Maria Theresa of Spain
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| Maria Theresa of Spain | ||
|---|---|---|
| Queen of France | ||
 |
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| Some suspected Theresa's death in 1683 was foul play | ||
| Titles | HMCM The Queen of France (1660-1683) HRH Princess Maria Theresa of Spain (1638-1683) |
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| Born | September 10, 1638 | |
| El Escorial, Spain | ||
| Died | July 30, 1683 | |
| Versailles, Paris, France | ||
| Consort | June 9, 1660 - July 30, 1683 | |
| Consort to | Louis XIV | |
| Issue | Louis, Anne-Élisabeth, Marie-Anne, Marie-Thérèse, Philippe Charles, Louis-François | |
| Royal House | House of Habsburg | |
| Father | Philip IV | |
| Mother | Elisabeth of France | |
- "Marie Thérèse" redirects here. For the Empress of Austria, see Maria Theresa of Austria.
Maria Theresa of Spain (French: Marie Thérèse) (September 10, 1638 – July 30, 1683), queen consort of France as wife of Louis XIV of France, was born at the Escorial as the daughter of Philip IV of Spain and of Elisabeth of France (1602 - 1644).
She was called, in France, Marie-Thérèse d'Autriche: her aunt, Anne of Austria, also a Spanish princess, also used the Austrian archiducal title which the Spanish Habsburgs still bore.
By pretending to seek a bride for his master in Margaret of Savoy, Cardinal Mazarin had induced the king of Spain to make proposals for the marriage of his daughter with Louis XIV, and the treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659 stipulated for her marriage with the French king, that Marie would renounce any claim to the Spanish succession. As the treaty, however, hinged on the payment of her dowry, which was practically impossible for Spain, Mazarin could evade the other terms of the contract. Therefore, Marie Thérèse would pass her succession rights to her son, Louis who in turn passed them to his second son, who will become Philip V of Spain.
Marie Thérèse was married on June 9, 1660, when Philip IV with his whole court accompanied the bride to the Isle of Pheasants in the Bidassoa, where Louis met her.
The new queen's amiability and her undoubted virtues failed to secure her husband's regard and affection. She saw herself neglected in turn for Louise de La Vallière, Mme. de Montespan and others; but Marie Thérèse was too pious and too adoring of her husband to openly resent the position in which she was placed by the king's avowed infidelities. Provided the Queen acted with dignity and didn't make a scene, the King would leave her to her own devices, with her dwarves, chocolate and maids. With the growing influence of Madame de Maintenon over his mind and affections he bestowed more attention on his wife, which she repaid by lavishing kindness on the mistress.
Marie Thérèse had no part in political affairs except in 1667, 1672, and 1678 when she acted as Regent during Louis XIV's absence on foreign campaigns. She died on 30 July 1683 at Versailles, not without suspicion of foul play on the part of her doctors. There is, however, no real proof that the Queen was poisoned. Her death was probably the only occasion in her life that caused the King any sort of emotion on his part, albeit briefly, apart from his sadness at losing so many legitimate children in infancy. Of her six children only one survived her, the dauphin Louis, who died in 1711.
[edit] Trivia
Marie Thérèse either tolerated or simply turned a blind eye to her husband's infidelites as she had seen her own father do so in Spain. She also tended to be snobbish as typical for any Habsburg and regarded everyone (who was not a royal) as beneath her.
[edit] Quotes
- When asked if she found men in Spain attractive -- "How can I find other men in Spain attractive? There is no King there other than the King my father." (Comme puis-je rencontre des autres hommes attractifs? Il n'y en a pas un Roi là autre que le Roi mon pere.)
- Upon her death -- "This is the only way in which she has displeased me." -- Louis
See the funeral oration of Bossuet (Paris, 1684), E. Ducere, Le Mariage de Louis XIV d'après les contemporains et des documents inédits (Bayonne, 1905); Dr Cabanes, Les Morts mysterieuses de l'histoire (1900), and the literature dealing with her rivals Louise de la Vallière, Madame de Montespan and Madame de Maintenon.
| Preceded by Anne of Austria |
Queen of France June 9, 1660–July 30, 1683 |
Succeeded by Françoise d'Aubigné, marquise de Maintenon |
[edit] References
- This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
