Praise for Antonia Fraser's
LOVE and LOUIS XIV
“Eminently readable. … Fraser argues convincingly. … [She] makes the romances and scandals of the seventeenth century seem as lively as the latest gossip.”
—Los Angeles Times
“A sort of prequel [to Marie Antoinette]. … What makes Fraser's book so compelling is her psychologically astute insights into what motivated these historical figures.”
—USA Today
“Fluent and energetic. … Immensely readable.”
—The Times Literary Supplement (London)
“Simply radiant. … Luscious. … Fraser takes just the right tone in her book: skeptical but still awed.”
—Pioneer Press (St. Paul)
“Fraser's best history so far.”
—The Guardian (London)
“Refreshing … Antonia Fraser long ago mastered the art of writing meticulous history so that it reads like an engrossing novel, and her latest offering is no exception.”
—The Times (London)
LOVE and LOUIS XIV
Antonia Fraser
Since 1969 Antonia Fraser has written many acclaimed historical works that have been international bestsellers. She is the recipient of numerous literary awards, including the Wolfson Prize for History, the Saint Louis Literary Award, and the 2000 Norton Medlicott Medal of Britain's Historical Association. Her works include the biographies Mary Queen of Scots, Cromwell, the Lord Protector, and Royal Charles: Charles II and the Restoration. Four highly praised books focus on women in history: The Weaker Vessel, The Warrior Queens, The Six Wives of Henry VIII, and, most recently, Marie Antoinette: The Journey. She is editor of The Lives of the Kings and Queens of England. Antonia Fraser is married to Harold Pinter and lives in London.
Also by Antonia Fraser
NONFICTION
Mary Queen of Scots
Cromwell, the Lord Protector
King James VI of Scotland, I of England
The Lives of the Kings and Queens of England (editor)
Royal Charles: Charles II and the Restoration
The Weaker Vessel
The Warrior Queens
The Wives of Henry VIII
Faith and Treason: The Story of the Gunpowder Plot
Marie Antoinette: The Journey
FICTION
Quiet as a Nun
The Wild Island
A Splash of Red
Cool Repentance
Oxford Blood
Your Royal Hostage
The Cavalier Case
Political Death
Jemima Shore's First Case and Other Stories
Jemima Shore at the Sunny Grave and Other Stories
ANTHOLOGIES
Scottish Love Poems
Love Letters
FOR HAROLD
nobilis et Nobelius
CONTENTS
List of Illustrations
Author's Note
Chronological Political Summary
Genealogy
Principal Characters
Spring
1 Gift from Heaven
2 Vigour of the Princess
3 Peace and the Infanta
4 Our Court's Laughing Face
5 Sweet Violence
Summer
6 The Rise of Another
7 Marriages Like Death
8 A Singular Position
9 Throwing Off a Passion
10 Madame Now
Autumn
11 The King's Need
12 Grandeurs of the World
13 Becoming a Child Again
Winter
14 Gaiety Begins to Go
15 We Must Submit
16 Going on a Journey
17 Never Forget
Notes
Sources
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
The château of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, 17th century French School. château
Bussy-le-Grand, Bussy-le-Grand (photo: Giraudon/ Bridgeman Art Library).
Louis XIV aged around twelve years old, 17th century French School.
Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (© Photo RMN).
Louis XIV dressed as Apollo for the ballet La Nuit, 1653. Bibliothèque nationale
de France, Department of Prints & Photographs.
Equestrian portrait of Anne of Austria, c.1640, attributed to Jean de Saint-
Igny. Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (© Photo RMN/Gérard Blot).
Louis XIV, c.1660, studio of Nicolas Mignard. Musée des Beaux-Arts, Angers
(© Cliché Musées d'Angers, photo: Pierre David).
Reputation Presenting France with a Portrait of Louis XIV, c.1665, by Louis Elle
Ferdinand II. Musée Antoine Lécuyer, Saint-Quentin (photo: Jean Legrain).
Anne-Marie-Louise d'Orléans, known as the Grande Mademoiselle,
represented as Minerva, c.1672, by Pierre Bourguignon. Châteaux de Versailles
et de Trianon (© Photo RMN/Gérard Blot & Christian Jean).
