Gaston, Duke of Orléans

Be sure to check out this great cottage blog!

Gaston Duke of Orléans Gaston in 1634 Spouse Marie de Bourbon
Marguerite de Lorraine Detail Issue Anne Marie Louise, Duchess of Montpensier
Marguerite Louise, Grand Duchess of Tuscany
Élisabeth, Duchess of Guise
Françoise Madeleine, Duchess of Savoy
Jean Gaston, Duke of Valois
Marie Anne, Mademoiselle de Chartres Full name Gaston Jean Baptiste de France House House of Bourbon Father Henry IV of France Mother Marie de' Medici Born 25 April 1608(1608-04-25)
Palace of Fontainebleau, France Died 2 February 1660 (aged 51)
Château de Blois, Blois, France Burial Basilica of St Denis, France

Gaston de France, fils de France, Duke of Orléans, (25 April 1608 – 2 February 1660, Blois), was the third son of the king of France Henry IV and of his wife Marie de' Medici. As a son of the king, he was a Fils de France. As the eldest surviving brother of King Louis XIII, he was known at court by the traditional honorific of Monsieur.

Contents

• 1 Early life
• 2 Marriages
  • 2.1 Elopement
• 3 Later life
• 4 Ancestors
• 5 References

//

Gaston d'Orléans was born at the Palace of Fontainebleau and was given at birth the title of duc d'Anjou. In 1626, at the time of his marriage to the young duchesse de Montpensier, he received in appanage (with their respective titles) the dukedoms of Orléans[1] and Chartres, and the county of Blois[2]. He had nominal command of the army which besieged La Rochelle in 1628[3][4], having already entered upon that course of political intrigue which would occupy the remainder of his life.

On two occasions he had to leave France for conspiring against the government of his mother and of Cardinal Richelieu; and after waging an unsuccessful war in Languedoc leading to the Battle of Castelnaudary in 1632, he took refuge in Flanders.

Reconciled with his brother Louis XIII, he plotted against Richelieu in 1635, fled from the country, and then submitted to the king and the cardinal.

Soon afterwards the same process repeated itself. Orléans stirred up Cinq-Mars to attempt Richelieu's murder, and then deserted his unfortunate accomplice (1642). In 1643, on the death of Louis XIII, Gaston became lieutenant-general of the kingdom, and fought against Spain on the northern frontiers of France; he was created duc d'Alençon in 1646. However, during the wars of the Fronde (1648–1653), he passed with great facility from one side to the other.

Gaston first married on 6 August 1626, at Nantes, Marie de Bourbon, duchesse de Montpensier (1605-1627)[5], daughter and heiress of Henri de Bourbon, Duke of Montpensier. One daughter was born to the couple nine months after the marriage and a few days later, Marie died. Their daughter was:

• Anne Marie Louise d'Orléans, duchesse de Montpensier (1627–1693), Mademoiselle de Montpensier, the future Grande Mademoiselle, (to distinguish her from Mademoiselle, the daughter of Monsieur, Louis XIV's brother),
  • Anne was the last of the line of the House of Bourbon-Montpensier.

While taking refuge from the wrath of the French prime minister, Cardinal Richelieu, Gaston de France, Duke of Orléans, younger brother and heir presumptive of Louis XIII of France, fell in love at first sight with Marguerite.[6] But as France and Lorraine were then enemies, he was refused the king's permission to marry with a sister of its duke, Charles III. Nonetheless Gaston fled again to Lorriane and, in a secret ceremony in the presence of her family at Nancy during the night of 2 – 3 January 1632, Gaston took the princess Marguerite as his wife. [6] Because he had not obtained the prior permission of his elder brother — one of his many acts of defiance — the couple could not appear at the French court and the marriage was kept secret.

