Jean de Chastelet
Encyclopedia
Jean du Chatelet , also known as Baron de Beausoleil and Auffembach (born 1578 Brabant
- died around 1645 , The Bastille
, Paris), was a mineralogist, mining engineer and dowser.
In 1610 he married Martine Bertereau
, the educated daughter of a noble family of French mine owners who accompanied him on his tours and at his work underground.
The instruments and methods that the couple employed in their mineral exploration have led to his being associated with dowsing
, astrology
and alchemy
.
From around 1600 du Chatelet had undertaken a commission from the King of France to prospect within France and develop mines there. The semi-occult methods he used brought him a brush with the ecclesiastical authorities in 1627 while in Brittany. He and his wife were forced to flee to Germany and lost much of their records and equipment in the process. They returned to France in 1630 to continue their work under a new French King, Louis XIII.
During all his work for the French state, du Chatelet had never received payment and in 1640 in a precarious financial state his wife Martine wrote the Restitution of Pluto a Latin poem asking for payment and sent rather rashly to Cardinal Richelieu. They received no reply but the charges of sorcery were resurrected and they were both imprisoned - he in the Bastille
and she in the Castle of Vincennes. Both died in prison, he around 1645 and she in 1642.
Duchy of Brabant
The Duchy of Brabant was a historical region in the Low Countries. Its territory consisted essentially of the three modern-day Belgian provinces of Flemish Brabant, Walloon Brabant and Antwerp, the Brussels-Capital Region and most of the present-day Dutch province of North Brabant.The Flag of...
- died around 1645 , The Bastille
Bastille
The Bastille was a fortress in Paris, known formally as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. The Bastille was built in response to the English threat to the city of...
, Paris), was a mineralogist, mining engineer and dowser.
Life
After an early career as a soldier, du Chatelet became enthused with the study of minerals and undertook a tour of Europe visiting mines in Germany, Hungary, Bohemia, Tyrol, Silesia, Moravia, Poland, Sweden, Italy, Spain, Scotland, and England. Through his extensive research he gained an unequaled expertise in mining and minerals. The German emperors Rudolph and Matthias appointed him Commissary General of the Hungarian mines.In 1610 he married Martine Bertereau
Martine Bertereau
Martine Bertereau also known as Baroness de Beausoleil was a pioneering French woman mining engineer and mineralogist who traveled extensively in Europe in search on mineral deposits. She surveyed the sites of hundreds of potential mines in France in the service of the French King...
, the educated daughter of a noble family of French mine owners who accompanied him on his tours and at his work underground.
The instruments and methods that the couple employed in their mineral exploration have led to his being associated with dowsing
Dowsing
Dowsing is a type of divination employed in attempts to locate ground water, buried metals or ores, gemstones, oil, gravesites, and many other objects and materials, as well as so-called currents of earth radiation , without the use of scientific apparatus...
, astrology
Astrology
Astrology consists of a number of belief systems which hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events in the human world...
and alchemy
Alchemy
Alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
.
From around 1600 du Chatelet had undertaken a commission from the King of France to prospect within France and develop mines there. The semi-occult methods he used brought him a brush with the ecclesiastical authorities in 1627 while in Brittany. He and his wife were forced to flee to Germany and lost much of their records and equipment in the process. They returned to France in 1630 to continue their work under a new French King, Louis XIII.
During all his work for the French state, du Chatelet had never received payment and in 1640 in a precarious financial state his wife Martine wrote the Restitution of Pluto a Latin poem asking for payment and sent rather rashly to Cardinal Richelieu. They received no reply but the charges of sorcery were resurrected and they were both imprisoned - he in the Bastille
Bastille
The Bastille was a fortress in Paris, known formally as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. The Bastille was built in response to the English threat to the city of...
and she in the Castle of Vincennes. Both died in prison, he around 1645 and she in 1642.