Françoise d'Aubigné, Marquise de Maintenon

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Madame de Maintenon
Marquise of Maintenon
Maintenon an her niece[1] (wife of the future Duke o Noailles)
Full name
Françoise d'Aubigné
Born27 November 1635
Hôtel du Chaumont, Niort, France
Died15 Aprile 1719 (aged 83)
Saint Cyr, France
Spouse(s)Paul Scarron
Louis XIV of France (secret)
Issue
none
FatherConstant d'Aubigné
MotherJeanne de Cardilhac
Signature
OccupationMistress an secret wife o Louis XIV

Madame de Maintenon (27 November 1635 – 15 April 1719) was a French woman. She became the second wife of King Louis XIV, even though the marriage was never announced to the public.

She was born "Françoise d'Aubigné", a daughter of Constant d'Aubigné and his wife Jeanne de Cardilhac. She was born in Niort, in western France. In 1652, Françoise married Paul Scarron[2] As a result, she became known as "Madame Scarron". She eventually became a friend of Madame de Montespan[3] and was to be the main governess of the children of King Louis and Montespan.

In 1675, the king gave her the title of Marquise de Maintenon after the name of her personal estate. This favour incurred Madame de Montespan's jealousy. At court, she was now known as Madame de Maintenon, as a result of King Louis buying her and estate at Maintenon. It has been suspected that Maintenon and King Louis a private marriage ceremony between October 1683 and January 1684. King Louis' wife Queen Marie Thérèse died in July 1683. As a result of her birth Maintenon would never be acknowledged as Louis' wife or as queen. She founded the Maison royale de Saint Louis, a school for girls from poorer noble families, in 1684.

References an notes[change | change source]

  1. Françoise Charlotte d'Aubigné (1684-1739) eventually the heiress to her estate
  2. Himself a French poet, dramatist, and novelist, born in Paris
  3. The mistress of the King

Other websites[change | change source]

Media related to Madame de Maintenon at Wikimedia Commons