Wayward, wanton and wilful – the three daughters of Louis XIV were an integral part of court life for much of his reign, forming part of his tight knit family circle and, on more than one occasion, creating scandalous gossip for the memoirists of the period.
Marie Anne – daughter of Louis XIV and his first official mistress, the beautiful Louise de la Vallière, Marie Louise was adored by her father, who married her to the Prince de Conti – even though she would almost certainly have preferred his dashing younger brother.
Louise Françoise – eldest surviving daughter of Louis XIV and the fascinating Athénaïs de Montespan, Louise was married at the age of eleven to the Duc de Bourbon, grandson of the Prince de Condé and quickly gained a reputation as one of the ‘prettiest, wittiest and naughtiest’ women at her father’s glittering court.
Françoise Marie – the youngest of Louis XIV and Athénaïs de Montespan’s daughters, Françoise was destined to make the most splendid marriage of all when she was married to her first cousin, the Duc de Chartres, eldest son and heir of Philippe, Duc d’Orléans – much to his mother’s undisguised annoyance.
My book about Queen Victoria’s relationship with her daughter Princess Alice and granddaughter Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia is due to be published on 30th June and is available to preorder from Amazon, Waterstones & all friendly local bookshops.
