Comte Etienne Lafond
Etienne married a cousin, Louise Lafond, and the estate passed to their firstborn son Antoine Narcisse Lafond (there were four subsequent children, Ernest, Pierre, Emilie and Athanaïs Zoé), who was a député in nearby Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire from 1831 to 1847, as well as Régent of the Banque de France from 1831 to 1866 (and he would surely have had the funds to purchase the estate, if indeed it was he and not his father who acquired it). Even at this time we know that the estate, as acquired, had extensive vineyards (pictured below, just in front of the château), so viticulture and winemaking was clearly well established.
Antoine married Mélanie Harlé d’Ophove in 1820 and they had a son named Etienne Edmond Lafond (born 1821), an instrumental figure in the stories of both the Lafond family and in that of Château du Nozet. He inherited the estate from his father, and it was also he who had the title of comte (more formally, he would be considered a comte romain) bestowed on him by Pope Pius IX in 1849. The granting of such noble titles by the Pope is a practice that had existed since the 14th century, the recipients principally being Italians close to the papacy, although prominent Catholics in more distant lands could also be honoured. Etienne was one such figure.
Please log in to continue reading: