Louis de Bourbon, comte de Vermandois

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Merge arrow
 It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Louis XIV of France#Legitimated issue. (Discuss)
A posthumous portrait of Louis.
A posthumous portrait of Louis.

Louis de Bourbon, comte de Vermandois (October 2, 1667 – November 18, 1683) was the eldest surviving son of Louis XIV of France and his mistress Louise de la Vallière. He was sometimes known as Louis de Vermandois after his title.

Contents

[edit] Life

[edit] Early life

Louis de Bourbon was born at the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye on October 2, 1667. He was named after his father. Like his elder sister, Marie Anne de Bourbon, who was known at court as Mademoiselle de Blois, he was given the surname of de Bourbon not de France as a result of his illegitimacy.[1]

As a child, he called his mother Belle Maman because of her beauty. Louis was legitimated in 1669 at the age of two and was given the title of comte de Vermandois. At the same time, he was made the Admiral of France. In 1674, his mother left him to become a nun. She became Soeur Louise de la Miséricorde at the Carmelite convent in Paris. Afterwards, the two saw very little of each other.

[edit] Siblings

From his mother and his father, Louis had five full siblings, many of whom died before his birth. They were:

  • A male (1662-1662): miscarriage;
  • Charles de Bourbon (1663-1665): died in infancy;
  • Philippe de Bourbon (1665-1666): died in infancy;
  • A daughter (1666-1666): died shortly after birth;
  • Marie Anne de Bourbon (1666-1739): after her father the king legitimated her, she was known as Mademoiselle de Blois. She was to later marry Louis Armand I, Prince of Conti. From this marriage she was recognized as a Princess of the Blood. On all accounts, Louis was very close to older his sister.

[edit] Palais Royal

Louis with his sister Marie Anne de Bourbon and their mother, Louise de La Vallière.
Louis with his sister Marie Anne de Bourbon and their mother, Louise de La Vallière.

After his mother left, Louis lived at the Palais Royal in Paris with his uncle, Philippe de France, duc d'Orléans, and his wife Elizabeth Charlotte von der Pfalz. While living and growing up at the Palais Royal, he became very close to his aunt despite her well-known dislike of Louis XIV's bastards. The affection the aunt and nephew had for each other never diminished.[2]

While he was at the court of his libertine and homosexual uncle, he met the Chevalier de Lorraine, his uncle's most famous lover. It is said that the young comte was seduced by the older chevalier and his set (including the prince de Conti) and began practicing le vice italien (the contemporary slang for homosexuality).[3]

For Louis XIV, the only thing to do was to exile his son and the Chevalier de Lorraine. In June 1682, Louis was sent to live in Normandy. In order to smooth things over between father and son, his aunt Elizabeth Charlotte von der Pfalz suggested to the king that Louis be sent as a soldier to Flanders, which was then under French occupation. The king agreed with the suggestion and his son was sent to the Seige of Courtray. It was there that Louis fell ill.

Despite his illness, Louis was desperate to regain his father's love and continued to fight in battle regardless of advice given by the royal doctor and the marquis de Montchevreuil that he return to Lille in order to recuperate.

[edit] Death

Louis died November 18, 1683. He was just sixteen. He was buried at the cathedral at Arras.

His loving sister and aunt were greatly impacted by his death. His father, however, did not even shed a tear. His mother, still obsessed with the sin of her previous affair with the king, said upon hearing of her son's death:

I ought to weep for his birth far more than his death.[4]

Louis was later suspected of being the Man in the Iron Mask.

[edit] Half-siblings

By Madame de Montespan and Louis XIV:

Half-siblings via his father Louis XIV and Queen Marie-Thérèse d'Autriche:

[edit] Ancestry

[edit] References

  1. ^ L'envers de l'Histoire
  2. ^ Les enfants de l'amour - L'envers de l'Histoire
  3. ^ Les enfants de l'amour - L'envers de l'Histoire
  4. ^ Love and Louis XIV by Lady Antonia Fraser

[edit] Titles

Louis de Bourbon, comte de Vermandois
Born: October 2 1667 Died: November 18 1683
French nobility
Preceded by
Eleonore de Vermondois		 comte de Vermandois
1669–1683		 Succeeded by
Unknown
Political offices
Preceded by
César de Bourbon, duc de Vendôme		 Admiral of France
1669–1683		 Succeeded by
Louis-Alexandre de Bourbon, comte de Toulouse