What Happened to the Children of Madame de Montespan?

The reign of Madame de Montespan as the king's official mistress is widely celebrated as the golden age of the king's court. The union produced several children who would later be legitimised and - rather forcefully on behalf of the king - integrated into the families of the princes of the blood. The fate and disputes regarding these "bastards" (as Saint-Simon continuously called them) caused a headache which would plague the next generations as well.

While the lives of Madame de Montespan's children out of wedlock are well-known, she happened to have had two legitimate children by her husband: Marie Christine and Louis Antoine.

Marie Christine de Pardaillan de Gondrin was the first-born child of the newly married Madame de Montespan. Her birth - on 17 November 1663 - took place a little over nine months after her parents' wedding, so she much have been conceived fairly quickly. Due to her father's outrage at his wife's position as the king's mistress, Marie Christine and her brother was removed from court and taken to the country estates of the Marquis de Montespan. 

Very little is known of Marie Christine's life in the country; she likely received the usual rudimentary education reserved for young ladies of the nobility. She was present for the mock funeral which her husband hosted for her mother and also lived to see the annual memorials for her (still very much alive) mother. Exactly how much the young girl understood of her parents' situation is not clear as she does not appear to have left anything behind. If her father had envisioned a marriage for her those plans never materialised. Marie Christine died at an unknown date in 1675, at 11-12 years of age.

Louis Antoine was the only son and heir of the Marquis de Montespan who consequently focused his attention on him. He and Marie Christine both grew up at the Château de Bonnefort until he was old enough to embark on his military career. His father prevented him from seeing his mother for 13 years while she was the king's mistress. Consequently, he had little to no relationship with her prior to his presentation at court. By 1683, he had been presented at court and his father had bought a commission of lieutenant for him. 

At court, he quickly befriended his half-siblings including the two sons of Louis XIV by his mother: the Duc du Maine and the Comte de Toulouse. Yet, despite his best efforts, Louis XIV never warmed to him personally but the king did come to appreciate his professional talents. Perhaps the king was worried that Louis Antoine took after his father and would thus become a problem by his public demonstrations of outrage at the king's behaviour. He even entered the society of the king's only legitimate son, the Grand Dauphin, through his marriage to Julie Françoise de Crussol in 1686.

 

Louis Antoine

Ironically, Louis Antoine did not find royal favour until the death of his mother. It has been suggested that Louis XIV did not appreciate the presence of his former mistress' legitimate son as it brought back unpleasant memories of the fact that she had effectually had  to abandon her legitimate children for those the king himself had sired. Not only did he inherit several of the estates bestowed upon Madame de Montespan by the king. He used his natural aptitude for both management and diplomatic tact to eventually win over the king who gave him the post of head of his buildings department. He managed so well that the king even appointed him to the regency council that took over after the death of the king. 

Louis Antoine would eventually also be granted a ducal title. In 1711 he was officially made the Duc d'Antin. Following his mother's exit from the court in 1691, the two does not appear to have kept much in contact.

His marriage had resulted in two sons: Louis and Pierre. Louis inherited the title and lands of his father, as per law, while Pierre was handed over to the church. The Montespans being Catholics, Pierre was prohibited from having children but Louis did.

Having been married to Marie Victoire de Noailles who - oddly enough - also gave her husband two sons: Louis and Antoine. The same pattern took place with Louis inheriting the goods of the family; Antoine, however, died without marrying or fathering children - although he did not enter the church. The union between Louis and Françoise Gilonne de Montmorency could have ended the line. Four children were born to them, three being girls: Julie Sophie, Louis, Marie Françoise and Julie Magdaleine. Louis himself died at the age of 36 while his son, also Louis, died without having either married or having children.

As Julie Sophie became an abbess, the family only lived on in the female line. Marie Françoise married into the Durfort-family while Julie Magdaleine had the Duc d'Uzès. Interestingly, the current Duc d'Uzès is descended from her.  

Auctioning Off: the Grand Dauphin

Louis de Bourbon, sole surviving child of Louis XIV and Marie Thérèse was a superb collector. His private collection counted hundreds of absolutely exquisite objets d'art - his taste was impeccable and as the heir to the throne, he could expect the best of the best.

