Françoise Madeleine d'Orléans (13 October 1648 – 14 January 1664) was born a Princess of France and was the

Duchess of Savoy This is a list of consorts of the Savoyard monarchs. Countess of Savoy, 1003–1416 Duchess of Savoy, 1416–1713 ;As courtesy title Queen of Sardinia, 1720–1861 Between 1859 and 1861 the Kingdom of Sardinia incorporated the majo ...

as the first wife of Charles Emmanuel II. She was the first cousin of

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

as well of her husband. She was the shortest-serving Savoyard consort, dying at the age of 15.

Biography

Orléans was born at the Château de Saint Germain en Laye outside

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in 1648. She was the youngest surviving daughter of Gaston d'Orléans and his second wife Marguerite of Lorraine. From birth, she was styled ''Mademoiselle de Valois'', derived from one of her father's subsidiary titles. She was the favourite sister of ''

La Grande Mademoiselle LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second most populous city in the United States of America. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note *"L.A.", a song by Elliott Smi ...

'', the famous heiress. She grew up in the company of her sisters and '' Mademoiselle de La Vallière'', future mistress of Louis XIV. She resided at the

Château de Blois A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking re ...

. Her father died in 1660 and her mother remained unmarried. As French court etiquette dictated, she held the status of a Granddaughter of France as a male line descendant of the late king

Henry IV of France Henry IV (; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry (''le Bon Roi Henri'') or Henry the Great (''Henri le Grand''), was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 16 ...

. She was styled as a '' petite-fille de France''. Under the influence of her paternal aunt Christine Marie, Dowager Duchess of Savoy, she was engaged to her first cousin Charles Emmanuel II, Duke of Savoy. Christine Marie had chosen her as she had wanted to maintain her power and influence in government having previously been regent for her son since 1637. The match was approved of by

Cardinal Mazarin Jules Mazarin (born Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino or Mazarini; 14 July 1602 – 9 March 1661), from 1641 known as Cardinal Mazarin, was an Italian Catholic prelate, diplomat and politician who served as the chief minister to the Kings of France Lou ...

who had previously rejected Marie Jeanne of Savoy, another candidate for Charles Emmanuel II. Orléans proved suitably docile and was chosen over Marie Jeanne. Orléans married the

Duke of Savoy The titles of the count of Savoy, and then duke of Savoy, are titles of nobility attached to the historical territory of Savoy. Since its creation, in the 11th century, the House of Savoy held the county. Several of these rulers ruled as kings at ...

by proxy at the

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on 4 March 1663. The couple met for the first time at

Annecy Annecy ( , ; , also ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of the Haute-Savoie Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, regi ...

on 3 April 1663 where they were married officially. The couple travelled to

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

, capital of Savoy, where they arrived on 15 June 1663. She was known as ''Francesca Maddalena d'Orléans'' in her adopted Savoy. The duchess soon died on 14 Jan 1664 at the

Royal Palace of Turin The Royal Palace of Turin () is a historic palace of the House of Savoy in the city of Turin in Northern Italy. It was originally built in the 16th century and was later modernized by Christine Marie of France (1606–1663) in the 17th century, w ...

, leaving her husband without an heir. She was buried at

Turin Cathedral Turin Cathedral or Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist (, ) is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of ...

where she rests today. Her husband, inconsolable at her death, ordered a lavish funeral. After Orléans' death, Louis XIV tried to engage ''La Grande Mademoiselle'' to Charles Emmanuel II who refused the match. He later married again to Marie Jeanne of Savoy by whom he had a son.

Ancestors

Notes

Sources

* * * * * , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Francoise Madeleine D'orleans 1648 births 1664 deaths People from Saint-Germain-en-Laye French princesses House of Orléans Duchesses of Savoy House of Bourbon-Montpensier Princesses of France (Bourbon) 17th-century French people Burials at Turin Cathedral