Blackwell Reference Online

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(1651–90) The son of Colbert, Seignelay received an almost princely education which was both theoretical and practical (voyages to Genoa, Venice, the Dutch Republic and England) and highly apposite to a future secretary of state for the French navy. Succeeding his father in this office in 1683, Seignelay fully deployed the naval instrument which had been created. Between 1683 and 1688, the French navy dominated the Mediterranean. In the early years of the Nine Years' War (1688–97), the French navy reached its zenith defeating the Anglo-Dutch fleet off Beachy Head in 1690. Overworked and worn out, Seignelay died a few weeks after the battle. His demise heralded a period of strategic uncertainty in French naval affairs. Seignelay's administration of the navy was markedly different to that of his illustrious father. He was not concerned with the development of the institutions and infrastructure necessary to create mercantile and military sea power but merely with the political and martial prestige which it could enhance. Like his successors, Seignelay was a user of French fleets rather than a creative administrator. He master-minded the bombardment of Genoa in 1684 and was in favour of the decision to invade Germany in 1688. See also beachy head ; colbert ; france ; la hogue and barfleur ; naval warfare ; navies . , The Crisis of French Sea Power, 1688–1697 ( The Hague , ... log in or subscribe to read full text