Louis, Dauphin Of France (1661-1711)
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Louis, Dauphin of France (1 November 1661 – 14 April 1711), commonly known as le Grand Dauphin, was the eldest son and
heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...
of King
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 ...
and his spouse,
Maria Theresa of Spain Maria Theresa of Spain (; ; 10 September 1638 – 30 July 1683) was Queen consort of France, Queen of France from 1660 to 1683 as the wife of King Louis XIV. She was born an Infante, Infanta of Spain and Portugal as the daughter of King Philip IV ...
. He became known as the Grand Dauphin after the birth of his own son,
Louis, Duke of Burgundy Louis, Dauphin of France, Duke of Burgundy (6 August 1682 – 18 February 1712), was the eldest son of Louis, Grand Dauphin, and Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria and grandson of the reigning French king, Louis XIV. He is commonly known as le ...
, the Petit Dauphin. He and his son died before his father and thus never became kings. Instead, his grandson became King
Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached maturity (then defi ...
at the death of Louis XIV, and his second son inherited the Spanish throne as Philip V through his grandmother, founding the Spanish Bourbon line.


Biography

Louis was born on 1 November 1661 at the
Château de 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 French monarchs, includ ...
, the eldest son of
Louis XIV of France 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 ...
and
Maria Theresa of Spain Maria Theresa of Spain (; ; 10 September 1638 – 30 July 1683) was Queen consort of France, Queen of France from 1660 to 1683 as the wife of King Louis XIV. She was born an Infante, Infanta of Spain and Portugal as the daughter of King Philip IV ...
(who were double-first cousins to each other). As 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 ...
'' ("Son of France") he was entitled to the style of ''Royal Highness.'' He was baptised on 24 March 1662 at the chapel of the
Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye The Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye () is a former royal palace in the commune of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, in the department of Yvelines, about 19 km west of Paris, France. Today, it houses the '' Musée d'Archéologie nationale'' (Nationa ...
and given his father's name of Louis. At the ceremony, the Cardinal de Vendôme and the
Princess of Conti The title of Princess of Conti was a French Nobility, noble title, held by the wife of the Prince of Conti between 1582 and 1803 with an intermission between 1614 and 1654. Princesses of Conti First Creation Second Creation Notes

...
acted as proxies for the godparents,
Pope Clement IX Pope Clement IX (; ; 28 January 1600 – 9 December 1669), born Giulio Rospigliosi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 20 June 1667 to his death in December 1669. Giulio Rospigliosi was born into the noble Ro ...
and Henrietta Maria of England. The latter was Louis's great-aunt. It was for this occasion that
Jean-Baptiste Lully Jean-Baptiste Lully ( – 22 March 1687) was a French composer, dancer and instrumentalist of Italian birth, who is considered a master of the French Baroque music style. Best known for his operas, he spent most of his life working in the court o ...
composed the motet '' Plaude Laetare Gallia''. 200px, Louis XIV by Pierre Mignard, c. 1650 He was initially under the care of royal governesses, among them being Julie d'Angennes and
Louise de Prie de La Mothe-Houdancourt Louise de Prie de La Mothe-Houdancourt (1624–1709), was a French noblewoman and court official. She served as royal governess to the children of king Louis XIV of France in 1661–1672, to the children of Louis, Grand Dauphin in 1682&nd ...
. When Louis reached the age of seven, he was removed from the care of women and placed in a society of men. He received Charles de Sainte-Maure, as his governor and was tutored by the great French preacher and orator
Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet Jacques-Bénigne Lignel Bossuet (; 27 September 1627 – 12 April 1704) was a French Bishop (Catholic Church), bishop and theology, theologian. Renowned for his sermons, addresses and literary works, he is regarded as a brilliant orator and lit ...
, the Bishop of Meaux, seemingly without acceptable results. Philippe Erlanger writes the following in his book about the life of Louis XIV: He was very indolent. As an adult, his favorite amusement was lying stretched in a sofa tapping the point of his shoes with a cane. Nonetheless, his generosity, affability, and liberality gave him great popularity in Paris and with the French people in general. Louis was one of six legitimate children of his parents. The others all died in early childhood; the second longest-lived, Marie Thérèse of France, died at the age of five when Louis was 11. According to John B. Wolf, Louis XIV had a low opinion of his son, writing: Being especially interested in geopolitical ties his son could help him form, the King considered various European royal daughters as possible wives for his heir, such as
Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici (11 August 1667 – 18 February 1743) was an Italian noblewoman who was the last lineal descendant of the main branch of the House of Medici. A patron of the arts, she bequeathed the Medicis' large art collection, in ...
and Louis' cousin Marie Louise d'Orléans, daughter of
Philippe I, Duke of Orléans ''Monsieur'' Philippe I, Duke of Orléans (21 September 1640 – 9 June 1701) was the younger son of King Louis XIII of France and Anne of Austria, and the younger brother of King Louis XIV. He was the founder of the House of Orléans, a ...
and Henrietta of England. According to various sources, Marie Louise and Louis were in love and had grown up with each other. However, Louis XIV decided to use Marie Louise to instead forge a link with Spain and made her marry the invalid
Charles II of Spain Charles II (6 November 1661 – 1 November 1700) was King of Spain from 1665 to 1700. The last monarch from the House of Habsburg, which had ruled Spain since 1516, he died without an heir, leading to a European Great Power conflict over the succ ...
, the Dauphin's half-uncle. Louis was eventually engaged to his second cousin, Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria, when he was seven. She was a year older than Louis and, upon arriving at the French court, was described as being very unattractive. Nonetheless, she was a very cultured princess, and made a good first impression as she was able to speak French fluently. They were married by proxy in Munich on 28 January 1680; the couple met for the first time on 7 March 1680 in Châlons-sur-Marne.


