Louis XIV’s Women

Not quite at the same volume as his grandfather Henri IV, Louis XIV is credited with having at least fifteen mistresses and favourites. However in terms of children, Louis XIV appears to have outdone his grandfather with at least sixteen illegitimate children*, half of whom he legitimised. At sixteen Louis started to notice the opposite sex. Tradition has it that his mother then organised for one of her room maids, Catherine Bellier to be the first to seduce him. ** Olympe and Marie Mancini Louis XIV was ten years old Cardinal Mazarin started to bring his nieces and nephews from Italy to the French court. When he was sixteen, Louis, who loved to dance, started to hover around Olympe, who was the same age. Olympe was married off. She was pregnant at the time and some claim Louis was the father but there is no evidence they were actually lovers. Louis’ first love was was Olympe’s sister Marie who was considered “ugly” because she was slim and did not have blonde hair. Louis was 19 and Marie was 18. Unfortunately for both of them, Mazarin was busy negotiating a far more politically important marriage for Louis to the daughter of the Spanish King. Louis initially tried to fight to marry Marie but gave in. Although she was his first love, it appears she was still a virgin when the romance ended. Henriette Louis’ cousin Henriette arrived in France at the age of two.  After her father Charles I of England was beheaded she and her mother moved to a convent in Paris where Henriette received an excellent education.  Louis had little time for his young cousin whom he regarded as a “little girl”.   All that changed when Henriette’s brother became Charles II of England.  The following year at seventeen she married  Louis XIV’s notoriously gay brother Philippe.  Louis was surprised to find how the “little girl” had grown up.  He invited his brother and new sister-in-law to Fontainebleau for the summer.  The new Queen Marie-Thérèse was pregnant and eclipsed by the vivacious Henriette whose dancing and horse riding skills were a magnet for Louis XIV.  As with Marie previously, there is no evidence Henriette and Louis had a sexual relationship, which would have been considered incest by the church.  However to divert attention, it was decided to pretend Louis was involved with one of her maids of honour.  The sweet and timid Louise de la Vallière would be the perfect smokescreen. Louise de la Vallière Louise was an innocent seventeen year old and had no idea she was being used as a front.  Very quickly she and Louis fell in love.  To avoid scandal at the court, which was then at the Louvre, Louis set up his mistress at the hunting lodge at Versailles. Two years later Louise secretly gave birth to son, followed by another the following year.  Both were given false identities and died within two years.  Louis had been conscious of not offending his mother by openly parading his relationship, even though everyone knew what was going on.  After Anne of Austria died, Louise gave birth to a daughter.  This time Louis officially recognised the child and legitimised her when she was six months old.  At the same time Louis made Louise a Duchess.  She was already pregnant again.  A son was born the following year and he too was legitimised.  The problem was that during the latest pregnancy, Louis had become involved with the beautiful and witty Athénais de Montespan.  Louise endured a humiliating seven year period during which she was forced to share Louis with the new mistress.  Louise finally retired to a convent after making a public apology to the Queen for her relationship with the King. Madame de Montespan Françoise de Montespan, or “Athenaïs” as she preferred to be called, did not arrive at Versailles with the goal of becoming the King’s mistress.  Her family were part of the establishment, serving both Louis XIV’s parents.  Her mother, a pious woman, was one of Queen Anne of Austria’s ladies in waiting.  Her father had been a childhood companion and later Gentleman of the Bedchamber to King Louis XIII.  His sense of humour was a major feature at the court.  Their five children were obviously going to have a future with the royal family. Athenaïs, their second daughter, was well educated, intelligent and witty.  She was a welcome guest at the salons of the Marais.  A married woman with two children, she was above reproach.  When she started to become a fixture at Versailles, neither the Queen Marie-Thérèse, nor Louise de la Vallière felt she posed a threat.  Her reputation preceded her.   Louis initially had no interest in her, but her interesting conversation and wicked sense of humour began to make his ritual visits to the Queen and Louise far more interesting. Initially Athenaïs refused Louis’ advances and even asked her husband to take her away from the court  – he would later regret his decision to ignore her plea.  When Louise was pregnant for the fifth time, Louis’ pursuit of Athenaïs finally paid off.  She gave in and they became lovers.  The problem was that they were both married.  His long term affair with Louise was adultery, but with Athenaïs, Madame de Montespan, it was double adultery.  Louise had to be kept around as a cover. Athenaïs gave birth to their first child who died at the age of two.  In the following eight years she gave birth to six more children, all of whom survived.  Her pregnancies were concealed by her introduction of a new dress style, a loose flowing robe which was the predecessor to the “robe à la Française”.  The children were brought up in Paris by Madame de Maintenon and Athenaïs stayed with the King at Versailles.  When their third (surviving) child was born, Louis decided to legitimise all three.  He was the legal father.  No mother was named as this could provoke, Athenaïs’ estranged husband the Marquis de Montespan