Duke of Orléans

Title of French nobility

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Dukedom of Orléans

Arms of the Dukes of Orléans
of the House of Orléans

Creation date| 1344
Peerage| Peerage of France
First holder| Philip of Valois
Last holder| Ferdinand Philippe of Orléans
Status| Extinct
Extinction date| 13 July 1842
Seat(s)| Château de Blois
Château de Saint-Cloud
Palais-Royal

Duke of Orléans (French: Duc d'Orléans) was a French royal title usually granted by the King of France to one of his close relatives (usually a younger brother or son), or otherwise inherited through the male line. First created in 1344 by King Philip VI for his younger son Philip,[1] the title was recreated by King Charles VI for his younger brother Louis, who passed the title on to his son and then to his grandson, the latter becoming King Louis XII. The title was created and recreated six times in total, until 1661, when Louis XIV bestowed it upon his younger brother Philippe, who passed it on to his male descendants, who became known as the "Orléans branch" of the Bourbons.

Based at the Palais-Royal, the Duke of Orléans Louis-Philippe II contested the authority of his cousin Louis XVI in the adjacent Louvre. His son would eventually ascend to the throne in 1830 as Louis-Philippe I, King of the French. The descendants of the family are the Orléanist pretenders to the French throne.

Île d'Orléans, in Canada, is named after Duke of Orléans Henri II, and the city of New Orleans in the United States is named after Duke of Orléans Philippe II.

The holder of the title held the style of Serene Highness.

## House of Valois

[edit]

The first Dukedom of Orléans was created for Philip of Valois, seventh son of Philip VI of France and younger brother of John the Good, in 1344.[2] This appanage merged the appanages of Touraine and Valois. However, the first ducal line ended with Philip, who died without legitimate children.

Duke  | Birth  | Tenure  | Death  | Marriage(s)
Issue  | Claim

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Philip

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Touraine
* Count of Valois

|  | 1 July 1336
Château de Vincennes

* * *

Son of Philip VI of France
and Joan of Burgundy | 1344

1 September 1375  | 1 September 1375
Orléans

* * *

Died by natural causes
(aged 39)  | Blanche of France
(m. 1345; wid. 1375)
Childless | Created duke by Philip VI

## House of Valois-Orléans

[edit]

The second dukedom of Orléans was created in 1392 by Charles VI of France for his younger brother Louis. His role as leading figure in court, regent for his brother during his madness and wealthy landlord, as well as head of the Armagnac party, permitted his descendant to maintain a prominent role in French politics. His grandson Louis XII became king after the extinction of the direct Valois in 1498,[3] while his great-grandson Francis I succeeded the last in 1515.[4] The direct line of Valois-Orléans became extinct with the death of Louis XII in 1515, although the dukedom of Orléans was integrated among the crown's properties after his ascent to the throne in 1495.

Duke  | Birth  | Tenure  | Death  | Marriage(s)
Issue  | Claim

|
|
|
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Louis I

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Touraine
* Duke of Valois
* Count of Blois
* Count of Soissons
* Count of Angoulême

|  | 13 March 1372
Hôtel Saint-Pol, Paris

* * *

Son of Charles V of France
and Joanna of Bourbon | 4 June 1392

23 November 1407  | 23 November 1407
Le Marais, Paris

* * *

Murdered by Duke of
Burgundy's hitmen
(aged 35)  | Valentina Visconti
(m. 1389; wid. 1407)
8 children | Created duke by Charles VI

Charles I

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Milan (titular)
* Duke of Valois
* Count of Blois
* Count of Soissons

|  | 24 November 1394
Hôtel Saint-Pol, Paris

* * *

Son of Louis I
and Valentina Visconti | 23 November 1407

5 January 1465  | 5 January 1465
Château d'Amboise

* * *

Died of natural causes
(aged 70)  | (1) Isabella of France
(m. 1406; d. 1409)
1 children
(2) Bonne of Armagnac
(m. 1410; d. 1430/35)
Childless
(3) Maria of Cleves
(m. 1440; wid. 1465)
3 children | Son of Louis I
(male-blood proximity)

