The French Republic does not recognize titles but still employs a
Garde des Sceaux de France (more or less comparable with the
Lord Privy Seal in the UK). One of the duties of the
Garde des Sceaux de France is to examine and verify -on request- if a person has a legal and valid claim to a title.
It comes down to a conflict about Nicolas de Broglie, son of the late 8e duc de Broglie, 7e prince de Broglie who was born out of wedlock. Nevertheless Nicolas inherited all from his father: from the enormous family fortune to the ancestral estates et al,
but not the title Duc de Broglie.
Nicolas went to the
Conseil d'État to complain about the decision of the
Garde des Sceaux de France that he was no heir to his father's titles. The Letters Patent of Louis XV de France from June 1752 to the first Duke spoke about
pour lui et l'aîné de ses mâles nés et à naître de lui en légitime mariage (for him and for the eldest of males born to him in a legitimate marriage).
Because Nicolas was not born inside a marriage, the title went to his father's younger brother Philippe-Maurice, now the 10th Duke. However, this 60 years old uncle of Nicolas is unmarried. His younger brother Louis-Albert has no sons either. This means the title risks to go to a remote relative somewhere.
Nicolas de Broglie argued that since 2005 the
Code Civil no longer distincts between chidren born inside or outside a marriage. Therefore the Letters Patent of Louis XV was an infringement to law.
The
Conseil d'État ruled: "The acts conferring, confirming or maintaining titles of nobility prior to the establishment of the Republic constitute acts of the sovereign authority in the execution of its administrative power, including the establishment, where appropriate, of rules of transmission for these titles. Consequently, the Letters Patent of King Louis XV of June 1742 are not among the legislative provisions liable to be referred to the Constitutional Council in application of article 61-1 of the Constitution."
(With other words:
The King can do no wrong. The French Republic does not recognize titles. It is willing to attest to the practice (in which titles are still used) but in this case without importing the law of the Republic into the practice of nobility. Louis XV can rest in peace. His royal Letters Patent remain patent under the law of the Republic.
https://www.conseil-etat.fr/fr/arianeweb/CE/decision/2021-02-12/440401
Nicolas de Broglie owns the Château de Broglie, 500 hectare of forest and two maisons in Paris.
https://mecenatmh.fr/wp-content/upl...de-broglie-eure-demeure-historique-france.jpg
His eldest uncle Philippe-Maurice de Broglie, the current Duke, owns the monumental Grand-Hôtel de Tours.
https://cf.bstatic.com/images/hotel/max1024x768/260/260032524.jpg
His youngest uncle Louis-Albert de Broglie owns the Château de la Bourdaisière.
https://montjoye.net/images/Centre-...7/bourdaisiere/chateau-de-la-bourdaisiere.JPG
