Albert Gautier Vignal

Albert-Joseph Gautier Vignal (26 May 1854 – 18 October 1939) was a French-Monegasque nobleman and tycoon who sponsored various sports in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly fencing.

Early life Gautier was from a French noble family that settled in Monaco in the early 1820s, eventually becoming leading figures in the business. Born on 26 May 1854 in Nice, he was a son of Hélène Sicard (b. 1831) and Paul Gautier (1819–1872), who served as president of the Chamber of Commerce in Nice. He was a leading figure in developing fencing as a competitive sport, and Monaco as a sporting destination. In 1933 he became an honorary member of the International Fencing Federation (FIE).

Outside of sport, he was president of various banks as well as the Nice Electricity Company, and Consul-General for Romania in Nice.

Honors and awards In 1895 Gautier was ennobled and created Count Gautier Vignal by Pope Leo XIII in recognition of his dedication to the Holy See.

Madeleine Gautier Vignal (1884–1971), who married Paul Marie Adolphe de Foras, youngest son of Count Amédée de Foras, the Grand Marshal of the Court of Bulgaria, in 1910. After his death in World War I, she married Viscount Christian de l'Hermite. Eugène Louis "Paul" Albert Gautier Vignal (1887–1914), who died fighting for France during World War I. Louis Gautier Vignal (1888–1982), a writer who was friends with Marcel Proust. Elisabeth Gautier Vignal (1895–1994), who married Alberto Chiesa in 1920.

After the death of his first wife in 1910, he married London born Edith Emma Schiff (1871–1953) on 29 April 1911 in Nice. A sister of Sidney Schiff and Marie Schiff (Baroness de Marwicz), they were children of stockbroker Alfred George Schiff.