Gaston Pierre de Lévis

Who was Gaston Pierre de Lévis?

Gaston Pierre de Lévis, known as the duc de Lévis-Mirepoix, maréchal de France and ambassador of Louis XV, was a member of a house that had been established in Languedoc as seigneurs of Mirepoix, Ariège since the 11th century.

The chef de cuisine of the duc de Lévis-Mirepoix established the sautéed three vegetables that served as a basis for his culinary art, as a mirepoix in honor of his patron.

According to Pierre Larousse, the unfortunate Duke of Mirepoix was "an incompetent and mediocre individual. . . who owed his vast fortune to the affection Louis XV felt toward his wife and who had but one claim to fame: he gave his name to a sauce made of all kinds of meat and a variety of seasonings"