House of Orléans
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| House of Orléans | |||
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| Country | Orléans, France | ||
| Parent house | House of Bourbon descended from Capetian dynasty | ||
| Titles | duc d'Orléans,
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| Founder | Philippe de France, duc d'Orléans | ||
| Final ruler | Louis-Philippe of France - King of the French from 1830 to 1848. | ||
| Current head | Henri d'Orléans, Orléanist claimant to the French throne | ||
| Founding year | 1661 | ||
| Dissolution | 1848 | ||
| Cadet branches | House of Orléans-Braganza | ||
Orléans is the name used by several branches of the Royal House of France, all descended in the legitimate male line from the dynasty's royal founder, Hugh Capet. It became a tradition during France's ancien régime for the dukedom of Orléans to be granted as an appanage to a younger (usually the second surviving) son of the king. While each of the Orléans branches thus descended from a junior prince, they were always among the king's nearest relations in the male line, sometimes asipiring and sometimes succeeding to the throne itself.
The last cadet branch to hold the ducal title descended from Henri de Bourbon, duc de Vendôme, who became king (nominally) in 1589, and is sometimes known as the "House of Bourbon-Orleans" (Maison de Bourbon-Orléans). From 1709 until the French Revolution the Orléans dukes were next in the order of succession to the French throne after members of the seniormost branch of the House of Bourbon. Louis XIII's younger brother and younger son were granted the dukedom successively in 1626 and 1661, and since they had contemporaneous living descendants, there were actually two Bourbon-Orléans branches at court during the reign of Louis XIV.
The elder of these branches consisted of Gaston, duc d'Orléans, younger son of Henri IV, and the four daughters of his two marriages. The junior and final House of Orléans descended from Philippe I, Duke of Orléans, Louis XIV's younger brother (who, as such, was known at court simply as Monsieur). Although Louis XIV's direct descendants retained the throne, his brother Philippe's descendants flourished until the end of the French monarchy, held the crown from 1830 to 1848, and are still extant as pretenders.
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[edit] The Dukes
Upon the death of Gaston of Orléans, the Appanage of the Duchy of Orléans reverted back to the crown. The appanage was given to Philippe, the brother of Louis XIV of France.
It was Philippe and his second wife, the famous court writer Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate, founded the modern House of Orléans - their surviving son being the Regent of France for the young Louis XV.
As a Fils de France, Philippe was styled as Philippe of France (Philippe de France). Upon his death, his son inherited but as only a Petit-Fils de France (Grandson of France via Louis XIII) he had to revert to the surname of Orléans. Philippe I de France was addressed as Royal Highness (Son Altesse royale) as was his son Philippe II. Philippe I was also known as Monsieur at his brothers court. At the death of Philippe II, his son Louis d'Orléans took the title and took on the style of Serene Highness as the head of the cadet branch of the House of Bourbon. His son and grandson would take on the style on their successions. After 1709, the Orléans branch of the House of Bourbon were the First Princes of the Blood - this meant that the dukes could be addressed as Monsieur le Prince and that, should there be no possilble heirs to the throne of France, then the Orléans family could claim it.
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Other Dukes Members of the House of Orléans
- François Gaston Michel Marie of Orléans, Duke of Orléans (1935–1960) second son of Henri, comte de Paris (posthumous creation)
- Jacques Jean Jaroslav Marie of Orléans, Duke of Orléans (b. 1941) fourth son of Henri, comte de Paris
[edit] History
[edit] Under Louis XIV
The modern house of Orléans was founded by the younger brother of King Louis XIV, Philippe I, Duke of Orléans. He was a Prince du Sang as he was a legitimate member of the senior House of Bourbon and a Fils de France as he was a son of Louis XIII of France. At court, he was known as Le Petit Monsieur while his uncle, Gaston, Duke of Orléans was still alive. Gaston was known as Le Grand Monsieur.
Gaston, Duke of Orléans became the Duke of Orléans in 1626. He held that title till his death in 1660. After his death, the king gave his appanages to his younger brother.
Before then, Philippe had been known as the duc d'Anjou. Besides receiving the appanage of Orléans, he also received the duchies of Valois and Chartres. Until the birth of his nephew, the Dauphin Louis, the Duke of Orléans was one of the most important members of the royal family at court after his brother Louis XIV. He was to maintain a very high position at court till his death in 1701.
[edit] Prince du Sang
In 1709, the 5th prince de Condé died. He was the Premier Prince du Sang and head of the House of Bourbon-Condé, a . As a result of this death, it was decided that the title of Premier Prince du Sang should pass to the House of Orléans as they were closer in blood to the throne of France.