Sold by Sothesby's, this cask is attributed to Alexandre-Jean Oppenordt and date back to about 1690. Note the crowned dolphins on the sides alongside the coat-of-arms of the dauphin - these makes it almost certainly specifically made for the Grand Dauphin. Numerous L's further point to the provenance of Louis - although that particular name was hardly unusual.

The dark wood is inlaid with a variety of brass, horn and tortoiseshell. The materials were quite popular with Oppenordt who used them for several other projects.

Two years after moving permanently to Versailles, the Grand Dauphin had these two pedestals delivered to his apartment in the growing palace. Created by the famed master André-Charles Boulle, the style is quite similar to the casket above: dark background with tortoiseshell, horn, brass and gilded bronze. They further appear from the inventory of the crown prince's apartment in 1689.

These pedestals were intended to carry a collection of large bronzes gifted to Louis by his father, Louis XIV. After his death in 1711, these bronzes were made part of the royal collection. As such, they were moved to various other royal residences over the years, including those of Choisy and Meudon. They were even mentioned in the royal inventory of 1775.

A pair of flintlock pistols dated to 1688 and made by Bertrand Piraube who was a popular gunmaker for the king. Made from dark walnut wood inlaid with silver scrollwork, the pistols are adorned with the fleur-de-lys of France as well as the royal heir's personal coat-of-arms. When observed from above, the head of the war-god Mars can be seen.

This book contains the ballet "Le Triomphe de l'Amour" by Jean-Baptiste Lully who worked for Louis XIV. That very ballet was performed for the wedding between the Grand Dauphin and Marie Anne Christine Victoire of Bavaria in 1680 - this book was published the following year by Christophe Ballard. 

Bound in red, Moroccan leather, the book is stamped with the Grand Dauphin's personal coat-of-arms with each corner adorned by a golden fleur-de-lys. The book's spine is decorated with both these French lilies and the dolphins symbolising the dauphin himself. 

Gifted to the Grand Dauphin in 1681 by his royal father, Louis XIV, this bronze depicts Hecules Overcoming Achelöus by Tacca. It dates back to about 1640. This happened to be one figure amongst a collection which counted four more; the remaining three were also a part of the gift. After the Grand Dauphin's death in 1711, they were reabsorbed into the royal collection where they remained until the revolution.

Another figure which belonged to the Grand Dauphin was this version of the Rape of a Sabine which has been attributed to the Italian Antonio Susini. It was produced in Florence between 1590-1610 and appear in the inventory of the Grand Dauphin's collection at Versailles in 1689. From then, it appear again in the inventory of the Garde Meuble (royal furniture) of 1738.

The Alcoholism of the Comtesse de Provence

Marie Joséphine of Savoy was married to Louis XVI's brother, Louis Stanislas Xavier, Comte de Provence, in 1771. When she arrived at the French court, she found herself as the second-highest ranking lady at court, immediately behind her sister-in-law, Marie Antoinette. Yet, over the years an increasing amount of people noticed that the young woman had a penchant for alcohol which seemed to go beyond the norm.

In the beginning, Marie Joséphine had a tendency to withdraw into her private apartment with her closest ladies and then proceed to drink copious amounts of alcohol. According to the Comtesse de Boigne, the Comtesse de Provence would drink so much that "the consequences were obvious in public". There is one particular aspect of the young lady's conduct which leads to the conclusion that she might already have had problems when she arrived at Versailles. Just four days after her wedding, she contacted the Piedmontese ambassador with a request for him to acquire a specific Piedmontese wine for her. Of course, this might just have been a preferred type of wine but considering the issues which she later exhibited it seems a tad more ominous. 

Some were pointing a finger at one of Marie Joséphine's closest friends, Madame de Gourbillon. This lady was accused of supplying Marie Joséphine with alcohol. One source relate the story of an incident which allegedly took place in 1789 when Louis XVI and the Comte de Provence surprised Madame de Gourbillon with a pot of unknown liquid. When asked what it was she claimed it was a broth for the Comtesse. That appeared to be the last straw and she was exiled from court. Yet, the removal of her close friend - and suspected mistress - did nothing to help the young woman with her addiction.