Hortense and Marie Mancini, date unknown, by Jacob Ferdinand Voet.
I.N.P.D.A.I, Rome (photo: Arte Photographica).
The Meeting of Louis XIV and Philippe IV on the Île des Faisans, c.1670, by Simon
Renard de Saint-André. Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (© Photo
RMN/Jean Popovitch).
Anne of Austria, Marie-Thérèse and the Dauphin, c.1665, by Charles and
Henri Beaubrun. Musée Bernard d'Agesci, Niort.
Marie-Thérèse and the Dauphin Louis de France, 1665, by Pierre Mignard.
Prado, Madrid (photo: Giraudon/ Bridgeman Art Library).
Anne of Austria, date unknown, by Charles Beaubrun. Galleria Sabauda, Turin
(photo: Alinari/ Bridgeman Art Library).
Louis XIV at Maastricht, 1673, by Pierre Mignard. Galleria Sabauda, Turin
(photo: Scala).
Louis XIV Retreating with his Seraglio, 1693, anonymous engraving. The Trustees
of the British Museum, Department of Prints & Drawings.
Louise de La Vallière, date unknown, by Jean Nocret. Châteaux de Versailles
et de Trianon (© Photo RMN/Gérard Blot).
Louise de La Vallière as a huntress, 1667, after Claude Lefebvre. Châteaux de
Versailles et de Trianon (© Photo RMN/Gérard Blot).
Athénaïs de Rochechouart de Mortemart, Marquise de Montespan, date
unknown, by Louis Elle Ferdinand II. Collection: Author.
Athénaïs reclining in front of the gallery of her château at Clagny, date
unknown, by Henri Gascard. Private Collection (photo: Giraudon/ Bridgeman
Art Library).
Portrait of Athénaïs, date unknown, attributed to Pierre Mignard. Musée du
Berry, Bourges (photo: Giraudon/ Bridgeman Art Library).
The Appartement des Bains at Versailles depicted on a fan, c.1680. Victoria &
Albert Musuem, London (photo. © V & A Images).
Spottallegorie auf Ludwig XIV, c.1670, by Joseph Werner (photo: courtesy of
Schweizerisches Institut für Kunstwissenschaft, Zürich).
Marie-Angélique d'Escorailles de Rousille, Duchesse de Fontanges, 1687,
engraving by Nicolas de Larmessin III. Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon
(© Photo RMN/Gérard Blot).
Madame de Maintenon, date and artist unknown. Château de Chambord (photo:
The Art Archive/Dagli Orti).
Madame de Maintenon with the Duc du Maine and the Comte de Vexin,
date and artist unknown. Château de Maintenon
(photo: The Art Archive/Dagli
Orti).
Frontispiece to Scarron aparu à Madame de Maintenon et les reproches qu'il lui fait
sur ses amours avec Louis le Grand, 1664, by Paul Scarron (courtesy of The British
Library).
Madame de Maintenon with her niece Françoise-Charlotte, c.1688, by Louis
Elle Ferdinand II. Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (© Photo RMN/Gérard
Blot).
The ‘Secret Notebooks' of Madame de Maintenon. Bibliothèque municipale de
Versailles.
Madame de Maintenon as St Frances of Rome, c.1694, by Pierre Mignard.
Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (photo: Giraudon/ Bridgeman Art Library).
King David Playing the Harp, c.1619-20, by Domenicho Zampieri. Châteaux de
Versailles et de Trianon (© Photo RMN/Daniel Arnaudet).
Miniature portrait of Madame de Maintenon, c.1694, by Jean Boinard. Private
Collection.
Visite de Louis XIV à Saint-Cyr en 1704, engraving by Lalaisse after F. Lemud.
Archives départementales des Yvelines, Montigny-le-Bretonneux (fonds ancien de la
Bibliothèque).
The Château of Maintenon; view through the Aquaduct, mid-eighteenth century, by
François Edme Ricois. Château de Maintenon (photo: The Art Archive/Dagli
Orti).
Apartments of Madame de Maintenon. Château de Maintenon (photo. The Art
Archive/Dagli Orti).
Marie-Jeanne d'Aumale, date and artist unknown. Private Collection.
