Girl junior by the duke Léopold Ier of Lorraine and Bar and his wife born Elisabeth Charlotte by Orleans, niece of the king Louis XIV and sister of the Regent Philippe of Orleans, Anne Charlotte of Lorraine was born with the Château from Lunéville on May 17th 1714. She died with Mons (currently in Belgium) on November 7th 1773.

A family in the middle of Europe

Anne Charlotte is the thirteenth child and the last girl of the ducal couple which was withdrawn with the Château of Lunéville not to be pilot occupation of Nancy, their capital, by the French troops during the War of succession of Spain. Notwithstanding, only four of his/her brothers and sisters are still in life: Léopold-Clement born in 1707, heir to the throne since the death of his/her Louis brother in 1711, François-Etienne, born in 1708, Elisabeth-Therese born in 1711 and Charles-Alexandre, born in 1712. In 1718, his/her mother is confined of a last girl who does not survive.

In 1719, the ducal family leaves unscathed the first of the fires whose the Château of Lunéville will be victim.

Anne Charlotte is 7 years old 1/2, on October 25th 1722, when it meets its maternal family, (the royal Maison of France) and in particular, for the first and last time, her grandmother, Elisabeth Charlotte, duchess dowager of Orleans, famous the " palatine Princess " , at the time of the crowning of the young king Louis XV with Rheims. This grandmother, however very little inclined with indulgence when she speaks as of his, will write with her son-in-law that she found small Lorraine " extremely well élévés" and " the junior is a beauté". That was to him undoubtedly a consolation when she thought of the vices of her disgracieuses French grand-daughters. The old princess will die in Saint Cloud the next on December 8th, a few months hardly before her son, the regent.

Matrimonial vexations in Versailles

In 1723, Léopold Ier, disappointed its relations with France, thinks of sending its heir to finish his formation at the court of the Emperor Charles VI with Vienna, secretly hoping to make him marry in the long term the archduchess heiress, Marie-Therese of Austria. Young the 16 year old prince dies the same year and it is his/her brother François-Etienne who leaves Lunéville and leaves in his place.

Two years later, the ducal couple ardently hopes to marry his/her oldest daughter with the king de France Louis XV which has just been 15 years old. The intrigues of the Prime Minister, the Duke of Bourbon, prince of blood, chief of a branch rival junior by the Orleans and its mistress the Marquise of Requests, rather than the niece of the late regent, put on the throne of the lilies an obscure princess and almost old maid: Marie Leszczynska. The " défaite" Lorraine is bitter, especially for the duchess who, of French origin, is mortified that with his/her daughter, resulting from famous bloods, an unknown factor is preferred.

Another failure also comes from France a few years later. This time, it also concerns Anne Charlotte. In 1726, the son of the regent, nephew of the duchess, who had raised the title of her father loses his wife, Auguste de Bade, which he had passionately liked. In spite of the efforts of the duchess, this widower who is not thirty years old, refuses any project of remarriage, even with one of his cousins of Lorraine (1729).

This year there, the duke Léopold Ier dies, leaving the throne to the brother of Anne Charlotte who is still with Vienna. While waiting for the return of this last, the duchess Elisabeth Charlotte seizes regency.

After a short stay with Lunéville, François III, yielding regency to his/her mother, leaves for a turn Europe which brings back it to Vienna where one sees in him - moreover in more openly the engaged couple of the archduchess Marie-Therese what enormously displeases at the court Versailles where the Cardinal of Fleury, successor of the Duc of Bourbon, sees of an anxious eye the Habsbourg with Nancy and with Bar-le-Duc by interposed son-in-law.

The War of succession of Poland puts a diplomatic term at this situation: France accepts the marriage of the duke François III with Marie-Therese provided that this one gives up her states with Stanislas Leszczynski, détrôné king of Poland and father of the queen of France.En exchanges it receives the Toscane where the last of the Médicis dies.

