''Madame Royale'' ({{IPA-fr, madam ʁwajal, ''Royal Lady'') was a

style Style is a manner of doing or presenting things and may refer to: * Architectural style, the features that make a building or structure historically identifiable * Design, the process of creating something * Fashion, a prevailing mode of clothing ...

customarily used for the eldest living unmarried daughter of a reigning French

monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority and power i ...

. It was similar to the style '' Monsieur'', which was typically used by the King's second son. Just as Gaston, duc d'Orléans (1608–1660), the second son of 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 ...

(1553–1610), was known as '' Monsieur'', Élisabeth de Bourbon (1602–1644), the eldest daughter of Henry, was known before her marriage to King

Philip IV of Spain Philip IV ( es, Felipe, pt, Filipe; 8 April 160517 September 1665), also called the Planet King (Spanish: ''Rey Planeta''), was King of Spain from 1621 to his death and (as Philip III) King of Portugal from 1621 to 1640. Philip is remembered ...

(1605–1665) as ''Madame Royale''. After her death, the title was borne by her younger sister, Christine de Bourbon (1606–1663), until her marriage to

Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy Victor Amadeus I ( it, Vittorio Amedeo I di Savoia; 8 May 1587 – 7 October 1637) was the Duke of Savoy from 1630 to 1637. He was also known as the ''Lion of Susa''.honorific An honorific is a title that conveys esteem, courtesy, or respect for position or rank when used in addressing or referring to a person. Sometimes, the term "honorific" is used in a more specific sense to refer to an honorary academic title. It ...

was King

Louis XVI of France Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was ...

's eldest daughter, Marie-Thérèse-Charlotte (1778–1851), the only one of his immediate family to survive the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

. She later married her cousin, Louis-Antoine, duc d'Angoulême (1775–1844), and played a prominent role during the Bourbon Restoration. The style ''Madame Royale'' was not regulated by any other code than that of etiquette. Its very simplicity, however, was considered more desirable than being known more formally as ''Son Altesse Royale'' ( "Your Royal Highness") in conversation. The style was customarily held until the death of the royal parent or until the princess married. The equivalent style in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

is ''

Princess Royal Princess Royal is a style customarily (but not automatically) awarded by a British monarch to their eldest daughter. Although purely honorary, it is the highest honour that may be given to a female member of the royal family. There have been se ...

''. This title came into existence when Queen

Henrietta Maria Henrietta Maria (french: link=no, Henriette Marie; 25 November 1609 – 10 September 1669) was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland from her marriage to King Charles I on 13 June 1625 until Charles was executed on 30 January 1649. She was ...

(1609–1669), another daughter of King

, and the wife of King

Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. He was born into the House of Stuart as the second son of King James VI of Scotland, but after hi ...

(1600–1649), wanted to imitate in the

Kingdom of England The Kingdom of England (, ) was a sovereign state on the island of Great Britain from 12 July 927, when it emerged from various History of Anglo-Saxon England, Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, until 1 May 1707, when it united with Kingdom of Scotland, ...

the way in which the eldest daughter of the sovereign in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

was styled ''Madame Royale.'' In Savoy, Henrietta Maria's older sister, Christine de Bourbon, became known as Madama Reale in reference to her French manner of address. Her daughter-in-law,

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 ...

, when she became regent of Savoy after the early death of her husband, called herself Madama Reale, after her mother-in-law, who had also been a regent of Savoy. This was despite the fact that Marie Jeanne's father was not a king.

See also