On this Day in French Royal/Imperial History


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On this day, September 2, 1879 ~ Emperor Napoleon III of France capitulated to the Prussians at Sedan, France
 
September 7, 1151 death of Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou. Of course most famous for his marriage to Empress Mathilda and father of Henry II.

He was born August 24, 1113. He was the son of Fulk V, Count of Anjou who was also king of Jerusalem through his second marriage. His mother was Fulk's first wife Ermengarde, Countess of Maine. His parents had four children together before his mother died in 1126.

-Elias: claimed his mother's title of count of Maine as Elias II though in rebellion against his older brother. He married Philippa a daughter of Count Rotrou III of Perche. He was imprisoned by his brother and died. His only daughter Beatrix married John I, Count of Alençon with whom she had six children.

-Matilda: married William Adelin who was the heir of Henry I. He died a year later when he drowned when sailing aboard the White ship. She remained at her father in law's court for a few years before returning home and eventually took the veil.

-Sibyllla: Her first marriage to William Clito, a nephew of Henry I was annulled. She accompanied her father to Jerusalem where she met and married Thierry, Count of Flanders with whom she had six children. When she accompanied her husband on a third pilgrimage she refused to return with him and joined a convent in Bethany where she died.

His father had become involved in the crusades for a number of years. After the death of his wife in 1126 he headed back to Jerusalem. There he entered negotiations with Baldwin II who wished to marry his heir Melisende to a powerful lord to help cement her reign. Having negotiated that he would reign with his wife as king, he handed over control of Anjou to his son and left for Jerusalem. He had two sons with his second wife and died in 1143 in a hunting accident in Acre.


Geoffrey's half brothers:

-Baldwin: succeeded his parents as Baldwin III. He married Theodora Komnene but they had no children. He was poisoned.
-Amalric: succeeded his brother as king. Married Agnes of Courtenay who was mother of Baldwin IV and Sibylla. His second marriage to Maria Komnene produced Isabella I of Jerusalem.

He was reported to be a jovial red head with prowess on the battle field. He came to the attention of Henry I who sought him as a husband to his daughter Matilda. Consent to the marriage was given June 10, 1128 and Geoffrey was knighted in preparation for the wedding, in Rouen.


The couple were married in 1128. Geoffrey was 15 and his bride was 26. She was a widow, having been married to Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor in 1114 at age 12. Henry died in 1125. She had no children from her previous marriage. She was a proud woman, and far more proud of being Dowager empress then of being simply Countess of Anjou.

Though the marriage was stormy, it was still reportedly happy enough. She bore her husband three sons who would outlive him. There were long separations during their marriage.

His father officially left Anjou, after the negotiations were complete with Baldwin II for his marriage, in 1129. Geoffrey officially was Count of Anjou.

When his father in law died in 1135 Geoffrey supported his wife's claim to Normandy. But like England, Normandy soon chose Stephen of Blois as ruler. While Matilda was in England with troops her husband helped to summon for her, Geoffrey saw to her French territories. He helped to secure Normandy west and south of the Seine river. In the summer of 1144 he assumed the title of Duke of Normandy having crossed over into Rouen in June. In 1149 he and his wife would cede the title to their eldest son, which was ratified by Louis VII in the following year.

The problems with his brother Elias were a huge issue for him. It was one of the reasons he couldn't join his wife or send her more troops to England. And had slowed his progress in Normandy. His brother died in 1151.

He died in 1151 quite suddenly. He had arrived home at his estate in Anjou and fell ill with a fever. He made bequests of his estate and soon died. He was buried at Le Mans Cathedral.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Mans_Cathedral

Matilda would outlive him by 16 years, dying in 1167.

His three sons with Matilda:

-Henry: duke of Normandy in 1149 and succeeded as King of England in 1154. Married Eleanor of Aquitaine. They had seven children to reach adulthood including Richard the Lionheart, King John and Geoffrey's name sake, Geoffrey, Duke of Brittany.

-Geoffrey: was made Count of Nantes. died at 24 unmarried seven years after his father died.

-William: viscount of Dieppe. Also died unmarried. He died at 27 in 1164.


Geoffrey also had three recorded bastards with an unnamed mistress.