But in November of that year, the Duke of Montmorency, on his way to the scaffold, betrayed his former co-conspirator, Monsieur Gaston, and the king and Richelieu learned of the elopement.[6] The king had his brother's marriage declared null and void by the Parlement of Paris in September 1634 and, despite the Pope's protest, the Assembly of the French clergy in September 1635 on the grounds that a prince du sang, especially the heir to the throne, could only enter matrimony with permission of the king — consistent with French sovereignty and custom.[6] Although Marguerite and Gaston had re-celebrated their marriage before the Archbishop of Malines, a French emissary persuaded the Pope not to publicly protest the matter, and Gaston formally accepted the nullity of his marriage.[6] It was not until Louis XIII was on his death bed in May 1643 that he accepted his brother's plea for forgiveness and authorized his marriage to Marguerite, whereupon the couple undertook nuptials for the third time in July 1643 before the Archbishop of Paris at Meudon, and the Duke and Duchess of Orléans were finally received at court.[6]

By right of her marriage, Marguerite became known as Madame at court. After the death of his mother in 1642, Gaston was bequeathed the Luxembourg Palace, which became the couple's Parisian residence under the name Palais Orléans once they were restored to royal favor. They also sojourned at the Château de Blois, in the Loire Valley, where their first child was born in 1645.

Marguerite and Gaston d'Orléans had five children; three of them survived into adulthood:

• Marguerite Louise d'Orléans (28 July 1645 – 17 September 1721),
  • married in Florence on 20 June 1661 Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (separated 1675);
• Élisabeth Marguerite d'Orléans (26 December 1646]] – 17 March 1696),
  • married at Saint-Germain-en-Laye on 15 May 1667 Louis Joseph de Lorraine, duc de Guise;
• Françoise Madeleine d'Orléans (13 October 1648 – 14 January 1664),
  • married her cousin Duke Charles Emmanuel II of Savoy, on 4 March 1663, no issue;
• Jean Gaston d'Orléans (Paris, 17 August 1650 – Paris, 10 August 1652), duc de Valois.
• Marie Anne d'Orléans (Paris, 9 November 1652 – Blois, 17 August 1656), Mademoiselle de Chartres.

Gaston had an illegitimate daughter by Marie Porcher:

• Marie bâtarde d'Orléans 1 January 1631, Paris.

He also had an illegitimate son by Louise-Roger de La Marbelière:

• Jean Louis bâtard d'Orléans, comte de Charny, (1638, Tours-1692, Spain).

After the death of his brother Louis XIII in 1643, Gaston's nephew became Monsieur. To differentiate the older "Monsieur" from the younger, Gaston, the uncle, was called Le Grand Monsieur and Philippe, duc d'Anjou, his nephew and brother of the new king Louis XIV, was called Le Petit Monsieur.

After the Fronde, Gaston was exiled by Mazarin to Blois in 1652, and remained there until his death. On his death, all his Orléans titles went to Le Petit Monsieur, the new and only Monsieur, and duc d'Orléans.

Gaston's ancestors in three generations Gaston, Duke of Orléans Father:
Henry IV of France Paternal Grandfather:
Antoine of Navarre Paternal Great-grandfather:
Charles de Bourbon, Duke of Vendôme Paternal Great-grandmother:
Françoise d'Alençon Paternal Grandmother:
Jeanne III of Navarre Paternal Great-grandfather:
Henry II of Navarre Paternal Great-grandmother:
Marguerite de Navarre Mother:
Marie de' Medici Maternal Grandfather:
Francesco I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany Maternal Great-grandfather:
Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany Maternal Great-grandmother:
Eleonora di Toledo Maternal Grandmother:
Johanna of Austria Maternal Great-grandfather:
Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor Maternal Great-grandmother:
Anna of Bohemia and Hungary

^ Moote, A. Lloyd, "Louis XIII, The Just", P192. Published 1991, University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-06485-2

^ Pitts, Vincent Joseph. "La Grande Mademoiselle at the Court of France: 1627-1693", P3. Published 2000. JHU Press. ISBN 0801864666

^ Patmore, Katherine. "The Court of Louis XIII", P144. Published 1909, Methuen & Co.

^ Chisolm, Hugh. "Encyclopedia Britannica", P284. Published 1911.

