The Reluctant Queen: The Forced Marriage of the King's Niece

The fate of Marie Louise d'Orléans is a remarkably sad one. Being the eldest daughter of Philippe, brother to Louis XIV, she was destined to make a glorious match when she became old enough to marry. For years, it had been speculated that she would marry her first-cousin, the Grand Dauphin, which would make her the future queen of France. As she grew older, Marie Louise herself became quite enamoured with the idea of marrying the heir to the throne - and likely the idea of becoming queen herself.

The union would not have been unthinkable despite their very close familial relationship. Louis XIV himself had married his own first-cousin, Marie-Thérèse, and it would also serve as a means of uniting the two branches of the family on the throne. Their ages, too, were compatible. Marie Louise had been born just a few months after the Grand Dauphin and they had grown up together.

Thus, when the 17-year old Marie Louise was summoned to the presence of both the king and her father, the Duc d'Orléans, in July 1679, she likely expected to hear news of a forthcoming marriage. However, her fate was not to become queen of France - but of Spain.

Marie Louise at the time of her marriage

Louis XIV wished to place his niece on the throne of Spain which required her to marry Charles II. The bride-to-be was absolutely distraught. Having been convinced for years that she would marry her cousin Louis, this development brought a whole onslaught of startling consequences. For one, she would have to leave her family - permanently. If she had married the Grand Dauphin, she would have had the privilege of remaining in her native country with her own family for the rest of her life. Now, she was to leave France behind immediately after the wedding.

Marie-Louise is said to have protested fiercely against the marriage to the best of her abilities. This included beseeching her all-powerful uncle, Louis XIV, to allow her to stay in France. Yet, there was not budging the Sun King who assured her that by making her queen of Spain, he could not have done more for his own daughter. Marie Louise is said to have responded by retorting: "No, but you might have done more for your niece". It was even said that she threw herself at the feet of the king, begging him not to make her go. Alas, sacrificing a niece was easily done for the good of the realm.

Proxy marriage

The bridegroom himself was not exactly a promising prospect either. Despite having the decided advantage of being king of Spain, Charles II was the result of generations of intense inbreeding and is thought to have suffered from several debilitating disabilities as well. The combination was not attractive for a young woman who was already determined to marry someone else. Her future husband was notoriously unattractive and prone to illnesses; while it was suggested that he was feebleminded, there is little to suggest that that was actually the case. He was also an avid hunter which would have been impossible if he had been entirely disabled.

The behaviour of the Spanish king was erratic, at best. Having become notorious for his fits of rage at his own courtiers, he had become besotted with his future wife from the moment he received her portrait. He continued to be devoted to her but also came to resent that she never conceived a child.

Another dreaded aspect was the extremely restrictive Spanish court. Whereas Versailles was ruled by etiquette, Madrid was strangled by it. The lives of the monarchs were so isolated by the countless prohibitions on direct contact with them that Marie-Louise would inevitably have a very lonely life. Furthermore, any carefree private life was entirely ruled out.

The preparation for the big event was a mixed affair. While the bride was obviously downcast and often seen weeping, her father relished both the idea of having a queen for a daughter and being able to equip her with a splendid trousseau. Meanwhile, the bride continued her outward display of grief at what she considered a terrifying fate. The wedding by proxy took place on 30 August 1679; the couple was married in person on 19 November that year.

Marie-Louise as queen of Spain 

Upon her final goodbyes to her family, she was once again reminded of the purpose of her new life by Louis XIV himself; the king informed her that it would be the greatest unhappiness if she ever saw France again. 

Undoubtedly, this did little to comfort the teenage-bride and indeed she never did see her native country again. Finding a devoted husband in Charles II, she nevertheless suffered from his sterility - which was blamed on her - and the suffocating life at the Spanish court. Besides being obliged to witness the Inquisition perform its terrible practices, she was prevented from even looking out the windows of the royal palaces by etiquette. Her every move was scrutinized but the monotony was not broken up by the opulent parties of Versailles. Instead, the court of Madrid was oppressive and dour. It was not long before Marie Louise's fears for her future seemed to come true; after ten years of gilded solitude, Marie Louise died suddenly at just 26 years old.