-Hamelin: his half brother Henry arranged his marriage to the widowed Isabel de Warenne, 4th Countess of Surrey (and he took her surname). They had a son and four daughters.

-Emma: was married to Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd, son of Owain the Great of Wales. She bore him four children.

-Mary: who was an abbess.
 
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8th of September 1425 : Death of Charles III of Navarre,Count of Évreux

Charles III was the son of Charles II of Navarre and Jean de Valois,he succeeded his father as monarch in 1387.Charles III died at Olite, in Navarre and was buried beside his wife Eleanor who had predeceased him in 1416 at Pamplona Cathedral.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_III_of_Navarre

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September 9 1488- death of Francis II, Duke of Brittany.

His death saw the succession of his daughter Anne which was a major turning point for Brittany.

Francis was born in 1433. His father was Richard of Brittany, Count of Etampes. His mother Margaret, Countess of Vertus was the daughter of Louis I, Duke of Orleans. Richard was the youngest son of John IV and was never expected to succeed. His brother John V died and by 1457 both of his sons, who succeeded him in succession, had died childless. Richard and John's brother Arthur succeeded in 1457 but despite several marriages had no children. With Richard dying in 1438, his son was the next male heir. Francis' sister Catherine married William VII of Chalon-Arlay, a prince of Orange.

Francis succeeded his Uncle in 1458 at the age of 25.

His first wife was Margaret of Brittany. Margaret was the daughter of Francis I of Brittany, Francis II's first cousin (the son of his Uncle John V). Her mother Isabella of Scotland was a daughter of James I. She bore him only one son who died shortly after birth.

His second wife was Margaret of Foix daughter of Gaston IV, Count of Foix and Eleanor of Navarre. She was a princess of Navarre as her mother was queen regnant. Margaret bore him two daughters, the younger of whom Isabeau died at the age of 12.


Francis died from a fall from his horse at the age of 55. He was buried at Nantes Cathedral.


He was succeeded by his only daughter Anne. Anne's succession to the Breton throne marked a huge period in the history of Brittany. Her father and the nobles had worked to assure her succession to Brittany, to maintain its independence from France. In the end Brittany would officially merge with France.


Anne was born in 1477 and was 11 at the time of her father's death. She was a rich and sought after heiress. She holds the distinction of being the only woman to ever be Queen of France twice.


Anne was betrothed many times but her first marriage was to Maximilian I of Austria. The French sieged the bride at Rennes for two months to force her to have her marriage to Maximilian annulled. Charles VIII was legally betrothed to Maximilian's daughter at the time.

She married Charles in 1491 and became Queen of France for the first time. She was crowned at St Dennis Basilica, the first queen to be so. Her husband died four years later in 1494 and despite her pregnancies, she had no living children. Louis XII sought to marry her and after annulling his marriage to his first wife Joan, he married Anne in 1499. The contract though ensured recognition that she was Duchess of Brittany in her own right. She was crowned for a second time in 1504.

Anne was fiercely determined to protect Breton independence. She was a hands on Duchess from an early age. She called the Breton estates up, she had coins minted with her image and appointed her own supporters to positions of power in administration. In 1505 she made a tour of Brittany, to areas she had never been, to meet with per people. It was coined as a pilgrimage but it was her way of asserting her position as Duchess.

Unfortunately she died in 1514 from kidney stones. Despite her best efforts to protect Breton independence, her daughter Claude was married to Francis I of France and saw the union of France and Brittany.
 
François II & Marguerite de Foix were originally buried at the now destroyed the Carmelite chapel in Nantes as was the dukes 1st wife,Marguerite de Bretagne and later the heart of Anne de Bretagne ,queen of France.

In 1791 the chapel was closed and the 3 coffins were moved to Nantes Cathedral and hidden in the crypt,the tomb too was dismantled and also hidden and avoided destruction during the French Revolution.

The coffins and tombs were rediscovered in the early 1800's the tomb was repaired and reassembled at Nantes Cathedral.

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:previous: It was commissioned by Anne who was a great patron of the arts. Has to be noted while it contains the remains of both of her father's wives, Anne only had her mother depicted on it.

