the duc de Montpensier. However, Alençon feigned illness and refused to receive her. Free of the court, Alençon turned his attentions to his designs in Spanish Nederland.

In 1578 Lanssac was bought out of his position as capitaine de la seconde compagnie des cent gentilhommes de la maison du roi by the seigneur of Loué who purchased it for 60,000 livres. Le Roux argues it is likely Henri encouraged Lanssac to cede the charge in the hopes of replacing the old man of his mothers clientele with his own man. Loué would never assume the charge and rather it would be the comte de Marennes who took on the responsibility in 1578.

In 1578 Henri created a new most senior order of French chivalry, known as the Ordre du Saint-Esprit (Order of Saint-Esprit). He hoped it would replace the ordre de Saint-Michel which had 'fallen into disuse'. Lanssac would receive the honour of being made a chevalier of this ordre in the induction of 31 December 1579 alongside several princes du sang including the prince de Conti; the bishop of Langres; the maréchal de Matignon; the ambassador to England La Mothe-Fénelon and the former ambassador to España the seigneur de Saint-Sulpice.

In the crisis created by the rebellion of the disgraced royal favourite the baron de Bellegarde in 1579, Catherine was entrusted with negotiating with the errant noble who was held up in Saluzzo. Catherine travelled south to Lyon with the baron de Ruffec, the duc de Mayenne, the cardinal de Bourbon, the parlementaire Paul de Foix and Lanssac. Bellegarde was successfully convinced to negotiate with her, and a meeting was arranged for Montluel on 17 October, Bellegarde arriving two days prior. Bellegarde assures her of his loyalty. In return for this assurance, Catherine offered him the government of Saluzzo. No sooner had Bellegarde returned to Saluzzo than he died on 20 December, making the reconciliation that had been negotiated meaningless.

When the new English ambassador Cobham was granted his reception in January 1580, he was escorted by Jérôme de Gondi to Catherine's chambers. Outside of the queen mothers chambers he was received by Lanssac, the duc de Guise, duc de Nevers and the sécretaires d'État (secretaries of state). The king for his part was accompanied by only a few men.

Starting in March 1580 a quarrel emerged between the duc de Nevers and the duc de Montpensier. Montpensier reported to the king's brother Alençon that Nevers had intended, when he was tasked with subdueing the rebel prince in 1575 to see him killed. Nevers took great offence at this 'slanderous' implication which he indicated he considered to be accussing him of lèse majesté. Montpensier produced a declaration on the matter to which Nevers responded by publishing a denial.

Moving from a war of words, both Montpensier and Nevers looked to mobilise their patronage networks in the dispute. Henri meanwhile hoped to end the dispute which threatened to upset the balance in court and the reconciliation the king was attempting to effect with his brother Alençon. Alençon further inflamed matters by taking Montpensier's side in the dispute.

In May 1580, Henri dispatched his first envoy to entreat with Montpensier. This was followed in September by a temporary restraint on the duc de Nevers who was limited in his movement to his own lands. In December, Lanssac was sent to parlay with the duc de Montpensier by the king, and this was followed in January with the dispatch of the sieur de Rambouillet to Nevers. Nevers was informed of the outcome of Lanssac's dealings with Montpensier by his friend the seigneur de Ruffey. The latter succeeded in drawing from the duc a letter that his earlier writing had not been directed at the duc de Montpensier.

In the settlement reached on 18 April 1581, the king declared that Montpensier had no cause to be offended by the manifesto published by the duc de Nevers as it was not about him, and that likewise Nevers had no cause to be offended by Montpensier's declaration as it did not concern him. The dispute was thus condemned to oblivion.

With the extension of the male line of the House of Aviz, Lanssac played a role in the French negotiations over the fate of Portugal in October 1580.

