''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 shifted, the dame d'honneur was normally the first or second rank of all ladies-in-waiting. The dame d'honneur was selected from the members of the highest

French nobility The French nobility (french: la noblesse française) was a privileged social class in France from the Middle Ages until its abolition on June 23, 1790 during the French Revolution. From 1808 to 1815 during the First Empire the Emperor Napol ...

History

The office was created in 1523. The term Dame d'honneur has also been used as a general term for a (married) French lady-in-waiting. Initially, the married ladies-in-waiting who attended the queen of France had the title Dame. This was simply the title of a married lady-in-waiting, who was not the principal lady-in-waiting. From 1523, the group of 'Dame', (married) ladies-in-waiting who attended the court as companions of the queen had the formal title Dame d'honneur ('Lady of Honour', commonly only 'Dame'), hence the title 'Première dame d'honneur' ('First lady of honour') to distinguish between the principal lady-in-waiting and the group of remaining (married) ladies-in-waiting. In 1674, the position of Fille d'honneur was abolished, and the 'Dames' were renamed ''

Dame du Palais The Dame du Palais, originally only Dame, was an historical office in the Royal Court of France. It was a title of a lady-in-waiting holding the official position of personal attendant on a female member of the French Royal Family. The position ...

''.Jeroen Frans Jozef Duindam: Vienna and Versailles: The Courts of Europe's Dynastic Rivals, 1550-1780. Thus, the title Dame d'honneur was henceforth reserved for one office holder.

Tasks

The task of the dame d'honneur was to supervise the female courtiers, control the budget, order necessary purchases, and organize the annual account and staff list; she supervised the daily routine and attended both ordinary and ceremonial court functions, as well as escorting and introducing those seeking audience with the queen.Nadine Akkerman & Birgit Houben, eds. ''The Politics of Female Households: Ladies-in-waiting across Early Modern Europe''. Leiden: Brill, 2013 She had the keys to the queen's personal rooms in her possession. When the Dame d'honneur was absent, she was replaced by the ''

Dame d'atour ''Dame d'atour'' was an office at the royal court of France. It existed in nearly all French courts from the 16th-century onward. The ''dame d'honneur'' was selected from the members of the highest French nobility. History At least from the Isab ...

'', who normally had the responsibility of overseeing the queen's wardrobe and jewelry in addition to dressing the queen. In 1619, the office of the ''

Surintendante de la Maison de la Reine ''Surintendante de la Maison de la Reine'' ("Superintendent of the Queen's Household"), or only ''Surintendante'', was the senior lady-in-waiting at the royal court of France from 1619 until the French revolution. The ''Surintendante'' was select ...

'', or simply ''surintendante'', was created. The surintendante had roughly the same tasks as the Dame d'honneur—receiving the oath of the female personnel before they took office, supervising the daily routine of the staff and the queen, organizing the accounts and staff list—but she was placed in rank above the dame d'honneur. Whenever the surintendante was absent, she was replaced by the dame d'honneur. The post of Surintendante could be left vacant for long periods, such as between the death of Marie Anne de Bourbon in 1741 and the appointment of

Princess Marie Louise of Savoy 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 subst ...

in 1775.

Later history

The position of Dame d'honneur was revived during the

First Empire First Empire may refer to: * First British Empire, sometimes used to describe the British Empire between 1583 and 1783 * First Bulgarian Empire (680–1018) *First French Empire (1804–1814/1815) * First German Empire or "First Reich", sometimes u ...

, when the principal lady-in-waiting to the empress held the same title. During the

Second Empire Second Empire may refer to: * Second British Empire, used by some historians to describe the British Empire after 1783 * Second Bulgarian Empire (1185–1396) * Second French Empire (1852–1870) ** Second Empire architecture, an architectural styl ...

, the dame d'honneur had the same position as before, but was now formally ranked second below a surintendante with the title ''Grande-Maîtresse''.

List of Premières dames d'honneur to the queens and empresses of France

Though the office was commonly only referred to as "Dame d'honneur", this list use the full title of "Première dame d'honneur".

