| Marie of Lorraine | |
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| Marie with her sister Charlotte in 1693 | |
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| Consort | 1 January 1701 – 30 October 1724 |
| Spouse | Antonio I, Prince of Monaco |
| Issue | |
| Louise Hippolyte, Princess of Monaco Margherita Camilla, Princess of Isenghien |
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| Full name | |
| Marie de Lorraine | |
| Father | Louis of Lorraine |
| Mother | Catherine de Neufville |
| Born | 12 August 1674 Paris, France |
| Died | 30 October 1724 (aged 50) Prince's Palace, Monaco |
| Burial | Saint Nicholas Cathedral, Monaco |
Marie of Lorraine (12 August 1674 – 30 October 1724) was a princess of the House of Lorraine and Princess of Monaco as wife of Antonio I of Monaco. She was the mother of Louise Hippolyte Grimaldi, the only sovereign Princess of Monaco.
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Marie was the ninth of fourteen children born to Louis of Lorraine and Catherine de Neufville.[1] Her father was a member of the House of Guise, cadet branch of the House of Lorraine. Marie held the rank of Foreign Princess at the French court and was styled as Her Highness[2] Mademoiselle d'Armagnac.[3] She was raised with her sister Charlotte of Lorraine and was an intimate of the Duchess of Bourbon. Her mother was a daughter of Nicolas de Neufville, a Marshal of France and the governor of a young Louis XIV. Her uncle was the Chevalier de Lorraine, lover of Philippe of France.
The couple signed their wedding contract on 8 June 1688.[4] In a public ceremony in the Royal Chapel of Versailles, Marie married Antonio Grimaldi, Duke of Valentinois on 13 June 1688.[1] The ceremony was conducted by Pierre du Cambout de Coislin. As part of the marriage contract, Louis XIV gave the House of Grimaldi the rank of Foreign Princes at court.[5] Her husband was the son and heir of Louis Grimaldi, Prince of Monaco and Catherine Charlotte de Gramont, a former mistress of Louis XIV who had arranged the marriage between Marie and Antonio.[6] Court gossips later stated that the match had been schemed[clarification needed] by Madame de Maintenon who feared that if she did not remove Marie from court, she would become mistress to the king. However Madame de Maintenon wrote that Marie was one of the most "likeable women in the kingdom".[7] Marie was styled as Her Serene Highness the Duchess of Valentinois till her husband's accession in 1701. The couple were to have six daughters,[6] three of which would survive infancy.
Married at the age of thirteen, the vivacious and young Marie preferred to live lavishly and was frequently accused of having been unfaithful to her husband who was some 13 years older than she was. Saint-Simon described her in his Memoirs: 'the Duchesse de Valentinois was a charming young thing... spoilt by her parents' fondness for her and by the attentions of the courtiers who frequented the Lorraine household ... [The beautiful daughters] who were its chief adornment attracted the most glittering young men. Her husband, very sensibly, realized he hadn't the upper hand",[6] and Madame de Lafayette described her as "more of an elegant flirt than all of the ladies of the kingdom put together".[6]
Marie was sent to Monaco by her consort during his military service in 1692, where she was joined by her spouse some time later. There was a great scandal when she claimed that her father in law, the elderly Prince Louis of Monaco had made unwanted sexual advances towards her,[6] possibly as a way to receive permission to return to Paris,[6] which she did in 1693 and remained for the next four years; the couple returned to Monaco in 1697.[6]
As soon as it was clear that Marie was not going to give birth to a son, her husband began a series of badly concealed affairs to spite his wife.[6] Her husband fathered numerous illegitimate children during the marriage.
At the death of her father-in-law, her husband succeeded to the principality of Monaco in 1701. Marie was hence styled Her Serene Highness the Princess of Monaco. She lived in Monaco with her consort until 1712[6] and their relationship was described as unhappy but peaceful, and in reality, they lived apart; Antoine in the 'Giardinetto', a cottage he had built for his lover, Mlle. Montespan, and Marie in her pavilion 'Mon Desert'.[6]
Marie spent the last years of her life quietly without scandal and frequently returned to the French court. She died at the Princes Palace in Monaco, having organised the marriages of her two surviving daughters Louise Hippolyte and Margherita Camilla. She was buried at the Saint Nicholas Cathedral in Monaco. Her husband died in 1731 and was succeeded by their daughter Louise Hippolyte Grimaldi who became Princess of Monaco in her own right. She married Jacques Goyon de Matignon and is a direct ancestress of the reigning Albert II of Monaco.
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Media related to Marie of Lorraine at Wikimedia Commons
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