Duchess Helene of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (Helene Luise Elisabeth; 24 January 1814 – 17 May 1858) was a French Crown Princess after her marriage in 1837 to the eldest son of
Louis Philippe I
Louis Philippe (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850) was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, and the penultimate monarch of France.
As Louis Philippe, Duke of Chartres, he distinguished himself commanding troops during the Revolutionary War ...
. She is known as the mother of the future
Count of Paris
Count of Paris () was a title for the local magnate of the district around Paris in Carolingian times. After Hugh Capet was elected King of France in 987, the title merged into the crown and fell into disuse. However, it was later revived by the ...
and
Duke of Chartres
Originally, the Duchy of Chartres (''duché de Chartres'') was the ''comté'' de Chartres, a County. The title of comte de Chartres thus became duc de Chartres. This duchy– peerage was given by Louis XIV of France to his nephew, Philippe ...
.
Her descendants include present-day
pretender
A pretender is someone who claims to be the rightful ruler of a country although not recognized as such by the current government. The term is often used to suggest that a claim is not legitimate.Curley Jr., Walter J. P. ''Monarchs-in-Waiting'' ...
s to the throne of
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
,
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
and
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, and the kings of
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
and
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
.
Biography
Early life and family
Born at the
Schloss Ludwigslust
Ludwigslust Palace (german: Schloss Ludwigslust) is a stately home or ''schloss'' in the town of Ludwigslust, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, northern Germany. It was built as a hunting lodge, rebuilt as a luxurious retreat from the ducal capital, Schweri ...
, the retreat from the capital of her native Mecklenburg-Schwerin, she was the only daughter born to the
Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and his second wife
Princess Karoline Luise of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, third daughter of Grand Duke
Carl August and Princess
Louisa of Hessen-Darmstadt. Via her father she was granddaughter of
Frederick Francis I, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Frederick Francis I (10 December 1756 – 1 February 1837) ruled over the German state of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, first as duke (1785–1815), and then as grand duke (1815–1837).
Biography
He was born in Schwerin, Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, ...
and his wife
Princess Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg
Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin '' princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince.
Princess as a subs ...
. She was also indirectly related to
Frederick William III of Prussia
Frederick William III (german: Friedrich Wilhelm III.; 3 August 1770 – 7 June 1840) was King of Prussia from 16 November 1797 until his death in 1840. He was concurrently Elector of Brandenburg in the Holy Roman Empire until 6 August 1806, wh ...
(first cousin once removed, also her half-brother married Frederick William III's daughter). On her paternal side she was a cousin of the
Duchess of Kent
Duchess of Kent is the principal courtesy title used by the wife of the Duke of Kent. There have been four titles referring to Kent since the 18th century. The current duchess is Katharine, the wife of Prince Edward. He inherited the dukedom ...
as well as
Leopold I of Belgium
* nl, Leopold Joris Christiaan Frederik
* en, Leopold George Christian Frederick
, image = NICAISE Leopold ANV.jpg
, caption = Portrait by Nicaise de Keyser, 1856
, reign = 21 July 1831 –
, predecessor = Erasme Loui ...
. Maternal cousins included the then
Queen of Prussia
The Queen of Prussia (german: Königin von Preußen) was the queen consort of the ruler of the Kingdom of Prussia, from its establishment in 1701 to its abolition in 1918. As all rulers of Prussia had to be male, there was never a Queen regnant ...
as well as the
King of Württemberg
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
.
![Helena_of_Mecklenburg](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/Helena_of_Mecklenburg.jpg)
Her father was the eldest son and heir of
Frederick Francis I, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg
Frederick Francis I (10 December 1756 – 1 February 1837) ruled over the German state of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, first as duke (1785–1815), and then as grand duke (1815–1837).
Biography
He was born in Schwerin, Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, ...
. Her mother was a princess of
Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach. The Hereditary Grand Duke and his wife died within three years of each other. Helene's mother died in January 1816 and her father then died in 1819, leaving her older half brother
Paul Frederick of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, the new Hereditary Grand Duke, and her other siblings to be raised by her grandfather, the reigning Grand Duke.
Marriage
On 30 May 1837 Helene Luise married
Ferdinand Philippe d'Orléans at the
Palace of Fontainebleau
Palace of Fontainebleau (; ) or Château de Fontainebleau, located southeast of the center of Paris, in the commune of Fontainebleau, is one of the largest French royal châteaux. The medieval castle and subsequent palace served as a residence ...
. The
Archbishop of Paris
The Archdiocese of Paris (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Parisiensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Paris'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. It is one of twenty-three archdioceses in France ...
Hyacinthe-Louis de Quélen
Hyacinthe-Louis De Quélen (8 October 1778 – 31 December 1839) was an Archbishop of Paris.
