Nicole Robinet de La Serve
Encyclopedia
Jean-Pierre-François Nicole Robinet de La Serve (1791, Isle Bourbon - 20 December 1842, Salazie
) was a French
journalist, lawyer and politician.
.
La Serve came to know Benjamin Constant
and Jacques-Antoine Manuel
, and became an opponent to the Bourbon Restauration, denouncing its excesses in De la Royauté, an essay published in 1819. His positions attracted suspicions, and he came to be involved in an affair linked to that of the Four Sergeants of La Rochelle
; he was trialed, and afterwards returned to La Réunion, where his mother was dying..
At La Réunion, La Serve initiated and became one of the main contributors of the franc-créole movement. Constantly opposed to governor Étienne-Henri Mengin du Val d'Ailly, he obtained the creation of an elected body, the conseil colonial de Bourbon (colonial Council of Bourbon). However, his positions for the abolition of slavery cut him from his supporters.
He died at Salazie
on 20 December 1842, retired from society, soon after his daughter.
Nicole Robinet de La Serve fathered Alexandre Robinet de La Serve, deputy and senator of La Réunion.
Auguste Lacaussade was one of his familiars during his youth, soon before La Serve died, and dedicated of the poems of Poèmes et paysages to him.
Salazie
Salazie is a volcanic caldera and commune in the department and region of Réunion.The first settlement of the area took place in 1829 after a cyclone had devastated the nearby coast, and the municipality of Salazie was formed in 1889...
) 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...
journalist, lawyer and politician.
Biography
La Serve fought in the Indian Ocean during the Napoleonic wars. After La Réunion was captured by the British, he went to Paris, were he also fought in the defence of the city. He lived in the palace of Alexandre Chevassut, at rue des Saints-Pères. Chevassut was a remote relative, whose daughter he married, and who allowed him to join the ConstitutionnelLe Constitutionnel
Le Constitutionnel was a French political and literary newspaper, founded in Paris during the Hundred Days by Joseph Fouché. Originally established in October 1815 as The Independent, it took its current name during the Second Restoration. A voice for Liberals, Bonapartists, and critics of the...
.
La Serve came to know Benjamin Constant
Benjamin Constant
Henri-Benjamin Constant de Rebecque was a Swiss-born French nobleman, thinker, writer and politician.-Biography:...
and Jacques-Antoine Manuel
Jacques-Antoine Manuel
Jacques-Antoine Manuel was a French lawyer, politician, and noted orator.-Biography:Jacques-Antoine Manuel was born in the hamlet of La Conchette, in Enchastrayes , near Barcelonette. His family included judges and attorneys who had established careers in the Ubaye Valley...
, and became an opponent to the Bourbon Restauration, denouncing its excesses in De la Royauté, an essay published in 1819. His positions attracted suspicions, and he came to be involved in an affair linked to that of the Four Sergeants of La Rochelle
Four Sergeants of La Rochelle
The Four Sergeants of La Rochelle were guillotined in Paris in 1822 for plotting to overthrow the restored Bourbon monarchy . Their great courage initiated a liberal campaign and they became legendary....
; he was trialed, and afterwards returned to La Réunion, where his mother was dying..
At La Réunion, La Serve initiated and became one of the main contributors of the franc-créole movement. Constantly opposed to governor Étienne-Henri Mengin du Val d'Ailly, he obtained the creation of an elected body, the conseil colonial de Bourbon (colonial Council of Bourbon). However, his positions for the abolition of slavery cut him from his supporters.
He died at Salazie
Salazie
Salazie is a volcanic caldera and commune in the department and region of Réunion.The first settlement of the area took place in 1829 after a cyclone had devastated the nearby coast, and the municipality of Salazie was formed in 1889...
on 20 December 1842, retired from society, soon after his daughter.
Nicole Robinet de La Serve fathered Alexandre Robinet de La Serve, deputy and senator of La Réunion.
Legacy
Thérèse Troude contends that Nicole Robinet de La Serve is featured in Le Journal de Marguerite, by Victorine Monniot, as Adrien de la Caze, the character who shelters the heroin, Marguerite Guyon, at Champ-Borne during her forced stay in Bourbon. The character also has featured of other historical figures, notably Adrien Bellier.Auguste Lacaussade was one of his familiars during his youth, soon before La Serve died, and dedicated of the poems of Poèmes et paysages to him.
See also
- De la Royauté.
- Francs-Créoles.
- Alexandre de La Serve.