It was designed by Michael Colombe. The four corners symbolize the four virtues of temperance, courage, justice and prudence.
 
On this day, September 10, 1638 ~ Birth of Maria Theresa of Austria, Queen Consort of King Louis XIV
 
On this day, September 11, 1349 ~ Demise of Bonne of Luxembourg, Duchess of Normandy, first wife of the future King John II of France
 
Sad woman. Five of her six children died by the age of 5, 3 of them before their first birthday. Only her first son made it out of childhood.

She was the grandmother of Philip V of Spain and great grandmother of Louis XV of France.

Her tomb in the Basilica St Dennis

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria...tria_at_the_Royal_Basilica_of_Saint_Denis.jpg

The Queen also acted as Regent for her husband on a number of occasions and I believe was the last ever French Queen Regent ending a tradition established by Blanche de Castile.
 
On this day, September 12, 1494 ~ The birth of King Francis I of France at the Chateau de Cognac
 
September 13th, 1488 -Death of Charles II, Duke of Bourbon,Count of Clermont and Forez .

Charles II was the second son of Charles I of Bourbon and Agnes of Burgundy.He was briefly Duke of Bourbon in 1488 following the death of his older brother Jean II of Bourbon.From an early age Charles had been assigned for a role in the church and was Archbishop of Lyon and Bishop of Clermont.He was made a Cardinal by Sixtus IV in 1476.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_II,_Duke_of_Bourbon


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On this day, September 16, 1824 ~ Demise of King Louis XVIII of France
 
22 September 1531 : Death of Louise de Savoie ,mother of King François Ier and Regent of France.


Louise who was deeply superstitious caught a chill after viewing a comet at her chateau de Romorantin ,the sight of the comet filled her with dread .The kings mother died a couple of days later at Grez-sur-Loing. At the time of her death Louise was the most powerful and richest woman in France ,she had acted as Regent of France for her son for several periods of time. Though never a queen of France ,Louise was Duchess of Angoulême, Duchesse de Bourbon,Anjou & d'Auvergne , Countess of Forez ,Clermont, Maine and of Marche , and Dame de Beaujeu.


Through her daughter,Marguerite of Angoulême she was the grandmother of Jeanne d'Albret ,queen of Navarre and great grandmother of Henri IV of France.
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27th of September 1249 : Death of Raymond VII, Count of Toulouse


Raymond was the son of Raymond VI of Toulouse and Joan of England (daughter of Henry II).Following the death of his father in 1222 he succeeded him as Count of Toulouse, Duke of Narbonne and Marquis of Provence. He married Sancha of Aragon by whom he had one surviving child child Joan, Countess of Toulouse.

Raymond VII died at Toulouse but was buried beside his mother at Fontevraud Abbey .Their joint tomb survived until the French Revolution when it was destroyed.

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Oct 3, 1568 death of Elizabeth of Valois.

Elizabeth was born April 2, 1545. She was the eldest daughter of Henry II and Catherine de Medici. On her mother's side she was the granddaughter of Lorenzo de Medici, Duke of Urbino. She was the second of their 10 children, of whom 7 made it to adulthood. Of her four brothers who survived infancy, 3 sat on the throne of France, Francis II, Charles IX and Henry III (only Hercule, renamed Francis after Francis II died, did not as he died before Henry III). None of her brothers had sons and the throne eventually passed to the husband of her younger sister Margaret, Henry of Navarre. Her sister Claude married Charles III of Lorraine. Unlike their brothers, all 3 sisters had children who reached adulthood. Her brother Charles had a daughter but she had died at the age of six.


She was born at Palace of Fontainebleau. She shared a nursery with her future sister in law, Mary of Scotland who was three years older. Though Mary out ranked her as a crowned queen, the two girls were very close and remained so through their life. She was considered very shy and timid, and while not as beautiful as Margaret or Mary, she was said to be attractive.

Against the wishes of the pope her father originally intended to marry her to Edward VI. But those plans ended with his death in 1553.

Instead in 1559 she was wed to Philip II of Spain. Philip was the son of Charles V Holy Roman Emperor and Isabel of Portugal. She was to be his third wife. He had been widowed the previous year by Mary Tudor. Of his four wives, Elizabeth was the only one not closely related. His first wife Maria of Portugal was his double first cousin and Mary was his first cousin once removed. At the time of their marriage Philip had one child, a son Carlos from his first marriage. Carlos was 14. He would die in 1569 at the age of 24. Philip and Mary of course had no children.