Marie Joséphine

The reasons for why Marie Joséphine turned to drink is naturally a matter which is difficult to discuss at the distance of several centuries. What is clear, though, is that she led a life of little fulfillment. She was an intelligent woman who had no way of pursuing any particular career; furthermore, she was said to be quite unattractive in a court which valued beauty. As the wife of the king's brother she had no influence at court and did not have a close relationship with her husband. Significantly, she fell pregnant twice but both pregnancies ended in a miscarriage - such losses would understandably add to the psychological toll. It was noticed that her drinking escalated after her husband began his affair with Madame de Balbi, one of her own ladies-in-waiting. Perhaps it was a way for her to escape?

Her addiction was not a closely guarded secret. Both the French public and her family in Turin were aware of her alcoholism; the pamphlets of the time typically mocked the royal family's failings (real and imagined). It says something about how well-known Marie Joséphine's addiction was that it was a prominent theme in the satires targeting her.

Marie Joséphine never overcame her addiction. Throughout her life - including her exile during the revolution - her alcoholism was a well-known secret. When she was reunited with her husband in Mitau (now Jelgava, Latvia) in 1799, she responded to her husband's refusal to recall Madame de Gourbillon by locking herself into her own rooms with no other company than a bottle of wine.

The Comte & Comtesse de Provence

The marriage between Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette has been scrutinised intensely from their very wedding day. The unconsummated marriage fuelled speculations for years until the queen finally delivered an heir but even the queen's enemies agreed that they possessed genuine affection for one another as they grew older.

In contrast, the union between the king's younger brother, Louis Stanislas Xavier, and Marie Joséphine of Savoy was far less amiable.

The wedding of Monsieur (as the elder of the king's younger brothers were known) was set for 14 May 1771. Once the bride arrived at court, the bridegroom was intensely disappointed. The new Madame was not particularly beautiful and her personal hygiene left a lot to wish for. For instance, she was known to rarely brush her teeth, her eyebrows were not plucked, and she did not indulge in perfumes to hide the fact that she rarely washed.

Finding her deeply unattractive, Louis Stanislas was also horrified at her lack of understanding of the French courtly routine - and did nothing to help her integrate herself in her new life. As for Marie Joséphine, she likely was not impressed with her spouse either. The Comte de Provence had the typical Bourbon appetite which had left him very obese, to the point that he waddled when he walked.

Marie Joséphine 

So, the stage was not set for a happy union but initially it was not entirely hopeless. The couple lived together, as was expected, and shared a fondness for intrigue. Both were dominating personalities who liked to have the last words - quite an explosive combination. Yet, there was one blot on the marriage which caused immense frustration. The marriage was - like that of his brother's - unconsummated. It is widely speculated that Louis Stanislas was impotent although he enjoyed boasting that he and his wife enjoyed a vivacious intimate life. The couple would never have any living children; Marie Joséphine's two pregnancies both resulted in miscarriages.

In the first years of the marriage, they lived rather secluded but together in a calm co-existence. While their relationship does not appear to have been very romantic, they did get on well enough to avoid any scandal. For instance, it was not unusual for the Comtesse to accompany her husband when he went to their various estates. There, they could peacefully indulge in their shared passion: undermining Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Both Louis Stanislas and Marie Joséphine were deeply opposed to their new king and queen; as the years wore on, their dislike grew into actual hostility. This might have acted as a common interest between them and appear to be one of the few points in which they actively cooperated. 

For once, there is a direct insight into the feelings of one of the parties involved. As the Comtesse de Provence wrote to her friend, her husband might be the master of her house, but he was not the master of her heart - "he has never had it". Thus, she seem quite openly to admit that she has never had any romantic feelings for her husband.

Louis Stanislas

Until 1780, the couple maintained a distanced but accepting relationship but things were about to change. The Comtesse de Balbi entered into the household of the Comtesse de Provence and immediately attracted the attention of her mistress' husband. The two began an affair which lasted throughout the next decades. Understandably, this spelled the end for any outright affection between husband and wife and left them with a relationship in which they tolerated one another.

