| Marie Adélaïde of Savoy | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dauphine of France Duchess of Burgundy | |||||
_by_a_member_of_the_%25C3%2589cole_Fran%25C3%25A7aise.jpg) The Dauphine wearing Fleur-de-lis as Duchess of Burgundy,c. 1697 | |||||
| Born | (1685-12-06)6 December 1685 Royal Palace,Turin,Savoyard state | ||||
| Died | 12 February 1712(1712-02-12) (aged 26) Palace of Versailles,France | ||||
| Burial | 23 February 1712 | ||||
| Spouse | |||||
| Issue Detail | |||||
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| House | Savoy | ||||
| Father | Victor Amadeus II, Duke of Savoy | ||||
| Mother | Anne Marie d'Orléans | ||||
Marie Adélaïde of Savoy (6 December 1685 – 12 February 1712) was the wife ofLouis, Dauphin of France, Duke of Burgundy. She was the eldest daughter ofVictor Amadeus II, Duke of Savoy, and ofAnne Marie d'Orléans. Her betrothal to the Duke of Burgundy in June 1696[1] was part of theTreaty of Turin, signed on 29 August 1696. She was the mother of the future KingLouis XV. Styled asDuchess of Burgundy after her marriage, she becameDauphine of France upon the death of her father-in-law,Le Grand Dauphin, in 1711. She died ofmeasles in 1712, followed by her husband a week later.
Born at theRoyal Palace of Turin in December 1685, Marie Adélaïde, born Maria Adelaide, the eldest daughter of Victor Amadeus II, Duke of Savoy, since 1675[2] and his French wifeAnne Marie d'Orléans, a niece ofLouis XIV, and the daughter ofPhilippe of France, Duke of Orléans, and ofHenrietta of England. Her birth nearly cost her sixteen-year-old mother her life.[3] As a female, she was not eligible to inherit theDuchy of Savoy due tosalic law. Her grandmotherMarie Jeanne of Savoy and thePrince of Carignan acted asgodparents.[4] Marie Adélaïde enjoyed a particularly close relationship with her grandmother as well as her mother who, despite protocol, was raising her children herself, which was quite unusual among royalty during the era.[5] As children, she and her sisterMaria Luisa frequented theVigno di Madama outside Turin, and paid weekly visits to their grandmother at thePalazzo Madama in Turin.[4]
Marie Adelaide was beautiful, but also tiny, even described as "doll-sized". Growing up, she was skinny. WhenLouis, Duke of Burgundy, her future husband, saw her for the first time, he was so surprised by her beauty that he wished to marry her immediately. Her hair was chestnut in her youth, and darkened as she grew up. Her eyes were large and black, surrounded by long eyelashes.[6]
The marriage of Marie Adélaïde came as a result of the Treaty of Turin signed on 29 August 1696. This treaty between her father and Louis XIV agreed that her father would support France in theNine Years' War.[7] Her father's dominions had been ravaged during the war.
Victor Amadeus had first proposed Marie Adélaïde as a candidate for marriage with theArchduke Joseph, butEmperor Leopold I had declined because of their young age.[8] The Treaty of Turin was negotiated under the influence of theMaréchal de Tessé, who suggested that Marie Adelaïde be sent to France to perfect her education before marrying the French prince.[9]
Upon her arrival in France, Louis XIV, who had come to greet her, met her inMontargis on 4 November 1696,[10] and was quite pleased with "the Princess".[11] As she was still a girl of 11 years, the marriage did not take place immediately. Instead, three days a week, she was a pupil at theMaison royale de Saint-Louis, the girls' schoolMadame de Maintenon had founded in 1684 inSaint-Cyr, in the vicinity ofVersailles.
