House of Orléans
France |
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| Country |
Orléans, France |
| Parent house |
House of Bourbon descended from Capetian dynasty |
| Titles |
duc d'Orléans,
- King of the French,
- prince de Joinville,
- duc de Chartres
- duc de Valois,
- duc de Nemotoads,
- duc de Montpensier,
- duc de Châtellerault
- duc de Montpensier,
- duc de Saint-Fargeau,
- duc de Beaupréau,
- marquis de Coucy,
- marquis de Folembray,
- marquis de Mézières,
- comte de Beaujolais,
- comte de Dourdan, et
- comte de Romorantin,
- comte de Mortain,
- comte de Bar-sur-Seine,
- dauphin d'Auvergne post 1693 [1]
- Premier Prince du Sang post 1709
- Monsieur le Prince post 1709
- Monsieur
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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, comte de Paris, duc de France, Orléanist claimant to the French throne |
| Founding year |
1661 |
| Dissolution |
1848 |
| Ethnicity |
French |
| Cadet branches |
House of Orléans-Braganza |
Philippe I, Duc d'Orléans, the founder of the House of Orléans
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.
The Dukes of Orléans (sixth creation 1661)
As members of the king's dynasty, the Orléans family constantly interacted with the immediate royal family at the palace of Versailles. From 1723 the Orléans dukes each ranked as premier prince du sang, and were entitled to the style Monsieur le Prince. Although Monsieur and his son were considered part of the king's immediate family and, as such, enjoyed the style of "Royal Highness" (altesse royale), Monsieur's more remote agnatic descendants, ranking as Princes and Princesses of the Blood, were entitled to be addressed as "Most Serene Highness" (altesse sérénissime).
Philippe de France
The children of Monsieur's first marriage to Henrietta Anne Stuart were:
Of his second marriage to Elizabeth Charlotte, Princess Palatine:
Philippe II d'Orléans
As only a petit-fils de France (i.e., not a son of the king or dauphin), Monsieur's son, Philippe II, was named "Philippe d'Orléans" rather than "Philippe de France". The use of d'Orléans for future generations of the house was reaffirmed by law during the reign of his descendent, King Louis-Philippe of the French.verification needed
Also known to history as the Regent of France, he ruled the kingdom from 1715 until his death in 1723. His wife, Françoise-Marie de Bourbon, was a legitimised daughter of Louis XIV by his mistress, Madame de Montespan, and was therefore his first cousin.
As a wedding gift, Louis XIV gave the Orléans family full ownership of the Palais Royal in Paris. This generous offering was meant as an incentive for Philippe I, the father of the groom, to accept the marriage because it was well-known that the duke's wife despised the king's illegitimate children.[2]verification needed The Orléans were already lodgers in the palace and had been since the beginning of Louis' reign. With the wedding, the Orléans could claim official ownership.
Children
As regent, Philippe II was the de facto ruler of France from 1715 till 1723, the year of his death. The duke used his power to marry off his six daughters to the rich and powerful. [3]verification needed Even his son was later made to marry a German princess from the state of Baden-Baden.
Louis d'Orléans
After his father died, Louis d'Orléans (1703–1752) was entitled to be known as Monsieur le Prince, the style associated with the title of First Prince of the Blood. The First Prince was always the eldest living male relative who was neither his sibling, nephew, or a descendent of the king.[4] His father could have used the title but chose not to because he held the higher rank of fils de France#petit-fils de France. The new duke's wife, was therefore known at court as Madame la Princesse.verification needed
Children
Louis Philippe I d'Orléans
Louis Philippe I d'Orléans, 4th Duke of Orléans (1725–1785). He succeeded his father and became a very famous soldier. He fought in the War of Austrian Succession, the campaigns of 1742, 1743 and 1744, and at the Battle of Fontenoy.
Children
Louis Philippe II d'Orléans
Louis Philippe II Joseph d'Orléans, duc d'Orléans (1747–1793) was the head of the Orléans house from 1785 until his execution in 1793. As mentioned before, he voted for the execution of his cousin Louis XVI.
- Also known as Philippe Égalité.