They were married by proxy at Notre Dame with the Duke of Alba standing in for Philip. They would later be married in Spain upon her arrival. Philip was said to be quite enamoured with his 14 year old wife. He appointed Sofonisba Anguissola as a lady in waiting and court painter to Elizabeth. Elizabeth who had been an amateur painter grew in skill under her training.

Elizabeth was originally intended as a wife to Carlos. She was extremely close to her troubled stepson. Even in his bad days he was kind to her. When he eventually had to be locked away for his mental health had deteriorated, she was left extremely upset.

Her husband who was 32 when they married is said to have given up mistresses during their marriage. He enjoyed throwing tournaments in her honor as well. Elizabeth wrote fondly of her charming husband to her mother.

Philip and Elizabeth were both said to be doting parents to their two daughters (her first pregnancy had resulted in a miscarriage of twin girls). Philip had been by his wife's side when she suffered smallpox, and through the loss of their twins as well. Unfortunately she died after miscarrying a fifth daughter, the same day as the baby.

Catherine offered Margaret as a bride to Philip but he turned down the offer. He would eventually marry his niece Anna of Austria who would give him his heir Philip III, in 1570. Philip outlived his last wife as well.

A painting of her with her eldest daughter.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisabeth_of_Valois#/media/File:DianedAndouins1565.jpg


Her two daughters:
-Isabella Clara Eugenia: married Albert VII, Archduke of Austria. Though she bore her husband 3 children, they all died in infancy.
-Catherine Michelle: married Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy. They had 10 children, 9 of whom reached adulthood.
 
At the time of the birth of Élisabeth de France her father was still Dauphin of France. Élisabeth's godfather was King Henry VIII of England and her godmother was Éléonore d'Autriche, queen of France. (the second wife of François Ier).

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October 4, 1160 birth of Alys of France daughter of Louis VII.

Alys was the daughter of Louis and his second wife Constance of Castile. She was the younger of two daughters born to the couple. Her older sister Margaret was married to Henry the young king of England and later Béla III of Hungary. Her mother died giving birth to her. She had four half siblings, two each from her fathers first and third marriage. His first wife was Eleanor of Aquitaine who later married Henry II of England. Eleanor has two daughters Marie and Alix. From his third marriage to Adele of Champagne her father had his heir Philip and a fifth daughter Agnes.

She and Margaret were both promised to sons of Eleanor, their fathers first wife. While Margaret was married to Henry the young king, Alys was intended for Richard. In 1169 at 8 she was sent to England as ward of Henry. Six years later the wedding still had not taken place. There was rumours Alys was the mistress of Henry and even that she may have had a child. The pope pressured Henry for the wedding to finally take place.

Despite this no marriage took place. In 1189 Henry died. In 1191 while still legally engaged to Alys, Richard married Berengaria if Navarre instead. Alys was offered as a wife to John but his mother refused.

There was years of dispute between Richard and Alys brother Philip who had gone on crusade. Philip refused to believe Richard when he claimed he could not marry Alys as she was his fathers mistress. Philip eventually capitulated but was offered a large payment. But his sister was kept in Rouen and Philip was denied demands to return his sister to her family. In 1194 Alys was finally returned home.

In 1195 Alys was finally married. Her husband was William IV count of Ponthieu. Her brother seemed to hope the marriage would be childless and he could claim Ponthieu as his own. Considering Alys was over 30 it seemed likely but his plan failed. The couple had two daughters and a stillborn son but only one daughter reached adulthood. Alys died in 1220 and her husband the following year.

Her one child

Marie: inherited her fathers titles and countess of Vexin. She first married Simon of Dammartin with whom she had four children. Her second husband Mathieu of Montmorency died on crusade. She was the grandmother of Eleanor of Castile, first wife of Edward I of England through her daughter Joanna.
 
On this day, October 4, 1289 ~ Birth of King Louis X of France
 
October 4, 1160 birth of Alys of France daughter of Louis VII.