Chosing Another Madame: The Choice of Elizabeth-Charlotte

The untimely death of Henrietta of England, Duchesse d'Orléans, in 1670 meant that there was (in the words of Louis XIV) a vacant position at court: that of Madame, sister-in-law of the king. Such an elevated position warranted a princess from impeccable background. Henrietta herself had been a beautiful and well-educated woman who was beloved by her brother-in-law. Undoubtedly, it would be a difficult task to step into her shoes.

The choice fell on the nineteen-year old Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate. Unlike her predecessor, Elizabeth Charlotte was no beauty but had a strong intellect and even stronger opinions. The choice might seem a rather odd one. France had preferred to import their royal wives from the major powerhouses of Europe, particularly their southern neighbor of Spain. Furthermore, Elizabeth Charlotte's family were not rich nor did they rule a particularly large or strategically important territory. The Palatinate was located in the middle of modern Germany and was made up of many, some very small, territories. So why was Elizabeth Charlotte chosen?

As for Spain, there were no suitable princesses available. The reigning king, Charles II, was notoriously inbred and apparently infertile. Even if he had had a daughter by his first wife, the idea of a union between her and Philippe was unthinkable. The problem was that the girl in question would have been Philippe's own granddaughter, as Charles' first wife was Philippe's daughter, Marie Louise. Even the premature death of Marie Louise and her replacement by Maria Anna of Neuburg did not result in a princess; she would undoubted have been far too young as well. Thus, Spain was not a possibility.

Elizabeth-Charlotte at the time of her
marriage

The choice of a royal bride was always a matter of politics. In this case, it was the foreign politics of Louis XIV that placed the unlikely candidate of Elizabeth Charlotte at the court of Versailles. The Sun King's combination of diplomacy and military might had ensured that the neighboring states were neutralised as a threat to France - except for the Palatinate. Hitherto, the Palatinate had had no definitive pact with France which provided France's enemies with a potential route directly to the French border. It would also enable the king to expand his interests to other German states.

There was also the possibility of physically pushing France's own borders. In lieu of a dowry - the Elector being both unwilling and unable to pay a large enough sum - the succession rights of Elizabeth Charlotte remained intact. Should the male line fail, France might just claim the territory in her name - as it happens, that is exactly what happened. In 1685, Charles II of the Palatinate - or Karl as Liselotte would have known him - died. He had been the brother of Elizabeth Charlotte and had had no children by his wife, a Danish princess.

This prompted Louis XIV to raise the claim of his sister-in-law which famously resulted in the ravaging of Elizabeth Charlotte's homeland, including the palace she had grown up in. Elizabeth Charlotte would never forgive her brother-in-law for this assault on her native country but preferred to assign blame to Louvois.

By 1671, this was still in the future but remained a very strong argument for the choice of Elizabeth Charlotte. Furthermore, she might not have been a royal princess in her own right but she was connected to important families. For instance, she was the granddaughter of the King of Bohemia and the great-granddaughter of the King of England. Such distant ties might potentially prove desirable.

For the bride's father, Charles Louis (Karl Ludwig) the union was beneficial. There was the obvious attraction of a high-ranking match for his daughter, especially as he was unlikely to have thought of marrying her so advantageously. However, the Elector realistically had little choice. Imagine that he had refused the offer altogether. He would have made a powerful enemy who had a dominating presence in every state surrounding him. Viewed in that light, agreeing to a marriage was the preferable option even if it meant having his daughter convert to Catholicism.

Philippe, ca. 1670 

That was another thing that nagged the courtiers of Versailles. Elizabeth Charlotte was born a Protestant, had been raised a Protestant and had been educated in a remarkably religiously tolerant society. However, a member of the French royal family could not possibly be anything but a Catholic. Such matters were not typically a hindrance as a bride was easily converted. Yet, the Protestant family from which she came was far from pleased at the prospect. In the end, the Elector begrudgingly agreed that she could convert but stipulated that the conversion could only take place once she had left his own territories. Elizabeth-Charlotte herself was not too pleased about this forced conversion but accepted it for the good of her family.

The interference of Anne of Gonzaga should also not be overlooked. Anne was herself a member (by marriage) of the Palatinate-house; as such, she was the "original" Princess Palatine at the court of Louis XIV. Having been raised in France, Anne was a half Italian/half French lady who had been married to Edward of Simmerm, son of a former Elector of the Palatinate. She managed to get one of her daughters married to the Prince de Condé and maintained a close relationship with the French court. She was quite involved in many of the arranged marriages of her relatives and thus did not hesitate to suggest her niece-by-marriage, Elizabeth Charlotte. Interestingly, Anne was a close friend of Philippe which might have been a reason for him accepting the match without further ado.

