| Louis Victor of Savoy | |||||
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| Prince of Carignano | |||||
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| Prince of Carignano | |||||
| Reign | 4 April 1741 – 16 December 1778 | ||||
| Predecessor | Victor Amadeus I | ||||
| Successor | Victor Amadeus II | ||||
| Born | (1721-09-25)25 September 1721 Hôtel de Soissons,Paris, France | ||||
| Died | 16 December 1778(1778-12-16) (aged 57) Palazzo Carignano,Turin, Italy | ||||
| Spouse | |||||
| Issue Detail | Princess Carlotta Victor Amadeus, Prince of Carignano Leopoldina, Princess of Melfi Princess Polyxena Gabriella, Princess of Lobkowicz Marie Louise, Princess of Lamballe Caterina, Princess of Paliano Eugenio, Count of Villafranca | ||||
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| House | Savoy (Carignano branch) | ||||
| Father | Victor Amadeus I | ||||
| Mother | Maria Vittoria, légitimée di Savoia | ||||
Louis Victor of Savoy, 4th Prince of Carignano (25 September 1721 – 16 December 1778) headed acadet branch of the Italian dynasty which reigned over the Kingdom of Sardinia, being known as thePrince of Carignano from 1741 till his death. Upon extinction of the senior line of the family, his great-grandson succeeded to the royal throne as King Charles Albert of Sardinia, while his great-great-grandson,Victor Emmanuel II, became King of Italy.
Louis Victor was born at theHôtel de Soissons, the Parisian home of his ancestorMarie de Bourbon, Countess of Soissons, toVictor Amadeus I, Prince of Carignano and his wifeMaria Vittoria di Savoia. His father was a grandson ofThomas Francis, Prince of Carignano and thus a descendant ofCharles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy andInfanta Catherine Michelle of Spain. He was doubly descended from the latter pair, as his mother was alegitimated daughter ofVictor Amadeus II of Sardinia and his mistressJeanne Baptiste d'Albert de Luynes.
One of five children, he was the second son of his parents; his older brother Joseph Victor died an infant in 1716. Louis Victor was thus heir to the Carignanocadet branch of theHouse of Savoy from birth. His older sisterAnne Thérèse married the FrenchmanCharles de Rohan and wasPrincess of Soubise by marriage. Anne Thérèse was the mother ofMadame de Guéméné, official governess to the children ofMarie Antoinette andLouis XVI.
Louis Victor grew up in Paris, where his father was both a courtier and an inveterate gambler. Heavily in debt inPiedmont, and sued by his sisters whose dowries he had gambled away, he had fled to France where he lived so luxurious a life that his son was forced to sell significant family assets in that country. He later moved to Piedmont, betweenTurin andRacconigi.
In 1741, Louis Victor's father died and he became the Prince of Carignano. Thefief ofCarignano had belonged to the Savoys since 1418, but the fact that it was part ofPiedmont, only twenty km south of Turin, meant that it could be a "princedom" for Thomas in name only, being endowed neither with independence nor revenues of substance.[1]
On 4 May 1740, Louis Victor marriedPrincess Christine of Hesse-Rheinfels-Rotenburg, a sister of the Sardinian king's deceased wifeQueen Polyxena (1706–1736). The couple had nine children.
The most renowned of their children,Marie Thérèse, is known to history as the Princesse de Lamballe whose close friendship withMarie Antoinette led to her brutal death during theFrench Revolution.
Louis Victor lost his wife in September, 1778 and died himself on 16 December 1778 at thePalazzo Carignano, the Turin residence of the Carignano family. Since 1835 his wife's grave has been inTurin's Basilica of Superga, as is that of Louis Victor.
His descendants includeVittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples andAmedeo, 5th Duke of Aosta, rival claimants for thedefunct throne of theKingdom of Italy, as well asPrince Lorenz of Belgium, Archduke of Austria-Este, head of acadet branch of the former imperialHouse of Habsburg-Lorraine, and the current head of theHouse of Lobkowicz.
| Ancestors of Louis Victor, Prince of Carignano[2] |
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