^ Pitts, Vincent Joseph. "La Grande Mademoiselle at the Court of France", P2. Published 2000, JHU Press. ISBN 0801864666

^ a b c d e f Velde, Francois. Heraldica.org. Morganatic and Secret Marriages in the French Royal Family. . Retrieved 27 February 2010

• Accessed February 24, 2008

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

French royalty Preceded by
Nicolas Henri, Duke of Orléans Heir to the Throne
as Heir presumptive
17 November 1611 — 5 September 1638 Succeeded by
Louis, Dauphin of France v • d •  Princes of France The first generation are the children of Henri IV; these males held the rank of Son of France or Grand son of France; 1st Generation Louis XIII  · Nicolas Henri, Duke of Orléans*  · Gaston, Duke of Orléans* 2nd Generation Louis XIV  · Philippe, Duke of Orléans  · Jean Gaston, Duke of Valois* 3rd Generation Louis, Dauphin of France  · Philippe Charles, Duke of Anjou*  · Louis François, Duke of Anjou*  · Philippe Charles, Duke of Valois*  · Alexandre Louis, Duke of Valois*  · Philippe, Duke of Orléans 4th Generation Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Dauphin of France  · King Felipe V of Spain  · Charles, Duke of Berry* 5th Generation Louis, Duke of Brittany*  · Louis, Duke of Brittany*  · Louis XV 6th Generation Louis, Dauphin of France  · Philippe, Duke of Anjou* 7th Generation Louis, Duke of Burgundy*  · Xavier, Duke of Aquitaine*  · Louis XVII*  · Louis XVIII*  · Charles X 8th Generation Louis Joseph, Dauphin of France*  · Louis XVII*  · Louis Antoine, Duke of Angoulême*  · Charles Ferdinand, Duke of Berry *died without surviving issue v • d •  Dukes of Anjou Hereditary Dukes Louis  · Louis  · Louis  · René  · Charles Appanage of Anjou Louise  · Alexandre Édouard  · Hercule François  · Gaston  · Philippe  · Philippe Charles  · Louis François  · Philippe  · Louis  · Philippe  · Louis Stanislas Xavier Courtesy title Infante Jamie  · Infante Alfonso  · Infante Jaime  · Infante Alfonso Currant claimants Charles Philippe  · Louis Alphonse v • d •  House of Bourbon   Henry IV of France Spouse(s) HH Margaret of Valois · Lady Marie de' Medici Children Louis XIII · Elisabeth, Queen of Spain · Christine Marie, Duchess of Savoy · Nicolas Henri, Duke of Orléans · Gaston, Duke of Orléans · Henriette Marie, Queen of England, Ireland and Scotland Siblings Henri, Duke of Beaumont (1551–1553) · Louis, Count of Marle (1555–1557) · Madeleine (1556) · Catherine, Duchess of Lorraine Illegitimate Children César, Duke of Vendôme · Catherine Henriette, Duchess of Elbeuf · Alexandre, Chevalier de Vendôme · Henri, Duke of Verneuil · Gabrielle Angelique, Duchess of La Valette and Epernon · Antoine, Count of Moret · Jeanne Baptiste, Abess of Fontevraud · Marie Henriette, Abess of Chelles Grandchildren Anne Marie Louise, Duchess of Montpensier · Marguerite Louise, Grand Duchess of Tuscany · Élisabeth Marguerite, Duchess of Alençon and Angoulême · Françoise Madeleine, Duchess of Savoy · Princess Marie Anne · Jean Gaston, Duke of Valois · Louis XIV of France · Philippe, Duke of Orléans   Louis XIII of France Spouse(s) HRH Infanta Ana Maria Mauricia of Spain*** Children Louis XIV of France · Philippe, Duke of Orléans Grandchildren Louis, Dauphin of France · Princess Anne Élisabeth · Princess Marie Anne · Princess Marie Therèse, Madame Royale · Philippe Charles, Duke of Anjou · Louis François, Duke of Anjou · Marie Louise, Queen of Spain · Philippe Charles, Duke of Valois · Anne Marie, Queen of Sardinia · Alexandre Louis, Duke of Valois · Philippe Charles, Duke of Orléans · Élisabeth Charlotte, Duchess of Lorraine Great
