Alexandrine-Jeanne Le Normant d'Étiolles (10 August 1744 – 15 June 1754) was a member of French nobility as the daughter of

Madame de Pompadour Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Marquise de Pompadour (, ; 29 December 1721 – 15 April 1764), commonly known as Madame de Pompadour, was a member of the French court. She was the official chief mistress of King Louis XV from 1745 to 1751, and rema ...

, the maîtresse-en-titre of King

Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (french: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reache ...

of France.

Life

Alexandrine-Jeanne Le Normant d'Étiolles was born on 10 August 1744 to Charles-Guillaume Le Normant d'Étiolles (1717–1799) and his wife, born Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson (1721–1764). It is possible that her parents were first

cousins Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, " ...

, since it could be that Jeanne-Antoinette's real father was her legal guardian, Charles François Paul Le Normant de Tournehem (1684–1751), Charles-Guillaume's uncle. The couple had one other child, Charles-Guillaume-Louis (1741–1742), who had already died by the time Alexandrine was born. Her family called Alexandrine "''Fanfan".Madame De Pompadour: Mistress of France, Google books :Madame De Pompadour
/ref>'' She was noted for being a very thin child, but she was healthy. François Poisson, Madame Le Normant d'Étiolles' father, doted on his granddaughter and loved her dearly. In a letter, Alexandrine's mother complained, "Why must grandpapas always spoil their grandchildren?" It was the goal of Alexandrine's mother to become the

mistress Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to: Romance and relationships * Mistress (lover), a term for a woman who is in a sexual and romantic relationship with a man who is married to a d ...

of King

of France. On 8 December 1744, a few months after Alexandrine's birth, the king's mistress, Madame de Châteauroux died, clearing the way for Madame Le Normant d'Étiolles. By March 1745, Alexandrine's mother had become the king's new lover and moved into the

Palace of Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 19 ...

. At the king's request, Alexandrine's parents separated. At the age of 6, Alexandrine was placed at the Convent of the Assumption in the

rue Saint-Honoré The rue Saint-Honoré is a street in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. It is named after the collegial situated in ancient times within the cloisters of Saint-Honoré. The street, on which are located a number of museums and upscale bou ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

for schooling alongside other daughters of the French nobility. At the age of 8, she was betrothed to the 11-year-old Louis Joseph d'Albert d'Ailly, Duke of Picquigny (1741–1792), son of Michel Ferdinand d'Albert d'Ailly, Duke of Chaulnes (1714–1769), with the agreement that she would marry Picquigny at the age of 12.

Death

On 4 June 1754, Alexandrine became ill at the Convent of the Assumption. Her father rushed to be by her side, but her mother (who by this time had been elevated to the rank of a duchess) who was at

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...

, could not come. Upon learning of her illness, Louis XV sent two of his own doctors to help, but the child had already died of acute peritonitis when they arrived.Algrant. p. 163. Her grandfather, François Poisson, died 11 days later, on 25 June 1754, devastated by his dear Fanfan's death. Her mother reportedly never recovered from the loss of her daughter and father within a few days.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Etiolles, Alexandrine-Jeanne d 1744 births 1754 deaths Alexandrine Deaths from peritonitis Royalty and nobility who died as children