Alys de France, Countess of Vexin for me was forever immortalized as Henry II's mistress in the Lion in Winter!
 
On this day, October 5, 1398 ~ Demise of Blanche of Navarre, Queen Consort of King Philip VI of France
 
Blanche d'Évreux,Queen of France was buried beside her daughter, Jeanne de France who predeceased her in 1371 at St Denis. Sadly both burials were desecrated on October 17th, 1793 by the revolutionary mobs.

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On this day, October 9, 1757 ~ Birth of King Charles X of France
 
On this day,11th of October 1188: Death of Robert I, Count of Dreux


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Robert was the fifth son of Louis VI of France and Adélaide de Maurienne and was in his mid sixties at the time of his death and was buried at the Abbatiale Saint-Yved de Braine.
His tomb monument survived until the French Revolution.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_I,_Count_of_Dreux
 
On this day, October 14, 1404 ~ Birth of Marie of Anjou, Queen of France, wife of King Charles VII of France
 
Marie d'Anjou spent a lot of her childhood in Anjou and Provence away from the English and Burgundians occupied areas.At the age of just 10 she was engaged to Charles, Comte de Ponthieu (future Charles VII) who was the youngest son of Charles VI and Isabeau de Bavaria.Charles and Marie were married at the cathedral of Saint-Étienne in Bourges in April 1422,Charles was at this stage Dauphin of France,his older brothers had predeceased him.

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October 15, 1711 birth of Elisabeth Therese of Lorraine.

Elisabeth was the daughter of Leopold, Duke of Lorraine and Elizabeth Charlotte D'Orleans. Her mother was a granddaughter of Louis XIII. Her father's maternal grandfather was Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor. She was the 11th of 15 children born from their union, though only 4 made it out of childhood (a 5th mad it to 16). She was the 2nd to make it to adulthood, behind her brother Francis who became Holy Roman emperor Francis I. Through Francis she was the aunt of Marie Antoinette. They were given the rank of royal highness and status as foreign princesses at the French court. She attended the coronation of Louis XV.

Her mother tried to arrange her marriage to Louis but the Duke of Bourbon was opposed to the union. In 1729 her father died, when he was in negotiations for the seventeen year old to marry Louis D'Orleans. He had recently been widowed by his wife Jeanne. Her mother was his aunt, and proposed a marriage between him and either her or her sister Anne Charlotte. Louis refused such an union out right.

Her fortune turned when her brother Francis was married to Maria Theresa of Austria in 1736. Her brother marrying the heiress to the Hapsburg emperor raised the importance of the House of Lorraine. And quickly opened doors for marriage for his younger sister.

Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia sought her hand. He was twice widowed at this point. His second wife Princess Polyxena had died in 1735. He had four living children, all by his second wife (his one son from his first wife and his last two from Polyxena died before their 5th birthday). The couple were married in March 1737 by proxy in her family home with her future husband's brother in law the Prince of Carignan standing proxy. Her dowry was raised by her brother, and the marriage contract was signed in Vienna by her brother and by the Emperor. Her and Charles were married in person in April. They were half-cousins. His mother Anne-Marie D'Orleans was a half sister of her mother (both daughters of Philipe I of Orleans, Anne-Marie was his youngest child by his first wife Henrietta of England, Elizabeth Charlotte was his youngest child by his second wife Elizabeth Charlotte of Palatinate).

Sadly the marriage lasted barely 4 years. She died following the birth of her third child and second son.

She was originally buried at Cathedral of Saint Giovanni Battista but in 1786 she was moved by her stepson Victor Amadeus to the Royal Basilica of Superga. Her husband lived until 1773 but she was the last of his wives.

She bore her husband 3 children, 1 who reached adulthood.

Carlo-died at the age of seven, 4 years after his mother.
Maria Vittoria- died at age 2, a year after her mother.
Benedetto- the child she died from giving birth to. He was made Duke of Chablais. Unlike his older siblings, he lived to be 66 years old. He married his niece Maria Anna (daughter of Victor Amadeus) but they had no kids.
 
On this day, October 19, 1851 ~ Demise of Marie Therese Charlotte, wife of Louis Antoine, Duke of Angouleme
 
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