Bernard-René Jourdan de Launay permanently stationed in Paris except in time of war. In 1776 de Launay succeeded M. de Jumilhac as Governor of the Bastille. As was the custom with many senior positions under the Ancien Régime, the marquis purchased the office of governor from his predecessor as a form of investment. The thirteen years that he spent in this position were uneventful, though on 19 December 1778 he reportedly made the mistake of failing to fire the cannon of the Bastille as a salute on the birth of a daughter (Madame Royale) to King Louis XVI. In August 1785 he was given
Chateau and Seigneurie de Launay in 1543; Gabrielle remarried 13 months later. Her second marriage (Seigneur de Pescheray) was a short one. She died in 1546 at age 36. To a degree Pierre remained a fugitive. Records reveal that he was arrested on 6 October 1525. The death sentence, still in place, was not carried out but he was forced to pay a heavy fine in 1526. Beyond this all that is known of Pierre de Bernay is that he had a son, Jehan de Bernay, who inherited the Seigneurie de Launay. In 1551 the Seigneurie de Launay passed from the de Bernay family to