Political and military role

Although he was permitted at first to attend and later to participate in the '' Conseil d'en haut'', Louis did not play an important part in French politics. Nonetheless, as the heir to the throne, he was constantly surrounded by cabals battling for future prominence. Apart from the minor political role that he played during his father's reign, Louis engaged in more leisurely pursuits and was esteemed for his magnificent collection of art at
Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...
and
Meudon Meudon () is a French Communes of France, commune located in the Hauts-de-Seine Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region, on the left bank of the Seine. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of P ...
. Louis XIV purchased Meudon for him from the widow of Louvois. The Dauphin employed Jules Hardouin Mansart and the office of the ''
Bâtiments du Roi The Bâtiments du Roi (, 'King's Buildings') was a division of the Maison du Roi ('King's Household') in France under the Ancien Régime. It was responsible for building works at the King's residences in and around Paris. History The Bâtiments ...
'' but most particularly his long-term "house designer", Jean Bérain, head of the Menus Plaisirs, to provide new decors. He lived quietly at Meudon for the remainder of his life and was surrounded by his two half-sisters Marie Anne de Bourbon and the Princess of Condé, both of whom he loved dearly. The three made up the main part of the ''Cabal de Meudon'', which opposed the Dauphin's son
Louis Louis may refer to: People * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer Other uses * Louis (coin), a French coin * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also ...
and his Savoyard wife, the Duchess of Burgundy. During the
War of the Grand Alliance The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...
, he was sent in 1688 to the Rhineland front. Before leaving the court, Louis was thus instructed by his father:
In sending you to command my army, I am giving you an opportunity to make known your merit; go and show it to all Europe, so that when I come to die it will not be noticed that the King is dead.
There, Louis succeeded, under the tutelage of Marshal de Duras and Vauban, in taking one of the bridgeheads across the
Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...
,
Philippsburg Philippsburg () is a town in the district of Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. History Before 1623, Philippsburg was known as "Udenheim". The city was a possession of the Bishop of Speyer from 1316 to 1803. The town is named after P ...
, which was surrounded by marshes. Louis's courage was shown when he visited the soldiers in the inundated trenches under heavy fire to observe the progress of the siege. Montausier, his former governor, wrote to him:
I shall not compliment you on the taking of Philippsburg; you had a good army, bombs, cannons and Vauban. I shall not compliment you because you are brave. That virtue is hereditary. But I rejoice with you that you have been liberal, generous, humane, and have recognised the services of those who did well.
Louis's capture of Philippsburg prevented the large gathering Imperial Army from crossing the
Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...
and invading
Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...
. Louis's position in the ''Conseil d'en haut'' gave him an opportunity to have his voice heard in the years and in the crises leading up to the
War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...
. From his mother, Louis had rights and claims to the Spanish throne. His uncle
Charles II of Spain Charles II (6 November 1661 – 1 November 1700) was King of Spain from 1665 to 1700. The last monarch from the House of Habsburg, which had ruled Spain since 1516, he died without an heir, leading to a European Great Power conflict over the succ ...
had produced no descendants and, as he lay dying, had no heir to whom he could pass the throne. The choice of a successor was essentially split between the French and Austrian claimants. To improve the chances of a Bourbon succession, Louis gave up his and his eldest son's rights in favour of his second son, Philip, Duke of Anjou (later
Philip V of Spain Philip V (; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was List of Spanish monarchs, King of Spain from 1 November 1700 to 14 January 1724 and again from 6 September 1724 to his death in 1746. His total reign (45 years and 16 days) is the longest in the ...
), who, as the second son, was not expected to succeed to the French throne, which would thus keep France and Spain separate. Moreover, in the discussions in the ''Conseil d'en haut'' regarding the French response to Charles II's last will and testament, which indeed left all Spanish possessions to Anjou, Louis persuasively argued for acceptance. He opposed those who advocated a rejection of the will and the adherence to the Partition Treaty, which was signed with
William III of England William III (William Henry; ; 4 November 1650 – 8 March 1702), also known as William of Orange, was the sovereign Prince of Orange from birth, Stadtholder of County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, Zeeland, Lordship of Utrecht, Utrec ...
, even though the treaty had awarded
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 ...
,
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. ...
and
Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...
to him. Louis died of
smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...
on 14 April 1711, at the age of 49, and so predeceased his father.