On 6 December 1697, on her twelfth birthday, Marie Adelaïde was formally married to the Duke of Burgundy in thePalace of Versailles. The event took place after the signing of theTreaty of Ryswick which ended the Nine Years' War. Her husband was the eldest son ofLe Grand Dauphin andMaria Anna Victoria of Bavaria.[12]
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The new Duchess of Burgundy had a close relationship with the king and withMadame de Maintenon. Her arrival in Versailles was described "like a breath of fresh air," reviving the dull court.[13] She also maintained an ongoing correspondence with her parents and grandmother back in Savoy.
When she compared herself to the Duke of Burgundy’s mother, the deceasedMaria Anna Victoria of Bavaria, she knew a beautiful woman would replace the dull, unattractive and sickly woman at court. Although not proven, it is said that when she mentioned it toLouis XIV, who agreed on Maria Anna Victoria’s ugliness, she said:“The late Madame la Dauphine in bed must wanted to consummate with the Dauphin, but while in bed, the Dauphin wanted to be like you with all of your beautiful, attractive mistresses, surrounded with it in bed, with chocolate covered strawberries, sweet pastries, and a bottle of champagne!”And the King replied with: “My son will follow the French royal tradition of mistresses!” The king had many mistresses, at the time, his current mistress was theFrançoise d’Aubigné.
Louis de Rouvroy in his memoirs, depicts the dauphine as an accomplished woman at court, full of spirit and energy.[14]
She used her influence over the aging king to prevent her political enemies from furthering their causes. This group, known as thecabale de Meudon, devoted themselves to her father-in-law, hoping to secure themselves in his expected reign upon the death of Louis XIV. Her great enemy was theDuchess of Bourbon, a legitimated daughter of Louis XIV and his mistress,Madame de Montespan. The Duchess of Bourbon wanted her daughterMademoiselle de Bourbon to wedCharles, Duke of Berry, youngest son of theGrand Dauphin. To maintain her influence over her grandfather-in-law, the Duchess of Burgundy organized Berry's marriage toMarie Louise Élisabeth d'Orléans, the eldest daughter ofPhilippe d'Orléans, Duke of Orléans and of his wifeFrançoise Marie de Bourbon.[15] The influential Marie Adélaïde also brought about the disgrace ofLouis Joseph, Duke of Vendôme, the great military man of the era.[16]
The Duchess of Burgundy gave birth to her first child in 1704. The child, a short-lived boy, was given the titleDuke of Brittany[17] before his death in 1705. Marie Adélaïde bore two more children in 1707 and 1710. Her youngest son, the only child to survive beyond childhood, later became KingLouis XV.
In early April 1711, her father-in-lawLe Grand Dauphin caughtsmallpox and died on 14 April at theChâteau de Meudon.[18] Upon the death ofLe Grand Dauphin, Marie Adélaïde's husband became Dauphin of France and sheDauphine of France.
The mourning court traveled toFontainebleau in February 1712. At Fontainebleau, Marie Adélaïde caught a fever which escalated inmeasles.[19] Having been bled and givenemetics, she died in Versailles at the age of 26. Louis XIV and Madame de Maintenon were plunged into sadness.Madame Palatine later said that Marie Adélaïde was one of only two persons Louis XIV had ever truly loved in his life, the other being Anne of Austria, the king's mother. After the Dauphine's death, the royal family moved toMarly to avoid the spread of infection. It was atMarly that the Dauphin himself died six days later, having caught the measles from his wife.[20]
The couple was buried together at theBasilica of Saint Denis on 23 February 1712.[21] Their son, theDuke of Brittany succeeded as Dauphin, but he died the following March from the measles. The only child to survive the epidemic was the futureLouis XV who was locked inside his apartments with his governessMadame de Ventadour to avoid being bled to death by doctors like his elder brother had been. Madame de Ventadour was renowned for having saved the infant Louis XV's life. Louis XV subsequently named his fourth daughterMarie Adélaïde in his mother's honour.[21]
The Dauphine was the subject of a statue held at theLouvre in which she posed as the Roman goddessDiana which was crafted byAntoine Coysevox in 1710.
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Media related toMarie Adélaïde of Savoy at Wikimedia Commons
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*also a princess of France in her own right | ||