Louis II

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Milan (titular)
* Duke of Valois
* Count of Blois

|  | 27 June 1462
Château de Blois

* * *

Son of Charles
and Maria of Cleves | 5 January 1465

7 April 1498

(Merged into the Crown titles) | 1 January 1515
Hôtel des Tournelles, Paris

* * *

Died of gout
(aged 52)  | (1) Joan of France
(m. 1476; ann. 1498)
Childless
(2) Anne of Brittany
(m. 1498; d. 1514)
2 children
(3) Mary of England
(m. 1514; wid. 1515)
Childless | Son of Charles
(male-blood proximity)

## House of Valois-Angoulême

[edit]

The third dukedom of Orléans was created by Francis I for his second son Henry at his birth. When Henry's elder brother and Dauphin, Francis, Duke of Brittany, died childless in 1536, Henry substituted him as Dauphin and ceded the title to his younger brother Charles, Duke of Angoulême, who died childless in 1545.

Duke  | Birth  | Tenure  | Death  | Marriage(s)
Issue  | Claim

|
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Henry I

* * *

Other titles

List

* Count of Blois

|  | 31 March 1519
Saint-Germain-en-Laye

* * *

Son of Francis I of France
and Claude of France | 31 March 1519

10 August 1536

(Renounced the title
to become Dauphin) | 10 July 1559
Place des Vosges, Paris

* * *

Accidentally killed
in a joust
(aged 40)  | Catherine de' Medici
(m. 1533; wid. 1559)
10 children | Created duke by Francis I

Charles II

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Angoulême
* Duke of Bourbon
* Count of Blois
* Count of Clermont

|  | 22 January 1522
Saint-Germain-en-Laye

* * *

Son of Francis I of France
and Claude of France | 10 August 1536

9 September 1545  | 9 September 1545
Forest-Montiers

* * *

Died by influenza
(aged 23)  | Unmarried | Brother of Henry I
(Elevated by Francis I)

The fourth dukedom was created by Henry II for his son Louis at his birth. The child duke, however, died one year later, and the title passed to his recently born brother Charles, who became King of France in 1560.[5] The title passed to Charles' brother, Henry, Duke of Angoulême, who six years later exchanged the appanages of Orléans for the Dukedom of Anjou, becoming the heir in pectore of the Crown.[6]

Duke  | Birth  | Tenure  | Death  | Marriage(s)
Issue  | Claim

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Louis III

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Urbino (titular)
* Count of Blois

|  | 3 February 1549
Château of Fontainebleau

* * *

Son of Henry II
and Catherine de' Medici | 3 February 1549

24 October 1550  | 24 October 1550
Mantes

* * *

Died by exposure
(aged 1)  | Unmarried | Created duke by Henry II

Charles III

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Angoulême
* Count of Blois

|  | 27 June 1550
Saint-Germain-en-Laye

* * *

Son of Henry II
and Catherine de' Medici | 24 October 1550

5 December 1560

(Renounced the title to
become King of France) | 30 May 1574
Château de Vincennes

* * *

Died by tuberculosis
(aged 23)  | Elisabeth of Austria
(m. 1570; wid. 1574)
1 child | Brother of Louis III
(Elevated by Henry II)

Henry II

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Angoulême
* Countess of Blois

|  | 19 September 1551
Château of Fontainebleau

* * *

Son of Henry II
and Catherine de' Medici | 5 December 1560

8 February 1566

(Exchanged the title for
the appanage of Anjou) | 2 August 1589
Château de Saint-Cloud

* * *

Assassinated by
Jacques Clément
(aged 37)  | Louise of Lorraine
(m. 1570; wid. 1574)
| Created duke by Charles IX

## House of Medici

[edit]

After Henry's exchange of appanages, Charles IX gave the Orléanais to his mother Catherine, former Queen of France, as reward for her role as regent, mainly about toleration politics. She was the only suo jure Duchess of Orléans, so is included among the ruling dukes.[7]

Duke  | Birth  | Tenure  | Death  | Marriage(s)
Issue  | Claim

|
|
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|
|

Catherine
(suo jure)

* * *

Other titles

List

* Countess of Blois

|  | 13 April 1519
Palazzo Pitti, Florence

* * *

Daughter of Lorenzo, Duke of Urbino
and Madeleine de La Tour d'Auvergne | 8 February 1566

5 January 1589  | 5 January 1589
Château de Blois

* * *

Died by pleurisy
(aged 69)  | Henry II of France
(m. 1533; d. 1559)
10 children | Created duchess by Charles IX

## First House of Bourbon-Orléans

[edit]

The fifth dukedom was created in 1626 by Louis XIII for his younger brother Gaston, Duke of Anjou.[8] Gaston became a libertine and scheming figure at court, plotting the assassination of Cardinal Richelieu and later joining the Fronde, a coalition of nobles who opposed the royal centralisation. Finally forgiven by Louis XIII, he died without male heirs, extinguishing the first Bourbon House of Orléans.

