Antoinette of Bourbon (25 December 1494 – 22 January 1583), was a French noblewoman of the

House of Bourbon The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a European dynasty of French origin, a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Navarre in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Spani ...

. She was the wife of Claude of Lorraine,

Duke of Guise Count of Guise and Duke of Guise (pronounced �ɥiz were titles in the French nobility. Originally a seigneurie, in 1417 Guise was erected into a county for René, a younger son of Louis II of Anjou. While disputed by the House of Luxembourg ...

Life

Antoinette de Bourbon was born on 25 December 1494 at the Chateau de Ham, in the

Somme __NOTOC__ Somme or The Somme may refer to: Places *Somme (department), a department of France *Somme, Queensland, Australia *Canal de la Somme, a canal in France *Somme (river), a river in France Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Somme'' (book), a ...

department,

Picardy Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France. Hist ...

, France. She was the child of

Francis, Count of Vendôme Francis of Bourbon or François de Bourbon, (In a date range from January 7, 1470 to December 31, 1470 – 30 October 1495), was the Count of Vendôme and a French '' prince du sang''. Life Francis was the son of John VIII de Bourbon, Count of ...

and

Marie de Luxembourg Marie of Luxembourg-Saint-Pol (died 1 April 1547) was a French vassal. She was, as Marie I, the ruling Countess Regnant of Soissons and Saint-Pol in her own right by inheritance from her father between 25 October 1482 and 1 April 1547. She was ...

. Her paternal grandparents were

John VIII, Count of Vendôme John VIII de Bourbon (1425 – 6 January 1478) was Count of Vendôme from 1466 until his death. A member of the House of Bourbon, he was the son and successor of Louis, Count of Vendôme. As a courtier of King Charles VII of France, he fought the ...

and Isabelle de Beauveau, and her maternal grandparents were

Peter II, Count of Saint-Pol Peter II (''Pierre de Luxembourg''; – 25 October 1482) was Count of Saint-Pol, of Brienne, Marle, and Soissons. In 1478, Peter was made a knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece. He was the second eldest son of Louis de Luxembourg, Cou ...

, and Margaret of Savoy. Antoinette was described as having been a remarkable woman, combining a strong sense of family pride with a wry sense of humour. She exhibited considerable administrative talent at domestic economy as well as in the running of the vast Guise dominions surrounding their chateau of

Joinville Joinville () is the largest city in Santa Catarina, in the Southern Region of Brazil. It is the third largest municipality in the southern region of Brazil, after the much larger state capitals of Curitiba and Porto Alegre. Joinville is also a ...

. Antoinette exerted a powerful influence on the childhood of her granddaughter

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...

, during the latter's thirteen-year sojourn in France, and was one of her principal advisors. Antoinette acted as proxy for her daughter, Mary of Guise, during the betrothal ceremony of the Queen of Scots and the Dauphin Francis in 1558. Antoinette and her family have been described as "ultra-Catholic"; in 1533 Antoinette oversaw the burning of a Protestant man caught preaching in the town of

Wassy Wassy () is a commune in the Haute-Marne department in north-eastern France. Its population, as of 2019, is 2,819. Wassy has been twinned with the German town of Eppingen in north-west Baden-Württemberg since 1967. History On 1 March 1562, ...

. Her son Francis, Duke of Guise was held to be responsible for the anti-Protestant

Massacre of Wassy The massacre of Vassy (french: link=no, massacre de Wassy) was the murder of Huguenot worshippers and citizens in an armed action by troops of Francis, Duke of Guise, in Wassy, France, on 1 March 1562. The massacre is identified as the first maj ...

on 1 March 1562 which was one of the early atrocities in the

French Wars of Religion The French Wars of Religion is the term which is used in reference to a period of civil war between French Catholics and Protestants, commonly called Huguenots, which lasted from 1562 to 1598. According to estimates, between two and four mil ...

. Antoinette de Bourbon died on 22 January 1583 at the Chateau de Joinville. She was eighty-eight years of age, having outlived all of her children except her daughter Renée, Abbess of St. Pierre.

Issue

She married Claude of Lorraine on 9 June 1513; they had: *

Mary of Guise Mary of Guise (french: Marie de Guise; 22 November 1515 – 11 June 1560), also called Mary of Lorraine, was a French noblewoman of the House of Guise, a cadet branch of the House of Lorraine and one of the most powerful families in France. Sh ...

(1515–1560); married King

James V of Scotland James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of King James IV and Margaret Tudor, and du ...

in 1538. Their daughter was

. * Francis, Duke of Guise (1519–1563) * Louise of Guise (10 January 1520 – 18 October 1542); married

Charles I, Duke of Arschot Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was " ...

on 20 February 1541. * Renée of Guise (2 September 1522 – 3 April 1602), Abbess of St. Pierre,

Reims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne. Founded b ...

. She was the only of Antionette’s many children to outlive her mother. * Charles of Guise (1524–1574),

Duke of Chevreuse Duke of Chevreuse (French ''Duc de Chevreuse'') was a French title of nobility, elevated from the barony of Chevreuse in 1545. Originally created for Jean de Brosse, Duc d'Étampes, it was transferred in 1555 to Charles of Guise, the Cardinal of ...

Archbishop of Reims The Archdiocese of Reims (traditionally spelt "Rheims" in English) ( la, Archidiœcesis Remensis; French: ''Archidiocèse de Reims'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastic territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. Erected as a diocese a ...

, and Charles, Cardinal de Guise. * Claude, Duke of Aumale (1526–1573) * Louis, Cardinal de Guise (1527–1578) * Philip of Guise (3 September 1529 – 24 September 1529, Joinville) * Peter of Guise (3 April 1530); died young. * Antoinette of Guise (31 August 1531 – 6 March 1561), Abbess of Faremoutiers *

François de Lorraine, Grand Prior François de Lorraine, Grand Prieur de France de l'Ordre de Malte (18 April 1534 Joinville-6 March 1563) was a French noble and soldier, who fought during the latter Italian Wars. Second youngest of the sons of Claude, Duke of Guise and Antoinette ...

(18 April 1534 – 6 March 1563) * René, Marquis of Elbeuf (1536–1566)

References

Sources

* * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:de Bourbon, Antoinette 1494 births 1583 deaths 15th-century French people 16th-century French people 15th-century French women 16th-century French women Antoinette French people of German descent Antoinette Antoinette Antoinette People from Somme (department) Antoinette Household of Catherine de' Medici