Juan Procopio de Bassecourt y Bryas was born the son of
Field Marshal Procopio de Bassecourt y Thieulaine, Marquis of Bassecourt, 1st Count of Santa Clara (a noble title granted in 1748 by King
Fernando VI of Spain, the family having served imperial Spain since at least the middle of the 16th century), Baron of
Maials, and Governor of
Montjuic in Barcelona. He was the nephew of Maria Catalina de Bassecourt, who married the
Palermo-born Spanish military officer Juan González-Valor, Marquis of González from 1736, a title awarded by Charles VII of Naples and Sicily, King of Naples and Sicily (1716–1736), later King
Charles III of Spain (1759–1788). In 1761, he married Maria Teresa de Sentmenat y Copons, ==Early career==