Henri Eugène Philippe Louis d'Orléans, Duke of Aumale (16 January 1822 – 7 May 1897) was a leader of the Orleanists, a political faction in 19th-century France associated with

constitutional monarchy Constitutional monarchy, also known as limited monarchy, parliamentary monarchy or democratic monarchy, is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in making decisions. ...

. He was born in

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 ...

, the fifth son of King Louis-Philippe I of the French and

Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily (Maria Amalia Teresa; 26 April 1782 – 24 March 1866) was List of French royal consorts, Queen of the French by marriage to Louis Philippe I, King of the French. She was the last Queen of France. Among ...

and used the title

Duke of Aumale Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

. Aumale became an infantry officer and saw active service in the

French conquest of Algeria The French conquest of Algeria (; ) took place between 1830 and 1903. In 1827, an argument between Hussein Dey, the ruler of the Regency of Algiers, and the French consul (representative), consul escalated into a blockade, following which the Jul ...

and in 1847 was appointed as its

Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

. After the

French Revolution of 1848 The French Revolution of 1848 (), also known as the February Revolution (), was a period of civil unrest in France, in February 1848, that led to the collapse of the July Monarchy and the foundation of the French Second Republic. It sparked t ...

, he went to live in England, where he pursued historical interests. The

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

enabled him to return to France, where he was elected to parliament and the

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

. In 1872, he returned to the army as a Divisional General, and from 1879 to 1883 was inspector-general of the army. An important art collector, Aumale left his

Château de Chantilly The Château de Chantilly () is a historic French château located in the town of Chantilly, Oise, about 50 kilometres (30 miles) north of Paris. The site comprises two attached buildings: the Petit Château, built around 1560 for Anne de Montmore ...

to the

Institute of France The ; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the . It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute manages approximately 1 ...

, to display his collection.

Early life

Born on January 16 at the

Palais Royal The Palais-Royal () is a former French royal palace located on Rue Saint-Honoré in the 1st arrondissement of Paris. The screened entrance court faces the Place du Palais-Royal, opposite the Louvre. Originally called the Palais-Cardinal, it was ...

, he shared a birthday with his older brother

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

. The young Henri was brought up by his parents in relative simplicity. At the age of eight, he inherited a fortune of 66 million

livres Livre may refer to: Currency * French livre, one of a number of obsolete units of currency of France * Livre tournois, one particular obsolete unit of currency of France * Livre parisis, another particular obsolete unit of currency of France * F ...

(approximately £200 million today), the lands and wealth of his godfather, Louis Henri de Bourbon, Prince of Condé, the last

Prince of Condé A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The f ...

. This inheritance included the famous

, the

Château d'Écouen The Château d'Écouen is an historic château in the commune of Écouen, some 20 km north of Paris, France, and a notable example of French Renaissance architecture. Since 1975, it has housed the collections of the Musée national de la Re ...

, and the domaines of Saint-Leu, Taverny, Enghien, Montmorency, and Mortefontaine. He was educated at the Collège Henri IV, then at the age of seventeen, entered the French army with the rank of captain of infantry.

Marriage and children

On 25 November 1844, aged 22, Aumale married in

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

his first cousin Princess Maria Carolina of the Two Sicilies, a daughter of Leopold of the Two Sicilies, Prince of Salerno, and

Archduchess Maria Clementina of Austria Maria Clementina of Austria (24 April 1777 – 15 November 1801) was an Archduchy of Austria, Austrian archduchess and the tenth child and third daughter of Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor and Maria Luisa of Spain. In 1797, she married her double ...

. The couple had several children, of whom two reached adulthood, but still predeceased him: # Louis Philippe Marie Léopold d'Orléans, Prince of Condé (15 November 1845 – 24 May 1866), died unmarried and childless. #Henri Léopold Philippe Marie d'Orléans, Duke of Guise (11 September 1847 – 10 October 1847), died in infancy. #Stillborn daughter (16 August 1850). #François Paul d'Orléans, Duke of Guise (11 January 1852 – 15 April 1852), died in infancy. # François Louis Philippe Marie d'Orléans, Duke of Guise (5 January 1854 – 25 July 1872), died unmarried. #Stillborn son (May 1857). #Stillborn son (15 June 1861). #Stillborn son (June 1864).

Career

Aumale distinguished himself during the French invasion of Algeria and, in 1847, he became lieutenant-general and was appointed Governor-General of Algeria, a position he held from 27 September 1847 to 24 February 1848. In this capacity, he received the submission of the emir Abdel Kadir, in December 1847. After the

Revolution of 1848 The revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the springtime of the peoples or the springtime of nations, were a series of revolutions throughout Europe over the course of more than one year, from 1848 to 1849. It remains the most widespre ...

, he retired to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and busied himself with historical and military studies, responding in 1861 to

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

's violent attacks upon the

House of Orléans The 4th House of Orléans (), sometimes called the House of Bourbon-Orléans () to distinguish it, is the fourth holder of a surname previously used by several branches of the House of France, Royal House of France, all descended in the legitimat ...

with a ''Letter upon History of France''. After the Bavarian-born

King Otto of Greece Otto (; ; 1 June 1815 – 26 July 1867) was King of Greece from the establishment of the Kingdom of Greece on 27 May 1832, under the Convention of London, until he was deposed in October 1862. The second son of King Ludwig I of Bavaria, O ...

was overthrown in October 1862, the Greeks still favoured a monarchy and wanted

Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh Alfred (Alfred Ernest Albert; 6 August 184430 July 1900) was sovereign Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha from 22 August 1893 until his death in 1900. He was the second son and fourth child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. He was known as the Du ...

