Admiral Louis de Culant (1360–1444) was a French

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 nobleman and Admiral of France

Admiral of France

The title Admiral of France is one of the Great Officers of the Crown of France, the naval equivalent of Marshal of France.The title was created in 1270 by Louis IX of France, during the Eighth Crusade. At the time it was equivalent to the office of Constable of France. The Admiral was responsible...

. He held the titles of Baron of Châteauneuf-sur-Cher

Châteauneuf-sur-Cher

Châteauneuf-sur-Cher is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre region of France.-Geography:An area of farming and forestry comprising a large village and several hamlets situated in the valley of the river Cher, some south of Bourges at the junction of the D940 with the D73, D35 and the...

, Lord of Culan

Culan

Culan is a commune in the Cher département in the Centre region of France.It is best-known for its 12th-15th century medieval castle, the Château de Culan, one of the oldest castles still occupied in the world...

t and Ainay-le-Vieil

Ainay-le-Vieil

Ainay-le-Vieil is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre region of France.-Geography:A farming village bordered to the north and east by the river Cher, some south of Bourges at the junction of the D1 with the D118 and D97e roads.-Population:...

. As Lord of Culant, the Château de Culan

Château de Culan

The Château de Culan is a French medieval castle located in the commune of Culan in the Cher département. -History:The castle, listed as a Monument historique at the start of the 20th century and classified for its walls and roofs in 1956, has known a turbulent history...

, a medieval fortress built in the 12th-15th centuries, which overlooks the valley of the Arnon

Arnon

Arnon is a river and wadi in western Jordan, known in modern times in Arabic as Wadi Mujib. The Hebrew name means perhaps "noisy," a term which well-describes the latter part of the course of the river. Its length is about 45 miles, from its highlands in the desert to its entrance into the Dead...

 belonged to him.

Personal life

De Culant's family included brother John Culant, Lord of Crete; nephew Philippe de Culant

Philippe de Culant

Philippe de Culant was a French nobleman and soldier of the Hundred Years' War.He was a nephew of Louis de Culant, Admiral of France, and the brother of Charles de Culant, and related to Jean de Brosse by marriage. The de Culant family took their name from the village of Culant in the modern...

, Marshal of France

Marshal of France

The Marshal of France is a military distinction in contemporary France, not a military rank. It is granted to generals for exceptional achievements...

; and nephew Charles de Culant († ca.1451), Grand Master of France

Grand Master of France

The Grand Master of France was, during the Ancien Régime and Bourbon Restoration in France, one of the Great Officers of the Crown of France and head of the "Maison du Roi", the king's royal household...

, who plotted a conspiracy against him. He was also cousin to Jean de Brosse

Jean de Brosse

Jean de Brosse , Lord of Boussac, Sainte-Sévère, Huriel, and Perugia, was a councillor and chamberlain to Charles VII of France; he was made a Marshal of France in 1426.-Early life:...

, the royal army's commander, Marshall of Boussac and Sainte-Sévère, with whom he fought alongside as lieutenant during the Hundred Years' War

Hundred Years' War

The Hundred Years' War was a series of separate wars waged from 1337 to 1453 by the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known as the House of Anjou, for the French throne, which had become vacant upon the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings...

.

Career

De Culant and De Brosse were chosen to accompany Joan of Arc

Joan of Arc

Saint Joan of Arc, nicknamed "The Maid of Orléans" , is a national heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint. A peasant girl born in eastern France who claimed divine guidance, she led the French army to several important victories during the Hundred Years' War, which paved the way for the...

 at the head of a troupe that joined the bulk of the forces royal march on Orleans, participating in the Battle of Orleans

Siege of Orléans

The Siege of Orléans marked a turning point in the Hundred Years' War between France and England. This was Joan of Arc's first major military victory and the first major French success to follow the crushing defeat at Agincourt in 1415. The outset of this siege marked the pinnacle of English power...

. From Orleans to Paris, De Culant fought on land with Joan of Arc.

He served as Admiral of France in 1421 through 1437 when he lost office because of allegations of misappropriation of public funds. De Culant participated in several other battles, including those at Beaugency, Jargeau, Meung, and Patay.