grandchildren
Louis, Duke of Burgundy · King Felipe of Spain · Charles, Duke of Berry · Louis, Duke of Orléans   Louis XIV of France Spouse(s) HRH Infanta María Teresa of Spain*** · Françoise d'Aubigné, Marchioness of Maintenon Children Louis, Dauphin of France · Princess Anne Élisabeth · Princess Marie Anne · Princess Marie Therèse, Madame Royale · Philippe Charles, Duke of Anjou · Louis François, Duke of Anjou Illegitimate Children Charles · Philippe · Marie Anne, Princess of Conti · Louis, Count of Vermandois · Louis Auguste, Duke of Maine · Louis César, Count of Vexin · Louise Françoise, Princess of Condé · Louise Marie Anne, Mademoiselle de Tours · Françoise Marie, Duchess of Orléans · Louis Alexandre, Count of Toulouse · Louise, Baroness of La Queue Grandchildren Louis, Duke of Burgundy · King Felipe of Spain+ · Charles, Duke of Berry · Louis Auguste, Prince of Dombes · Louis Charles, Count of Eu · Louise Françoise, Mademoiselle du Maine · Louis Jean Marie, Duke of Penthièvre Great
grandchildren
Louis, Duke of Brittany · Louis, Duke of Brittany · Louis XV of France · Louis I of Spain* · Felipe of Spain* · Felipe of Spain* · Ferdinand VI of Spain* · Charles III of Spain* · Francisco of Spain* · Mariana Víctoria, Queen of Portugal* · Philip, Duke of Parma* · Maria Teresa Rafaela, Dauphine of France* · Luis, Count of Chinchón* · Maria Antonietta, Queen of Sardinia* · X d'Alençon · Charles, Duke of Alençon · Marie Louise Élisabeth d'Alençon · Louis Alexandre, Prince of Lamballe   Louis XV of France Spouse(s) Maria Carolina Sophia Felicity Leszczyńska Children Marie Louise Élisabeth, Duchess of Parma · Princess Henriette Anne · Princess Marie Louise · Louis, Dauphin of France · Philippe, Duke of Anjou · Marie Adélaïde, Duchess of Louvois · Princess Victoire · Sophie, Duchess of Louvois · Princess Félicité · Princess Louise Marie Grandchildren Princess Marie Therèse, Madame Royale · Princess Marie Zéphyrine · Louis, Duke of Burgundy · Xavier, Duke of Aquitaine · Louis XVI of France · Louis XVIII of France · Charles X of France · Clothilde, Queen of Sardinia · Princess Élisabeth Illegitimate children
included Charles de Vintimille · Agathe Louise de Saint-Antoine · Philippe, Duke of Narbonne-Lara · Louis, Count of Narbonne-Lara   Louis XVI of France Spouse(s) HRH Archduchess Maria Antonia of Austria** Children Marie Thérèse, Duchess of Angoulême · Louis Joseph, Dauphin of France · Louis XVII of France · Princess Sophie Hélène   Louis XVII of France Note Louis had no children; he died aged 10 in 1795. His uncle, future Louis XVIII of France proclaimed himself regent but both titles were disputed. See Bourbon Restoration.   Louis XVIII of France Spouse(s) HRH Princess Marie Josephine Louise of Savoy   Charles X of France Spouse(s) HRH Princess Maria Teresa of Savoy Children Louis Antoine, Duke of Angoulême · Sophie, Mademoiselle · Charles Ferdinand, Duke of Berry · Marie Thérèse, Mademoiselle d'Angoulême Grandchildren Princess Louise Élisabeth · Prince Louis · Louise Marie Thérèse, Duchess of Parma · Henri, Count of Chambord Notes: *also an Infante or Infanta of Spain · **also an Archduchess of Austria · ***both · +Philip was the first Bourbon king of Spain, the country's present ruling house

Back to CottageBuddy Home Page

©2006 CottageBuddy