We have sadly reached the last lady in this series. I hope everyone has enjoyed reading about these remarkable ladies, and has learned something! On we go...
1627-1693, Duchess of Montpensier, which included five duchies (most notably Orleans) and part of Champagne
Mademoiselle, as she was known during her life, was not a very historically significant individual but her life was very dramatic and became the stuff of legend. She was in many ways a very modern woman and her whole life behaved in ways that would still shock, say, the English monarchy. Since her life is mostly just a collection of stories, I'll tell it that way, with some context along the way.
Mademoiselle was the granddaughter of King Henry IV, therefore making her the daughter of the Duke of Orleans (the title given to the second son of the king of France), and first cousin to Louis XIV. She was the only woman of her generation in the family, so was given the title "the Granddaughter of France." This along with her status gave her a very high opinion of herself her entire life.
She was easily the richest person in Europe during her lifetime, even when left with her father's large debts on his death. Thus she received at least seven proposals from some of the highest-ranking and richest men in Europe over the course of her life, including three from kings. These all came to nothing, either because Mademoiselle was not interested or because her cousin Louis XIV or his mother dismissed them. There was only one man that she ever wanted to marry, whom I will discuss below.
When Mademoiselle was five years old the Cardinal Richelieu, the most powerful man in France next to the king, exiled her father for marrying without the king's permission. She used to skip through the streets singing various satirical and unflattering songs that she had heard about the cardinal; he had to reprimand her multiple times for this, particularly because he was in fact her godfather.
Louis XIV was born when Mademoiselle was ten years old, and she decided that they should marry, being the highest ranking people of their generation. She openly referred to him as her "little husband" and again had to be scolded for doing this in public.
Three or four years later, after her beloved governess died she took a dislike to the new one and on one occasion locked her in a room.
Mademoiselle is most well-known to history for her strange tangential role in the Fronde, a short civil war over new taxes set for the aristocracy. Although she was not personally invested in the politics of it, she strongly disliked Cardinal Mazarin, the king's adviser who had levied the taxes. Her close friend's husband was one of those who rebelled against the taxes, and she left Paris with her friend to go to Bordeaux to avoid the fighting. However Bordeaux was under siege by 1650; she was personally involved in the peace treaty to end it.
During the second phase of the rebellion in 1652 her family seat of Orleans wanted to remain neutral so as not to be sacked by the king. The city tried to get her father to help it, but he didn't want to, so Mademoiselle took it upon herself to travel there. The city officials, though, who were on the king's side, locked the gates to her (because they believe, being an enemy of Mazarin, she was not on the king's side). She had to find someone to secretly take her across the river, jump over hedges, and finally climb through a hole in the walls of the city to get in, where the people welcomed her wholeheartedly.
From there she went back to Paris, and upon hearing that the above friend's husband wanted to come back into the city, which was closed to him, tried to help him, rather misguidedly. She went to the Bastille, the strongest fortress in the city, and appears to have personally fired on the approaching royal army to get them to let her friend in.
After her antics during the Fronde Mademoiselle was exiled for some time. In 1656, aged 39, she was allowed back to court and her openly gay 17 year old cousin, Louis XIV's brother, got the idea in his head to marry her. Presumably this was for her money and title. She contemplated the idea, and only dismissed it because he was apparently too much of a momma's boy.
Ten years later Mademoiselle met the love of her life, a poor nobleman called Lauzun. She was clearly rich enough for the both of them, and asked Louis permission to marry him. Initially Louis agreed, but his wife and brother vehemently opposed the match, saying Lauzun's lower position would disgrace the ruling family. They refused to sign the agreement, although Louis did, but without their agreement it couldn't be official yet. The plans went ahead anyway, based on Louis' approval. Just three days before the wedding, however, Louis changed his mind and rescinded his agreement, not allowing them to marry despite begging from both parties.
Mademoiselle left society at that point, but half a year later Lauzun was arrested on no charges. She had to get a huge amount of money to free him, which took ten years and in the end forced her to sell her two most profitable properties. She did it, though, and he was allowed to leave with her in exile. The couple only lasted another two years though, and by 1683 they were on bad terms.
At the end of her life Mademoiselle secluded herself in the Luxembourg palace. She was quite sick at the end, and Lauzun was desperate to see her, but she was too proud to allow it. She died without seeing him again.
There is a rather gross story that she had died of a bladder stoppage, and that at at her funeral the pressure caused her entrails to explode, and people fled from the church in horror. An undignified ending for a proud, independent, interesting lady.
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