As for Elizabeth Charlotte herself, she would later reveal to an old friend that she would much have preferred remaining unmarried. She had little inclination to marry anyone and had undoubtedly heard of the somewhat scandalous life of her future husband. Also, her predecessor had died suddenly with rumours of poisoning swirling which hardly added to any incentive she might have had. Nevertheless, Elizabeth Charlotte was a pragmatic to the core. As she stated in one of her numerous letters, marriages were made in heaven - they were one's destiny and one could not avoid them.

Elizabeth-Charlotte with her two
surviving children: Philippe and yet another
Elizabeth-Charlotte

The matter of fertility was also an issue. The entire reason for marrying off Philippe again was that the house of Orléans needed an heir. Elizabeth Charlotte was nineteen at the age of their marriage and by all accounts a healthy young woman. Her own mother had had two children and would likely have had more if her marriage to the Elector had not dissolved in a truly spectacular fashion. Meanwhile, the Elector had a staggering eighteen children!

Traditionally, German princesses had a reputation for being particularly fertile which certainly suited the purpose. Elizabeth Charlotte happened to be of a childbearing age - 19 years - and did indeed fall pregnant not long after her wedding which can only have seemed to confirm the theory.

It is hardly a wonder that the marriage between Elizabeth Charlotte and Philippe was a rocky one. Dynastically, it was a success as the couple produced both an heir and a daughter, but their personal relationship was quickly soured by their different dispositions. Elizabeth Charlotte viewed marriage as an inevitable duty which she had not sought herself. Meanwhile, Philippe was not too pleased at having a wife who was less than attractive; added to that was the life-long influence of his lover, the Chevalier de Lorraine. While the marriage served its political purpose (from the French point of view) the people involved would likely have been happier if they had been left alone.

Beauty and Scandal: Filles d'Honneur of Madame

The household of Madame, the wife of Louis XIV's only brother, was large by default. When Elizabeth-Charlotte arrived in France as the second wife of Monsieur, she automatically assumed the role of second lady in France. Thus, the establishment which surrounded her had to be suitably large and impressive. 

Amongst the more celebrated aspects of her household was the contingent of four filles d'honneur - "girls" in waiting, thus called because of their unmarried state. This also meant that the position was typically meant to be somewhat short-lived and definitely temporary. It would usually be terminated when the young ladies were married off. Consequently, both Henrietta of England and Elizabeth-Charlotte of the Palatinate had plenty of filles d'honneur come and go in their service.

These young ladies were invariably from noble families but there seems to have been another requirement: beauty. The filles d'honneur of Elizabeth-Charlotte were renowned for their beauty which helped to attract more visits from the king himself. Madame herself did not scruple at such an arrangement as she enjoyed the frequent visits from her brother-in-law.

However, the combination of young, beautiful and very eligible ladies and a court dictated by courtly romance, scandals were bound to arise.

Elizabeth-Charlotte

The most infamous character from Madame's gaggle of filles d'honneur was Mademoiselle de Fontanges. She was considered immensely beautiful and quickly caught the eye of the king who impregnated her. She was one of the only women who ever posed a serious threat to Madame de Montespan's position and she might just have supplanted her. Yet, Mademoiselle de Fontanges lacked one thing that Madame de Montespan had in abundance: wit. The young Marie Angélique was notoriously "stupid as a basket" but nevertheless charmed the king with her youthful ways. Her pregnancy progressed but when the time came for her to give birth it quickly became apparent that something was wrong. She was prematurely delivered of a son during a childbirth which was a downright disaster. For a while she was thought to recover but was considered "an invalid" due to her ordeal. Sadly, she never recovered and died at just 19 years old.

The household of Madame furnished the king with another mistress: la belle Ludres. The gorgeous Isabelle de Loudres likewise captured the king's attention and had more wit than Fontanges but little intelligence. She was extremely haughty and played her hand too quickly. Flaunting her royal favour and openly fanning suspicions that she, too, might replace Madame de Montespan, the king quickly tired of this drama. It was bad enough that Madame de Montespan was furious at such brazen attempts at supplanting her but even worse that Ludres occasionally gave the impression that she had more power over the king than she actually had. Thus, her time in the king's bed was cut short and she retired to a convent.

