| Suzanne Henriette of Lorraine | |
|---|---|
 Portrait byHyacinthe Rigaud, 1706 | |
| Duchess consort of Mantua andMontferrat | |
| Tenure | 8 November 1704 – 5 July 1708 |
| Born | (1686-02-01)1 February 1686 France |
| Died | 19 October 1710(1710-10-19) (aged 24) Paris, France |
| Burial | Carmel du faubourg Saint-Germain, Paris[1] |
| Spouse | Ferdinand Charles Gonzaga |
| House | Lorraine |
| Father | Charles III, Duke of Elbeuf |
| Mother | Françoise de Montault de Navailles |
Suzanne Henriette de Lorraine (1 February 1686 – 19 October 1710) was a member of theHouse of Lorraine,Duchess of Mantua by marriage toFerdinand Charles Gonzaga. Her spouse was the lastGonzagaduke of Mantua.
Suzanne Henriette was the penultimate daughter ofCharles de Lorraine, Duke of Elbeuf and his third wife Françoise deMontault de Navailles (1653-1717), daughter ofPhilippe de Montaut-Bénac, Duke de Navailles. Her two older half brothers,Henri andEmmanuel Maurice were successivelydukes of Elbeuf and she was known as Mademoiselle d'Elbeuf.
Henri Jules, Prince de Condé (son ofle Grand Condé) had proposed his daughterMarie Anne,Mademoiselle de Montmorency as a bride forFerdinando Carlo Gonzaga, ruler of theDuchies of Mantua andMontferrat (known in France asCharles de Gonzague.[2]), but that alliance was not realized. Ferdinando's first wife and cousin,Anna Isabella Gonzaga, died in August 1703, leaving him childless.
Although theLorraine-Elbeufs were reckoned among theprinces etrangers at thecourt of France, as acadet branch of a non-reigning cadet branch (Guise) of theHouse of Lorraine, it was not their custom to marry crowned heads. Nevertheless,Ferdinando Carlo Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat sought Suzanne Henriette's hand in pursuit of adynastic alliance with another reigning ducal house under French influence. Mlle. d'Elbeuf married the Duke inMilan, to which she had been conducted by her grandmotherCatherine Henriette de Bourbon.
He died on 5 July 1708, leaving Suzanne Henriette a widow at the age of 22.
Suzanne Henriette returned to France. Later she was involved in a lawsuit betweenLeopold, Duke of Lorraine andAnne of Bavaria, Princess de Condé, over inheritance of the Guise fortune. Residing in Paris, she died there in 1710 at the age of 24. She was buried at the Carmel du faubourg Saint-Germain in the crypt of her grandfather, theMaréchal de Navailles.[1]Saint-Simon observed that she died in the flower of her youth after a long illness, also noting that, having been considered a beauty, her "bizarre" marriage had been the cause of a sad life.
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The generations start from the children ofRéné II | ||
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*died without issue | ||