Jean François de Bette, Marquis of Lede
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Jean François de Bette, Marquis of Lede (Brussels, December 6, 1672 - Madrid, January 11, 1725) was a Belgian military commander in Spanish service from the Eighteenth century.
He was lord of the Fiefdom of Lede in Flanders, which had become a marquessate in 1633. Born in the Spanish Netherlands, he served the Spanish Crown for most of his life.
He served as Commander-General of Aragon and Majorca.
In 1703 he became a Knight of the Golden Fleece. He was also president of the Spanish War Council.
He is best known for his part in the War of the Quadruple Alliance, when he commanded the Spanish troops who tried to conquer Sicily back from the Austrians in 1718 - 1719. He was victorious in the Battle of Milazzo (1718) and Battle of Francavilla (1719).
He was also Viceroy of Sicily during this short occupation of the island.
In 1720-1721 he led a successful expedition to lift the siege of Ceuta by Sultan Moulay Ismail.
He married on December 11 1722 in Condé with the 16 year-old Princess Anna Maria Louise Charlotte de Croy-Roeulx, daughter of Philippe-François de Croy from the House of Croÿ. Their only son Emmanuel Ferdinand Francois Joseph de Bette (1724-1792) died without heirs.
