Princess Clémentine of Orléans
Princess Clémentine | |||||
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Princess August of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha[1] | |||||
Born | Château de Neuilly, Kingdom of France | 3 June 1817||||
Died | 16 February 1907 Vienna, Austria-Hungary | (aged 89)||||
Burial | |||||
Spouse | |||||
Issue |
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Maria Amalia of the Two Sicilies |
Princess Clémentine of Orléans (
.Early life
Marie Clémentine Léopoldine Caroline Clotilde of Orléans, styled Mademoiselle de Beaujolais, was born on 3 June 1817 at the Château de Neuilly, in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, soon after the Bourbon Restoration. She became a royal princess, Princess of Orléans,[2] following her father's ascension to the French throne in 1830.
As a young woman, it was written that she "is represented to possess great beauty and accomplishments."[3] Clémentine was taught history by the radical historian Jules Michelet, who would spend lessons glorifying the French Revolution to his young student.[4]
Marriage
As a princess, Clémentine was sought after as a bride by royal families throughout Europe. In 1836, it was rumoured that Clémentine would marry her cousin, Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies, when the period of his widowhood expired.[3]
King
The contract of marriage between Clémentine and August was signed in Vienna on 24 February 1843 by the French Ambassador
Prior to the wedding, the couple sought to reside in Austria, and an application was made to
On 20 April 1843, Princess Clémentine married Prince August at the Château de Saint-Cloud, with much "of European royalty in attendance."[8] The couple had five children.
Children
Described as "a woman of formidable character and ambition... Clémentine dominated her husband and spoilt her children. Having herself married no more than a wealthy but undistinguished prince, she sought thrones for her sons."[9]
Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
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Philipp of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha | 28 March 1844 | 3 July 1921 | married his cousin, Princess Louise of Belgium, eldest daughter of King Leopold II of Belgium, on 4 February 1875; had issue |
Ludwig August of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha | 8 August 1845 | 14 September 1907 | married Princess Leopoldina of Brazil, younger daughter of Emperor Pedro II of Brazil, on 15 December 1864; had issue |
Clotilde of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha | 8 July 1846 | 3 June 1927 | married Archduke Joseph Karl of Austria, Palatine of Hungary, and became the foremother of the so-called Hungarian branch of the Habsburg dynasty, on 12 May 1864; had issue |
Amalie of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha | 23 October 1848 | 6 May 1894 | married Empress Elisabeth of Austria , on 20 September 1875; had issue
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Ferdinand, Tsar of Bulgaria | 26 February 1861 | 10 September 1948 | married Robert I of Parma , on 20 April 1893; had issue
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1848 and aftermath
The
Clémentine campaigned to regain the assets taken by decree from the Orléans by
While staying with Queen Victoria in July 1851, Clémentine had to cut short her visit to return to Spain when news arrived that her sons' tutor "had gone off his head".[15] Victoria fretted that she would share Clémentine's fate and revolution would end the British monarchy, and feared what would happen to her children.[16]
August died in 1881.[17] Clémentine did not remarry, living almost to the age of 90.
Clémentine and the election to the Bulgarian throne
Realising that she would never be queen, Clémentine turned her efforts to instilling in Ferdinand, her favorite child, the idea that, as a descendant not only of Louis-Philippe but of
Clémentine ensured that Ferdinand was widely educated; fluent in several languages, Ferdinand also gained a great interest in the natural sciences and nature,[18] all of which, Clémentine believed, would make Ferdinand an excellent king.
