|
|
|
|
Louis-Alexandre de Bourbon, Comte de Toulouse
|
| |
|
| |
Louis Alexandre de Bourbon, comte de Toulouse (1681), duc de Penthièvre (1697), d'Arc, de Châteauvillain and de Rambouillet (1711), (Palace of Versailles, 6 June 1678 - Rambouillet 1 December 1737), was the son of Louis XIV and his mistress Françoise-Athénaïs, marquise de Montespan. At the age of five, he became Amiral de France (Admiral of France). He was also the founder of the House of Bourbon-Toulouse.
comte de Toulouse
Louis-Alexandre was created comte de Toulouse in 1681 at the time of his legitimisation, and, in 1683, at the age of five, an admiral of France.
Discussion
Ask a question about 'Louis-Alexandre de Bourbon, Comte de Toulouse' Start a new discussion about 'Louis-Alexandre de Bourbon, Comte de Toulouse' Answer questions from other users |
Encyclopedia
Louis Alexandre de Bourbon, comte de Toulouse (1681), duc de Penthièvre (1697), d'Arc, de Châteauvillain and de Rambouillet (1711), (Palace of Versailles, 6 June 1678 - Rambouillet 1 December 1737), was the son of Louis XIV and his mistress Françoise-Athénaïs, marquise de Montespan. At the age of five, he became Amiral de France (Admiral of France). He was also the founder of the House of Bourbon-Toulouse.
Life
Early life
Born at the Palace of Versailles, Louis-Alexandre de Bourbon was the third son and youngest child of Louis XIV] and his mistress, Françoise-Athénaïs de Montespan.
At birth, he was put in the care of Mme de Monchevreuil along with his older sister Françoise-Marie de Bourbon, later duchesse d'Orléans.
comte de Toulouse
Louis-Alexandre was created comte de Toulouse in 1681 at the time of his legitimisation, and, in 1683, at the age of five, an admiral of France. In February 1684, he became colonel of an infantry regiment named after him and in 1693 mestre de camp of a cavalry regiment. During the War of Spanish Succession, he was given the task of defending the island of Sicily.
In January 1689, he was named governor of Guyenne, a title which he exchanged for that of governor of Bretagne six years later. On 3 January 1696, he was created a Marshal of France, becoming commander of the Royal Armies the following year. In March 1714, he obtained the title of Grand Huntsman of France (Grand Veneur).
Military
During the War of the Spanish Succession he commanded the French fleet at the Battle of Málaga in 1704. After the death of his father in 1715, he kept aloof from the intrigues of his sister-in-law Anne-Louise-Bénédicte, duchesse du Maine.
Though his father had legitimised him and his three surviving siblings, and even declared his two sons by Madame de Montespan fit to eventually succeed him to the throne of France, this was not to be, as immediately after Louis XIV's death the Parlement of Paris reversed the king's will.
Unlike his brother, the duc du Maine, who was barred from the Conseil de Régence, Toulouse was not kept from a political role, and soon after, he was named Ministre de la Marine (Minister of the Navy) (more or less equivalent to the United States Secretary of the Navy), inheriting a seasoned staff in the ministry headed up by Joseph Pellerin.
He remained in this capacity until being succeeded by Joseph Fleuriau d'Armenonville in 1722, the same Fleuriau d'Armenonville who had sold him the castle of Rambouillet in 1706.
In 1717, the ministry erected a fort on the eastern border of the Louisiana Colony in North America and named it Fort Toulouse in honor of the comte. (That fort has been partially reconstructed adjacent to its original site near the city of Wetumpka, Alabama, in the United States.)
Marriage and Children
The wife of the comte de Toulouse was Marie Victoire de Noailles, a daughter of Anne Jules de Noailles, duc de Noailles. They were married on 2 February 1723 in Paris . She was the widow of his elder half-brother's grandson, the marquis de Gondrin. They had one son:
Apart from this one legitimate child, the comte had two illegitimate children born before his marriage to Mlle de Noailles.
- Louis-Alexandre de Sainte Foy (1720-1723),
- Philippe-Auguste de Sainte Foy (1721-1795).