Première dame d'honneur to
Eleanor of Austria Eleanor of Austria (15 November 1498 – 25 February 1558), also called Eleanor of Castile, was born an Archduchess of Austria and Infanta of Castile from the House of Habsburg, and subsequently became Queen consort of Portugal (1518–1 ...
1530–1547

* 1530–1535 : Louise de Montmorency * 1535–1538 : Jeanne d'Angoulême, dame de Givry * Beatrix Pacheco d'Ascalona, comtesse de Montbel d'Entremont

Première dame d'honneur to Catherine de' Medici 1547–1589

* 1547–1560: Françoise de Brézé * 1560–1561:

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 ...

* 1561–1578: Philippe de Montespedon * 1578–1589: Alphonsine Strozzi, comtesse de Fiesque

Première dame d'honneur to Mary Stuart 1559–1560

* 1559–1560:

Guillemette de Sarrebruck Guillemette de Sarrebruck (circa 1490–1571) was a French court official. She served as Governess of the Children of France, and '' Première dame d'honneur'' to the queen of France, Mary Stuart, from 1559 until 1560. She had the title comtes ...

Première dame d'honneur to Elisabeth of Austria 1570–1574

* 1570–1574: Madeleine of Savoy

Première dame d'honneur to Louise of Lorraine 1575–1601

* 1575–1583: Jeanne de Dampierre * 1583–1585: Louise de Hallwyn de Cipierre ''(jointly with de Randan)'' * 1583–1601: Fulvie de Randan ''(jointly with de Cipierre)''

Première dame d'honneur to Marie de' Medici 1600–1632

* 1600–1632: Antoinette de Pons

Première dame d'honneur to
Anne of Austria Anne of Austria (french: Anne d'Autriche, italic=no, es, Ana María Mauricia, italic=no; 22 September 1601 – 20 January 1666) was an infanta of Spain who became Queen of France as the wife of King Louis XIII from their marriage in 1615 un ...
1615–1666

For the first years in France, before her Spanish entourage was sent back to Spain, Anne had both a French and a Spanish office holder in several posts of her court. * 1615–1618: Inés de la Torre ''(jointly with de Montmorency)'' * 1615–1624:

Laurence de Montmorency Laurence de Montmorency (1571–1654) was a French court official. She served as '' Première dame d'honneur'' to the queen of France, Anne of Austria, from 1615 until 1624. Until 1618, she shared her office with Inés de la Torre.Kleinman, Ruth ...

''(jointly with de la Torre)'' * 1624–1626:

Charlotte de Lannoy Charlotte de Lannoy (d. September 1626) was a French court official. She served as ''Première dame d'honneur'' to the queen of France, Anne of Austria, from 1624 until 1626. Life Charlotte de Lannoy was the daughter of Christophe, seigneur de Lan ...

* 1626–1638:

Marie-Catherine de Senecey Marie-Catherine de Senecey, née ''de La Rochefoucauld-Randan'' (1588–1677) was a French courtier. She served as ''Première dame d'honneur'' to the queen of France, Anne of Austria, from 1626 until 1638, and royal governess to king Louis XIV of ...

* 1638–1643: Catherine de Brassac * 1643–1666: Marie-Claire de Fleix

Première dame d'honneur to
Maria Theresa of Spain Maria Theresa of Spain ( es, María Teresa de Austria; french: Marie-Thérèse d'Autriche; 10 September 1638 – 30 July 1683) was Queen of France from 1660 to 1683 as the wife of King Louis XIV. She was born an Infanta of Spain and Portugal a ...
1660–1683

* 1660–1664: Susanne de Navailles * 1664–1671: Julie de Montausier * 1671–1679: Anne de Richelieu * 1679–1683: Anne-Armande de Crequy

Première dame d'honneur to
Marie Leszczyńska Maria Karolina Zofia Felicja Leszczyńska (; ; 23 June 1703 – 24 June 1768), also known as Marie Leczinska, was Queen of France as the wife of King Louis XV from their marriage on 4 September 1725 until her death in 1768. The daughter of Stanis ...
1725–1768

* 1725–1735:

Catherine-Charlotte de Boufflers Catherine Charlotte de Gramont (1670–1739) was a French court official, foremost known as the ''Marechale de Boufflers''. She served as ''Première dame d'honneur'' to the queen of France, Marie Leszczyńska, the wife of King Louis XV, from 1725 ...

* 1735–1763: Marie de Luynes * ''1751–1761: Henriette-Nicole Pignatelli d'Egmont, duchess de Chevreuse (deputy)'' * 1763–1768:

Anne de Noailles Anne de Noailles, 1st Duke of Noailles (died 15 February 1678) was the great-grandson of Antoine, 1st comte de Noailles. He played an important part in the Fronde and the early years of the reign of Louis XIV, became captain-general of the newl ...