, as their new king, but he declined. In the search for a king, the French put forward the name of Aumale, while other contenders included

Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Ernest II (; 21 June 181822 August 1893) was Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha from 29 January 1844 to his death in 1893. He was born in Coburg to Ernest III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, and Princess Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. His father be ...

, the

Prince of Leiningen The title of Prince of Leiningen () was created by the Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor, Joseph II, who elevated Carl Friedrich Wilhelm, 1st Prince of Leiningen, Carl Friedrich Wilhelm, Count of Leiningen-Dagsburg-Hardenburg (a yo ...

, and Archduke Maximilian of Austria. Eventually, the choice fell on Prince William of Denmark, aged only seventeen, and the Greek National Assembly elected him as the new King of the Hellenes in March 1863. At the outbreak of the

, Aumale volunteered for service in the French army, but his offer was declined. Elected to parliament as deputy for the

Oise Oise ( ; ; ) is a department in the north of France. It is named after the river Oise. Inhabitants of the department are called ''Oisiens'' () or ''Isariens'', after the Latin name for the river, Isara. It had a population of 829,419 in 2019.< ...

, he returned to France. He also succeeded to the seat of the Count Montalembert in the

. In March 1872, he returned to the army as a

Divisional General Divisional general is a general officer rank who commands an army division. The rank originates from the French Revolutionary System, and is used by a number of countries. The rank is above a brigade general, and normally below an army corps ...

and in 1873 presided over the court-martial which condemned Marshal Bazaine to death. At this time, having been appointed commander of the VII Army Corps at

Besançon Besançon (, ; , ; archaic ; ) is the capital of the Departments of France, department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzerland. Capi ...

, Aumale retired from political life. In 1879, he became inspector-general of the army. The act of exception, passed in 1883, deprived all members of families who had reigned in France of their military commissions. Consequently, Aumale was placed on the unemployed supernumerary list. In 1886, another law was promulgated which expelled from French territory the heads of former reigning families and provided that, henceforward, all members of those families should be disqualified from holding any public position or function and from election to any public body. Aumale protested energetically but was nonetheless expelled from France. In his will, written on 3 June 1884, Aumale had bequeathed his

Chantilly Chantilly may refer to: Places France *Chantilly, Oise, a city ** US Chantilly, a football club *Château de Chantilly United States * Chantilly, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Chantilly (Charlotte neighborhood), North Carolina ...

estate to the

, including the

, which was to be turned into a museum displaying his large art collection. After this act of generosity was revealed, the French government withdrew the decree of exile, and the duke returned to France in 1889.

Bibliophile

Aumale was a notable collector of antique books and manuscripts and owned the important medieval

Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry The (; ), or , is an illuminated manuscript that was created between and 1416. It is a book of hours, which is a Christians, Christian devotional book and a collection of prayers said at canonical hours. The manuscript was created for John, ...

. Most of his collection is still at Chantilly.

Death

Henri d'Orléans, duc d'Aumale, died in Lo Zucco,

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

. After the fire of the Bazar de la Charité on 4 May 1897, which killed 126 people, mostly aristocratic women, he wanted to send his condolences to the families of the victims. After writing twenty letters, he suffered a cardiac arrest and died. He was buried in

Dreux Dreux () is a Communes of France, commune in the Eure-et-Loir Departments of France, department in northern France. Geography Dreux lies on the small river Blaise (river), Blaise, a tributary of the Eure (river), Eure, about 35 km north of Cha ...

, in the chapel of the Orléans.

Honours

* 1842: Grand Cross of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

* 22 March 1842: Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold * 6 September 1845: Knight of the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece (, ) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in 1430 in Brugge by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of Portugal, Duchess of Burgundy, Isabella of Portugal. T ...

(Spanish branch) * 1864: Grand Cross of the

Saxe-Ernestine House Order The Saxe-Ernestine House Order ()Hausorden
Herzogliche Haus Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha was a ...

* 22 May 1886: Grand Cross of the

Order of the Tower and Sword The Military Order of the Tower and of the Sword, of Valour, Loyalty and Merit (), before 1917 the ancient and most noble order of the Tower and of the Sword, of valour, loyalty and merit (), is one of the four former ancient Portuguese milita ...

* 1887: Member of the

Royal Academy of Science, Letters and Fine Arts of Belgium The Royal Academy of Science, Letters and Fine Arts of Belgium ( , sometimes referred to as ' ) is the independent learned society of science and arts of the French Community of Belgium. One of Belgium's numerous academies, it is the French-speak ...

. * 1890: Charles Oberthür described & named parnassian butterfly ''P. orleans'' from China, named after the Duke who discovered it. * Grand Cross of the Order of St. Ferdinand and Merit * Recipient of the Husainid family order, Nichan ad-Dam * Member of the

Académie Française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

* Member of the

Académie des Sciences Morales et Politiques An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

Arms

The duke of Aumale did not have a personal coat of arms, so used the traditional arms of the

, consisting of: * Blazon : Azure, three fleurs de lys or, a label argent * Coronet : of a

fils de France ''Fils de France'' (, ''Son of France'') was the style (manner of address), style and Ranks of nobility and peerage, rank held by the sons of the French monarchy, kings and Dauphin of France, dauphins of France. A daughter was known as a fille d ...

* Supporters : two angels * Personal motto (after 1871) : ''J'attendrai'' (I'll be waiting)

Ancestry

References

Sources

External links

Biography on 19ème Siècle site
(in French)
''Académie française'' Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Henri d'Orleans 1822 births 1897 deaths Nobility from Paris Princes of France (Orléans) Dukes of Aumale French art collectors French book and manuscript collectors Members of the Académie Française Burials at the Chapelle royale de Dreux Members of the Royal Academy of Belgium Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour Knights of the Golden Fleece of Spain Governors general of Algeria Collectors from Paris Military personnel from Paris Children of Louis Philippe I Sons of kings