Françoise-Athénaïs de Rochechouart, Marquise de Montespan

Madame de Montespan
Portrait c. 1670
Full name	Françoise Athénaïs de Rochechouart de Mortemart
Born	(1640-10-05)5 October 1640 Lussac-les-Châteaux, Poitou, France
Baptised	5 October 1640 Lussac-les-Châteaux, France
Died	27 May 1707(1707-05-27) (aged 66) Bourbon-l'Archambault, France
Noble family	Rochechouart (by birth) Pardaillan de Gondrin (by marriage)
Spouse(s)	Louis Henri de Pardaillan de Gondrin ​ ​ (m. 1663; died 1691)​
Issue Detail	Marie Christine de Pardaillan de Gondrin Louis Antoine, Duke of Antin Louis Auguste, Duke of Maine Louis César, Count of Vexin Louise Françoise, Duchess of Bourbon Louise Marie Anne, Mademoiselle de Tours Françoise Marie, Duchess of Orléans Louis Alexandre, Count of Toulouse
Father	Gabriel de Rochechouart de Mortemart
Mother	Diane de Grandseigne
Signature

Françoise-Athénaïs de Rochechouart de Mortemart, Marquise of Montespan (5 October 1640 – 27 May 1707), commonly known as Madame de Montespan (French: [madam də mɔ̃tɛspɑ̃]), was a French noblewoman and the most celebrated royal mistress of King Louis XIV. During their romantic relationship, which lasted from the late 1660s to the late 1670s, she was sometimes referred to as the "true Queen of France" due to the pervasiveness of her influence at court.^[1]

Born into the House of Rochechouart, one of the oldest noble families of France, Françoise-Athénaïs married the Marquis of Montespan in 1663. She then became a maid of honour to Princess Henrietta, Duchess of Orléans, and later a lady-in-waiting to Queen Maria Theresa. Noted for her great beauty and wit, she carefully cultivated a relationship with Louis XIV and eventually supplanted Louise de La Vallière as his favourite. She had seven children by the king, six of which survived infancy and were later legitimised.

Madame de Montespan's alleged involvement in the

Early life

Françoise-Athénaïs was born in October 1640

The couple lived in a small house close to the Louvre, which allowed Madame de Montespan to attend court and carry out her duties there as a lady-in-waiting to the Duchess of Orléans. She quickly established herself as the "reigning beauty of the court".[5] Beauty, however, was only one of Madame de Montespan's many charms. She was a cultured and amusing conversationalist, who won the admiration of such literary figures as letter-writer Madame de Sévigné and diarist Saint-Simon. In addition, she kept abreast of political events. This had the effect of making her even more appealing to men of intellect and power. She was courted by a number of suitors including Louis de Buade de Frontenac and Charles Auguste de la Fare.

Rise as Maîtresse-en-titre

Madame de Montespan astounded the court by openly resenting the position of Queen

By 1666, Madame de Montespan was trying to take the place of Louis XIV’s current mistress, Louise de La Vallière. Using her wit and charm, she sought to ingratiate herself with the king. She also became close to the Dauphin, whose affection for her never wavered.^[10] Even though Louise de La Vallière knew that Montespan was trying to conquer the King's heart and reportedly laughed at her miserable efforts, she definitely underestimated her new rival. Montespan cleverly cultivated friendships with both Louise and Queen Maria Theresa and when both ladies were pregnant, Madame de Montespan was asked to help them entertain the King during private dinners. Soon they regretted their decision, for Montespan now cultivated an intimate relationship with the King. Madame de Montespan was also said to have seduced the King by dropping her towel obligingly when she spotted Louis spying on her while she showered. Shortly after, Louise's position was diminished to second place. To conceal his new relationship, the King placed the ladies in connected rooms so he could have access to both. Louise left court and joined a convent perhaps through regret and religiosity or because she had no other option. The spotlight belonged now to the twenty-five-year-old Athénaïs de Montespan.^[11]