''(first term)''

Première dame d'honneur to Marie Antoinette 1774–1792

* 1774–1775: Anne de Noailles ''(second term)'' * 1775–1791: Laure-Auguste de Fitz-James, Princess de Chimay * 1791–1792: Geneviève de Gramont

Première dame d'honneur to
Joséphine de Beauharnais Josephine may refer to: People * Josephine (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Josephine (singer), a Greek pop singer Places Josephine, Texas, United States Mount Josephine (disambiguation) * Josephine Cou ...
1804–1814

* 1804–1809:

Adélaïde de La Rochefoucauld Adélaïde de La Rochefoucauld (née de Pyvart de Chastullé; 1769 - 1814), was a French courtier. She served as the principal lady in waiting, or ''dame d'honneur'' (Mistress of the Robes), to empress Joséphine de Beauharnais in 1804–09. Life ...

Première dame d'honneur to Marie Louise 1810–1814

* 1810–1814:

Louise Antoinette Lannes, Duchess of Montebello Louise Antoinette Lannes, Duchess of Montebello (February 26, 1782 in Paris – July 3, 1856 in Paris) was a French courtier, ''dame d'honneur'' (Mistress of the Robes) to Empress Marie Louise, Duchess of Parma, Marie Louise of France, and the s ...

Première dame d'honneur to
Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily french: link=no, Marie-Amélie Thérèse de Bourbon-Siciles , house = Bourbon-Two Sicilies , father = Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies , mother = Maria Carolina of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Caserta Palace, Naples , ...
1830–1848

* 1830–1848: Christine-Zoë de Montjoye, marquise de Dolomieu

Première dame d'honneur to Eugénie de Montijo 1853–1870

* 1853–1867: Pauline de Bassano * 1867–1870: Marie-Anne Walewska

List of Premières dames d'honneur to the Crown princesses of France

The Household of the wife of the heir to the throne were normally appointed one year before the royal bride arrived to France, so that they could be a part of the royal welcome entourage.

Première dame d'honneur to Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria 1680–1690

* 1679–1684: Anne de Richelieu

Première dame d'honneur to
Marie Adélaïde of Savoy Marie Adélaïde of Savoy (6 December 1685 – 12 February 1712) was the wife of Louis, Dauphin of France, Duke of Burgundy. She was the eldest daughter of Victor Amadeus II, Duke of Savoy, and of Anne Marie d'Orléans. Her betrothal to the Duk ...
1711–1712

* 1711–1712: Marguerite Louise Susanne de Béthune, Duchesse du Lude

Première dame d'honneur to
Maria Teresa Rafaela of Spain Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, da ...
1744–1746

* 1744–1746: Marie-Angélique Frémyn de Moras, duchesse de Brancas

Première dame d'honneur to
Maria Josepha of Saxony, Dauphine of France Maria Josepha Karolina Eleonore Franziska Xaveria of Saxony (4 November 1731 – 13 March 1767) was Dauphine of France through her marriage to Louis, the son and heir of Louis XV. Marie Josèphe was the mother of three kings of France, Louis ...
1747–1767

* 1746–1762: Marie-Angélique Frémyn de Moras, duchesse de Brancas * 1762–1767: Louise-Diane-Françoise de Clermont-Gallerande, duchesse de Brancas

Première dame d'honneur to Marie Antoinette 1770–1792

* 1770–1775: Anne de Noailles * 1775-1791: Laure-Auguste de Fitz-James, Princess de Chimay * 1791-1792: Geneviève d'Ossun

Première dame d'honneur to Marie Thérèse of France 1814–1830

* 1814–1823: Bonne Marie Félicité de Sérent * 1823–1830: Anne-Félicité Simone de Sérent, Duchess de Damas-Cruz Imbert de Saint-Amand,
The Duchess of Berry and the court of Charles X
'

References

* Mathieu da Vinha & Raphaël Masson: ''Versailles: Histoire, Dictionnaire et Anthologie'' {{portal bar, history, France Ancien Régime Ancien Régime office-holders Government of France French monarchy Court titles in the Ancien Régime Gendered occupations French ladies-in-waiting French royal court