Notes: the Monsieur d'Orléans, second son of Henry IV isn't included in the list due to his short life (4 years) and lack of official baptism or name.[9]

Duke  | Birth  | Tenure  | Death  | Marriage(s)
Issue  | Claim

|
|
|
|
|

Gaston

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Anjou
* Duke of Chartres
* Duke of Valois
* Count of Blois

|  | 24 April 1608
Château of Fontainebleau

* * *

Son of Henry IV of France
and Marie de' Medici | 6 August 1626

2 February 1660  | 2 February 1660
Château de Blois

* * *

Died by natural causes
(aged 51)  | (1) Marie of Bourbon
(m. 1626; d. 1627)
1 children
(2) Marguerite of Lorraine
(m. 1632; wid. 1660)
5 children | Created duke by Henry IV

## Second House of Bourbon-Orléans

[edit]

Main article: House of Orléans

The sixth and final creation was for Philip, Duke of Anjou, who received the Orléanais by his brother Louis XIV. Through his marriage with Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate, he established a long dynasty that finally arose to the throne in 1830, with the deposition of Charles X and the proclamation of Louis Philippe I.[10] Louis Philippe passed his title to his son and dauphin, Ferdinand, who died in a carriage accident in 1842.[11]

Duke  | Birth  | Tenure  | Death  | Marriage(s)
Issue  | Claim

|
|
|
|
|

Philip I

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Anjou
* Duke of Chartres
* Duke of Valois
* Duke of Nemours
* Duke of Montpensier
* Prince of Joinville
* Count of Blois

|  | 21 September 1640
Saint-Germain-en-Laye

* * *

Son of Louis XIII of France
and Anne of Austria | 10 May 1661

9 June 1701  | 9 June 1701
Château de Saint-Cloud

* * *

Died by stroke
(aged 60)  | (1) Henrietta of England
(m. 1661; d. 1670)
3 children
(2) Elizabeth Charlotte
of the Palatinate
(m. 1671; wid. 1701)
3 children | Created duke by Louis XIV

Philip II

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Chartres
* Duke of Valois
* Duke of Nemours
* Duke of Montpensier
* Prince of Joinville
* Count of Blois

|  | 2 August 1674
Château de Saint-Cloud

* * *

Son of Philip I
and Elizabeth Charlotte
of the Palatinate | 9 June 1701

2 December 1723  | 2 December 1723
Palace of Versailles

* * *

Died by natural causes
(aged 49)  | Françoise Marie de Bourbon
(m. 1692; wid. 1723)
8 children | Son of Philip I
(male-preference proximity)

Louis

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Chartres
* Duke of Valois
* Duke of Nemours
* Duke of Montpensier
* Prince of Joinville
* Count of Blois

|  | 4 August 1703
Palace of Versailles

* * *

Son of Philip II
and Françoise Marie de Bourbon | 2 December 1723

4 February 1752  | 4 February 1752
St. Genevieve, Paris

* * *

Died by delirium
complications
(aged 48)  | Johanna of Baden-Baden
(m. 1724; d. 1726)
8 children | Son of Philip II
(male-preference proximity)

Louis
Philippe I

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Chartres
* Duke of Valois
* Duke of Nemours
* Duke of Montpensier
* Prince of Joinville
* Count of Blois

|  | 12 May 1725
Palace of Versailles

* * *

Son of Louis
and Johanna of Baden-Baden | 4 February 1752

18 November 1785  | 18 November 1785
Château de Sainte-Assise

* * *

Died by natural causes
(aged 60)  | Louise Henriette de Bourbon
(m. 1743; d. 1759)
3 children

