Françoise Madeleine d'Orléans (13 October 1648 – 14 January 1664) was born a Princess of France and was the Duchess of Savoy as the first wife of

Charles Emmanuel II Charles Emmanuel II ( it, Carlo Emanuele II di Savoia); 20 June 1634 – 12 June 1675) was Duke of Savoy from 1638 to 1675 and under regency of his mother Christine of France until 1648. He was also Marquis of Saluzzo, Count of Aosta, Geneva, M ...

. She was a first cousin of

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Ver ...

as well of her husband. She was the shortest-serving Savoyard consort, dying at the age of fifteen, childless.

Biography

Arms of Françoise Madeleine d'Orléans (1648-1664), Duchess of Savoy

Orléans was born at the Château de Saint Germain en Laye outside

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

in 1648. She was the youngest surviving daughter of Gaston d'Orléans and his second wife Marguerite of Lorraine. From birth, she was styled ''Mademoiselle de Valois'', derived from one of her father's subsidiary titles. She was the favourite sister of '' La Grande Mademoiselle'', the famous heiress. She grew up in the company of her sisters and '' Mademoiselle de La Vallière'', future mistress of Louis XIV. She resided at the Château de Blois. Her father died in 1660 and her mother remained unmarried. As French court etiquette dictated, she held the status of a Granddaughter of France as a male line descendant of the late king

Henry IV of France Henry IV (french: Henri IV; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monarch ...

. She was styled as a '' petite-fille de France''. Under the influence of her paternal aunt Christine Marie, Dowager Duchess of Savoy, she was engaged to her first cousin

Charles Emmanuel II, Duke of Savoy Charles Emmanuel II ( it, Carlo Emanuele II di Savoia); 20 June 1634 – 12 June 1675) was Duke of Savoy from 1638 to 1675 and under regency of his mother Christine of France until 1648. He was also Marquis of Saluzzo, Count of Aosta, Geneva, M ...

. Christine Marie had chosen her as she had wanted to maintain her power and influence in government having previously been regent for her son since 1637. The match was approved of by

Cardinal Mazarin Cardinal Jules Mazarin (, also , , ; 14 July 1602 – 9 March 1661), born Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino () or Mazarini, was an Italian cardinal, diplomat and politician who served as the chief minister to the Kings of France Louis XIII and Louis X ...

who had previously rejected

Marie Jeanne of Savoy Marie Jeanne Baptiste of Savoy-Nemours (, 11 April 1644 – 15 March 1724) was born a Princess of Savoy and became the Duchess of Savoy by marriage. First married by proxy to Charles of Lorraine in 1662, Lorraine soon refused to recognise t ...

, another candidate for Charles Emmanuel II. Orléans proved suitably docile and was chosen over Marie Jeanne. Orléans married the Duke of Savoy by

proxy Proxy may refer to: * Proxy or agent (law), a substitute authorized to act for another entity or a document which authorizes the agent so to act * Proxy (climate), a measured variable used to infer the value of a variable of interest in climate ...

at the

Palais du Louvre The Louvre Palace (french: link=no, Palais du Louvre, ), often referred to simply as the Louvre, is an iconic French palace located on the Right Bank of the Seine in Paris, occupying a vast expanse of land between the Tuileries Gardens and the ...

on 4 March 1663. The couple met for the first time at Annecy on 3 April 1663 where they were married officially. The couple travelled to

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The ...

, capital of Savoy, where they arrived on 15 June 1663. She was known as ''Francesca Maddalena d'Orléans'' in her adopted Savoy. The duchess soon died on 14 Jan 1664 at the

Royal Palace of Turin The Royal Palace of Turin ( it, Palazzo Reale di Torino) is a historic palace of the House of Savoy in the city of Turin in Northern Italy. It was originally built in the 16th century and was later modernized by Christine Marie of France (1606–1 ...

, leaving her husband without an heir. She was buried at Turin Cathedral where she rests today. Her husband, inconsolable at her death, ordered a lavish funeral. After Orléans' death, Louis XIV tried to engage ''La Grande Mademoiselle'' to Charles Emmanuel II who refused the match. He later married again to

by whom he had a son.

Ancestors

Notes

Sources

* * * * * , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Francoise Madeleine D'orleans 1648 births 1664 deaths People from Saint-Germain-en-Laye French royalty French princesses House of Orléans Duchesses of Savoy House of Bourbon-Montpensier Princesses of France (Bourbon) 17th-century French people Burials at Turin Cathedral