From then on, the House of Orléans were the highest ranking Princes of the Blood, outranking all other cadet branches of the House of Bourbon. [2] From the time of Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, the Dukes of Orléans were allowed to use the title Premier Prince du Sang. This title allowed the First Prince to be addressed as Monsieur le Prince and to have a personal household.
The Orléans household was already large as it held the staff of Philippe II d'Orléans and his wife, the duchesse d'Orléans, but also the staff of his widowed mother, the Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate]. This new household, though not fully functional until 1723, contained almost 250 members ranging from footmen, gardeners, officers and even barbers.
[edit] La Régence
On the death of Louis XIV in September 1715, the new king, Louis XV, was but five years old and therefore not fit to rule. The country was then governed by the new kings older relative Philippe II d'Orléans as the regent of France. This period in France, was known as La Régence, or the Regency, and gave the House of Orléans the chance to shine center stage in France. The Régent ruled France from his family residence in Paris, the Palais-Royal. He installed the young Louis XV in the Palais du Louvre which was opposite the Palais-Royal.
In January 1723 Louis XV gained his majority and, therefore, was allowed to govern the country on his own. The young king mkoved the court back to Versailles and at the end of the year in December, Le Régent died and his son, Louis d'Orléans succeeded to the family titles. Unlike his father, he chose to actively use the rank of Premier Prince du Sang.
[edit] Under Louis XV
Louis d'Orléans was a some what of a religious fanatic and died in the Monastery of StGenevieve in Paris[3] and his son and heir, Louis Philippe I, Duke of Orléans, after having a distinguished military career, decided to live quietly with his mistress, the marquise de Montesson, at the Château de Sainte-Assise.
[edit] Louis XVI
The 4th Duke, Louis Philippe I d'Orléans and his wife Louise Henriette de Bourbon-Conti had two children: Louis Philippe II d'Orléans, better known as Philippe Egalité, and Louise Marie Thérèse Bathilde d'Orléans. As the duc de Chartres, Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans married one of his cousins, Louise Marie Adélaïde de Bourbon-Penthièvre. She was the sole heiress of the hugely wealthy House of Bourbon-Penthièvre.
She brought to the Orléans huge wealth as well as lands and titles. The duchesse de Chartres had a dowry of 6 million livres, the modern equivalent of almost £20 million, and an annual allowance of over 500,000 livres, the modern equivalent of almost £1.7 million per year. Later, she received upon the death of her father, the famous Bourbon-Penthièvre lands and various châteaux.
Philippe Egalité was executed during the French Revolution in 1793. His wife outlived him by almost thirty years.
Louise Marie Thérèse Bathilde d'Orléans married Louis Henry II, Prince of Condé the last prince de Condé and was the mother of the murdered duc d'Enghien. She died in 1822, the same year as her sister-in-law the duchesse d'Orléans. They were both buried in the Chapelle royale de Dreux.
[edit] Revolution
At the time of the French Revolution, the current Duke of Orléans, Louis Philippe II d'Orléans, known as Philippe Egalité, earned special notoriety for being the only person of royal blood to actively support the Revolution.
He went so far as to vote for the execution of his cousin, King Louis XVI of France, an act which earned him the undying hostility of a large number of French monarchists. He remained in prison until October, the beginning of the Reign of Terror. He was shortlisted for a trial on October 3, and effectively tried and guillotined in the space of one day on the orders of Maximilien Robespierre.
Most of the Orléans family were forced to flee. The new duc d'Orléans had fled to Austria several months before the execution of his father. His brother, the duc de Montpensier, died in England, and his sister fled to Switzerland after being imprisoned for awhile. The youngest brother, Louis Charles, was thrown into a prison in the south of France (Fort-Saint-Jean in Marseille) in 1793 but later escaped to the USA. He too died in exile. Only the widow of Philippe Egalité was able to remain in France untouched for any amount of time. In 1797, she was banished to Spain with the few remaining Bourbons who still lived in France.
In 1814 during the Bourbon Restoration, the three remaining members of the family, the duc d'Orléans, his mother and sister, returned to Paris.