She also became friends at court with another lady-in-waiting to the queen,

The first of Madame de Montespan's seven children with the king was born in 1669. The newborn child, a girl, is thought to have been named Louise-Françoise.^[12] The upbringing of this first child (and subsequent children) was entrusted to one of Madame de Montespan's friends, Madame Scarron (the future marquise de Maintenon). A son, Louis-Auguste, was born in 1670. When the third child, Louis-César, was born in 1672, a house was purchased for Scarron and the children on the Rue Vaugirard.^[13]

In 1673, the couple's three living illegitimate children were

Achille de Harlay, assisted by six judges at the Châtelet.

Is this the Madame that scandalises all France? Go abandon your shocking life and then come throw yourself at the feet of the ministers of Jesus Christ.^[citation needed]

The King appealed to the priest's superiors, but the Church refused to yield to the king's demands. After a short separation, the King and Madame de Montespan resumed their relationship,

Royal scandal and fall

Affaire des Poisons

The Affaire des Poisons, which erupted in September 1677, was to be the beginning of the end of the reign of La Montespan.^[15][16] Suspicion that Madame de Montespan might be capable of murder or worse began when the King's eye strayed to another beauty, the Duchess of Fontanges. Madame de Montespan's relegation to the position of superintendent of the Queen's household as a result brought matters to a head. Before any further developments in her romance with the King could occur, Mlle de Fontanges died in 1681. Many at the time suspected that she had been poisoned by her rival, although none could prove it. It is now believed that Mlle de Fontanges died from natural causes.^{[citation needed]}

Long assumed to have been involved in the infamous

]

In addition to seeking Louis' love, some^[

weasel words] charged Madame de Montespan with also conspiring to kill him, but inconsistencies in this testimony suggest that the royal mistress was innocent of these charges. However, suspicion was thrown onto Madame de Montespan because the name of her maid, Mlle Desœillets, was frequently mentioned in connection with La Voisin in the evidence brought before the Chambre Ardente.^{[citation needed}

]

Indeed, if anyone was attempting to kill the king, it was more likely

Claude de Vin des Œillets

, who had an illegitimate child fathered but not publicly acknowledged by Louis. Presumably, the maid resented the loss of Louis' attention.

Olympia Mancini, Countess of Soissons, herself a former mistress of the king and well-known intrigante, was also implicated in the conspiracy.^{[citation needed}

]

From the end of 1680 onwards,

Louvois, Jean-Baptiste Colbert

, and Madame de Maintenon all helped to hush up the affair in order to prevent further scandal about the mother of the king's legitimised children. Concerning the king's need to avoid shocking scandal, Police Chief La Reynie said:

the enormity of their crimes proved their safeguard.^[citation needed]

Exile

In 1691, no longer in royal favour, Madame de Montespan retired to the

weasel words

] that her beauty, wit, and knowledge surpassed Athénaïs’ qualities. The King wanted her to stay for longer periods at court but Gabrielle always declined and stayed only for very short times.

In 1700, Madame de Montespan acquired the Château d'Oiron, thereby abandoning the hospice of Fontevraud from 1703 and moved there in 1704 after the death of her sister Gabrielle.^[20] In her long retirement, Madame de Montespan donated vast sums to hospitals and charities. She was also a generous patron of the arts and letters and befriended

La Fontaine.^[6]

Death

The last years of Madame de Montespan's life were given up to a very severe penance.[6] Real sorrow over her death was felt by her three youngest children. She died on 27 May 1707 at the age of almost sixty-seven while taking the waters at Bourbon-l'Archambault in order to try to heal an illness. The king forbade her children to wear mourning for her.^[6]

Appearance and personality

Athénaïs was considered "astonishingly beautiful" by the standards of her time.^[5] She had large blue eyes, long, thick, corn-coloured hair that fell in curls about her shoulders, and a curvaceous, voluptuous body.^[5] She was droll, amusing and used her considerable wit to mock others.^[5]

