Prince Henri of Orléans (16 October 1867 – 9 August 1901) was the son of

Prince Robert, Duke of Chartres Prince Robert, Duke of Chartres (Robert Philippe Louis Eugène Ferdinand; 9 November 1840 – 5 December 1910), was the son of Prince Ferdinand Philippe, Duke of Orléans, and thus, a grandson of King Louis-Philippe of France. He fought for the ...

, and Princess Françoise of Orléans.

Biography

Henri, the second eldest son and third child of

, was born at

Ham, London Ham is a suburban district in Richmond, south-west London. It has meadows adjoining the River Thames where the Thames Path National Trail also runs. Most of Ham is in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and, chiefly, within the ward ...

on 16 October 1867. In 1889, at the instance of his father, who paid the expenses of the tour, he undertook, in company with

Gabriel Bonvalot Pierre Gabriel Édouard Bonvalot (13 July 1853 – 10 December 1933) was a French explorer of Central Asia and Tibet. Bonvalot was born in the commune of Épagne in the Aube department in north-central France. He was the son of Pierre Bonv ...

and Father

Constant de Deken Constant Pierre-Joseph De Deken (7 March 1852 – 3 March 1896) was a Belgian Belgian colonial empire, colonial explorer, anthropologist and Catholic missions, Roman Catholic missionary. To China De Deken was born in Wilrijk. The son of Ludovicu ...

(1852-1896), a journey through

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China), officially known as the Indochinese Union and after 1941 as the Indochinese Federation, was a group of French dependent territories in Southeast Asia from 1887 to 1954. It was initial ...

. In the course of their travels they crossed the mountain range of

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...

and the fruits of their observations, submitted to the Geographical Society of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

(and later incorporated i
''De Paris au Tonkin à travers le Tibet inconnu''
published in 1892), brought them conjointly the gold medal of that society. In 1892 the prince made a short journey of exploration in

East Africa East Africa, also known as Eastern Africa or the East of Africa, is a region at the eastern edge of the Africa, African continent, distinguished by its unique geographical, historical, and cultural landscape. Defined in varying scopes, the regi ...

, and shortly afterwards visited

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

, proceeding thence to

Tongkin Tonkin, also spelled Tongkin, Tonquin or Tongking, is an exonym referring to the northern region of Vietnam. During the 17th and 18th centuries, this term referred to the domain ''Đàng Ngoài'' under Trịnh lords' control, including both the N ...

in present-day Vietnam. In April 1892 he visited Luang Prabang in Laos, leading him to write a letter to "Politique Coloniale" in January 1893. From this point he set out for

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

, and was successful in discovering the source of the

Irrawaddy River The Irrawaddy River (, , Ayeyarwady) is the principal river of Myanmar, running through the centre of the country. Myanmar’s most important commercial waterway, it is about 1,350 miles (2,170 km) long. Originating from the confluence of the ...

, a brilliant geographical achievement which secured the medal of the Geographical Society of Paris and the

Cross of the Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was o ...

. In 1897 he revisited Abyssinia, and political differences arising from this trip led to a duel with

Vittorio Emanuele, Count of Turin Prince Vittorio Emanuele of Savoy-Aosta, Infante of Spain, Count of Turin (24 November 1870 – 10 October 1946) was a grandchild of King Victor Emmanuel II and a member of the House of Savoy. He was a cousin of Victor Emmanuel III. Early lif ...

. While on a trip to

in 1901, he died at

Saigon Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) ('','' TP.HCM; ), commonly known as Saigon (; ), is the most populous city in Vietnam with a population of around 14 million in 2025. The city's geography is defined by rivers and canals, of which the largest is Saigo ...

on 9 August. Prince Henri was a somewhat violent

Anglophobe Anti-English sentiment, also known as Anglophobia (from Latin ''Anglus'' "English" and Greek φόβος, ''phobos'', "fear"), refers to opposition, dislike, fear, hatred, oppression, persecution, and discrimination of English people and/or ...

, and his diatribes against

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

contrasted rather curiously with the cordial reception which his position as a traveller obtained for him in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, where he was given the gold medal of the

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

Duel

In 1897, in several articles for ''

Le Figaro () is a French daily morning newspaper founded in 1826. It was named after Figaro, a character in several plays by polymath Pierre Beaumarchais, Beaumarchais (1732–1799): ''Le Barbier de Séville'', ''The Guilty Mother, La Mère coupable'', ...

'', Prince Henri described the Italian soldiers being held captive in

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

, during the first

First Italo–Ethiopian War The First Italo-Ethiopian War, also referred to as the First Italo-Abyssinian War, or simply known as the Abyssinian War in Italy (), was a military confrontation fought between Kingdom of Italy, Italy and Ethiopian Empire, Ethiopia from 1895 to ...

, as cowards. Prince Vittorio Emanuele thus challenged him to a duel. The sword was agreed upon as the weapon of choice, as the Italians thought that duel with pistols, favored by the French, was worthy of betrayed husbands, not of princes of royal blood. The duel with swords, which lasted 26 minutes, took place at 5:00 am on 15 August 1897, in the Bois de Marechaux at

Vaucresson Vaucresson () is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is in the Hauts-de-Seine department from the center of Paris. Vaucresson contains abundant parkland; 22 of its 308 hectares are classed as natural zones. Today Vaucresson ...

, France. Vittorio Emanuele defeated Prince Henri after five reprises. The "Monseigneur" Henri received a serious wound to his right abdomen, and the doctors of both parties considered the injury serious enough to put him in a state of obvious inferiority, causing the end of the duel, and making the Count of Turin famous in Europe.

In popular culture

Literature

* '' Race to Tibet'' by

Sophie Schiller Sophie is a feminine given name, another version of Sophia, from the Greek word for "wisdom". People with the name Born in the Middle Ages * Sophie, Countess of Bar (c. 1004 or 1018–1093), sovereign Countess of Bar and lady of Mousson * Soph ...

(2015)

Biography

Duel

In popular culture

Literature

Ancestry

Notes

References

Further reading