François III de Longueville (1535–1551) was the eldest son of

Louis II d'Orléans, Duke of Longueville Louis II d'Orléans, duc de Longueville and comte de Dunois (1510 – 9 June 1537) was a French aristocrat and the first husband of Mary of Guise, who later became queen consort of Scotland and mother to Mary, Queen of Scots. He was the second son o ...

and Marie de Guise. He succeeded his father, who died on 9 June 1537, to the duchy of Longueville.

Life

François was born on 30 October 1535 His mother, Marie de Guise, was from the powerful

House of Guise The House of Guise ( , ; ; ) was a prominent French noble family that was involved heavily in the French Wars of Religion. The House of Guise was the founding house of the Principality of Joinville. Origin The House of Guise was founded as a c ...

. His father, Louis, was the son of Louis I d'Orleans, Duke of Longueville. Following his father's death and his mother's marriage to

James V of Scotland James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of King James IV a ...

, François' care was entrusted to his grandmother,

Antoinette de Bourbon Antoinette of Bourbon, Duchess of Guise (25 December 1494 – 22 January 1583), was a French noblewoman of the House of Bourbon. She was the wife of Claude of Lorraine, Duke of Guise. Life Antoinette of Bourbon was born on 25 December 1494 at ...

. François kept correspondence with his mother, sending her a piece of string to show how tall he was, and his portrait. James V's daughter, probably

Lady Jean Stewart Lady Jean Stewart (also known as Jane Stuart; c. 1533 – 7 January 1588), was an illegitimate daughter of King James V of Scotland by his mistress, Elizabeth Bethune (sometimes spelled ''Betoun'' or ''Beaton''). Childhood Jean was born betw ...

, sent him a gold chain and he sent her another, with blue and green enamelled gold beads François wrote to Mary of Guise from the

Palace of Fontainebleau Palace of Fontainebleau ( , ; ), located southeast of the center of Paris, in the commune of Fontainebleau, is one of the largest French royal châteaux. It served as a hunting lodge and summer residence for many of the List of French monarchs ...

in January 1548, mentioning his exercises wearing armour and

running at the ring Running at the ring, riding at the ring or tilting at the ring is an equestrian tournament activity originally practiced at European royal courts and likely derived from other lance games like Quintain (jousting), quintain. It gained new popularity ...

. He hoped that by learning these martial skills he would be able to help his mother against her enemies. By 1550 François was ill. His mother had returned to France as part of the betrothal of his half-sister

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

to Francis, Dauphin of France. She tended him through what would be his final illness. François died shortly before his mother returned to Scotland.Rosalind K. Marshall, ''Mary of Guise'' (London: Collins, 1977), p. 192.

References

Sources

* *Wood, Marguerite, ed., ''Balcarres Papers'', vol. 1 (Edinburgh: SHS, 1923).

External list

* Liste des ducs de Longueville {{S-end Dukes of Longueville Mary of Guise 1535 births 1551 deaths House of Valois-Orléans