Élisabeth Charlotte of Lorraine (Élisabeth Charlotte Gabrièle; 21 October 1700 – 4 May 1711) was a Princess of Lorraine. She 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 ...

aged 10. She was the Titular

Abbess of Remiremont Remiremont Abbey was an abbey that was founded as a house of nuns near Remiremont, Vosges, France. It later became a community of secular canonesses. History It was founded about 620 by Romaric (580–653), a lord at the court of Chlothar II, w ...

Biography

Élisabeth Charlotte Gabrièle de Lorraine was born at the Ducal Palace of Lorraine, in Nancy, the capital of the Duchy of Lorraine in which her father was the

reign A reign is the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation (e.g., King of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia, List of Belgian monarchs, Belgium, Co-princes of Andorra, Andorra), of a people (e.g., List of Frankish kin ...

ing

Duke 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 ...

. Her mother was a member of the

House of Bourbon The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a dynasty that originated in the Kingdom of France as a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Kingdom of Navarre, Navarre in the 16th century. A br ...

, then ruling the

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the Middle Ages, medieval and Early modern France, early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe from th ...

. She was the couple's first daughter and second child, an older brother had been born the previous year. Her father,

Leopold, Duke of Lorraine Leopold the Good (11 September 1679 – 27 March 1729) was Duke of Lorraine and Bar from 1690 to his death. Through his son Francis Stephen, he is the direct male ancestor of all rulers of the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty, including all Emperor ...

, had wanted her to become the Abbess of the prestigious abbey at

Remiremont Remiremont () is a town and Communes of France, commune in the Vosges department, northeastern France, situated in southern Grand Est. The town has been an abbatial centre since the 7th century, is an economic crossroads of the Moselle and Moselo ...

, a

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nun ...

near

Vosges The Vosges ( , ; ; Franconian and ) is a range of medium mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single geomorphological unit and ...

. The abbey had been closely associated with the House of Lorraine, many of its abbesses being members of the Lorraine family. Her father pressed the then abbess, Dorothea Maria of Salm to press the Professors in Sorbonne, the historic

University of Paris The University of Paris (), known Metonymy, metonymically as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, from 1150 to 1970, except for 1793–1806 during the French Revolution. Emerging around 1150 as a corporation associated wit ...

in Paris. Louis XIV, her mother's uncle, instead imposed Élisabeth Charlotte as sovereign of the territory. Despite this, the professors did not reply before her death aged 10. The princess died of

at the

Château de Lunéville The Palace of Lunéville ( ) is a residence of the Duke of Lorraine since the 13th century in Lunéville, about 35 kilometers east of Nancy, France, Nancy, capital of Lorraine. The palace is owned by the Department Meurthe-et-Moselle since 2017. ...

("country residence" of the Dukes of Lorraine) having passed the illness to her other brother, the Hereditary Prince of Lorraine and their younger sister Marie Gabrièle Charlotte. The three children died within seven days of each other. She was buried in the Ducal Crypt at the Church of Saint-François-des-Cordeliers, Nancy,

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Her younger brother

Francis Stephen Francis I (Francis Stephen; ; ; ; 8 December 1708 – 18 August 1765) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1745 to 1765, Archduke of Austria from 1740 to 1765, Duke of Lorraine and Bar from 1729 to 1737, and Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1737 to 1765. He ...

became the Holy Roman Emperor. Her youngest sister, Anne Charlotte, whom she never met, was later Abbess of Remiremont. At the time of her death, her mother was pregnant with a future Queen of Sardinia.

Ancestry

References and notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lorraine, Princess Elisabeth Charlotte Of 1700 births 1711 deaths Deaths from smallpox 18th-century women Abbesses of Remiremont Elisabeth Charlotte French royalty who died as children