Philippe(s) de Montespedon, Princess of

La Roche-sur-Yon La Roche-sur-Yon () is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. It is the capital of the department. The demonym for its inhabitants is ''Yonnais''. History The town expanded significantly after Na ...

, Dame de Chemillé and Dame de Beaupreau (d. 1578), was a French princess and courtier. She was ''

Première dame d'honneur ''Première dame d'honneur'' ('first lady of honour'), or simply ''dame d'honneur'' ('lady of honour'), was an office at the royal court of France. It existed in nearly all French courts from the 16th-century onward. Though the tasks of the post ...

'' to the queen dowager regent of France, Catherine de' Medici, from 1561 until 1578.

Life

She married marshal de Montejan in her first marriage. Her great wealth as a widow enabled her to marry in to the royal house by a marriage in 1544 to

Charles, Prince of La Roche-sur-Yon Charles de Bourbon, Prince de la Roche-sur-Yon, (-10 October 1565), was a Prince of the Blood and provincial governor under three French kings. He fought in the latter Italian wars during the reign of Henri II, commanding an army during the 155 ...

. She was described as a personal friend of queen Catherine. In 1561, she was appointed ''Première dame d'honneur'' by the regent Catherine in succession to

Jacqueline de Longwy Jacqueline de Longwy, Countess of Bar-sur-Seine (before 1520 – 28 August 1561), Duchess of Montpensier, Dauphine of Auvergne was a French noblewoman, and a half-niece of King Francis I of France. She was the first wife of Louis III de Bourbon, D ...

, who had died in August of that year. As such, she was the highest ranking woman office holder at court, with responsibility for all the other ladies-in-waiting and the discipline of the household of the queen. In April 1565, a new rule was introduced by which no unmarried nobleman would be allowed to speak with a

maid of honour A maid of honour is a junior attendant of a queen in royal households. The position was and is junior to the lady-in-waiting. The equivalent title and office has historically been used in most European royal courts. Role Traditionally, a queen ...

to the queen except in the presence of the queen or "Madame La Princess de Roche-sur-Yon". In May 1564, Charles Robert de la Marck, count de Maulevrier, made a statement about

Isabelle de Limeuil Isabelle de la Tour, Lady of Limeuil (c. 1535 – 25 March 1609) was a French noblewoman and a Maid of Honour to the Queen Mother Catherine de' Medici. She also formed part of Catherine's notorious " flying squadron" (''L'escadron volant''), a ...

, claiming that she had offered to ally with him to poison their common enemy, Charles, Prince of La Roche-sur-Yon. He claimed that Limeuil felt persecuted by the prince, whom she alleged pressured his wife to control and oppress the ladies-in-waiting: "The said princess, at the behest of the said prince her husband, aside from the pains that she gave to all the maids of the Queen, seemed to have a particular animosity towards her and tried to verify whether she was pregnant, often tormenting her in front of the Queen on this matter and others."Una McIlvenna, Scandal and Reputation at the Court of Catherine de Medici, 2016 Her position also made her a visible public figure, attending public ceremonies with the queen. She accompanied queen Catherine on the meeting with the queen of Spain in the French-Spanish border in 1565.

References

* Martha Walker Freer,
Elizabeth de Valois, Queen of Spain and the Court of Philip
' * Una McIlvenna,
Scandal and Reputation at the Court of Catherine de Medici
', 2016 {{s-end 1578 deaths French ladies-in-waiting 16th-century French people Catherine de' Medici Household of Catherine de' Medici