Later life
In 1693, he became a Chevalier des Ordres du roi (Order of the King) and a decade later, in 1704, he became a Chevalier de la Toison d’or (Holder of the Golden fleece). He also later took full control of the French navy under his father.
After his mother's departure from court, the two often saw each other. His older sister Louise-Françoise de Bourbon, also made an attempt to become closer to their mother at the same time. Although Louise-Françoise and his younger sister, Françoise-Marie de Bourbon, were bitter rivals, the comte was close to both. All three tried to avoid the court and the intrigues of their brother, the duc du Maine, and his wife Anne-Louise-Bénédicte de Bourbon-Condé, the duchess, at the château de Sceaux.
When his mother died in 1707, he and his sisters mourned in private as any public display at court was forbidden by his father and Mme de Maintenon, who had replaced their mother in the king's affections.
Shortly before his death in 1715, Louis XIV added a codicil to his will stating that if the line of his legitimate children died out, the throne of France could be inherited by the duc du Maine and the comte de Toulouse, his legitimised sons. This also meant that the two could assume the role of regent for the new five-year old king, Louis XV, if necessary .
The decision was reversed after the death of Louis XIV when Louis-Alexandre's cousin, Philippe II, duc d'Orléans, had the Parlement de Paris void the will. The duc d'Orléans as a result became the sole regent of France.
Death
The comte de Toulouse died at the château de Rambouillet on 1 December 1737. He was buried in the village 12th century Saint-Lubin church. On 30 September 1766, the comtesse died at the Hôtel de Toulouse, the Parisian mansion not far from the Louvre the comte had bought from Phélypeaux, marquis de La Vrillière, in 1712. She too was buried in the family crypt in the Rambouillet church.
On 25 November 1783, after having sold Rambouillet to his cousin Louis XVI, their son, the duc de Penthièvre, in a long procession, transferred the bodies of his parents, his wife and their six children to the Collégiale Saint-Étienne de Dreux , .
Legacy
Upon the comte's death, the duc de Penthièvre, succeeded his father in his posts and titles. He was the founder of the House of Bourbon-Penthièvre, which followed that of Bourbon-Toulouse. Because of the marriage of Mlle de Penthièvre to the duc de Chartres, the future duc d'Orléans, the comte de Toulouse is an ancestor of the modern House of Orléans, which also descends from Toulouse's two surviving full sisters.
Siblings
- Louise Françoise (1669-1672).
- Louis-Auguste de Bourbon, duc du Maine (1670-1736),
- married Anne-Louise-Bénédicte de Bourbon-Condé;
- Louis César de Bourbon, comte de Vexin,
- abbot of Saint-Germain-des-Prés (1672-1683);
- Louise Marie Anne de Bourbon,
Mademoiselle de Tours (1674-1681); Françoise-Marie de Bourbon, Mademoiselle de Blois (1677-1749),duchesse d'Orléans,through her son, Françoise-Marie became the ancestor of Louis-Philippe King of the French and the modern House of Orléans; Louis-Alexandre de Bourbon, comte de Toulouse (1678-1737),
Paternal legitimate half-siblings
- Louis de France (1661-1711),
- The Dauphin of France from 1661 till his death in 1711;
- Marie-Thérèse de France (1667 =- =1672),
- the only legitimate daughter of Louis XIV to live older then the age of four. She was known as
Madame Royale at court;our others who died before the age five.
Paternal illegitimate half-siblings
Mademoiselle de Blois (1666-1739),Louis de Bourbon, comte de Vermandois (1667-1683),- eldest surviving son of Louis XIV and Louise de la Vallière;
Louise de Maison Blanche (1676-1718),Mlle des Œillets, married Bernard de Prez and had eleven children.
Maternal legitimate half-siblings
- Marie-Christine de Pardaillan de Gondrin (1663-1675);
- died while in the country with her father the marquis de Montespan;
- Louis Antoine de Pardaillan de Gondrin, marquis d'Antin (1665-1736),
- given later the title of duc d'Antin.
Ancestry
Titles
|
| |
|
|
