Born in 1692 (date unknown) into the aristocratic Mailly-family, Louise Françoise's early years are entirely obscure. Even today, her name is not very well known despite her causing considerable scandal during her time.
Her childhood ended as most aristocratic girls' did: in marriage. Being married to Jacques Antoine de Bauffremont, Marquis de Listenois, on 11 November 1706, the couple had had the honour of being officially betrothed in the private cabinet of the Duchesse de Bourgogne with Louis XIV himself as a witness.
Louise was fifteen years old when she married Jacques; her new husband was 24 years old. He had served in the king's armies for almost ten years at that point. Unfortunately, he appear to have been remarkably unlucky on the battlefield. Jacques was seriously wounded at his first battle (Madertingen), then yet again at his second (Schellemberg). The year before their wedding, he had received his third wound his battle which earned him a royal order. For his perseverance, Louis XIV made him a cavalry brigadier, although not everyone thought that was particularly wise. According to the Duc de Saint-Simon, the Marquis de Listenois was quite mad - the typically cynical Saint-Simon quipped that he was just as insane as others who were locked away.
Insane or not, the king rewarded those who bled for him. Upon their wedding, the king bestowed a lump sum of 26.000 écus on the couple as well as a pension of 6.000 livres. Meanwhile, the Maillys pledged to pay for the couple's room and board for a period of six years. That alone could be a considerable expense considering the sky-high prices demanded at Versailles.
The new Marquise de Listenois, threw herself into the debauched lifestyle led by the future elite of the regency. Following the seasonal cycle of royal hunts, festivals, balls and dinner parties, Louise was an established member of this "other" court. It is not unlikely that she was amongst those who found the sombre atmosphere at Versailles too boring. As for Madame de Maintenon, she judged the young lady to have plenty of wit but no beauty.
Yet, the expense was abruptly cut off in 1709. Sadly, Jacques' luck had run out and he was killed in battle on 24 September 1709. This left Louise Françoise a widow at the age of nineteen. In 1710, Louise gave birth to a girl - name unknown - who died in childhood. It is unclear whether the child was her husband's - the exact birth date is uncertain but it is possible that Jacques fathered the child before dying.
The death of her husband seems to have invoked a change in Louise's life. She started frequenting the salons of Madame de Maintenon much more than she had before. Those at court even began to speak of a "conversion" in her lifestyle.
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| Marquise de La Vrillère - Louise's sister |
When Louis XIV died, the repressed atmosphere at Versailles was replaced by a far more debauched regency. Scandals were not uncommon and vicious verses were amongst the chief ways of spreading rumours. After her change of lifestyle, the marquise de Listenois could have remained under the radar if it had not been for one aspect of her life: she was a lesbian.
It should be remembered that homosexuality was punishable by death at this point. Usually, people turned a blind eye to such escapades and the nobility were pretty much left to do as they pleased. However, that was typically the case for male homosexuals. Women were not considered - medically and morally - to possess sexuality at all. Therefore, if a woman showed sexuality she was often deemed "unnatural" by her contemporaries. If her preference was heterosexual, she was considered amoral, but if it was homosexual, it was abnormal.
Thus, a woman such as Louise Françoise was a prime target for the gutter press. While not the biggest star of such rags, she certainly did receive her fair share of attention. Already before the death of Louis XIV, she had been referred to as a direct descendant of Sapho; later, she was said to have confused love itself as it could not determine if she was a man or a woman. Even Voltaire seemed offended at this fluidity; he encountered both her and her sister at a masked ball and dedicated three poems to them; only one was of her and that was remarkably insulting.
How such tirades affected Louise is unknown. She does not appear to have left any testament of her feelings behind but her actions might shed a light on it. At the age of 38, she encountered a young woman by the name of Mademoiselle Lambert. The two began an affair which took on a pattern usually only seen in the typical aristocratic man/commoner mistress arrangement. The marquise arranged for her mistress to have a pension of about 6.000 livres.
Hitherto, the family of Louise had been able to turn a blind eye to her preferences but such an open relationship was considered embarrassing. Anne-Marie-Françoise de Sainte-Hermine (Louise's mother) filed for her daughter to be incarcerated for her own protection; this caused both Louise and Mademoiselle Lambert to flee.
They were apprehended shortly afterwards, surprisingly in the company of a child, which referred to the marquise as "papa". Both were imprisoned in various convents before their trials - remember, their relationship was a criminal offense. During this time Mademoiselle Lambert revealed two things. Firstly, that she was pregnant, and secondly that she had attempted to leave the marquise for a while.
In response, the marquise claimed that she - Louise - was the father of the child. She was quietly taken into custody by her sister, the marquise de La Vrillière. Any mention of an actual trial is missing. It is not unlikely that the authorities were willing to discard the charges as Louise was now in the custody of her family who were more than eager to keep a lid on the whole affair - not even a portrait exist of her. Louise likely never saw Mademoiselle Lambert again.
If Louise had anticipated to live out her life away from the public eye, she was mistaken. The financial turmoil of the 1740's meant that by 1742, the king's finances were examined. It was discovered that several people had falsified documents which then enabled them to receive money from the king. Louise was one such person. She had obtained her documents from her cousin, Mademoiselle de la Tournelle, but whether she knew them to be fake is unclear. Either way, once the king examined her voucher and declared it to be fake, the court was scandalised. Unfortunately, Louise's finances were dire and she outright refused to repay what she had illegally obtained.
After the investigation into her had concluded she was exonerated in July 1743. This could indicate that she - officially, at least - was unaware of any wrongdoing.
The news of her exoneration reached Louise at the convent of the Dames de la Croix Étoillée where she had moved to in the spring of 1743. She would remain there for the rest of her life. Whether she chose to move to the convent out of religious convictions, due to pressure from her family or even mental issues is anyone's guess. Both the stigma of her sexuality and mental problems combined with her falling social status meant that she had ceased being an object of interest.
Louise Françoise died on 26 February 1769.
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