This fine portrait depicts a member of French aristocracy – the portrait passed through the French noble family, Duchy of La Vallière, for over 200 years until sold in the 1920’s. Painted circa 1720 it is a charming example from one of France’s most noteworthy painters, Jean Baptiste Oudry.The gentleman depicted in this portrait is Charles François de La Baume Le Blanc, the son of Jean François de La Baume Le Blanc, Marquis de La Vallière (1642-1676) and Gabrielle Glé de La Cotardais (c.1648-1707). In June 1698 he married Marie Thérèse de Noailles (1684-1784), daughter of General Anne Jules, Duc de Noailles, Marshal of France and Marie Françoise de Bournonville.The Duchy of La Vallière was a French peerage created in 1667 by Louis XIV for his mistress Louise Françoise de La Baume Le Blanc when she had been replaced in his affections by Madame de Montespan. Louise de La Vallière, known as Mademoiselle de La Vallière was the mistress of Louis XIV from 1661 to 1667 and the mother of six of Louis’ children, though only two of them survived infancy. The Lordship of La Vallière had been owned by Louise’s family since the time of her great grandfather Laurent Le Blanc; Laurent’s only son, Jean, taking on the name of La Baume Le Blanc in his lifetime along with the barony of La Papelardière. When Louise left court, she gave the duchy to her only daughter Marie Anne de Bourbon, Mademoiselle de Blois and widow of Louis Armand de Bourbon, Prince de Conti. Widowed and childless, in 1698 Marie Anne, in turn, gave the title to her cousin, Charles François de La Baume Le Blanc.Charles’s son, Louis César (1708-1780) succeeded to the Duchy of La Vallière on the death of his father in August 1739. Louis César was on familiar terms with Louis XV and his mistress Madame de Pompadour, and was a first cousin to Louis Jean Marie de Bourbon, a grandson of Madame de Montespan and Louis XIV.The portrait descended for 200 years within the family to Louis Charles de La Trémoille (1838-1911), 9th duc de Thouars, who was Duke of La Trémoille and Thouars as well as Prince of Talmont and Count of Laval (see photo). Louis Charles was a French historian, archivist, bibliophile and collector. He studied and had a keen interest in the La Trémoïlle family archives, held in his home, the Renaissance Château de Serrant - the Chateau is home to one of the largest French private libraries. Amazed by the wealth of family records, he devoted his life to exploring them and gave access to researchers, including Paul Marchegay (1812-1885) and the historian Thouarsais Hugues Imbert (1822-1882). On August 23, 1886, he accompanied Philippe of Orleans (1869-1926), who was a close friend, in a carriage whilst enroute to exile in England.There are two possibilities how it descended to him. It probably passed to Louis César’s only child, Adrienne Emilie Félicité de La Baume Le Blanc (b.1740) who married Louis Gaucher, Duc de Châtillon (1737-1762). Their daughter Loui...