Marie-Therese of Austria (1638-1683)

See also: Marie, Marie-Therese of Austria

Marie-Therese of Austria (Madrid, 1638 - Versailles, 1683), Queen of France.

Girl of the king d' Espagne Philippe IV and of Elisabeth de France, Marie-Therese was born the September 10th 1638 with Madrid, and lost her mother in 1644 at six years. Of all these brothers and sisters survived only infant it Baltasar Carlos, heir to the throne which died two years later seventeen years old.

At 8 years, Marie-Therese was the only child surviving of Philippe IV and the heiress of the immense Spanish possessions on which " the sun did not lie down jamais" .

Its education was narrow, rigid, and deeply excessively pious woman. Since its more young age, it was a question which she marries, for dynastic reasons his/her cousin, chief of the Austrian and imperial branch of the Habsbourg initially the Ferdinand archduke who died in 1654 then his brother who became the Emperor Léopold Ier in 1658.

Marie-Therese lived however in inward conviction that she would marry the king of France Louis XIV, her doubly German but enemy cousin of her house. The France and the Spain were besides once again in war since 1635. Later, after his marriage, one requested one day from Marie-Therese if it had tested some leaning of young girl when it was still in Spain. “But not of course , answered it with frankness, it had there one king and it was my father! ” .

With its marriage, she did not speak however a word about French but she brought the Chocolat and the first orange.

She married the June 9th 1660, with Saint-Jean-with-Luz, in accordance with the Traité of the Pyrenees, Louis XIV. Work of the cardinal of Mazarin, French Prime Minister, this marriage was for king only Raison. It had until the last moment hoped to marry the niece of the cardinal Marie Mancini, but the minister and the queen-mother, Anne of Austria, opposed this misalliance. However Marie-Therese was certain that her engaged couple was enthusiast of it: with the manner of his/her grandfather Henry IV, Louis XIV had made carry to his future wife of many letters and gifts before their marriage.

On her arrival with the Louvre, his/her mother-in-law and aunt Anne of Austria took it under her protection. It tried to teach the trade of queen to him, but Marie-Therese never showed herself really with the height. The princess was not a society woman. Even if it ends up reaching a good control of French, it did not have the required capacities, and the public representations were for it only occasions where it let appear its sinistrality. Anne of Austria saw nothing any more in his/her niece but the woman having to give him grandchildren.

Louis XIV well quickly forsook his wife for her many favorite. There remained however a very conscientious husband, and Marie-Therese thus put at the world six children in ten years:

This considerable mortality was certainly due to the consanguinity which one did not know the misdeeds: the mother of Marie-Therese was the sister of Louis XIII and Philippe IV of Spain had as a sister Anne of Austria, mother of Louis XIV. Being to them-even also, for the majority, resulting from consanguineous unions.

Marie-Therese ends up folding up herself on itself, alive within a small court, isolated in the middle of the Court, recreating the atmosphere of Madrid, surrounded " of its Spanish chambermaids, monks and of nains" , eating garlic and drinking chocolate, fitting very high heels which often made it fall.

Of a devotion increasingly more intense, the essence of its activity relates to the care with the patients, the poor and with disinherited. She attends the Hospital of German St in Bush hammer, ensuring the most painful care. She relieves even in secrecy the " the poor honteux" by granting dowries to the girls of noble the poor.

In 1665, his/her father dies, leaving the throne to four a souffreteux year old son resulting from a second bed. Louis XIV benefits from it to ask for a share of heritage (Guerre of Devolution).

In 1666, death removes the only support to him which it had at the court: his/her mother-in-law and aunt, the queen-mother Anne of Austria.

Marie-Therese suffered much from adulteries of the king who made his favorite lady's companions of his wife and travelled openly with his wife and his two mistresses. Confronted with this immoral spectacle, it is claimed that the people murmured, goguenard or afflicted, " The king walks the three reines" . She also suffered starting from 1667 from successive legitimations from the natural children from her husband. The latter made shade with the dolphin.

In 1680, king Marie the Dolphin with Marie Anne Christine of Bavaria without consulting it. It is soon grandmother of a small duke of Burgundy.

From the summer 1680, under the influence of Madam de Maintenon, Louis XIV approached his wife, whom he had publicly forsaken. “the queen is extremely well at the court” , will notice, always mocker, Madam de Sévigné. Marie-Therese, moved to the tears by the unexpected attentions by her unsteady husband will say: “God caused Madam de Maintenon to return the heart of the king to me! Never it treated me with as much tenderness only since it listens to it! ”

But Marie-Therese hardly benefitted from this renewal of favor. She died abruptly, the July 30th 1683, with Versailles, of the continuations of a benign tumor under the left but badly neat arm. Its last words were “Since I am queen, I had one happy day” . Which? She carried it with her. Louis XIV will say EC death “it is the first sorrow which it causes me” . Hardly more than two months after this demise, it will convolera secretly with its last mistress whom it called in private the " holy Françoise" : Madam de Maintenon.

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