As it turned out, that country was Bulgaria and Clémentine actively lobbied for Ferdinand's election as Prince of Bulgaria.[19]
Clémentine then worked to ensure European recognition of Ferdinand, lobbying other heads of state, including
Clémentine also found time to design a royal crown for Ferdinand, which included a "requisite number of jewels from her own dressing case".[20] Unfortunately, Ferdinand made a number of alterations to the design but decided not to pay the painter for painting a portrait of the new crown, leading him to be sued by the painter in a Munich court.[20]
Clémentine in Bulgaria
Clémentine followed her son to Bulgaria, where she became an important person as the mother of the sovereign. Extremely wealthy, Clémentine made herself popular in her adopted homeland by showering money on Bulgaria, including a donation of four million francs towards the completion of a railway line linking Bulgaria to Europe's rail network.[21] She is considered to have had a positive impact on Bulgarian society, and created good will for Ferdinand among the Bulgarian public by large donation to charitable and public causes: she financed the construction of several buildings and institutions, such as a school for the Blind and the Klimentinskata Hospital, and she was also one of the founders of the Bulgarian
Clémentine also gained a reputation for haughtiness and disdain for anyone not of royal blood, although she surprised many observers with her charm and good humour at times.[22] At official dinners, it is said she "smiled at the small incongruities committed during these meals by the uncouth Bulgarian notabilities of those days, and she contrived somehow by her tact, and without ever wounding any one among them, to teach them that peas are not to be eaten with one's knife, and that it is not altogether the thing to drink from the finger-bowl."[22]
A friend of
Said to be "one of the cleverest royal ladies in Europe",[24] Clémentine was known for her "shrewd mind and a remarkable understanding of European politics and diplomacy", and was often sent by Ferdinand as his representative on diplomatic missions around Europe.[citation needed]
Clémentine also sought a suitable bride for Ferdinand and was said to be "anxious" to arrange a marriage between Ferdinand and
In February 1896, Clémentine was reported to have "broken off relations" with Ferdinand following Ferdinand's consent to have his son Boris baptised into the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.[25] They reconciled, however, and one of the highlights of her life was seeing Prince Ferdinand hailed as a recognized head of state during an official visit to Paris later that year. This was particularly poignant, as it recalled her father's forced abdication and flight from Paris in 1848.[26]
In 1899, her daughter-in-law
Following the Ilinden–Preobrazhenie Uprising of 1903 and the resultant increase in refugees, Clémentine co-ordinated the humanitarian response, gathering donations throughout Europe, including 2000 Francs from Kaiser Wilhelm II.[29]
In October 1903, Clémentine, along with Prince Boris, was on the Orient Express when it collided with a goods train near the Serbian border. Although shaken, they were not hurt.[30]
Increasingly deaf as she aged, Clémentine became dependent on an enormous ear trumpet and on people obligingly raising their voices for her. It became an occupational hazard of the Bulgarian court to be caught in long, loud conversations with Clémentine that she was reluctant to end. However, even well into her eighties, Clémentine often traveled to Paris to study the latest fashions.[24]
Styles of Princess Clémentine of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha | ||
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Reference style Her Royal Highness | | |
Spoken style | Your Royal Highness |
Death and legacy
Although she saw Ferdinand recognized internationally as Prince of Bulgaria (albeit under the nominal suzerainty of the Ottoman Sultan), Clémentine died the year before the dream of seeing her son installed as an independent monarch was realized.[citation needed]
Clémentine suffered from inflammation of the right lung in February 1898 and, while there were fears for her health,[31] she was able to recover satisfactorily.[32]
In early February 1907, Clémentine was struck with a bout of influenza, which, considering her age, was feared to be terminal.[33] Clémentine was reported to have recovered from this bout "so that all danger has passed"[33] but remained weak.
Clémentine died in
Ancestry
Ancestors of Princess Clémentine of Orléans |
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Sources
- ISBN 0-7195-4279-0.
- Barman, R. (2002) Citizen Emperor: Pedro II and the Making of Brazil, 1825–1891, Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-4400-9.
- Constant, S. (1979) Foxy Ferdinand, 1861–1948, Tsar of Bulgaria, Sidgwick and Jackson, London. ISBN 0-283-98515-1.
- de Saint-Amand, I. (1895) The Revolution of 1848, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York.
- Ilchev, I., Kolev, V. & Yanchev, V. (2005) Bulgarian parliament and Bulgarian statehood, St. Kliment Ohridski University Press, ISBN 954-07-2197-0.
- Jobson, D. (1848) Career of Louis-Philippe: with a full account of the late revolution, E. Churton.
- ISBN 0-297-17001-5.
- Mansel, P. (2001) Paris Between Empires, Phoenix, London. ISBN 1-84212-656-3.
- ISBN 1-4455-6810-1.
References
- ^ https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/24696/data.pdf
- ^ By an ordinance he signed on 13 August 1830, Louis-Philippe I, King of the French, defined the manner in which his children, as well as his sister, would continue to bear the name and arms of Orléans:
- Ordonnance du roi qui détermine les noms et titres des princes et princesses de la famille royale.
- LOUIS PHILIPPE ROI DES FRANÇAIS, à tous présens et à venir, salut.