Children
Louis Philippe III d'Orléans
He was the eldest son of Philippe Égalité and his wife, the heiress Louise Marie Adélaïde de Bourbon-Penthièvre. She was the last remaining member of the vastly wealthy House of Bourbon-Penthièvre, who were cousins of the House of Orléans through a shared ancestry with Madame de Montespan. He took the title of duc d'Orléans after the execution of his father, in 1793.
Children
- Ferdinand-Philippe, Duke of Orléans (b. September 3, 1810–d. 1842) married Helena of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
- Louise-Marie of Orléans (b. April 3, 1812–d. 1850) married Leopold I of Belgium. Children included Leopold II and Carlota of Mexico.
- Marie of Orléans (b. April 12, 1813–d. 1839) married Duke Alexander of Württemberg (b. 1804–d. 1881).
- Louis Charles Philippe Raphael, Duke of Nemours (b. October 25, 1814–d. 1896) married Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Kohary (b. 1822–d. 1857).
- Francisca of Orléans (b. March 28, 1816–d. 1818)
- Clémentine of Orléans (b. June 3, 1817–d. 1907) married August of Saxe-Coburg-Kohary (b. 1818–d. 1881).
- François, Prince of Joinville (b. August 14, 1818–d. 1900) married Francisca of Brazil (b. 1824–d. 1898), daughter of Pedro I of Brazil.
- Charles, Duke of Penthièvre (b. January 1, 1820–d. 1828)
- Henri, Duke of Aumale (b. June 16, 1822–d. 1897) married Maria Carolina of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (b. 1822–d. 1869).
- Antoine, Duke of Montpensier (b. July 31, 1824–d. 1890), married Luisa Fernanda of Spain (b. 1832–d. 1897) daughter of Ferdinand VII of Spain and became a prince of Spain.
Children
- Philippe, Count of Paris (1838-1894), Prince Royal, who married Marie Isabelle of Orléans, Princess of Spain (1848—1919).
- Robert, duc de Chartres (1840-1910), married Françoise of Orléans (b.1844-d.1925).
Note: in some sense, all heads of the House of Orléans since 1830 have been entitled to the use of the title Duke of Orléans, whether or not they have done so. This is regardless of whether they were First prince of the Blood or not
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.
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. [5] 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 Princesse Palatine. This new household, though not fully functional until 1723, contained almost 250 members ranging from footmen, gardeners, officers and even barbers.
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. 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.
Louis d'Orléans was a some what of a religious fanatic and died in the Monastery of StGenevieve in Paris[6] 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.
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.
Revolution
Louis XVI's execution. His cousin, Philippe Égalité voted for his infamous state murder
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, 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.
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.
Contemporary House of Orléans
A family tree of the Bourbon main line and the Bourbon-Orléans. As can be seen the family started with the only 2 sons of Louis XIII.
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.
He is directly descended from:
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.
- 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
- 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.
- Jean Charles Pierre Marie (born May 19, 1965, Boulogne sur Seine), Duke of Vendôme and Dauphin de Viennois, unmarried.
- 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
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Ancestors of Henri, Count of Paris
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16. Ferdinand Philippe, Duke of Orléans |
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8. Robert, Duke of Chartres |
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17. Duchess Hélène of Mecklenburg-Schwerin |
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4. Jean, Duke of Guise |
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18. François, Prince of Joinville |
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9. Princess Françoise of Orléans |
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19. Princess Francisca of Brazil |
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2. Henri, Count of Paris |
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20. Ferdinand Philippe, Duke of Orléans =16 |
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10. Philippe, Count of Paris |
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21. Duchess Hélène of Mecklenburg-Schwerin =17 |
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5. Princess Isabelle of Orléans |
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22. Antoine, Duke of Montpensier |
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11. Princess Marie Isabelle of Orléans |
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23. Infanta Luisa Fernanda of Spain |
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1. Henri,
Count of Paris & Duke of France |
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24. Louis, Duke of Nemours |
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12. Gaston, Count of Eu |
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25. Princess Victoria of Koháry |
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6. Prince Pedro de Alcantara of Orléans-Braganza |
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26. Pedro II of Brazil |
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13. Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil |
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27. Teresa of the Two Sicilies |
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3. Princess Isabelle of Orléans-Braganza |
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28. Count John Nepomuk Dobrzensky |
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14. Count John Dobrzensky |
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29. Baroness Maria Friederike Wanczura |
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7. Countess Elisabeth D | |
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