La belle Ludres

The king was not the only nobleman who searched for love - or variants of it - at the Palais-Royal. Uranie de la Crompte-Beauvais caught the eye of the Comte de Soissons who decided to marry her. This caused some scandal as Uranie was said to be an illegitimate daughter of an écuyer in the service of the Prince de Condé whereas the Comte de Soissons belonged to the powerful Soissons-Carignan family. The marriage was therefore conducted in secret which did not help the scandal. Especially the mother of the groom was furious as the marriage eliminated any chance of an alliance with either a French or a Savoyard princess. Uranie herself is said to have refused the king's advances which led to the couple leaving the French court for Savoy.

Louise de Kéroualle had served the previous Madame - Henrietta of England - and would later set out on an illustrious career as the mistress of Charles II of England. Across the channel her position earned her the title of Duchess of Portsmouth while she enjoyed that of Duchesse d'Aubigny while in France.

The case of Mademoiselle de Loube provides an ample mystery. Françoise de Loube is mentioned directly in one of Madame's numerous letters; on 12 March 1718, Madame refer to the "Loube-affair", seemingly reminiscing of something that happened long ago. However, exactly what this "affair" entailed in not quite clear. Madame did not mention in it any previous (surviving) letter but a few of the other contemporary writers provides bits and pieces of the mystery. A semi-popular ballad refer to the young Loube as yearning for an end to her post as an - unmarried - fille d'honneur. The ballad heavily implies that she was eager to find either a husband or a lover. However, when the Marquis de Dangeau mention her in 1686, she has resolved to become a nun. So, what happened? It is entirely possible that the public ballad was completely wrong; after all, these were often meant to mock and degrade courtiers and thus did not rely on facts. Yet, it is tempting to speculate whether her sudden turn to religion was the result of something else - perhaps an unfortunate love affair?

Either way, Françoise did not become a nun but was potentially transferred to the service of the dauphine in 1689. I have not been able to find any trace of her marrying which further add to the mystery.

Mademoiselle de Séry

Even Madame's own son was not immune to the attractions of his mother's household. Philippe II (later regent of France) became enamored with Mademoiselle de Séry. The young lady was born Marie Louise Madeleine Victoire le Bel and served as fille d'honneur when she became pregnant. This immediately caused her dismissal but Philippe II made every gesture to acknowledge to child. For one, he provided her with a house and income before publicly announcing that she was his official mistress. She was later given the title of Comtesse d'Argenton. Their relationship ended in 1710 upon which she asked to become a nun - surprisingly, Philippe refused her request and provided her with a pension and a husband instead.

Whereas Elizabeth-Charlotte enjoyed the royal attention garnered by her pretty attendants, she was far from the only one to use such attributes to manipulate the king. It has been suggested that Anne of Austria and Philippe were eager to dispel rumours that Louis XIV and Henrietta of England were engaged in an affair. The way to do this was to provide the king with a suitable alternative. Consequently, three young women were chosen amongst Madame's own filles d'honneur to provide that distraction. These included a young Louise de La Vallière (the king's first maitresse-en-titre who famously attempted to flee to a convent before being finally permitted to cloister herself) and Bonne de Pons.

By the death of Louis XIV, it was deemed expedient to suppress the office of fille d'honneur to Madame. Elizabeth-Charlotte herself was furious at having to let them, particularly as she suspected the move to that of Madame de Maintenon, her old foe. Madame herself enjoyed the company of her young attendants as they made her laugh. She utterly disagreed that they were unruly as she had both a governess and a sous-governess to educate and chaperone them. Yet considering the many scandalous stories to come from this single part of Madame's household perhaps its suppression was for the best.

Creations: Dukedoms of Louis XVI

Due to his reign being cut dramatically short, Louis XVI created far fewer new dukedoms than either of his immediate predecessors. Over the sixteen years of his reign as king at Versailles, he created just sixteen new dukes, two of which were given to the royal family: Alençon and Berry.