- Notre avènement à la couronne ayant rendu nécessaire de déterminer les noms et les titres que devaient porter à l'avenir les princes et princesses nos enfans, ainsi que notre bien-aimée sœur,
- Nous avons ordonné et ordonnons ce qui suit :
- Les princes et princesses nos bien-aimés enfans, ainsi que notre bien-aimée sœur, continueront à porter le nom et les armes d'Orléans.
- Notre bien-aimé fils aîné, le duc de Chartres, portera, comme prince royal, le titre de duc d'Orléans.
- Nos bien-aimés fils puînés conserveront les titres qu'ils ont portés jusqu'à ce jour.
- Nos bien-aimées filles et notre bien-aimée sœur ne porteront d'autre titre que celui de princesses d'Orléans, en se distinguant entre elles par leurs prénoms.
- Il sera fait, en conséquence, sur les registres de l'état civil de la Maison royale, dans les archives de la Chambre des Pairs, toutes les rectifications qui résultent des dispositions ci-dessus [...]
- ^ a b The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser, "From the Latest London Papers", 13 September 1836, p. 3
- ^ Mansel, p. 311
- ^ The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser, "Their Majesties will come to town on the 29th", 29 May 1838, p. 3
- ^ Courier (Hobart), "Isle of France", 15 September 1843, p. 4
- ^ a b c The Eclectic Magazine of Foreign Literature, Science, and Art, Leavitt, Trow, & Co., v. 1 (Jan. – Apr. 1843), p 431
- ^ Court and Lady's Magazine, Monthly Critic and Museum, "MARRIAGE OF H.R.H. THE PRINCESS CLEMENTINE of ORLEANS, TO PRINCE AUGUSTUS OF SAXE-COBURG GOTHA", June 1843, p. 110
- ^ Barman, p. 156
- ^ de Saint-Amand, p. 211
- ^ de Saint-Amand, p. 277
- ^ Jobson, p. 71
- ^ The Moreton Bay Courier, "British and Foreign", 1 November 1856, p. 4
- ^ News of the World, "Protest of the Princess Clémentine", 13 July 1856, p. 2
- ^ Longford, p. 217
- ^ Longford, p. 197
- ^ The Advertiser (Adelaide), "Obituary: Princess Clementine", 19 February 1907, p. 7
- ^ Ilchev, I., Kolev, V. & Yanchev, V., p. 55.
- ^ Constant, pp. 41–43, 54
- ^ a b News of the World, "Gossip of the Day", 9 December 1900, p. 6
- ^ Constant, pp. 107–108
- ^ a b Radziwell, p. 137.
- ^ The Times, "The Queen at Coburg", 24 April 1894, p. 5
- ^ a b c The London Journal, "Princess Clementine of Orleans", 8 July 1893, p. 11
- ^ The Brisbane Courier, "Baptism of Prince Boris", 8 February 1896, p. 5
- ^ Constant, p. 183
- ^ Marlborough Express, "Death of a Princess", 3 February 1899, p. 2
- New York Times, "Vienna, 31 January 1899", 1 February 1899, p. 2
- ^ Hawera and Normanby Star, "The Balkans", 3 December 1903, p. 2
- ^ The Advertiser (Adelaide), "Serious Railway Accident", 5 October 1903, p. 5
- ^ The Times, "Court Circular, 12 February 1898, p. 12
- ^ The Times, "Court Circular", 17 February 1898, p. 6
- ^ a b The Times, "Court Circular", 5 February 1907, p. 7
- ^ New York Times, "Princess Dead Aged 89", 17 February 1907, p. 9
- ^ the Star, "Princess Clementine of Saxe-Coburg", 18 February 1907, p. 3.
- ^ Constant, p. 207
- ^ a b Phillips, Walter Alison (1911). . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 17 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
- ^ a b Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 17 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
- ^ a b Genealogie ascendante jusqu'au quatrieme degre inclusivement de tous les Rois et Princes de maisons souveraines de l'Europe actuellement vivans [Genealogy up to the fourth degree inclusive of all the Kings and Princes of sovereign houses of Europe currently living] (in French). Bourdeaux: Frederic Guillaume Birnstiel. 1768. p. 90.
- ^ a b Delille, E. (1822). Journal de la vie de S.A.S. madame la Dsse. d'Orléans, douairière (in French). J.-J. Blaise. pp. 1–2.
- ^ a b Genealogie ascendante, p. 9
- ^ a b Genealogie ascendante, p. 1