Hélie de Talleyrand-Périgord, Duke of Sagan


Marie Pierre Louis Hélie de Talleyrand-Périgord, 5th Duke of Talleyrand and Dino, Prince, then Duke of Sagan, was a French socialite and son of Boson de Talleyrand-Périgord.

Early life

Talleyrand was born on August 23, 1859 to Boson de Talleyrand-Périgord, the 4th Duke of Talleyrand and Jeanne Seillière, the heiress to Baron de Seilliere, army supply contractor who had enriched himself during the Franco-Prussian War. His younger brother was Boson de Talleyrand-Périgord, duc de Valençay.
His paternal grandparents were Napoléon Louis, III. duc de Talleyrand-Périgord and Anne Louise Charlotte Alix de Montmorency. His paternal great-grandparents were Alexandre de Talleyrand-Périgord, Duke of Dino and later duc de Talleyrand-Périgord, and of Dorothea of Courland, Duchess of Sagan. Another great-grandfather was the Duke of Montmorency.

Peerage

In 1910, upon the death of his father, he succeeded to his father's titles, becoming His Serene Highness, the 5th Duke of Talleyrand and Herzog zu Sagan. On 10 July 1912, he was confirmed as the 5th Duke of Dino by Umberto II, the King of Italy. After his death, his titles passed to his younger brother, as his only son predeceased him.

Personal life

In 1908, he married Countess Anna de Castellane. Anna was the daughter of Jay Gould, an American railroad developer who has been referred to as one of the ruthless robber barons of the Gilded Age. Anna was the sister of George Jay Gould I, Edwin Gould I, Helen Miller Gould, Howard Gould, and Frank Jay Gould. She had previously married to his cousin, Comte Boni de Castellane, later Marquis de Castellane. They had the following children:
Their son, Howard, took his own life on May 28, 1929 at his parents’ home in Paris when told he could not marry. He was taken to a hospital on Rue Puccini, where he died. His parents thought at the age of 19, he was too young to marry. Hélie and Anna said: "... we had no objection to the girl, but only opposed the marriage because of our son's age."
Talleyrand died on October 25, 1937 of a heart attack in Paris.

Descendants

He was the grandfather of Hélie de Pourtalès who married, as his second wife, Marie Eugénie de Witt, the eldest daughter of Princess Marie Clotilde Bonaparte.