Bernard-René Jourdan de Launay Bernard-René Jourdan de Launay Bernard René Jourdan, marquis de Launay (1740–1789) was the French governor of the Bastille, the son of a previous governor, and commander of its garrison when the prison-fortress in Paris was stormed on 14 July 1789 ("see Storming of the Bastille"). The marquis Bernard-René Jordan de Launay was born on the night of 8/9 April 1740 in the Bastille where his father, René Jourdan de Launay, was governor. At the age of eight he was appointed to an honorary position in the King's Musketeers ("mousquetaires du roi"). He subsequently entered the French Guards ("gardes-françaises"), a regiment
Chateau and Seigneurie de Launay Chateau and Seigneurie de Launay The Chateau and Seigneurie de Launay are the estates and Castle of Launay that are situated in western France in the Perche Sarthois. The location of the castle is near the village of Lombron, in the Department of Sarthe. The Seigneurie or Châtellenie or Fief of Launay makes casual appearance in documents dating to the early 11th century. Reference to the current Château de Launay first appears in the late 14th century in the form of transfer documents. The history of Launay, at one time one of the most powerful seigneuries in western France, is