 Louis XIV and his younger brother Le Petit Monsieur |
 Philippe II d'Orléans with his Protégée, Louis XV |
 Louis XV's execution. His cousin, Philippe Égalité voted for his infamous state murder |
 The arms of Le Roi des Française |
[edit] July Monarchy
In 1830, following the French July Revolution, the House of Orléans became the ruling house when the elder line restored Bourbon monarch Charles X was replaced by the then current duc, Louis Philippe III d'Orléans, son of Philippe Egalité. Louis Philippe ruled as a constitutional monarch, and was called King of the French, not of France. His reign lasted until the Revolution of 1848, when he abdicated and fled to England.
Even after his ouster, an Orléanist faction remained active, supporting a return of the House of Orléans to power. Legitimist monarchists however continued to uphold the rights of the elder line of Bourbons who came close to regaining the throne after the fall of the Third Republic.
Louis-Philippe and his family lived in England until his death in Claremont, Surrey. Like his mother, he and his wife, Amelia (April 26, 1782–March 24, 1866), were buried at the Chapelle royale de Dreux. In 1883, the comte de Chambord, the Legitimist heir of the old elder line of French Bourbons, died without children. As a result, some of his Legitimist followers decided to finally recognize the House of Orléans as the heirs to the throne of France.
However, a portion of the Legitimists, still resentful of the revolutionary credentials of the House of Orléans, transferred their loyalties to the Carlist heirs of the Bourbons of Spain, even though the Spanish Bourbons had renounced their claims to the French throne centuries earlier.
Thus to their supporters, not only are the House of Orléans the heirs to the constitutionalist title of King of the French, but also to the Legitimist title of King of France and Navarre.
[edit] Contemporary House of Orléans
The head of the house today is Henri, comte de Paris, duc de France. Born June 14, 1933) is a claimant to the French throne. If he were king, he would be Henry VII. For the Orléanists, he is the heir of King Louis Philippe of the French; for Unionists, the heir of Henri, comte de Chambord, and so of Charles X of France.
Present Family
On July 5, 1957, he married Duchess Marie-Thérèse of Württemberg (born 1934). He received the title comte de Clermont. Five children were born from this union.
- Princess Marie Isabelle Marguerite Anne Geneviève (born January 3, 1959, Boulogne sur Seine) married civilly in Dreux, July 22, 1989 and religiously in Friedrichshafen, July 29, 1989 to Prince Gundakar Albert Alfred Petrus of Liechtenstein (born April 1, 1949, Vienna), and has issue
- Prince François Henri Louis Marie (born February 7, 1961, Boulogne sur Seine), Count of Clermont, severely disabled.
- Princess Blanche Elisabeth Rose Marie of Orléans (born September 10, 1962, Ravensburg), severely disabled.
- Prince Jean Charles Pierre Marie (born May 19, 1965, Boulogne sur Seine), Duke of Vendôme and Dauphin de Viennois, unmarried.
- Prince Eudes Thibaut Joseph Marie (born March 18, 1968, Paris), Duke of Angoulême, married civ in Dreux, June 19, 1999 and rel in Antrain, July 10, 1999 to Marie-Liesse Claude Anne Rolande de Rohan-Chabot (born June 29, 1969, Paris), with whom he has two children
[edit] Appanages
Throughout the years of the Ancien Régime, the Orléans household received vast riches in terms of wealth, land and property. Under Philippe de France and the rule of his older brother Louis XIV, the House of Bourbon-Orléans received:
- The ducal titles of Orléans, Valois, Chartres and the lordship of Montargis. This occurred in 1661, shortly after the death of Gaston, Duke of Orléans, who had no male descendants. The family could have also received the county of Blois and with it the Château de Blois, Château de Chambord and also the governorship of Languedoc but Philippe de France was refused these by his brother.
- In 1672 Louis XIV]added the duchy of Nemours, the earldoms of Dourdan and Romorantin and the marquessates of Coucy and of Folembray.
- In 1692, Philippe's son and heir, Philippe II married Françoise-Marie de Bourbon,an illegitimate daughter of his brother Louis XIV and Madame de Montespan. In order to convince his brother to allow his son to marry one of his illegitimate daughters, the king gave him the Palais-Royal, in Paris and promised him a huge dowry of 2 million Livres. This palace became the Paris residence of the Dukes of Orléans until 1792.
- The Orléans canal, built by Philippe de France, was also the family possession and the family used it to transport their timber from the Orléans forest to the capital where it was sold. The canal was nationalised during the revolution.
Under the Le Régent:
- Little known but he did increase his wife's annual allowance to 400,000 Livres [4] while he was in power. He also bought many builings around Paris but many of them were sold by his grandson. It was also he who bought the Regent diamond, also known as Le Régent after him, to stay at the Louvre in Paris.