Interestingly, Marie Joséphine was rumoured to stray from her marriage as well - but not to a lover. She was speculated to indulging in a lesbian affair with Marguerite de Gourbillon. Whether true or not, is not known, as female homosexual relationships were entirely taboo. Either way, it was painfully obvious that the two did not share any sense of intimacy or special loyalty towards one another.

When the revolution broke out, the couple was successful at escaping France - but their marriage did not survive. Whereas they had hitherto made do with a distanced relationship, they now settled in two different countries. The Comte de Provence headed for the court of Paul I of Russia, the Comtesse went to Schleswig-Holstein - and she took the Comtesse de Balbi with her. That was indeed her prerogative as she had maintained her husband's mistress in her own household. Even when he was proclaimed Louis XVIII, it took many years for the two to be finally reunited. 

The Recklessness of the Duc de Richelieu

Armand-Jean de Vignerot du Plessis was destined for a sparkling destiny from his youth. As the eldest male heir of Cardinal Richelieu, he stood to inherit the cardinal's immense wealth, ducal title and personal collection of priceless objets d'art. His own father, the marquis de Pont-Courlay, brought with him the governorship of Havre for his son to succeed; his mother, Marie-Françoise de Guémadeuc held to baronies in her own right.

The young man was connected to the all-powerful cardinal through his father's side. His father was the son of Françoise du Plessis de Richelieu - sister to the cardinal. Thus, to the young Armand-Jean, the future looked very bright indeed.

Armand-Jean would be called upon to take up his destiny sooner than he might have imagined. At the age of just 13, Armand-Jean inherited both the post of General of the Galleys from his father, and the dukedom of Richelieu, when he died in 1642.

Perhaps it was the youth of Armand-Jean, the loss of his father at such impressionable an age or sheer bad luck but Armand-Jean turned out to be an uncommonly poor decision-maker. When the Fronde tore the French court apart, Armand-Jean joined the forces of the Grand Turenne which placed him on the losing side of history. Possibly due to his youth, he was pardoned by the king and accepted into the fold of royal favour.

Having thus reclaimed his place at court - and married a suitable lady - the young, rich heir set about enjoying himself. Unfortunately for him, the word moderation was not in his vocabulary. Leading a spendthrift lifestyle, the young duke liked nothing better than high stakes gambling, pretty mistresses and the finer things in life. 

At the age of 28, he could add the title of Duc de Richelieu to his name which brought him even further prestige at court. Hitherto, he had not legally held the title as it had not been registered at parliament as his title had been conditioned on him assuming both the name and coat-of-arms of the du Plessis-family.

Yet, such an expensive lifestyle came at a high cost. Constantly in debt, Armand-Jean found himself obliged to sell off some of the family's most lucrative posts. The first to go was his father's inheritance of General of the Galleys in 1661 - that fetched in 200.000 livres. Despite such a staggering sum, his demanding mistresses soon returned him to a state of penury. He also relinquished his governorship of Havre in exchange for an obscure post as colonel.

Armand-Jean

His own sense of financial risk was apparently not great. By 1665, he was enjoying the company of the youthful Louis XIV with whom he often played a bout of tennis - in that year, he parted ways with no less than 25 priceless pieces of art. The king purchased these pieces at the outrageously low price of 50.000 livres - a price set by the ever-obliging Colbert. If Armand-Jean had had even the slightest of financial acumen, he would have realised that he had been deeply cheated. Another version claim that the paintings were lost in a game of tennis - either way, the price was massively disproportionate to the possible gains.

If Armand-Jean hoped to recover his luck, he was sorely disappointed. His estate of Pont-l'Abbé in Brittany became a prime target during a revolt in 1675 which saw the castle not only pillaged but put to the torch afterwards. Thus, Armand-Jean could only watch from afar as another piece of his inheritance literally went up in flames. 

Royal favour did all it could to restore the unfortunate Duc de Richelieu to a more stable existence but to little avail. After becoming Chevalier d'Honneur to the new dauphine in 1679, his debts were once again so pressing that he was obliged to sell this latest honour. This time, he earned 300.000 livres by the sale but it was apparently not enough to keep his creditors at bay - the following year (1685) he had to sell his mother's barony of du Pont. 