She also had an extravagant and demanding nature and possessed enough charm to get what she wanted. She was expensive and glorious, like the Palace of Versailles itself. Her apartments were filled with pet animals and thousands of flowers and she had a private gallery. Costly jewels were showered upon her and she was highly discriminating regarding the quality of the gems, returning them if they did not meet her exacting standards. She was given the nickname Quanto ("How much", in Italian). Her love for food and her numerous pregnancies caused her to gain weight in her late thirties.^[21]

Legacy

Château de Clagny

The

Louis-Auguste de Bourbon, prince de Dombes

. The château reverted to the French crown in 1766 and was demolished in 1769.

Trianon de porcelaine

Louis XIV also had a pleasure pavilion, called the Trianon de Porcelaine^[23] near Versailles, purchased and built for Madame de Montespan, surrounded by gardens, on the site of the former hamlet of Trianon. It was meant as a hideaway for the couple. Because of the fragility of the earthenware tiles used in its construction, the Trianon de porcelaine was demolished in 1687 and replaced by the Grand Trianon of pink marble (marbre rose des Pyrénées).

Children by Louis XIV

Name	Birth	Death	Notes
Louise Françoise de Bourbon	at the end of March 1669	23 February 1672 (aged 2)
Louis Auguste, Duke of Maine	31 March 1670	14 May 1736 (aged 66)	Legitimised on 20 December 1673. Held numerous offices, of which: Maine Line .
Louis César, Count of Vexin	20 June 1672	10 January 1683 (aged 10)	Legitimised on 20 December 1673.
Louise Françoise de Bourbon	1 June 1673	16 June 1743 (aged 70)	Legitimised on 20 December 1673. Married Louis III, Prince of Condé.
Louise Marie Anne de Bourbon	12 November 1674	15 September 1681 (aged 6)	Legitimised in January 1676.
Françoise Marie de Bourbon	9 February 1677	1 February 1749 (aged 72)	Legitimised in November 1681. Married Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, the Regent of France under Louis XV.
Louis Alexandre, Count of Toulouse	6 June 1678	1 December 1737 (aged 59)	Legitimised on 22 November 1681. Held numerous offices, of which: Admiral of France, Governor of Guyenne, Governor of Brittany, and Grand Huntsman of France. Also Duke of Damville, of Rambouillet and of Penthièvre.

• 
  With her children, about 1677
• 
  Madame de Montespan's two surviving daughters: the blonde

  Mademoiselle de Nantes
• 
  Louise Françoise some time after her marriage to Louis III, Prince of Condé
• 
  The

  Count of Toulouse

  , Madame de Montespan's youngest child

Popular Culture: In the 1979 comedy movie "Love at first bite" Dracula's servant Renfield mentions one of his Master's past loves, The Countess de Montespan.

