Infanta Maria Teresa Rafaela of Spain
| Infanta Maria Theresa Rafaela | |||||
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| Dauphine of France | |||||
The future Dauphine by Louis Michel van Loo
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| Tenure | 23 February 1745 – 22 July 1746 | ||||
| Born | 11 June 1726 Royal Alcazar of Madrid, Spain |
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| Died | 22 July 1746 (aged 20) Palace of Versailles, France |
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| Burial | 6 August 1746 Royal Basilica of Saint Denis, France |
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| Spouse |
Louis, Dauphin of France (m. 1744–46; her death) |
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| Issue | Marie Thérèse, Madame Royale | ||||
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| House |
House of Bourbon (by birth and marriage) |
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| Father | Philip V of Spain | ||||
| Mother | Elisabeth Farnese | ||||
| Signature |  |
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| Full name | |
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| María Teresa Antonia Rafaela |
Maria Teresa Rafaela of Spain (María Teresa Antonia Rafaela; 11 June 1726 – 22 July 1746) was an Infanta of Spain by birth and was later the wife of Louis, Dauphin of France, son of Louis XV of France. She died aged 20, three days after giving birth to a daughter who died in 1748.
Born at the Royal Alcazar of Madrid in Spain, she was the second daughter of Philip V of Spain and Elisabeth Farnese. Baptised María Teresa Antonia Rafaela she was an Infanta of Spain (infanta de España) by birth and was granted the style of address of Royal Highness. She was known as María Teresa Rafaela though sometimes just Maria Teresa.
Prior to her marriage, the Spanish and French royal courts had been on poor terms: the Spanish had been greatly insulted by the French in 1725 when the engagement between Louis XV of France and Infanta Mariana Victoria of Spain, elder sister of Maria Teresa, was broken off. Louis XV had instead married Marie Leszczyńska and by her fathered the Dauphin, Louis. The marriage between the Infanta María Teresa Rafaela and the Dauphin was announced in August 1739 after the marriage of Princess Louise Élisabeth of France (sister of the dauphin) and Infante Felipe of Spain (brother of María Teresa Rafaela) the same month. Under the influence of her mother Elisabeth Farnese, María Teresa Rafaela was not to go to France until she reached a more mature age.
The Infanta was married to the dauphin by proxy in Madrid on 18 December 1744 and departed Spain in January 1745. She arrived at Versailles on 21 February 1745. The official marriage took place at the Palace of Versailles on 23 February 1745 and was performed by the Cardinal de Rohan. In France she was known as Marie Thérèse Raphaëlle d'Espagne or de Bourbon. The marriage was intended to improve relations between the cousin courts of France and Spain; during the infancy of Louis XV, he had been engaged to Maria Anna Victoria of Spain, oldest daughter of Philip V of Spain. The betrothal had been broken off and relations between the two countries had been cold. This latest union was meant to improve links between them both. Addressed as Madame la Dauphine at Versailles, Maria Teresa Rafaela was the highest ranking female in the kingdom after Queen Marie. She was the first Dauphine since the 1712 death of Marie Adélaïde of Savoy.
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