The Family of the Grand Dauphin, 1687, by Pierre Mignard. Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (© Photo RMN/Gérard Blot & Christian Jean).
Betrothal party of Philippe, Duc d'Orléans and Henriette-Anne, depicted on
a fan, c.1661. Collection: Sylvain Levy-Alban.
Henriette-Anne of England, Duchesse d'Orléans, 17th century French School.
Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (© Photo: RMN/Gérard Blot).
The Family of Louis XIV, 1670, by Jean Nocret. Châteaux de Versailles et de
Trianon (© Photo RMN).
Henriette-Anne represented as Minerva, 1664, by Antoine Mathieu. Châteaux
de Versailles et de Trianon (© Photo: RMN/Gérard Blot & Christian Jean).
Henriette-Anne, Duchesse d'Orléans, at her toilette, depicted on a fan from
the 1660s. Collection: Sylvain Lévy Alban.
Philippe de France, Duc d'Orléans, with a portrait of his daughter Marie-
Louise d'Orléans, date unknown, by Pierre Mignard. Châteaux de Versailles
et de Trianon (© Photo RMN).
Élisabeth-Charlotte of Bavaria, Duchesse d'Orléans, 1678, by Nicolas de
Largillière. Musée des Beaux-Arts, Nancy (photo: AKG).
Élisabeth-Charlotte, Duchesse d'Orléans, 1713, by Hyacinthe Rigaud. Châteaux de
Versailles et de Trianon (photo: Giraudon/ Bridgeman Art Library).
Marie-Louise d'Orléans, Queen of Spain, 17th century French School.
Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (photo: Giraudon/Bridgeman Art Library).
Marie-Anne de Bourbon, Princesse de Conti, 1690-1, by François de Troy.
Musée des Augustins, Toulouse (photo: Bernard Delorme).
Françoise-Marie de Bourbon and Louise-Françoise de Bourbon, date
unknown, by Claude-François Vignon. Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon
(© Photo: RMN/Gérard Blot).
Louise-Bénédicte de Bourbon, Duchesse du Maine, c.1690-1700, by Henri
Bonnart. Musée de l'Île de France, Sceaux (photo: Pascal Lemaître).
Mary of Modena, c.1680, by Simon Peeterz Verelst. Yale Center for British Art,
Paul Mellon Fund (photo: Bridgeman Art Library).
Miniature painting of Mary of Modena, c.1677, by Peter Cross. Fitzwilliam
Museum, University of Cambridge (photo: Bridgeman Art Library).
The Family of James VII and II, 1694, by Pierre Mignard. The Royal Collection
© 2006 Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
Sèvres vase depicting a party given by Louis XIV in 1689 at the Château of
Saint-Germain-en-Laye. Musée Condé, Chantilly (photo: Giraudon/ Bridgeman
Art Library).
Letter from Adelaide Duchesse de Bourgogne to her grandmother. State
Archives of Turin.
Adelaide Duchesse de Bourgogne, 17th century French School. Galleria
Sabauda, Turin (photo: Alinari/ Bridgeman Art Library).
Adelaide Duchesse de Bourgogne, in hunting-costume, 1704, by Pierre
Gobert. Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (© Photo RMN/Daniel Arnaudet &
Gérard Blot).
The Marriage of Adelaide of Savoy and Louis, Duc de Bourgogne, 1697, by Antoine
Dieu. Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (© Photo RMN/Daniel Arnaudet &
Gérard Blot).
Perspective View of the Château, Gardens and Park of Versailles seen from the Avenue
de Paris, 1668, by Pierre Patel. Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (photo:
Giraudon/Bridgeman Art Library).
Construction of the château of Versailles, c.1679, after Adam Frans van der
Meulen. The Royal Collection © 2006 Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
Le Bassin d'Encelade, c.1730, by Jacques Rigaud. Châteaux de Versailles et de
Trianon (©Photo RMN/Gérard Blot).
Louis XIV Welcomes the Elector of Saxony to Fontainebleau, 1714, by Louis de
Silvestre. Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (photo: Bridgeman Art Library).
View of the Château and Orangerie at Versailles, c.1699, by Étienne Allegrain.
Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (photo: Giraudon/Bridgeman Art Library).
