Anne Marie Louise d'Orléans | |
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La Grande Mademoiselle | |
Mademoiselle, School of Pierre Mignard.
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Duchess of Montpensier | |
Tenure | 4 June 1627 – 5 April 1693 |
Predecessor | Marie de Bourbon |
Successor | Philippe of France |
Born |
Palais du Louvre, Paris, France |
29 May 1627
Died | 5 April 1693 Palais du Luxembourg, Paris, France |
(aged 65)
Burial | 19 April 1693 Royal Basilica, Saint Denis, France |
House |
House of Bourbon-Montpensier House of Orléans |
Father | Gaston, Duke of Orléans |
Mother | Marie, Duchess of Montpensier |
Religion | Roman Catholic |
Signature |
Anne Marie Louise d'Orléans, Duchess of Montpensier, (29 May 1627 – 5 April 1693) known as La Grande Mademoiselle, was the eldest daughter of Gaston d'Orléans, and his first wife Marie de Bourbon, Duchess of Montpensier. One of the greatest heiresses in history, she died unmarried and childless, leaving her vast fortune to her cousin, Philippe of France. After a string of proposals from various members of European ruling families, including Charles II of England,Afonso VI of Portugal, and Charles Emmanuel II of Savoy, she eventually fell in love with the courtier, Antoine Nompar de Caumont and scandalised the court of France when she asked Louis XIV for permission to marry him, as such a union was viewed as a mésalliance. She is best remembered for her role in the Fronde, her role in bringing the famous composer Lully to the king's court, and her Mémoires.
Anne Marie Louise d'Orléans was born at the Palais du Louvre in Paris on 29 May 1627. Her father was Gaston, Duke of Orléans, known as Monsieur, the only surviving brother of then-King Louis XIII of France. Her mother, 21-year-old Marie de Bourbon, Duchess of Montpensier, the only member of the Montpensier branch of the House of Bourbon until the birth of her daughter, died five days after giving birth to Anne Marie. This left the newborn Anne Marie, the new Duchess of Montpensier, heiress to her mother's immense fortune, which included five duchies, the Dauphinate of Auvergne, and the sovereign Principality of Joinville, found in the historical province of Champagne.