Even such desperate measures were not enough. In an effort to ingratiate himself with Madame de Maintenon he became "as devout as he had previously been libertine" but any hope of royal favour was not forthcoming. Perhaps the king thought he had already been more than generous towards this seemingly incorrigible man. Towards the end of his life, Armand-Jean's finances reached a truly desperate state and his assets were seized. This forced him into a pitiable exile far from court where he existed on a meagre pension.

Bloody Duty: Youths at War

Military service was all but obligatory for the young men of the nobility; those who could afford it gave their sons prestigious educations, for instance in the school of pages which was housed in the Grand Écurie. At the end of their education, they would receive a commission or a regiment - once more, bought and paid for by their family. The consequence was that 18-20 year old men were placed in charge of trained soldiers without having no practical experience themselves.

Yet, not everyone could afford to purchase a rank but still hoped to advance themselves through the army. Louis XIV wished to accommodate them while providing himself with a new corps of fresh officers with noble blood. In 1682 - the same year that the court settled at Versailles - he established a system of cadets gentilhommes which catered to young men from aristocratic but impoverished families. They would be sent to frontier garrisons where they would receive their education - afterwards they could use that knowledge to keep the frontier secure.

Louis XV also attempted to incorporate the never-ending need for new officers with this desire for service; he created the École Militaire which accepted 500 youths ranging from 8 years old to 20 years old. The only requirement was a proof of nobility going back four generations on the father's side. After their education, they were deployed in the king's service.

Considering the young ages of the boys involved, it is no wonder that many of them had a rude awakening when they first encountered the military. For instance, François-Marie d’Arod was just fifteen years old when he entered the army. As he later recalled, the first time a captain reprimanded him, he burst out in tears.

Others were not even that fortunate. Eager to make a name for themselves, the bloody battlefields of the 17th century caused the death of several young men from court:

Vincent-Dominique-Régis de Boufflers was the son of the Marquis de Remiencourt and thus a part of the Boufflers-family. At the age of 13 he was already serving as a standard-bearer for a regiment in the king's guards. They were deployed for the Battle of Dettingen on 27 June 1743; Vincent-Dominique-Régis did not survive the battle. Sources disagree as to his age; some claim that he had been born in 1723 while others place his age as low as 13. A single source even claim that he died due to blood-loss after his arm was shot off by a canon. 

Unfortunately, it is quite likely that Vincent was just 13 years old. The post he held was often given to very young boys who were in the very start of their military career. Typically, such a position was unpaid but he was permitted to wear an officer's uniform.

While older than Vincent-Dominique-Régis, Godefroy de Duras was already colonel of his infantry regiment at the age of 25. His father was the Marquis de Duras who himself held the title of Maréchal de Camp. Known as the Comte de Rozan, he died in the battle of Candie on 29 June 1669.

Jan Peeter's depiction of the battle of Candie 
which saw French forces come to the aid of
the Venetians against the Ottomans

From an immense flock of siblings (18 children), Emmanuel Jules de Noailles was the son of the Duc de Noailles and held the title of Comte de Noailles at court. At the age of just 8 years old, he was made governor of Guyenne - a practice that allowed his father to exert actual control until he himself came of age. Sadly, that would never happen. Deployed with his regiment in 1702, he fought near the Rhine where he received several wounds to his head. Despite being evacuated back to Strasbourg, he died on 20 October at the age of 16.

Louis de Rohan, Prince de Rohan, was colonel of a cavalry regiment when he participated in the French campaign in Flanders of 1688. In the summer of that year, he was wounded - not enough to be immediately serious, but enough to warrant sending him home. It is unclear how the doctors managed to keep him alive for so long; he died in Paris on 5 November 1689, with the cause of death stated as being from the wounds he had sustained during the previous battle. He was 22 years old. 

At the age of just 20, César-Auguste de Choiseul was Duc de Choiseul and First Gentleman of the Chamber to Philippe, Duc d'Orléans. He was sent to Luxembourg in the spring of 1684 to besiege the city; while doing so, he was wounded and died shortly afterwards. He had not yet had time to marry.

