Étienne de Vesc's forebears originated in Provence, appearing since the eleventh century, as modest seigneurs of Comps, Dieulefit, Béconne, Montjoux and  Espeluche, with some experience in the Crusades; the chronicler Philippe de Commines, an enemy of Vesc, belittled his background. He spent his youth in the Dauphiné, not part of France until 1486, finishing a courtly training in the household of the Dauphin at Plessis-les-Tours, where he served as valet de chambre from the age of seventeen, about 1462.
Étienne de Vesc's progenitors originated in Provence, dating back to the eleventh century, as petty nobility in Comps, Dieulefit, Béconne, Montjoux, and Espeluche, with some experience in warfare; Philippe de Commines, a foe of Vesc, diminished his lineage. He spent his formative years in the Dauphiné, not part of France until 1486, completing an aristocratic education in the household of the Dauphin at Plessis-les-Tours, where he served as a personal attendant from the age of seventeen, roughly 1462.