View source for Alexandre de Rainier de Droue, Marquis de Boisseleau

{{Short description|French aristocrat and soldier}}
'''Alexandre de Rainier de Droué, Marquis de Boisseleau''' (1650 – 8 October 1698) was a French [[aristocrat]] and [[soldier]]. He is known for his service on the [[Jacobitism|Jacobite]] side during the [[Williamite War in Ireland]].<ref name=CCC>{{cite web |url=https://www.dib.ie/biography/boisseleau-alexandre-de-rainier-de-droue-a0760 |title=Boisseleau, Alexandre de Rainier de Droué |last=Ó Ciardha |first=Éamonn |date=October 2009 |website=Dictionary of Irish Biography |access-date=20 February 2023 }}</ref>
==Biography==
Boisseleau received a commission in the [[French Royal Army]] and saw extensive service in the [[Franco-Dutch War]]. He was present at the [[Siege of Maastricht (1673)|Siege of Maastricht]] and [[Battle of Saint-Denis (1678)|Battle of Saint-Denis]]. He fought in the [[War of the Reunions]], including at the [[Siege of Luxembourg (1684)|Siege of Luxembourg]].<ref name=CCC/>
He was one of many French soldiers sent to Ireland by [[Louis XIV of France|Louis XIV]] to assist his cousin [[James II of Ireland|James II]] to keep hold of his [[Kingdom of Ireland|Irish Crown]]. He fought alongside James' [[Irish Army (Kingdom of Ireland)|Irish Army]], with the rank of major-general, in several military actions. In November 1689, Boisseleau led a Jacobite force in the unsuccessful [[Raid on Newry]].<ref>Childs p.179-80</ref> The following summer he was present at the [[Battle of the Boyne]]. Although this was a major defeat for the Jacobite cause, his own reputation was enhanced due to his conduct on the battlefield.<ref>McNally p.191</ref>
The same year he was instrumental in the successful defence of [[Limerick]] during the first [[Siege of Limerick (1690)|Siege of Limerick]]. When many of his fellow French officers and Irish commanders wanted to abandon Limerick which they considered indefensible, Boisseleau sided with a group of Irish and British Jacobites led by [[Patrick Sarsfield]] who felt that the town could still be held. Boisseleau was appointed [[Governor of Limerick]] by King James' representative in Ireland the [[Richard Talbot, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell]].<ref>Childs p.244</ref>
Following the siege, he requested permission from his French commander, [[Antoine Nompar de Caumont]], to leave Ireland. He subsequently served in the French army in the [[Nine Years' War]], including at the [[Siege of Namur (1692)|Siege of Namur]] and the [[Battle of Landen]]. On 3 January 1696 he received the rank of [[maréchal de camp]]; he died two years later.<ref name=CCC/>
==References==
{{Reflist}}
==Bibliography==
* Childs, John. ''The Williamite Wars in Ireland''. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2007.
* McNally, Michael. ''Battle of the Boyne 1690: The Irish Campaign for the English Crown''. Osprey Publishing, 2005.
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[[Category:1650 births]]
[[Category:1698 deaths]]
[[Category:17th-century French nobility]]
[[Category:French marquesses]]
[[Category:French military personnel of the Franco-Dutch War]]
[[Category:French military personnel of the Nine Years' War]]
[[Category:French soldiers]]
[[Category:Jacobite military personnel of the Williamite War in Ireland]]
[[Category:17th-century French military personnel]]