Charlotte of Bourbon (1546/1547 – 5 May 1582) was a Princess consort of Orange as the third spouse of

William the Silent William the Silent (24 April 153310 July 1584), also known as William the Taciturn (translated from nl, Willem de Zwijger), or, more commonly in the Netherlands, William of Orange ( nl, Willem van Oranje), was the main leader of the Dutch Re ...

Prince of Orange Prince of Orange (or Princess of Orange if the holder is female) is a title originally associated with the sovereign Principality of Orange, in what is now southern France and subsequently held by sovereigns in the Netherlands. The title ...

, the main leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish. She was the fourth daughter of

Louis III de Bourbon, Duke of Montpensier Louis de Bourbon, Duc de Montpensier (10 June 1513 – 23 September 1582) was the second Duke of Montpensier, a French Prince of the Blood, military commander and governor. He began his military career during the Italian Wars, and in 1557 was ...

and

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 ...

, Countess of Bar-sur-Seine.

Biography

Her paternal grandparents were Louis de Bourbon, Prince of La Roche-sur-Yon and

Louise de Bourbon, Duchess of Montpensier Louise de Bourbon (1482 – 15 July 1561) was the Duchess of Montpensier, suo jure from February 1538 to 1561. She was the great great great grandmother of ''La Grande Mademoiselle''. Inheritance The eldest daughter of Gilbert, Count of Montpen ...

. Her maternal grandparents were John IV de Longwy, Baron of Pagny, and Jeanne of Angoulême, a natural (but legitimated by Royal decree in 1501) half-sister of King

Francis I of France Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin on ...

. Her mother, Jacqueline, was a believer in the Reformed doctrines, and she secretly taught them to her children. By some accounts, Charlotte's father determined to thwart his wife's influence by sending three of his daughters to convents. Charlotte was then only thirteen years old and begged to be allowed to stay with her mother, who died during the time Charlotte was in the convent. Her father, influential in the court of Catherine de' Medici, placed her in the royal convent of Jouarre, near

Meaux Meaux () is a Communes of France, commune on the river Marne (river), Marne in the Seine-et-Marne Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region in the Functional area (France), metropolitan area of Paris, Franc ...

, to be raised as a nun. When she was professed as a nun at the age of thirteen, she made a formal written protest. Other sources claim that Louis simply wanted to avoid paying dowries in order to conserve his only son's patrimony. Charlotte was first sent to Jouarre, where her aunt was abbess, as an infant. The plan for Charlotte was to renounce her inheritance and succeed her aunt. This plan was carried out upon the aunt's death, against Charlotte's wishes, and despite her being only 12. While abbess, Charlotte was secretly instructed in

Calvinism Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

by a dissident priest. The young Charlotte shocked both her family and the royal court by fleeing the convent in 1572, announcing her conversion to Calvinism and, on the advice of

Jeanne d'Albret Jeanne d'Albret ( Basque: ''Joana Albretekoa''; Occitan: ''Joana de Labrit''; 16 November 1528 – 9 June 1572), also known as Jeanne III, was Queen of Navarre from 1555 to 1572. Jeanne was the daughter of Henry II of Navarre and Margar ...

, fleeing to the

Electorate of the Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate (german: Kurpfalz) or the Palatinate (), officially the Electorate of the Palatinate (), was a state that was part of the Holy Roman Empire. The electorate had its origins under the rulership of the Counts Palatine of ...

, well beyond her parents' reach. On 24 June 1575 Charlotte married the Protestant William, Prince of Orange. They had six daughters, including Louise Juliana of Nassau, from whom descended the

House of Hanover The House of Hanover (german: Haus Hannover), whose members are known as Hanoverians, is a European royal house of German origin that ruled Hanover, Great Britain, and Ireland at various times during the 17th to 20th centuries. The house or ...

and most other (Protestant) royal houses. The marriage was very happy–it is said to have been the only one of William's four marriages which was for love–and the obvious happiness of the couple increased William's popularity. Charlotte allegedly died from exhaustion while trying to nurse her husband after an assassination attempt in 1582. Though William was outwardly stoical, it was feared that his grief might cause a fatal relapse. Charlotte's death was widely mourned. Following her death, William married on 24 April 1583, his fourth and last wife,

Louise de Coligny Louise de Coligny (23 September 1555 – 9 November 1620) was a Princess consort of Orange as the fourth and last spouse of William the Silent. She was the daughter of Gaspard II de Coligny and Charlotte de Laval. Biography Louise was born at C ...

, by whom he had a son

Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange Frederick Henry ( nl, Frederik Hendrik; 29 January 1584 – 14 March 1647) was the sovereign prince of Orange and stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, Overijssel in the Dutch Republic from 1625 until his death in 1647. In the last ...

. William's brother

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

, who had initially opposed the marriage, paid tribute to Charlotte as a wife "so distinguished by her virtue, her piety, her great intelligence, in sum as perfect as he (William) could desire her".Wedgwood, p.157

References

Bibliography

*Blaisdell, Charmarie, ‘Religion, Gender, and Class: Nuns and Authority in Early Modern France’, in Michael Wolfe (ed.), ''Changing Identities in Early Modern France'' (London, 1997), pp. 147–168. * Dalberg-Acton, John Emerich Edward, et al. ''The Cambridge Modern History.'' Vol. III, New York: Macmillan Co, 1902
googlebooks.com
Accessed July 30, 2007 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Charlotte of Bourbon 1540s births 1582 deaths 16th-century Calvinist and Reformed Christians 16th-century Dutch people 16th-century French people 16th-century French women 16th-century Dutch women Converts to Calvinism from Roman Catholicism Dutch Calvinist and Reformed Christians French Calvinist and Reformed Christians French nobility French people of the Eighty Years' War House of Bourbon House of Bourbon (France) House of Orange-Nassau Princesses of Orange William the Silent