Louis de Bourbon was Duke of Mercœur and later the second Duke of Vendôme, and the grandson of Henry IV of France

Henry IV of France

Henry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....

 and Gabrielle d'Estrées

Gabrielle d'Estrées

Gabrielle d'Estrées, Duchess of Beaufort and Verneuil, Marchioness of Monceaux was a French mistress of King Henry IV of France, born at either the Château de la Bourdaisière in Montlouis-sur-Loire, in Touraine, or at the château de Cœuvres, in Picardy....

. He was the Duke of Vendôme from 1665 at the death of his father.

Biography

He was the son of César de Bourbon, Légitimé de France, Duke of Vendôme and Françoise de Lorraine (1592–1669)

Françoise de Lorraine (1592–1669)

Françoise de Lorraine was a French noblewoman and the daughter-in-law of King Henry IV of France; sometimes known as Françoise de Mercœur, she was the niece of Louise of Lorraine, wife of the previous king, Henry III of France...

, daughter of Philippe Emmanuel, Duke of Mercœur (d. 1602).

His father was an illegitimate son of Henry IV of France

Henry IV of France

Henry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....

 and Gabrielle d'Estrées

Gabrielle d'Estrées

Gabrielle d'Estrées, Duchess of Beaufort and Verneuil, Marchioness of Monceaux was a French mistress of King Henry IV of France, born at either the Château de la Bourdaisière in Montlouis-sur-Loire, in Touraine, or at the château de Cœuvres, in Picardy....

. He married on 4 February 1651 Laura Mancini

Laura Mancini

Laura Mancini, duchess of Mercœur and Vendôme was a niece of Cardinal Mazarin. She was the eldest of the five famous Mancini sisters, who along with two of their female Martinozzi cousins, were known at the court of King Louis XIV of France as the Mazarinettes...

, niece of Cardinal Mazarin. His children:

• Louis Joseph de Bourbon (1654–1712), Duke of Vendôme and Marshal of France
  Marshal of France
  The Marshal of France is a military distinction in contemporary France, not a military rank. It is granted to generals for exceptional achievements...
  
  ; married Marie Anne de Bourbon, daughter of Henri Jules, Prince of Condé and Anne Henriette of Bavaria
  Anne Henriette of Bavaria
  Anne Henriette of Palatinate-Simmern, in France known as Anne Henriette of Bavaria was a Princess of Palatinate-Simmern by birth and by her marriage in 1663, the Duchess of Enghien and then the Princess of Condé...
  
  , no issue;
• Philippe de Bourbon (1655–1727), called le prieur de Vendôme, last Duke of Vendôme; never married;
• Jules César de Bourbon (1657–1660) died in infancy.

First he had a military career and became governor of the Provence in 1640.

But after the death of his wife in 1657, he entered the church and became a cardinal and legate of France. As a cardinal, he was styled as the cardinal de Vendôme. At his death, his children were raised by his sister in law, Marie Anne Mancini

Marie Anne Mancini

Marie Anne Mancini, duchesse de Bouillon , was the youngest of the five famous Mancini sisters, who along with two of their female Martinozzi cousins, were known at the court of King Louis XIV of France as the Mazarinettes because their uncle was the king's chief minister, Cardinal...

, wife of Godefroy Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne

Godefroy Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne

Godefroy Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne was a French nobleman and member of the House of La Tour d'Auvergne, one of the most important families in France at the time...

.

Ancestry

Titles and styles

• December 1612 – 22 October 1665 His Serene Highness the Duke of Mercœur
• 22 October 1665 – 12 August 1669 His Serene Highness the Duke of Vendôme

Succession