César-Auguste was far from the only Choiseul to perish on the battlefield. The sons of Charles de Choiseul, Baron d'Ambonville appear to have been particularly unfortunate in this regard. Of Charles' 9 children, 6 were male - and four died in battle. Charles (second son of the baron) was a cavalry captain when he died in the Battle of Cassel in 1677, François also died at the battle of Candie (like Godefroy de Duras), Pierre died near Alger in 1683 while Claude-Bernard had died in Germany in 1679. 

By 28 years old, Louis Potier, Marquis de Gandelus, was brigadier as well as colonel of first the d'Albret-regiment and then that of Vaisseaux. He was the third son of the Duc de Tresmes. Louis XIV sent him to fight in the Sun King's campaign in the Palatinate which placed the young man at Oberkirq where he was seriously wounded. Taken back to Strasbourg, he died on 24 April 1689.

His younger brother, Jules-Auguste, died just three months after Louis. Jules-Auguste was also a soldier as well as a Knight of Malta. He was killed during the taking of Coron on 18th July 1689, at 26 years old. 

Louis-François de La Rochefoucauld had become a page to the king at the age of 18; this inevitably led to a military position. In his case, Louis-François was made aide-de-camp to the Comte de Roye. It was while following Roye to Seintzen in 1674 that the young seigneur de la Bergerie was killed in action at 24 years of age.

Having just married his cousin, Emmanuel-Henri de Beaumanoir, marquis de Lavardin, set out to fight in the War of the Spanish Succession. He held the post of Lieutenant General of the king's armies in Lower Brittany as well as a cavalry colonel. On 15th November 1703, the 19-year old was in the battle of Spire during which he died.

Battle of Ramillies

Serving as sub-lieutenant in the king's gendarmes, Maximilien-Gaston-Guy-Benjamin de Rohan was also dispatched for the king during the War of the Spanish Succession. When the battle of Ramillies broke out on 23rd May 1706, Maximilien was 26 years old. He was shot in the head by a musket, presumably (and hopefully) killing him rather instantly. 

Like the Choiseul-family above, that of Rohan also followed the traditional way of purchasing titles for the sons of the family. By spreading them out to various regiments, the family might also hope to widen their sphere of influence. Such a scattering of relatives had the added advantage of lessening the risk of annihilation of the next generation; imagine if all young men of a single family were placed in the same regiment - that would inevitably place the future of their family at risk if they were sent into battle. 

Maximilien-Gaston-Guy-Benjamin de Rohan himself was the sixth son of the Prince de Soubise. His father had passed on the post of captain-lieutenant to his second son. Interestingly, Maximilien might have served with his brother, the Prince de Soubise's fourth son, Henri-Louis. Both Maximilien and Henri were enrolled as ensigns but whether that was in the same regiment is unknown.

Pierre-Gabriel de Simiane, Comte de Carcés, fought at the battle of Cassel in 1677. He was a member of the king's bodyguard known as the French Guards. During the fighting, he received no less than five wounds which caused him to be evacuated to Ypres. Sadly, he never recovered and died there at the age of 22; as such, he predeceased both his parents.

Naturally, there are many, many more men who lost their lives on the battlefield but it would simply be impossible to mention them all. The period in question - particularly the reign of Louis XIV - was dominated by bloody conflicts including the War of the Spanish Succession, the Nine Years' War and the War of the League of Augsburg.

Auctioning Off: Madame de Pompadour

Being one of the most expensive royal favourites, the reign of Madame de Pompadour was characterised by its classic rococo with its delicate and sumptuous decor. Bright colours, luxurious materials and exquisite porcelain were hallmarks of the period. Yet, with the premature death of Jeanne-Antoinette de Poisson, her belongings were quickly scattered.

These two candelabras with their distinct cockerels were acquired by Madame de Pompadour for her Hôtel d'Évereux (now the Palais d'Élysées). They would be placed near her library there. The date of purchase is set to be 4th August 1755 with the seller being Lazare-Duvaux. They also figure in the inventory made up after her death in 1764.

The porcelain itself is not from Sèvres which she otherwise championed. Instead, it is imported from China which only added to its prestige - and cost. She had originally paid 360 livres per the pair.