Under Louis d'Orléans:
- In 1740, Louis XV added the Hôtel de Grand-Ferrare at Fontainebleau
- The King also added earldom of Soissons in 1751 and the domains of Laon, Crépy and Noyon.
- Under him, the annual family alloance by 1734 was over the 1 million mark in livres. This was just from the rents from the duchies of Orléans, Valois, Chartres and the lodship of Montargis. The sale of timber, which was sourced from the family forests such as the huge Orléans forest, helped to add 500,000 Livres
Under Louis Philippe I d'Orléans:
- The Orléans received the towns of La Fère, Marle, Ham, Saint-Gobain, the Hôtel Duplessis-Châtillon and the rents from the Ourcq canal.
- The family also the county of Soissons and the domains of Laon, Crépy and Noyon were added to the apanage. The family also acquired the Hôtel Duplessis-Chatillon under his reign
Because the Dukes of Orléans were also the Premier Princes du Sang, they received a personal household of 265 officers. At the time of the French Revolution in 1789, the revenue from the apanage was 5,756 million livres, the modern equivalent to £20 billion today. Along with owning towns and buildings, the family owned forests located in the duchies: the forests of Orléans, Beaugency, Montargis, Romorantin, Dourdan, Bruadan, Villers-Cotterêts (at which they had a château), Laigne, Coucy, La Fère, Marle, Saint-Gobin: all of which the family received rents.
- The original apanage was returned to the Orléans family in May, 1814 by Louis XVIII, and united with the domain of the State with Louis-Philippe's accession on August 9, 1830, at which time it was worth about 2.5 million Francs in annual income.
[edit] Finances and Inheritances
Upon the death of the Duc d'Orléans's father-in-law in 1793 (the hugly wealthy duc de Penthièvre), the House of Orléans became the richest in France. They received vast rents on lands all over France and owned various châteaux. Along with their government and because the family were known as the Premier Princes du Sang, they often received fortunes and titles from inheritances:
- In 1693 after the death of Philippe's older cousin, La Grande Mademoiselle.
- From this the family received the ducal titles of Montpensier, Châtellerault, the marquessate of Mézières-en-Brenne, the earldoms of Mortain, of Bar-sur-Seine, the Viscountcies of Auge and of Domfront.
- In addition, he also received the barony of Beaujolais, which was later raised to the rank of earldom, and the principality of Joinville.
- In 1769, Louise Marie Adélaïde de Bourbon-Penthièvre,the greatest heiress of her time as the sole surviving child of her father, the famously wealthy duc de Penthièvre, married her cousin, Louis Philippe II d'Orléans, then duc de Chatres and later called Philippe Égalité.
- After the wedding, the Duke of Orléans received his wife's dowry of six million livres, the equivalent of around £20,000,000 today.
- The Orléans couple then gained an annual income of 240,000 livres. This later increased to 400,000 livres. The couple also received furniture as part of the marriage settlement.
- The death of the duc de Penthièvre.
- In 1793 the wealthy duc de Penthièvre died and left his whole fortune and lands to his daughter Louise Marie Adélaïde. His previous heir had been his son, the prince de Lamballe, who died young in 1768.
- Sale of the Château de Saint-Cloud.
- The sale of the Château de Saint-Cloud in 1785 bought the family another large sum of money. The buyer of the château was none other than the Queen of France herself Marie Antoinette. The price of the sale was another 6 million Livres. It was sold to her by her husband's cousin Louis Philippe I, Duke of Orléans.
[edit] Residences and Land
Château de Saint-Cloud Over the years the House of Orléans collected various châteaux and palaces. Originally, their official residence was the beautiful Château de Saint-Cloud. This was bought by Philippe de France for 240,000 livres in 1658. The château was considered to be one of the more attractive of all of the royal residences and the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles is said to have been inspired by the Galerie d'Apollon at Saint-Cloud.
As the home of the king's brother, Saint-Cloud was the scene of many parties and various historical events. The duc's first wife, Princess Henrietta-Anne of England, died there in 1670. When the duc died, his son, the Régent, preferred to reside at the Palais Royal in Paris until his death in 1723. The son of the Régent, Louis d'Orléans, preferred to stay at the Château du Raincy, another one of their homes.
Saint-Cloud was sold by Louis Philippe I, duc d'Oréans to the queen, Marie Antoinette, as it was thought the country air would help to heal her young son, the constantly ill Dauphin Louis-Joseph. The sale price was six millions Livres [5]. The palace was destroyed by invading Germans at the end of the reign of Napoleon III of France during the Franco-Prussian War.