The remaining fourteen were:

Duc de Civrac

Creation: 1774
For: Aimeric Joseph de Durfort
Family: Durfort de Civrac
Status: Extinct in 1787
Anecdote:

The creation was a reward for decades of loyal service to the crown, including as ambassador to first Venice and later Vienna. However, it was likely Aimeric's efforts in the latter post which secured the title as he had been a key player in securing the alliance which brought about the marriage of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.

Duc de Quintin 

Creation: 1774
For: Jean-Laurent de Durfort-Civrac
Family: Durfort de Civrac
Status: Existing but changed to Duc de Lorge in 1776
Anecdote:

The family of Durfort had held the dukedom during the age of Louis XIV; Guy Aldonce had been Duc de Quintin but the title had become extinct over the 18th century. Thus, it was a revival in favour of the family.

Jean-Laurent

Duc de Lesparre

Creation: 1774
For: Louis Armand de Gramont de Cravant d'Humières
Family: Gramont
Status: Extinct in 1795
Anecdote:

Louis Armand had held the title of Comte de Guiche before his elevation which coincided with the appointment of his wife as the dame d'atours to the Comtesse de Provence. The two would later separate with the Duchesse de Lesparre dying during the revolution (albeit not by guillotine) and the Duc de Lesparre shortly after. This effectively ended the new line of dukes.

Duc du Châtelet

Creation: 1777
For: Florent-Louis du Châtelet
Family: Châtelet
Status: Extinct in 1793
Anecdote:

Being made a hereditary duke in 1777, Louis XVI would later appoint him as head of the Regiment du Roi - the primary and most prestigious regiment. His draconian - and heavily Prussian-inspired - leadership earned him a harsh reputation which gained him few admirers. This would later come back to haunt him when he was recognised by a mob during the revolution. He was arrested and guillotined.

Duc du Châtelet

Duc de Polignac

Creation: 1780
For: Armand-Jules-François de Polignac
Family: Polignac
Status: Existing
Anecdote:

Largely owing their astronomical rise to the favour of Marie Antoinette, the family of Polignac had made a brilliant career during the last days of the ancien regime. Originally, the dukedom was à brevet but it was changed to hereditary in 1783, but only in the male line. Armand was the husband of Madame de Polignac and emigrated during the revolution.

Duc de Guiche

Creation: 1780
For: Antoine VIII de Gramont
Family: Gramont
Status: Extinct in 1836
Anecdote:

Like Armand-Jules-François, Antoine benefited enormously from the friendship between Marie Antoinette and Yolande de Polastron. Antoine had married Yolande's daughter which ensured him continued favour from the king and particularly the queen. Being already the heir to the dukedom of Gramont, the title of Duc de Guiche was meant as an interim title until he could assume his father's title.

Antoine VIII

Duc de Maillé

Creation: 1784
For: Charles-René de Maillé
Family: Maillé de La Tour Landry
Status: Existing
Anecdote:

Holding the rank of Lieutenant General, the Duc de Maillé was particularly connected to the service of the Prince de Condé, including as a gentilhomme of his household and the colonel of his regiment.

Charles-René

Duc de Lévis

Creation: 1784
For: François Gaston de Lévis 
Family: Lévis
Status: Extinct in 1863
Anecdote:

François Gaston had spent the majority of his life with the army including as a prisoner of war. By the time he was elevated to his dukedom, François was already retired with the rank of Maréchal de France. As such, he was in his sixties. Sadly, the revolution was particularly hard on his family. François himself died in 1787 but his widow and two of his daughters were guillotined.

François Gaston in his younger years

Duc de Saulx-Tavannes

Creation: 1786
For: Charles-François de Saulx
Family: Saulx-Tavannes
Status: Extinct
Anecdote:

The new Duc de Saulx-Tavannes had attached himself to the service of the Comte de Provence whom he became very close to - upon the restoration, his old friend brought him back to court. He was given immense influence in the affairs of the king's brother, particularly relating to his private finances. During the revolution, he continued to serve the interests of the future Louis XVIII including by acting as his emissary. 

Charles-François

Duc de La Force

Creation: 1787
For: Louis-Joseph de Caumont
Family: Caumont
Status: Existing
Anecdote:

Like the Durfort family, that of de La Force had also previously held the dukedom within their family. The last incumbent had been Jacques-Nompar II de Caumont who died in 1755 without children which led to the temporary extinction of the title.