As a patron of the Enlightenment philosophers, it was only apt that Madame de Pompadour possessed a substantial personal library. At the time of her death, her library counted about 3500 books - all bound in leather and stamped with her personal coat-of-arms. Her favourite colours for the leather appear to have been red and yellow. 

This set of books contain 17 volumes and was sold by Christies in 2021. The subjects vary over ten different topics.

The little poem beneath is thought to have been written by Madame de Pompadour herself on the occasion of Louis XV's victory at Fontenoy in 1745. The piece is called "La Fontenoy Fanfare" and goes as follows:

Le roi le plus aimable
Est le plus grand ses rois
Il efface par les exploits
Les héros de l'histoire et les dieux de la fable.
Quels sons de leco repette
A la gloire des lis
C'est la même trompette
Q'Henri forma jadis
A chanter la deffaite
De ces fiers ennemis
Au temple de mémoire
Il est d'autre désirs
Pour plus d'une victoire
Son coeur a des soupirs
A Fontenoy la gloire
A Choisy les plaisirs


Tentative translation
The most amiable king

and the greatest of our kings

He effaces by his deeds

The heroes of history and the gods of fables.

What lessons repeated

To the glory of the lilies (perhaps a reference to the royal lilies of France?)

It is the same trumpet

Which Henri once used 

To sound the defeat 

Of these proud enemies 

At the temple of memories

There are other desires

For more than one victory

His heart sighs

At Fontenoy, the glory 

At Choisy, the pleasure

This happens to sum up the character of Louis XV quite well; despite achieving the greatest military victory of his reign in 1745, his eternal melancholy caused him to always seek out distractions - including at Choisy where Madame de Pompadour waited.

Once she ceased sharing a physical relationship with Madame de Pompadour, she attempted to mould herself into the perfect image of virtuous companion. A part of this transformation was a reconciliation with the church - something that had been impossible while committing adultery. This oratory is believed to have belonged to Madame de Pompadour; it dates back to about 1750. The artist is thought to have been Philippe Caffieri.

A letter from the marquise herself to Nicolas René Berryer, Comte de La Ferrière who was residing in Paris when he received this letter in 1757. The letter includes the red seal and the folds on the paper clearly show how the letter was folded when sent.

Vengeance of a Mistress: Madame de Châteauroux's Return

In 1744, Louis XV ventured to the frontier at Metz with his court. Naturally, once the king went, the entire court followed, including his maitresse-en-titre, Madame de Châteauroux. Born as Marie Anne de Mailly, she had married the Marquis de La Tournelle in 1734 before supplanting her own sister as the king's official mistress. 

Unlike her predecessor, Madame de Châteauroux was ruthless in her ambition. Whereas her sister, Julie Louise, had wanted nothing else but the king's company, Marie Anne wanted it all: money, power, status. By 1744, she was at the height of her influence over the king and followed him to his military camp. She was there when the king was suddenly taken ill.

Louis XV was close to death; so close, in fact, that his doctors summoned the priests to give the king his final absolution. Yet, no king could die with an official mistress still in place which was fervently pointed out by the confessor. Knowing that he might not survive his illness, the king - reluctantly - agreed to publicly renounce his mistress.

Madame de Châteauroux

To Madame de Châteauroux, this was a disaster. She was anxiously waiting for word of the king's condition when she was informed that she had been publicly dismissed. With one swift movement, she had lost everything that she had worked for; even worse, she had made fierce enemies throughout her reign. As the queen and royal family was summoned to Metz, both Marie Anne and her sister were sent packing. On their way back, they were subjected to unending taunts and insults by the watching crowds.

To all appearances, those news were expected to be followed by the news of the king's death - but that never happened. Louis XV miraculously recovered and found himself in an unpleasant situation.

Louis XV was nothing if not a creature of habit. He disliked new faces and was most comfortable with people he already knew. Besides, he was still enamored with his commanding mistress. Yet, it was no laughing matter to go against one's own confession - and that of the king had been publicised when his death seemed certain. For months, the king wavered and missed the comfort of Marie Anne. Finally, he decided to recall the mistress whom he had officially dismissed previously that year.