Palais Royal
This palace was the Paris residence of Monsieur. Originally the property of the Crown, the king's younger brother and his wives were allowed to live there by the consent of the king. Louis XIV later deeded ownership of it in 1692 to his brother's only son as a wedding gift in order to appease Monsieur into allowing his son to marry the king's illegitimate daughter in the first place. It was at the palace that Philippe Égalité orchestrated his attempt to displace King Louis XVI as the constitutional monarch of France. Unsuccessful, he was later executed in 1793.
It was confiscated during the French Revolution but was later given back to the House of Orléans during the Bourbon Restoration in 1814. When Louis Philippe III, duc d'Orléans assumed the throne of France as the King of the French in 1830, the palace was abandoned when he and his family moved to the Tuileries Palace.
 left|Model of the Château de Saint Cloud as it was at the time of Monsieurs death in 1701. |
 Palais-Royal and its gardens, in a Paris map, 1739. The palace itself fronts on its small square. |
 The Parterre du Midi of the South at the Palace of Versailles |
Other Châteaux
The family also later acquired many other châteaux around the country. Among these were the:
- Château de Bagnolet in Paris. This was bought in 1719 by the "Regent", Philippe II, Duke of Orléans but was sold in 1769 by his grandson.
- Château du Raincy - bought in 1769 by the father of Philippe Égalité.
- Château de Maison-Rouge at Gagny - bought in 1771 from the Marquis de Montfermeil, it was confiscated during the revolution.
- Château de Saint-Leu, in the Val-d'Oise area of France. This would later be bought by Louis Bonaparte and his wife.
- Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans also acquired the land in the north east of Paris that became the Parc Monceau.
During the July Monarchy, the family acquired the:
- Château de Neuilly - on the borders of 18th century Paris.
- Château de Maison-Rouge in Gagny - this was given back to the family whilst the Bourbon-Orléans were on the throne of France.
- Château de la Ferté Vidame - this had also been confiscated during the French Revolution and was the property of Louise Marie Adélaïde de Bourbon-Penthièvre. She had inherited it from her father. On her death it passed to her son, the future King Louis-Philippe of the French.
[edit] At Versailles
Also, along with these various residences around France, Philippe de France and his wife had apartments at the Palace of Versailles as did all other members of the House of Bourbon.
Before the court was officially moved to Versailles, and before the birth of his nephew, the king's son, the Dauphin Louis de France, in 1661, the Duc d'Orléans' apartments were where the Dauphin's now are located. The apartments looked over the Parterres du Midi of the south and were directly under the Grand Appartement de la reine.
After the dauphin's birth, the Orléans had to move to the north wing and occupied large quarters there. These looked out onto the Parterres du Midi of the south. The family also had apartments where the modern day Galerie des batailles are. This area was used by the duc himself, his second wife, Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate, his son, Philippe II and daughter-in-law, Françoise-Marie de Bourbon.
The apartments of the family were later moved to the bottom floor of the north wing, opposite the Chapelle Royal de Versailles this time looking over the Parterres du Midi of the north. The family had been moved in order to accommodate three of Louis XV's daughters, Madame Adélaïde, Madame Victoire and Madame Élisabeth. The family remained there till the French Revolution.
[edit] Cadet Branches
[edit] House of Orléans-Braganza
The House of Orléans was a cadet branch in its own right but did not fail to create one of its own. On October 15, 1864, at Rio de Janeiro the eldest son of Louis Charles Philippe Raphael d'Orléans (son of Louis Philippe of France) married Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil, eldest daughter and heiress (Princess Imperial) of Emperor Dom Pedro II of Brazil.
The Royal house of Braganza was the ruling house of Portugal. It was from that marriage the royal house of Orléans-Braganza was formed. Today they are the present claimants to the extinct throne of the old Empire of Brazil.
[edit] Ruling House of France
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— ROYAL HOUSE —
House of Orléans
Cadet branch of the House of Bourbon
Founding year: 1661
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| Preceded by House of Bourbon |
Ruling House of France 9 August 1830 – 24 February 1848 |
Monarchy Abolished |
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[edit] References
- ^ From the Bourbon-Montpensier inheritance
- ^ [1] -Premier Prince du Sang
- ^ [2] - French
- ^ See The Man Who Would be King: The Life of Philippe d'Orleans, Regent of France by Christine Pevitt
- ^ Marie Antoinette by Lady Antonia Fraser
