For other persons with the same name, see Charles, Duke of Berry.Charles de France, Duke of Berry, (
Charles de France, duc de Berry), (Versailles, 31 July 1686 – Versailles, 5 May 1714) was a grandson of
Louis XIV of France. Although he was only a grandson of Louis XIV, Berry held the rank of
fils de France ("son of France"), rather than
petit-fils de France ("grandson of France"), as the son of the
Dauphin, heir apparent to the throne. The Duke of Berry was for seven years heir presumptive to the throne of Spain (1700-1707). He was a member of the
House of Bourbon.
Biography
Born at the
Palace of Versailles, Charles was the youngest son of
Louis, Dauphin of France, "
le Grand Dauphin", and of
Duchess Maria Anna of Bavaria.
One of three children, he was the uncle of the future
Louis XV, the son of his brother,
Louis, Duke of Burgundy. Charles other brother, Philip, Duke of Anjou, was the future
Philip V of Spain. Charles was styled Duke of Berry (
duc de Berry) at his birth, but never actually possessed that Duchy. In 1710, he was invested with his
apanage, consisting in the duchies of
Alençon, of
Angoulême, county of
Ponthieu and other minor fiefs. Ponthieu was exchanged some month later for other domains. By a special brevet, his grandfather permitted him to keep the title "Duke of Berry", which he held until his death..
As the third son of the Dauphin, Berry was not expected to inherit the throne; and at his father's death in 1711, his oldest brother
Louis, Duke of Burgundy became Dauphin.
However, in agreement with the testament of Charles II, king of Spain, the Duke of Berry was heir presumptive to the Spanish throne from November 1700 until 15 August 1707 (birth of his nephew
Louis, Prince of Asturias). He renounced all his rights to the Spanish succession on 24 November 1712, in application of the
treaties of Utrecht.
As a result of the prestige of his birth, cadet branches of the royal family saw in him a splendid match for their daughters. One of his aunts,
Louise-Françoise de Bourbon, princesse de Condé, a legitimised daughter of Louis XIV and
Madame de Montespan, proposed her beautiful daughter,
Louise Élisabeth de Bourbon, but the marriage proposal came to naught, much to the annoyance of the
House of Bourbon-Condé.
The Princess de Condé's sister,
Françoise-Marie de Bourbon, duchesse d'Orléans, then suggested a union with her eldest daughter,
Marie Louise Élisabeth d'Orléans. The marriage with Marie Louise Élisabeth, daughter of
Philippe d'Orléans, Duke of Orléans, the future
Regent of France, took place on 6 July 1710. It was an unhappy marriage, and after a
miscarriage which ended her first pregnancy, Marie Louise Élisabeth never gave birth to a child that lived for more than a day or a few weeks.
Elizabeth Charlotte, Duchess Dowager of Orléans and the grandmother of Berry's wife, nicknamed him "
Berry-Bon Cœur" ("Berry Good Heart") and later wrote on the marriage between him and her granddaughter:
At first he was passionately fond of his wife; but at the end of three months he fell in love with a little, ugly, femme de chambre. The Duchess, who had sufficient penetration, was not slow in discovering this, and told her husband immediately that, if he continued to live upon good terms with her, as he had done at first, she would say nothing about it, and act as if she were not acquainted with it; but if he behaved ill, she would tell the whole affair to the King, and have the femme de chambre sent away, so that he should never hear of her again. By this threat she held the Duke, who was a very simple man, so completely in check, that he lived very well with her up to his death, leaving her to do as she pleased, and dying himself as fond as ever of the femme de chambre. A year before his death he had her married, but on the condition that the husband should not exercise his marital rights. He left her pregnant as well as his wife, both of whom lay-in after his decease. Madame de Berry, who was not jealous, retained this woman, and took care of her and her child.
In 1712, Berry's eldest brother,
Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Dauphin of France, and the later's elder son, Louis, Duke of Brittany died. It was foreseeable that Berry would serve as Regent for his brother's younger son,
Louis, Duke of Anjou. But, on 5 May 1714, he died from internal injuries sustained in a hunting accident. His death rendered the details of the
Regency less straightforward than before.
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100% align="center"
|-
! style="background:#ccccff;"|Family of Charles in 1687
|-
|
thumb|center|500px|la Famille du Grand Dauphin, or the Family of the Grand Dauphin in 1687; (L-R) [[Louis, Dauphin of France (1661–1711)|Louis, le Grand Dauphin himself; on the floor is
Philippe de France,
Duke of Anjou and future King of Spain;
Maria Anna of Bavaria, la Grande Dauphine with the youngest child, Charles of France,
Duke of Berry on her lap;
Louis de France,
Duke of Burgundy and father of
Louis XV plays on the far right with an arrow]]
Issue
The
Duke and the
Duchess of Berry had three children who never reached one month of age. As
Grandchildren of France, they needed a surname. However, since their father was Duke of Berry only by name, their surname was not "de Berry" but "d'Alençon", taken from his first substantial duchy.
- Na (not baptized) d'Alençon, Granddaughter of France(Palace of Fontainebleau, 21 July 1711 - same day, Palace of Fontainebleau)
- Charles d'Alençon, Grandson of France, Duke of Alençon (as a courtesy title) (Palace of Versailles, 26 March 1713 – 16 April 1713, Palace of Versailles)
- Marie Louise Élisabeth d'Alençon, Granddaughter of France (Palace of Versailles, 16 June 1714 – 17 June 1714, Palace of Versailles)
Ancestors
Titles, styles, honours and arms
Titles and styles
- birth - 30 June 1710 Most High and Most Powerful Prince Charles, Son of France, Duke of Berry (Duke of Berry only as a courtesy title, and as such ignored for example in the letters patent confering him his apanage, where he is only called "Charles, Son of France")
- 30 June 1710 - September 1710 Most High and Most Powerful Prince Charles, Son of France, Duke of Berry, of Alençon and of Angoulesme, Count of Ponthieu, Lord of the castellanies of Noyelles, Hiermont, Coutteville and Le Mesnil (Duke of Berry "by brevet", as a personal title for life, other titles hereditary as an apanage)
- September 1710 - 5 May 1714 Most High and Most Powerful Prince Charles, Son of France, Duke of Berry, of Alençon and of Angoulesme, Viscount of Vernon, Andely and Gisors, Lord of the castellanies of Rignac and Merpins
Other honours
- knight of Saint Michael (automatically when received as a knight of the Holy Spirit in 1699)
Arms
The Duke of Berry assumed the royal arms (Azure, three fleur-de-lys or) differenced with a bordure engrailed gules, the mark of cadency traditionally associated with the Duchy of Berry since the 14th century (despite the fact that he never actually received that Duchy as an apanage, but the Duchies of Alençon and Angoulesme to which other arms were associated) and with the coronet of a Child of France above the shield.
