Born in Sedan, Ardennes, he was the son of Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, vicomte de Turenne, duc de Bouillon and Elisabeth of Nassau. His brother was the famous Turenne, Marshal of France. Raised as a Protestant, he received a military education in Holland under his uncles Maurice of Nassau-Orange and Frederick Henry of Nassau-Orange. Along with the comte de Soissons, he conspired against Richelieu, and with the support of Spanish troops he and the comte de Soissons defeated the French royal troops sent after them at the Battle of La Marfée, outside of Sedan, in 1641.