Biography
De Quélen was born in Paris, in the Quélen noble Breton family. His motto "Em Pob Emser Quelen" and the older Breton expression for "Be ...
had used the pretext of religious differences to forbid it taking place in
Notre Dame de Paris
Notre-Dame de Paris (; meaning "Our Lady of Paris"), referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the Seine River), in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. The cathedral, dedicated to the ...
. She was chosen as the bride for the Duke to form an alliance with her cousin
Frederick William III of Prussia
Frederick William III (german: Friedrich Wilhelm III.; 3 August 1770 – 7 June 1840) was King of Prussia from 16 November 1797 until his death in 1840. He was concurrently Elector of Brandenburg in the Holy Roman Empire until 6 August 1806, wh ...
, despite the fact that she was a Protestant and that she was considered to be a liberal, and not considered a beauty: described as an ambitious person, she accepted the proposal against the will of her family because she wanted to become a queen.
Her husband was the eldest son of king
Louis Philippe I
Louis Philippe (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850) was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, and the penultimate monarch of France.
As Louis Philippe, Duke of Chartres, he distinguished himself commanding troops during the Revolutionary War ...
and his Italian consort,
Queen Maria Amalia. For the Duke of Orléans, it was a convenient alliance but one without much attraction – Metternich remarked that she was "Petite but of a good house".
[Cited by Guy Antonetti, ''Op. cit.'', p. 782]
![Gaston_Camillo_Lenthe_-_Portrait_der_Prinzessin_Helene_von_Mecklenburg-Schwerin_als_Braut](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/Gaston_Camillo_Lenthe_-_Portrait_der_Prinzessin_Helene_von_Mecklenburg-Schwerin_als_Braut.png)
The marriage was described as happy, and it was mostly the Queen who opposed her as a Protestant and a liberal. She became popular with the public by her introduction of the German
Christmas tree
A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, or an artificial tree of similar appearance, associated with the celebration of Christmas. The custom was further developed in early modern ...
in France. The couple had two children in quick succession. Their eldest Philippe, born at the
Palais des Tuileries
The Tuileries Palace (french: Palais des Tuileries, ) was a royal and imperial palace in Paris which stood on the Rive Droite, right bank of the River Seine, directly in front of the Louvre. It was the usual Parisian residence of most List of ...
in Paris, would later be hailed as ''Louis Philippe II'' by Royalists. Their other son Robert fought for the Union in the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
, and then for France in the 1870
Franco-Prussian War.
On 13 July 1842, her husband died from injuries sustained after jumping from an out of control carriage. His untimely death sparked a debate within the House of Orléans over the establishment of a regency council which would be necessary should Louis Philippe I die while his heir was still in infancy. The main contenders were Ferdinand Philippe's widow and his brother
Louis, Duke of Nemours, but further developments meant that the regency did not in the end materialise. In 1848, her father-in-law was deposed. Helene planned to prevent the abolition of the monarchy and be proclaimed as regent for her young son. Louis, Duke of Nemours, resigned his right to act as regent for her son to Helene and Helene appeared at the French parliament with her two sons; the Count of Paris and her younger son the Duke of Chartres, to claim her son's right to the throne and to be installed as his regent during his minority. This claim, however, was not accepted by the parliament. After failing to seize power, she left France for Germany with her children. Helene continued to actively claim the rights of her son to be the monarch of France from abroad, but the French royalists at home began to favour the other formerly reigning French royal line under the headship of the
Count of Chambord instead.
Death
Helene died of a flu in Richmond; she passed the illness onto her son Robert who was staying with her at the time but he survived and continued to fight in the
Wars of Italian Unification.
She was initially buried at
Weybridge
Weybridge () is a town in the Borough of Elmbridge in Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. The settlement is recorded as ''Waigebrugge'' and ''Weibrugge'' in the 7th century and the name derives from a crossing point of the ...
before being translated to the
Chapelle royale de Dreux
The Royal Chapel of Dreux (french: Chapelle royale de Dreux) situated in Dreux, France, is the traditional burial place of members of the House of Orléans. It is an important early building in the French adoption of Gothic Revival architecture, ...
in
Dreux
Dreux () is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France.
Geography
Dreux lies on the small river Blaise, a tributary of the Eure, about 35 km north of Chartres. Dreux station has rail connections to Argentan, Paris and Granvi ...
in 1876.
Children
Ancestors
References and notes
Bibliography
* ''Généalogie des rois et des princes'', by Jean-Charles Volkmann. Edit: Jean-Paul Gisserot (1998)
* ''Les Orléans, une famille en guête d’un trône Les Orléans'', by Georges Poisson Perrin (1999)
* ''Hélène de Mecklembourg-Schwerin; Madame la duchesse d'Orléans''; new edition. Paris: Michel Lévy (1859)
External links
Meyers Konversationslexikon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Helen of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Duchess
1814 births
1858 deaths
House of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Duchesses of Orléans
Princesses of France (Orléans)
19th-century German people
People from Ludwigslust
Duchesses of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Burials at the Chapelle royale de Dreux
Royal reburials