Bonne, Nonne et Ponne, date unknown, by François Desportes. Musée du
Louvre, Paris (© Photo RMN/Daniel Arnaudet).
Detail of wood-carving round the windows of the King's chamber at
Versailles (© Photo RMN/Christian Jean & Jean Schormans).
Quatrième chambre des appartements, 1696, etching and dry-point by Antoine
Trouvain. Bibliothèque nationale de France, Department of Prints & Photographs.
La Charmante Tabagie, late 17th century, engraving by Nicolas Bonnart.
Bibliothèque nationale de France, Department of Prints & Photographs.
The Cascade at Marly, from Gardens of Marly, early 18th century French
School. Centre Historique des Archives Nationales, Paris (photo: Archives
Charmet/Bridgeman Art Library).
Louis XIV, 1701, by Hyacinthe Rigaud. Musée du Louvre, Paris (© Photo
RMN/Gérard Blot).
AUTHOR'S NOTE
‘Magnificence and gallantry were the soul of this court': in writing about Louis XIV and his women, this is the contemporary verdict that I have borne in mind. Certainly I have hoped to convey magnificence in this book. How else could one write about the man who created Versailles in the early part of his personal rule and made it his official seat in 1682? There is extravagance inside and out; feasts to which only the King with his Gargantuan appetite could do justice, huge flower beds with every plant changed daily, multitudinous orange trees – the King's favourites – in silver pots, terraces where the court was driven indoors at night by the dominant perfume of a thousand tuberoses, money flowing forth like the fountains the King was so fond of commissioning, so that ornamental water itself became a symbol of power … There are wildly obsequious courtiers such as the Duc d'Antin, who cut down his own avenue overnight because it impeded the view from the visiting monarch's bedroom, or the Abbé Melchior de Polignac, thoroughly drenched in his court costume, who assured the King that the rain at Marly did not wet.
And I have certainly depicted gallantry in all the many contemporary senses of the word, from friendship shading to love, the subtle art of court
ship, the more frivolous and even dangerous pursuit of flirtation, down to sensual libertinage ending in sex. It is easy to understand why seventeenth-century France was popularly supposed to be a paradise for its women, who enjoyed ‘a thousand freedoms, a thousand pleasures'. But if gallantry – or sex – is one of my themes, then religion is another. It is in the connection between the two that I believe the fascination of Louis XIV's relationships with his mistresses properly lies. This was the century in which penitent Magdalen was the favourite saint in France: symbolically his mistresses were painted, loose hair flowing, as Magdalen in their prime, while flouting the rules of the Church in the most flagrant manner possible; their attempts to incarnate the saint's own penitence would come later. Thus the Catholic Church's struggles for the salvation of the King's soul strike a sombre note in the celebratory music of Versailles from the King's youth onwards and cannot be silenced. Lully is there with his graceful allegorical Court Ballets in which the King (and his ladies) danced; but he is also there with his themes of lamentation for the King to mourn.
My study is not however entirely limited to the mistresses of Louis XIV: possibly Marie Mancini, principally Louise de La Vallière and Athénaïs de Montespan as well as the enigmatic, puritanical Madame de Maintenon, whose precise status was doubtful. I had once intended this before my researches led me on to the richer story of his relationships with women in general. These include his mother Anne of Austria, his two sisters-in-law, Henriette-Anne and Liselotte, who were Duchesses d'Orléans in succession, his wayward illegitimate daughters, and lastly Adelaide, the beloved child-wife of his grandson. Inevitably, therefore, the story also reflects something of the condition of women of a certain sort in seventeenth-century France. What were their choices and how far were they, mistresses and wives, mothers and daughters, in control of their own destinies?
A portrait will, I trust, emerge of Louis XIV himself, the Sun King and like the sun the centre of his universe. But as the title and subtitle indicate, this is not a full study of the reign, so fruitfully dealt with elsewhere, in studies both ancient and modern, to all of which I acknowledge my deep gratitude. It was Voltaire, in the first brilliant study of ‘le grand siècle’, published twenty-odd years after the King's death, who wrote: ‘It must not be expected to meet here with a minute detail of the wars carried on in this age. Everything that happens is not worthy of the record.' This is a sentiment which one can only humbly echo.