Charles Paul Jean Baptiste de Bourgevin Vialart de Saint-Morys

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Charles Paul Jean Baptiste de Bourgevin Vialart de Saint-Morys (1743–1795) was a French art collector, amateur draughtsman and engraver, best known for building one of 18th‑century Paris’s great drawing collections.

Life
He was born in Paris on July 11, 1743, the son of Charles Paul Jean Baptiste de Bourgevin Vialart de Moligny and Marie Élisabeth Jean Baptiste Guyard de Saint-Clair. The Bourgevin family had connections to several notable families. From 1761 to 1769 he served in the King’s Musketeers (Grey Company). On July 29, 1769, he married Éléonore Élisabeth de Beauterne de Jauville, sole heiress to her uncle Étienne-Paul Boucher. Through this marriage he gained wealth that allowed him to become a counsellor in the Grand Chambre of the Parlement of Paris.

He lived at 8 rue Vivienne in Paris and, in 1780, bought an estate at Hondainville, where he began building a manor to house his growing collection of drawings, paintings and natural history specimens. The building was later torn down after half the estate was sold. An amateur draughtsman and engraver, he also started potato farming in Mouy in 1784.

Revolution and after
With the onset of the French Revolution, he left France in 1790 and much of his wealth, lands and collection were seized. His drawings were incorporated into the Louvre between 1796 and 1797. He and his wife divorced on December 3, 1794. During the same period he served as intendant general of the Catholic and Royal Army. He died on the Quiberon Expedition in 1795. His son, Charles Étienne de Bourgevin Vialart de Saint-Morys, was killed in a duel with colonel Barbier-Dufay in 1817.

The Saint-Morys collection
Saint‑Morys is best remembered for his expansive collection of drawings. He began gathering drawings in 1769 and grew the collection through his wife’s fortune and an inheritance from his uncle in 1778. He bought many works from major sales, including Antoine Dezallier d’Argenville’s collection (3,350 drawings total; 84 lots (about 424 drawings) bought by Saint‑Morys) in 1779, the Gouvernet sale in 1775, and the Mariette sale (1775–1776), acquiring hundreds of sheets with the help of art dealer Jacques Lenglier. By the time he left France, his collection numbered around 12,644 drawings, many of which later entered the Louvre.

Family
Saint‑Morys’s family line included Charles Antoine Jacques Bourgevin (1680–1764), who married Catherine Thérèse Boucher. Their descendants included Charles Paul Jean Baptiste de Bourgevin Vialart de Saint‑Morys, who, in 1769, married Éléonore Élisabeth de Beauterne de Jauville. Their son, Charles Étienne de Bourgevin Vialart de Saint-Morys (1772–1817), married Marie Anne Charlotte de Valicourt; their daughter Charlotte Marie Joséphine de Bourgevin Vialart de Saint‑Morys married Jules de Gaudechart in 1816.

Legacy
Charles Paul Jean Baptiste de Bourgevin Vialart de Saint-Morys is remembered as a key figure among 18th‑century French art collectors. His meticulous assembling of drawings helped enrich major collections, with a significant portion eventually becoming part of the Louvre.