Notes

1. ^ Lisa Hilton, Athénaïs: The Life of Louis XIV's Mistress – the Real Queen of France, Little, Brown 2002, 4.
2. ^ Petitfils 1988.
3. ^ Rat 1959.
4. ^ Chabod, Marquis de Saint-Maurice, Thomas François (1910). Lettres sur la cour de Louis XIV (in French). Calmann-Levy. p. 31. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
5. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h} Fraser 2006, Chapter 6, p. ^{[page needed]}.
6. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j} Chisholm 1911, p. 775.
7. ^ "Princess Henrietta, Madame: A Fairy Tale". Aspects of History. 2021-12-12. Retrieved 2021-12-29.
8. ^ "the Fronde | France [17th century] | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2021-12-29.
9. ^ Charles de Sainte-Maure, marquis de Montausier, was made duc et pair de France in 1664 and, in 1668, became the governor of the Dauphin. See: Lenotre, G. Le Château de Rambouillet, six siècles d'histoire, Chapter 2, Les précieuses, p. 29, Calman-Lévy, Paris, 1930
10. ^ Silverman, Leah (2020-03-05). "She Was Louis XIV's Mistress — Until She Was Tried For Killing Babies And Feeding Them To Him". All That's Interesting. Retrieved 2021-12-29.
11. ISBN 0786713097
    .
12. ^ This first Louise-Françoise died in 1672; her name was later recycled for her younger sister, the future Mlle. de Nantes. See Lisa Hilton, Athenais: The Real Queen of France (London: Little, Brown and Company, 2002), 73–74.
13. ^ Hilton, 100-101.
14. ^ "Code of Canon Law | Canon 920. §2". The Holy See. 1983. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
15. ^ Erlanger, Philippe, Louis XIV, Librairie Arthème Fayard, Paris, 1965,^{[page needed]}
16. ^ Erlanger, Philippe, Louis XIV, (translated from the French by Stephen Cox), Praeger Publishers, New York, 1970, p. ^{[page needed]}
17. ISBN 0-312-33017-0
    ), p. 227, from the testimony of La Voisin "Madame de Montespan was an habituée of the Abbé Guibourg's infamous Black Mass."
18. ^ Geography of Witchcraft by Montague Summers (1927; reprint Kessinger Publishing, 2003)
19. ^ "Rue Saint Dominique". Paris-pittoresque.com. Retrieved 2009-05-19.
20. ^ Château d'Oiron
21. ^ Fraser 2006, pp. 104–105
22. ^ "Le chateau de Clagny". Versailles.forumculture.net. Retrieved 2009-05-19.
23. ^ varman7 (2002-04-18). "Bienvenue sur le Site Versailles 1687 – Le Trianon de Porcelaine". Versailles1687.free.fr. Retrieved 2009-05-19.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

References

• Fraser, Antonia (2006). Love and Louis XIV: The Women in the Life of the Sun King. Great Britain: Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
• Petitfils, Jean-Christian (1988). Madame de Montespan (in French). Paris: Fayard.
  OCLC 19413537
  .
• Rat, Maurice (1959). La Royale Montespan (in French). Paris: Plon.
  OCLC 1847915
  .

Attribution

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Montespan, Françoise-Athenaïs de Pardaillan, Marquise de". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 8 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 775.

Further reading

• See contemporary memoirs of Madame de Sévigné, of Saint-Simon, of
  Bussy-Rabutin and others; also the proceedings of the Chambre Ardente preserved in the Archives de la Bastille (Arsenal Library) and the notes of La Reynie preserved in the Bibliothèque Nationale
  .
• Caylus (Madame de), Les Souvenirs de Madame de Caylus, Collection le Temps retrouvé VI, Mercure de France, Paris, 1965
• Erlanger, Philippe, Louis XIV, Librairie Arthème Fayard, Paris, 1965
• Erlanger, Philippe, Louis XIV, (translated from the French by Stephen Cox), Praeger Publishers, Inc., New York, 1970
• Freeman-Mitford, Nancy (Hon.), The Sun King
• Hilton, Lisa, Athénaïs: The Real Queen of France
• Lenotre, G. Le Château de Rambouillet, six siècles d'Histoire, Calman-Lévy, Paris, 1930
• Petitfils, Jean-Christian, Louis XIV, Perrin, Paris, 1999,
  ISBN 2262012938
• Verlet, Pierre, Le Château de Versailles, Librairie Arthème Fayard, Paris, 1961 & 1985
• Tucker, Holly, City of Light, City of Poison: Murder, Magic, and the First Police Chief of Paris, 2017

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Madame de Montespan.

• Works by Françoise-Athénaïs de Rochechouart, Marquise de Montespan at Project Gutenberg
  • Full text of Memoirs of Madame de Montespan from Project Gutenberg
• Works by or about Françoise-Athénaïs de Rochechouart, Marquise de Montespan at Internet Archive

Court offices
Preceded by Olympia Mancini, Countess of Soissons	Surintendante de la Maison de la Reine to the Queen of France 1679–1683	Succeeded by Marie Anne de Bourbon (1697–1741)