A large extraordinary diplomatic mission was dispatched to England in the spring of 1581. Lanssac was one of the men charged with involvement. Alongside him in the mission were the princes du sang the duc de Montpensier, prince-dauphin and comte de Soissons; the maréchal de Cossé, the governor of haute-Normandie the baron de Carrouges, the former ambassador to England La Mothe-Fénelon, the parlementaire Brisson and the sécretaire d'État Pinart.

Lanssac continued to enjoy the ear of Catherine to whom he was the chevalier d'honneur, and when she took council in 1581, he would be there to advise her alongside La Mothe-Fénelon, Pinart, the seigneur de Genlis, the chancelier (chancellor) Birague and the garde des sceaux (possessor of the chanceliers seals) Cheverny. Le Roux notes that these men had more connection to Catherine than they did their king, Henri.

On 17 January 1585 an agreement was reached between the duc de Guise, Mayenne and other members of the Lorraine-Guise family on the one hand, and the Spanish crown on the other. By this agreement it was declared that the cardinal de Bourbon was the proper successor to Henri for the throne upon his death, and that king Felipe would provide 600,000 écus to the ligueur party in France. In return, Guise promised the eradication of Protestantism, the recognition of the Trentine decrees, the return to the Spanish of French held Cambrai, the termination of the French alliance with the Osmanlı İmparatorluğu (Ottoman Empire), the ending of French naval activity hostile to España and French support against the rebels in Spanish Nederland. Both Lanssac's legitimate and illegitimate son who were well placed in southern France and as well seasoned diplomatically as their father aided in the establishing of the treaty between the ligue and España.

After the duc de Guise and the ligue entered rebellion against the crown in 1585, Catherine undertook negotiations with the errant prince. Struggling to get Guise to declare himself, she engaged other intermediaries in the hopes they would have better luck, among them the sécretaire d'État Pinart and Lanssac. However they reported no more success, claiming that Guise professed to be 'perplexed' himself. Lanssac and Catherine had hopes upon the arrival of the duc de Guise's daughter Renée de Lorraine the abbess of Saint-Pierre that she might be able to impress upon her father the importance of obeying the king.

Meanwhile, Catherine offered a spectacle of illness to Guise. Lanssac reported to a 'principal lady' of the court that her troubles were more mental than physical, as she was frustrated at the failures of her efforts of negotiation.

At the end of 1587, Lanssac was responsible for the conduct of negotiations with the parlement of Paris.

In May the crown was gravely shaken by the day of the Barricades, a ligueur uprising of Parisians with the duc de Guise at their head, that saw the king and his court forced from the capital. One parlementaire had advised Henri to ride the streets of the capital with Villequier and Lanssac to reason with the people so that they might disassemble their barricades, however this would not transpire. After Henri's departure, Catherine, Villequier, Pinart and Lanssac remained in the capital so that they might conduct negotiations with the ligueur duc de Guise. The product of these negotiations would be the treaty established between the crown and the ligue on 21 July.

Peace between the ligue and the crown was solemnised with a thanksgiving mass at the cathedral of Notre-Dame on 19 July 1588. Cannons were fired in celebration and bonfires lit. Lanssac was among the many great noble attendees, which included the duc de Guise, duchesse de Montpensier, the cardinal de Bourbon and the royal favourite Villequier. The edict of peace was registered two days later on 21 July.

Pushed towards a resumption of the war against the Protestants in 1588, Henri looked to raise funds to support the campaign from the servants of the crown. By this means 45,000 écus was gained by the crown for the effort between 30 August and 24 December 1588. Lanssac, as a client of Catherine's, leant 3,333 écus to this cause on 26 October.

Lanssac attended the Estates General of 1588 in his capacity as a conseiller d'État (councillor of state). His illegitimate son, the bishop of Comminges served in the Estates as a representative of the First Estate.

After the assassination of the duc de Guise in December, Lanssac retired from the court to his estates at Précy-sur-Oise.

Lanssac died in 1593 at Précy-sur-Oise. It would be at Précy that his remains would be interred, as opposed to the abbey of Saint-Vincent in the old Saint-Gelais haunt of Bourg.

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