François III can only accept - with back-plate the bargaining in spite of objurgations of his/her mother. He marries the archduchess, réllement in love with him, in February 1736.

One ressucite, for the duchess dowager, the principality of Commercy, that one allots to him in life annuity. The old princess, feeling betrayed, goes there, with Anne Charlotte, to hide her disenchantment, her bitterness and her humiliations but before that, the new situation of his/her son enables him to marry his oldest daughter, Elisabeth-Therese, with the king Charles-Emmanuel III of Sardinia, his/her uterine cousin, already twice widowed. The queen of Sardinia dies four years later, at 29 years, of the continuations of her third layers.

Secular abbess…… with Remiremont

As for Anne Charlotte, already 23 years old, it is intended for the Eglise: she is elected Abbesse prestigious Abbaye of Remiremont on May 10th 1738. Such a title puts it almost at the row sovereign princes since this abbey, only made up ladies of nobility and whose temporal field includes a great number of villages, raises only of the authority of the pope!

Anne Charlotte made there build a sumptuous abbey palate.

Sister of the Emperor… in Vienna

Anne Charlotte does not reside about it less near her mother whom it supports in her old age. After the death of this one (23-XII- 1744), it will remain with Vienna near her brother and of his sister-in-law. She assists, with Frankfurt, with the imperial family, with the crowning of François as Empereur on October 4th 1745, day of the Saint François. Nevertheless it will be never with its ease with the Château of Schönbrunn: it is there never but the beautiful sister of sovereign, to some extent " invitée" even " with charge" and feels intruding.

She has there one friend, the count Charles Ogara, her Master of the Horse since 1752. The relation which it maintains with this old page her father, become confidant of its brother, the Emperor, makes accept a guilty intimacy and his/her sister-in-law, the empress Marie-Therese prefers to move away it from Vienna.

Sister of the Regent from the Netherlands in Brussels

In 1754, Marie-Therese names her sister-in-law secular abbess of the chapter of noble ladies of holy Waudru of Mons in the Netherlands whose his/her brother, Charles-Alexandre of Lorraine, is regent for the account of Marie-Therese since 1740. Secular abbess, it can thus manage her monastery while remaining in the world.

Two years later, it is still named by her beautiful sister, coadjutrice of the monastery of Thorn then in 1757 coadjutrice of that of Essen.

With Brussels, she enjoys a great influence on her brother and fact office of " first dame". Although Charles-Alexandre of Lorraine has been widowed for ten years of the sister of the empress and that it does not have a child, it reproaches him its connection with Madam de Meuse.

In 1763, it designates as coadjutrice and successor of Remiremont the princess Christine of Saxony, princess German but sister of dauphine the Marie-Josèphe of Saxony. It makes the same thing with the monastery of Thorn that it yields to Cunégonde of Saxony, younger sister by Christine and Marie - Josèphe.

In 1765, it assists with the marriage of its nephew the future emperor Léopold II with Innsbrück during which his/her brother dies, the Emperor François Ier.

From April at September 1770, Anne Charlotte goes on a last journey to Vienna. In way the princess quinquagénaire crosses her niece 14 year old, Marie Antoinette which goes towards its French marriage (and her tragedy destiny) to seal this free-Austrian alliance which displeases to the last Lorraine princes so much.

What could say these two ladies so close and yet so distant one from the other?

End

Anne Charlotte dies in Mons on November 7th 1773, 59 years old. Its body is buried with Nancy, in the crypt of the cordeliers where the bodies of the dukes rest, its ancestors. His/her brother dies seven years later.

References

Alain LITTLE LADDIE, " The Lorraine ones and Empire" Memory and Documents, Versailles, 2005

Dirk VAN DER CRUYSSE, " PALATINE Mrs, Françaises" Letters; , Beech, 1989

Dirk VAN DER CRUYSSE, " PALATINE Mrs, a EUROPEENNE" PRINCESS; , Beech, 1988

Arlette LEBIGRE, " PALATINE"