So, the order was given for Maurepas to summon Madame de Châteauroux on 25 November 1744 - in person. The country was shocked at the scandal - never before had the king so brazenly disregarded both churchly doctrine and his own claims of remorse. 

Madame de Châteauroux was thrilled - and ready for vengeance. She was well-aware that she could have been brought back much sooner if her enemies had not been actively working against her; she even wrote  to her close friend, the Duc de Richelieu, that she knew she would return "more brilliantly than ever" once the king "came to his senses". Chiefly amongst her opponents was the man who had been charged with her recall: Maurepas. 

Maurepas was not a nobody at court. Serving as the Minister of the Navy, he had exercised a good deal of power at court. Yet, now he was given a "choice" by his royal master: beg forgiveness of Madame de Châteauroux or go into exile. Maurepas chose the former and in late-November he begrudgingly asked mercy of his enemy.

The scene for this public humiliation was the Rue de Bac in Paris where Marie Anne resided. To complete Maurepas' embarrassment, she had gathered her friends about her - particularly those who were likewise on bad terms with the minister. He was ushered in to where the mistress was lounging on her bed surrounded by her friends - without saying a word, she calmly looked on her adversary. He handed her the official note of summons from the king while protesting that he had had no knowledge of what had happened to her at Metz. Thus, the audience was concluded and Maurepas could return to court.

Maurepas

The farce that Maurepas had subjected himself to was the result of a compromised reached between Louis XV and Madame de Châteauroux. The king knew he needed the capable hand of Maurepas in his government but also recognised that his mistress would never consent to having him at court. Thus, the king got to keep his minister - if the mistress got to choose the manner in which he was humiliated first.

Maurepas was not the only man whose enmity with Madame de Châteauroux could have been disastrous. No less than three dukes were in her firing line: the Duc de La Rochefoucauld, de Châtillon and de Bouillon. The king agreed to exile the three dukes to their private estates but there was a distinct difference in their punishments. Both the Ducs de La Rochefoucauld and de Bouillon were allowed to return to their comfortable country estates and received their notice of exile from a polite, but aloof letter written by the king himself. 

The Duc de Châtillon, however, was served with an official lettre-de-cachet and sent to a rather dilapidated estate. The cause for this particular punishment was that Madame de Châteauroux believed he had turned the dauphin against her. Amongst other grievances, he had lectured the future king on morals and had dared to use the example of the king's affair with Madame de Châteauroux as an example of sin.  Officially, the origin of his disgrace was stated to be that he had brought the dauphin on an arduous trip to Metz upon hearing of the king's death. That was done without the king's permission and had caused the heir considerable fatigue. Yet, everyone knew who had truly demanded his exile. Thus, both he and his wife were exiled from court; they were given just thirty minutes notice and forbidden to say goodbye to either the queen or the dauphin.

These were not the only ones who had incurred the wrath of Madame de Châteauroux. Balleroi - governor of the Duc de Chartres and the archbishop of Soissons were also pointed out as objects of her displeasure. The latter had been the one to deliver the message of her disgrace at Metz, while the former was accused of having added to the chorus of voices against Madame de Châteauroux on the king's deathbed. Balleroi was exiled in a curt manner but the same could not be done for the archbishop due to his rank and family. Instead, he, too, was given a lettre-de-cachet and asked to return to his diocese. While he was permitted to return for the wedding of the dauphin (after the death of Marie Anne), the king would eventually block his candidature for a cardinal's hat.

Louis XV

Finally, Marie Anne demanded that the king's confessor be sent away as well. His name was Prusseau and it was he who had urged the king to renounce his mistress on his death bed. Despite it being the customary advice in such situations, Madame de Châteauroux saw it as a declaration of war. The king showed his rather unpleasant streak of playing cat-and-mouse with the cleric. Rather than informing Prusseau of his intentions, the king left him in complete ignorance as to what his fate was to be. The king even sent for another confessor which gave the impression that he would indeed be banished - but in the end, Prusseau was allowed to stay.  

It is impossible to say what the fates of these men would have been if things had continued in this manner. Yet, that was not to be. Marie Anne was just enjoying her triumphant return to power when she suddenly became seriously ill. She died on 8 December 1744 and with her, the displeasure of the king for the men who had wronged her.