Princess Louise Christine of Savoy-Carignan
Encyclopedia
Louise of Savoy was a Savoyard Princess and member of the House of Savoy
by birth. She was the mother of Louis, Margrave of Baden-Baden, the famous chief commander of the Imperial army
.
. The Hôtel was the birth place of her mother, a grand daughter of Louis de Bourbon
, an uncle of Henry IV of France
. Her father was Prince Thomas Francis of Savoy
, the younger son of the Duke of Savoy
and his Spanish wife Infanta Catherine Michelle of Spain.
She married Margrave Ferdinand Maximilian of Baden-Baden
(1625–1669) on 15 March 1653 at the Église Saint-Sulpice, Paris, France. The church was near the Hôtel de Soissons. The marriage contract was signed on the same day and is today preserved in the Parisian Institut de France
. This marriage was negotiated by none other than the famous Cardinal Mazarin and the Ambassador of the Margrave of Baden-Baden one Monsieur Krebs. Her husband was the Hereditary Prince of Baden-Baden, this meant that he was the Heir apparent
of his father Wilhelm, Margrave of Baden-Baden
.
Marriages between German and Savoyard nobles were common in an era when many Savoyard nobles lived in German states notably Baden
itself, due to official charges in the country.
The marriage was not successful. Louise Christine of Savoy refused to leave the refined French court and follow her husband to Baden-Baden. Louise Christine gave birth to a son on April 8, 1655 named Louis William of Baden-Baden. He was named after the French King Louis XIV
.
Ferdinand Maximilian then abducted his son from Paris and brought him to Baden-Baden. Ferdinand ordered a Savoyard man Charles Maurice de Lassolaye, who had access to the Hôtel de Soissons, to smuggle his three moth old son out of Paris and brig him to be raised n Baden-Baden. As a consequence Louis William was not raised by his mother, but by his grandfather's second wife Maria Magdalena of Oettingen-Baldern.
When it was clear that Louise Christine would not leave Paris, some said due to the influence of her mother, Louise Christine and her husband decided to separate and let her son be raised in Baden-Baden.
She died in Paris aged 61.
Her descendants included the present Henri d'Orléans, French pretender; the Prince Napoléon; Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza
and his distant cousin Prince Luís of Orléans-Braganza
. She is also an ancestor of the ruling Juan Carlos I of Spain
, Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
and Albert II of Belgium
.
House of Savoy
The House of Savoy was formed in the early 11th century in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, it grew from ruling a small county in that region to eventually rule the Kingdom of Italy from 1861 until the end of World War II, king of Croatia and King of Armenia...
by birth. She was the mother of Louis, Margrave of Baden-Baden, the famous chief commander of the Imperial army
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
.
Biography
Louise was born at the Hôtel de Soissons in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. The Hôtel was the birth place of her mother, a grand daughter of Louis de Bourbon
Louis I de Bourbon, prince de Condé
Louis de Bourbon was a prominent Huguenot leader and general, the founder of the House of Condé, a cadet branch of the House of Bourbon.-Life:...
, an uncle of Henry IV of France
Henry IV of France
Henry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....
. Her father was Prince Thomas Francis of Savoy
Thomas Francis, Prince of Carignano
Thomas Francis of Savoy was an Italian military commander, the founder of the Savoy-Carignano branch of the House of Savoy which reigned as kings of Sardinia from 1831 to 1861, and as kings of Italy from 1861 until the...
, the younger son of the Duke of Savoy
Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy
Charles Emmanuel I , known as the Great, was the Duke of Savoy from 1580 to 1630...
and his Spanish wife Infanta Catherine Michelle of Spain.
She married Margrave Ferdinand Maximilian of Baden-Baden
Ferdinand Maximilian of Baden-Baden
Ferdinand Maximilian of Baden-Baden, Hereditary Prince of Baden-Baden was the father of the famous general Louis William, Margrave of Baden-Baden....
(1625–1669) on 15 March 1653 at the Église Saint-Sulpice, Paris, France. The church was near the Hôtel de Soissons. The marriage contract was signed on the same day and is today preserved in the Parisian Institut de France
Institut de France
The Institut de France is a French learned society, grouping five académies, the most famous of which is the Académie française.The institute, located in Paris, manages approximately 1,000 foundations, as well as museums and chateaux open for visit. It also awards prizes and subsidies, which...
. This marriage was negotiated by none other than the famous Cardinal Mazarin and the Ambassador of the Margrave of Baden-Baden one Monsieur Krebs. Her husband was the Hereditary Prince of Baden-Baden, this meant that he was the Heir apparent
Heir apparent
An heir apparent or heiress apparent is a person who is first in line of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting, except by a change in the rules of succession....
of his father Wilhelm, Margrave of Baden-Baden
Wilhelm, Margrave of Baden-Baden
Margrave William of Baden-Baden was regent of Baden-Baden between 1621 and 1677.Born in Baden-Baden, he was the eldest son of Margrave Edward Fortunatus of Baden and Maria of Eicken. He was Geheimrat, Generalfeldmarschall and Imperial Kammerrichter of Speyer, which gave him his nickname: Wilhelm...
.
Marriages between German and Savoyard nobles were common in an era when many Savoyard nobles lived in German states notably Baden
Baden
Baden is a historical state on the east bank of the Rhine in the southwest of Germany, now the western part of the Baden-Württemberg of Germany....
itself, due to official charges in the country.
The marriage was not successful. Louise Christine of Savoy refused to leave the refined French court and follow her husband to Baden-Baden. Louise Christine gave birth to a son on April 8, 1655 named Louis William of Baden-Baden. He was named after the French King Louis XIV
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
.
Ferdinand Maximilian then abducted his son from Paris and brought him to Baden-Baden. Ferdinand ordered a Savoyard man Charles Maurice de Lassolaye, who had access to the Hôtel de Soissons, to smuggle his three moth old son out of Paris and brig him to be raised n Baden-Baden. As a consequence Louis William was not raised by his mother, but by his grandfather's second wife Maria Magdalena of Oettingen-Baldern.
When it was clear that Louise Christine would not leave Paris, some said due to the influence of her mother, Louise Christine and her husband decided to separate and let her son be raised in Baden-Baden.
She died in Paris aged 61.
Her descendants included the present Henri d'Orléans, French pretender; the Prince Napoléon; Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza
Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza
Dom Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza , is the 24th Duke of Braganza and a pretender to the throne of Portugal.-Birth and education:...
and his distant cousin Prince Luís of Orléans-Braganza
Prince Luís of Orléans-Braganza
Prince Luís of Orléans-Braganza is one of the two claimants to the defunct Brazilian throne, and head of the Vassouras branch of the Brazilian Imperial House...
. She is also an ancestor of the ruling Juan Carlos I of Spain
Juan Carlos I of Spain
Juan Carlos I |Italy]]) is the reigning King of Spain.On 22 November 1975, two days after the death of General Francisco Franco, Juan Carlos was designated king according to the law of succession promulgated by Franco. Spain had no monarch for 38 years in 1969 when Franco named Juan Carlos as the...
, Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg OIH is the head of state of Luxembourg. He is the eldest son of Jean, Grand Duke of Luxembourg and Princess Joséphine-Charlotte of Belgium. His maternal grandparents were King Leopold III of Belgium and Astrid of Sweden...
and Albert II of Belgium
Albert II of Belgium
Albert II is the current reigning King of the Belgians, a constitutional monarch. He is a member of the royal house "of Belgium"; formerly this house was named Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
.