Joseph de Riquet de Caraman (1808–1886)

Joseph de Riquet de Caraman, 17th Prince de Chimay was a Belgian diplomat and industrialist.

Early life

Joseph was the eldest son of François Joseph de Riquet de Caraman, prince de Chimay and his wife Thérésa Cabarrus, one of the leaders of Parisian social life during the Directory.

He led the negotiations which led to a treaty of friendship between the Netherlands and Belgium following William I of the Netherlands' abjuration, which guaranteed Belgian independence. He also contributed to establishing Belgium's diplomatic relations with the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, the Kingdom of Naples, the Papal States and the German Confederation. In 1824, he was created Prince of Caraman in the Dutch nobility
In 1852, he acquired the Hôtel de la Pagerie at 17 quai Malaquais, in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, renaming it Hôtel de Chimay. It was sold in 1883 to the École des beaux-arts. In 1863, he built a theatre in his château de Chimay in Belgium, designed by Hector-Martin Lefuel and Cambon and inspired by Louis XV's theatre at the Palace of Fontainebleau.
He financed the foundation of Scourmont Abbey on Chimay lands and in 1858 headed the consortium which founded the Compagnie de Chimay, one of the first Belgian railway companies, which built a line linking Chimay to Anor in France and Mariembourg.

On 30 August 1830, Joseph married Émilie Pellapra in Paris. The widow of comte de Brigode, she was the daughter of Françoise-Marie LeRoy and Henri de Pellapra, a wealthy financier, although Émilie claimed to be a daughter of Napoleon. Together, Émilie and Joseph had four children:

Marie Thérèse Emilie de Riquet de Caraman, who married politician Frédéric Lagrange.
Marie Joseph Guy Henry Philippe de Riquet de Caraman, who married Marie de Montesquiou-Fezensac in 1857. After her death in 1884, he married Mathilde de Barandiaran in 1889.
Valentine de Riquet de Caraman, who married Prince Paul de Bauffremont, son of Prince Alphonse de Bauffremont, in 1861. They divorced in 1875 and she married Prince Georges Bibescu, a son of the Prince of Wallachia Gheorghe Bibescu, in 1875.
Eugène de Riquet de Caraman, who married Louise de Graffenried-Villars.

The Prince de Chamay died in London on 12 March 1886.

Through his eldest son Joseph, he was a grandfather of Joseph, Prince de Caraman-Chimay, Élisabeth de Riquet de Caraman-Chimay, Pierre de Riquet de Caraman-Chimay, Ghislaine de Caraman-Chimay, Marie Joséphine de Riquet de Caraman-Chimay, and Alexandre de Riquet de Caraman-Chimay.
Through his youngest son Prince Eugène, he was a grandfather of Countess Emilie de Caraman et Chimay, who married Hungarian diplomat Count Dionys Széchényi, and Countess Hélène de Caraman et Chimay, who married Anglo-Irish diplomat John Francis Charles, 7th Count de Salis-Soglio.