* * *

Morganatic:
Charlotte-Jeanne Béraud
(m. 1773; wid. 1785)
Childless | Son of Louis
(male-preference proximity)

Louis
Philippe II

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Chartres
* Duke of Valois
* Duke of Nemours
* Duke of Montpensier
* Prince of Joinville
* Count of Blois

|  | 13 April 1747
Château de Saint-Cloud

* * *

Son of Louis Philip I
and Louise Henriette de Bourbon | 18 November 1785

6 November 1793  | 6 November 1793
Conciergerie, Paris

* * *

Executed for treason
(aged 46)  | Marie-Adélaïde de Bourbon
(m. 1768; wid. 1793)
5 children | Son of Louis Philip I
(male-preference proximity)

Louis
Philippe III

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Chartres
* Duke of Valois
* Duke of Nemours
* Prince of Joinville
* Count of Blois

|  | 6 October 1773
Palais-Royal, Paris

* * *

Son of Louis Philip II
and Marie-Adélaïde de Bourbon | 6 November 1793

9 August 1830

(Renounced the title
to become
King of the French) | 26 August 1850
Claremont, England

* * *

Died by natural causes
(aged 76)  | Maria Amalia of
Naples and Sicily
(m. 1809; wid. 1850)
10 children | Son of Louis Philip II
(male-preference proximity)

Ferdinand

* * *

Other titles

List

* Duke of Chartres

|  | 3 September 1810
Royal Palace, Palermo

* * *

Son of Louis Philip III
and Maria Amalia of
Naples and Sicily | 9 August 1830

13 July 1842  | 13 July 1842
Neuilly-sur-Seine

* * *

Died in an accident
(aged 31)  | Helene of Mecklenburg
(m. 1837; wid. 1842)
2 children | Son of Louis Philip III
(male-preference proximity)

## Current use

[edit]

* Legitimists recognize Jean, Count of Paris, Head of the House of Orléans, as Duke of Orléans, inheriting the title as the heir male of Philip I, Duke of Orléans.
* Orleanists recognize Jacques d'Orléans, uncle of the Count of Paris, as Duke of Orléans. Per Orleanist-Unionist reckoning, the title merged with the crown in 1883 and was subsequently granted to Jacques upon his marriage in 1969.

## See also

[edit]

* Duchess of Orléans
* Count of Orléans
* Orleanist
* Legitimist
* Dauphin of France
* Duke of York

* v
* t
* e

Dukes of Orléans

Dukes of Orléans|

* Philippe
* Louis
* Charles
* Louis
* Henri
* Charles
* Louis
* Charles Maximilian
* Alexandre Édouard
* Nicolas Henri
* Gaston
* Philippe
* Philippe
* Louis
* Louis Philippe
* Louis Philippe Joseph
* Louis Philippe
* Ferdinand Philippe
* Philippe
* François

Current claimants|

* Jacques

## References

[edit]

1. ^  One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Orleans, Dukes of". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 20 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 282.
2. ^ Amédée René, Les princes militaires de la maison de France, Paris, 1848, p. 49
3. ^ Didier Le Fur, Louis XII : un autre César, Perrin, 2001 p. 40.
4. ^ Auguste Bailly, François Ier : restaurateur des lettres et des arts, Livre club du librairie, 1961, p. 9.
5. ^ Jean Heritier, Catherine de Medici. George Allen and Unwin, 1963, p. 69.
6. ^ Nicolas Le Roux, «La cour dans l'espace du palais: l'exemple de Henri III», Palais et pouvoir, de Constantinople à Versailles, Presses universitaires de Vincennes, 2003, pp. 106-108.
7. ^ Knecht, R. J. Catherine de' Medici. London and New York: Longman, 1998, 104-108.
8. ^ A.L. Moote, Louis XIII, The Just p 192. University of California Press, 1991, p. 192.
9. ^ François de Malherbe, Lettres à Peiresc, éd. La Pléiade, p. 378.
10. ^ "Louis-Philippe Biography". The Biography.com Website. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
11. ^ Unwin, Brian (2014). A Tale in Two Cities: Fanny Burney and Adèle, Comtesse de Boigne. New York: I.B. Taurus & Co. pp. 210–212\. ISBN 978-1-78076-784-0.

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