Literary tribute

*The '' Delphin Classics'' were a large edition of the
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
classics, edited in the 1670s for Louis (''Delphin'' is the adjective derived from ''dauphin'') and known for being written (unlike some other treatments) entirely in that language. Thirty-eight scholars contributed to the series, which was edited by Pierre Huet, with assistance from several co-editors including
Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet Jacques-Bénigne Lignel Bossuet (; 27 September 1627 – 12 April 1704) was a French Bishop (Catholic Church), bishop and theology, theologian. Renowned for his sermons, addresses and literary works, he is regarded as a brilliant orator and lit ...
and Anne Dacier.


Marriages

Louis married Duchess Maria Anna of Bavaria on 7 March 1680. She was known in France as ''Dauphine Marie Anne Victoire''. Although the marriage was not a close one, the couple had three sons. The ''Dauphine'' died in 1690 and in 1695 Louis secretly married his lover Marie Émilie de Joly de Choin. His new wife did not acquire the status of
Dauphine of France The dauphine of France (, also , ) was the wife of the dauphin of France (the heir apparent to the French throne). The position was analogous to a crown princess (the wife of a crown prince and heir apparent to a throne). List of dauphines of F ...
, and the marriage remained without surviving issue. Pregnant at the time of her marriage, de Choin gave birth to a son, who was secretly sent to the countryside; the child died aged two, in 1697, without having been publicly named.


Issue

*
Louis, Duke of Burgundy Louis, Dauphin of France, Duke of Burgundy (6 August 1682 – 18 February 1712), was the eldest son of Louis, Grand Dauphin, and Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria and grandson of the reigning French king, Louis XIV. He is commonly known as le ...
(16 August 1682 – 18 February 1712), Duke of Burgundy and later Dauphin of France; married his double-second cousin,
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 Duke ...
, elder daughter of the Duke of Savoy and was the father of the future
Louis XV of France Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached maturity (then defi ...
; * Philip V, King of Spain (19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746), Duke of Anjou and later King of Spain; married firstly his double-second cousin,
Maria Luisa of Savoy Maria Luisa Gabriella of Savoy (17 September 1688 – 14 February 1714), nicknamed ''La Savoyana'', was Queen of Spain by marriage to King Philip V. She acted as regent during her husband's absence from 1702 until 1703 and had great influe ...
, younger daughter of the Duke of Savoy, and had issue; married, secondly,
Elisabeth Farnese Elisabeth Farnese (Italian: ''Elisabetta Farnese'', Spanish: ''Isabel de Farnesio''; 25 October 169211 July 1766) was Queen of Spain by marriage to King Philip V. She was the '' de facto'' ruler of Spain from 1714 until 1746, since she managed ...
and had issue including the future Dauphine of France,
Infanta Maria Teresa Rafaela of Spain Infante (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as "infant" or translated as "prince", is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to the ...
and
Charles III 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 future King of Spain and Mariana Victoria, the Queen of Portugal. * Charles, Duke of Berry (31 July 1686 – 5 May 1714), Duke of Berry, of Alençon and of Angoulême, Count of Ponthieu; married Marie Louise Élisabeth d'Orléans and had issue but none survived over a year. Thus, through his two older sons Burgundy and Anjou, Louis ensured, respectively, the continuation of the senior Bourbon line on the throne of France and the establishment of the Spanish Bourbon dynasty. Besides his unnamed child with Mme de Choin, Louis had two illegitimate daughters with Françoise Pitel:Genealogy Database by Daniel de Rauglaudre
/ref> *Anne Louise de Bourbon (1695 – August 1716) – wife of Anne Errard d'Avaugour; *Charlotte de Fleury (6 February 1697 – 1750) – wife of Gérard Michel de La Jonchère. With another mistress, Marie Anne Caumont de La Force, he had one daughter: *Louise Émilie de Vautedard (1694–1719) – wife of Nicolas Mesnager.


Ancestry

Louis's paternal grandparents were
Louis XIII of France Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown. ...
and
Anne of Austria Anne of Austria (; ; born Ana María Mauricia; 22 September 1601 – 20 January 1666) was Queen of France from 1615 to 1643 by marriage to King Louis XIII. She was also Queen of Navarre until the kingdom's annexation into the French crown ...
; he was descended, on his mother's side, from
Philip IV of Spain Philip IV (, ; 8 April 160517 September 1665), also called the Planet King (Spanish: ''Rey Planeta''), was King of Spain from 1621 to his death and (as Philip III) King of Portugal from 1621 to 1640. Philip is remembered for his patronage of the ...
and Élisabeth of France. Louis XIII and Élisabeth de Bourbon were siblings (the children of
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 ...
and
Marie de' Medici Marie de' Medici (; ; 26 April 1575 – 3 July 1642) was Queen of France and Navarre as the second wife of King Henry IV. Marie served as regent of France between 1610 and 1617 during the minority of her son Louis XIII. Her mandate as rege ...
), as were Anne of Austria and Philip IV, who were the children of
Philip III of Spain Philip III (; 14 April 1578 – 31 March 1621) was King of Spain and King of Portugal, Portugal (where he is known as Philip II of Portugal) during the Iberian Union. His reign lasted from 1598 until his death in 1621. He held dominion over the S ...
and Margaret of Austria. That means that he had only four great-grandparents instead of the usual eight, and that his double-cousin parents had the same coefficient of co-ancestry (1/4) as if they were half-siblings.


References


Further reading

* Tricoire, Damien. "Attacking the Monarchy’s Sacrality in Late Seventeenth-Century France: The Underground Literature against Louis XIV, Jansenism and the Dauphin’s Court Faction." ''French History'' 31.2 (2017): 152–173. * Wolf, John B. ''Louis XIV'' (NY: 1968).


In French

*Lahaye, Matthieu, ''Louis, Dauphin de France. Fils de roi, père de roi, jamais roi'', DEA directed by Joël Cornette, University of Paris VIII, 2005. *Lahaye, Matthieu, ''Louis Ier d'Espagne (1661–1700) : essai sur une virtualité politique'', Revue historique, Numéro 647, PUF, Paris, Novembre 2008. *Lahaye Matthieu, ''Le fils de Louis XIV. Réflexion sur l'autorité dans la France du Grand Siècle'', thèse sous la direction de Joël Cornette à l'Université Paris VIII, 2011. *Lahaye Matthieu, ''Le fils de Louis XIV. Monseigneur le Grand Dauphin'', Seyssel, Champ Vallon, 2013. , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Louis Of France, Dauphin 1661 births 1711 deaths 17th-century peers of France 18th-century peers of France People from Fontainebleau French heirs apparent who never acceded Princes of France (Bourbon) Deaths from smallpox in France Burials at the Basilica of Saint-Denis Dauphins of France Children of Louis XIV Sons of kings