Eine wunderschöne Adventszeit, ein frohes Weihnachtsfest und einen guten Rutsch ins Neue Jahr 2024 wünscht Ihnen, meine lieben Leser und Leserinnen, Ihre Maike Vogt-Lüerssen von Downunder.
Möge das nächste Jahr Ihnen Gesundheit und viel Liebe schenken. Ganz besonders möchte ich mich bei denjenigen bedanken, die meine Bücher und E-Books gekauft haben und mir damit ermöglichen, meiner großen Leidenschaft, der Geschichte, weiterhin nachgehen zu können.
Marie Louise (1662-1689) wurde am 31. August 1679 von ihrem Onkel, dem französischen König Ludwig XIV., mit dem spanischen König Karl II. (1661-1700) verheiratet. Sie sollte ihren Gatten erst am 19. November 1679, also fast drei Monate nach ihrer Hochzeit, zum ersten Mal sehen.
Marie Louise war das älteste Kind des Herzogs Philippe d'Orléans, des jüngeren Bruders des französischen Königs Ludwig XIV., und seiner ersten Gattin, Henriette Anna von England. Sie erblickte am 26. März 1662 das Licht der Welt. Ihre Mutter hatte viele Fehlgeburten und eine Totgeburt im Jahr 1665, so dass Marie Louise nur zwei Vollgeschwister besaß: ihren Bruder Philippe Charles d'Orléans (1664-1666) und ihre Schwester Anne Marie d'Orléans (1669-1728), die Herzogin von Savoyen und Königin von Sizilien und Sardinien.
"Marie Louise was a spoilt beauty of the most refined and gayest court in Europe. She had when she was a child lost her mother; but everybody was in love with her, from Louis XIV. downward; and it had long been understood that she might marry the Dauphin [Louis], with whom she was on the tenderest terms of affection. ... She and the Dauphin were deeply in love with each other, and had been so since childhood. ... When her father and afterwards her uncle gravely told her the honour that was in store for her, she implored them in an agony of passionate tears to save her from such a fate. To her stepmother, to the Queen Marie Theresa, to the king, she appealed on her knees, again and again, to let her stay in France, where she was so happy, and not to send her far away amongst people she did not love. She was told that her duty was to France." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, pp. 415-416).
Der spanische König Karl II. war mit Marie Louise sehr glücklich verheiratet. "Karl II. fand in Marie Louise d'Orléans einen Menschen, der auf ihn einging, der nichts von ihm forderte, was über seine Kräfte und Wünsche hinausging. Sicherlich war seine erste Ehe die glücklichste Zeit seines Lebens." (in: Die Habsburger: Ein biographisches Lexikon, ebenda, S. 213).
"The harsh Duchess of Terranova [the Mistress of the robes] might insist upon the bright brown curls [of Marie Louise] being brushed wet till they hang flat and lank, and might cram the beautiful round bosom into the hideous flat corset demanded by Spanish fashion; but even she could not quite silence the frank, careless laugh." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, p. 432).
Madame D’Aulnoy, ein Zeitgenosse von Marie Louise, die in Madrid lebte, berichtet uns, dass die Marquise de la Fuente ihr erzählt hätte, dass: “the Queen [Marie Louise] had been much upset at the roughness of the Mistress of the Robes, who, seeing that her Majesty’s hair did not lie flat on the forehead, spat into her hand and approached for the purpose of sticking the straying lock down with saliva. The Queen resented his warmly, and rubbed hard with her pocket handkerchief upon the spot where this old woman had so dirtily wetted her forehead... It is really quite pitiable the way this old Mistress of the Robes treats the Queen. I know for a fact that she will not allow her to have a single hair curled, and forbids her to go near a window or speak to a soul!” (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, pp. 434-435).
Die Frau des französischen Botschafters in Spanien, Villars, erhielt durch die Königinmutter Maria Anna die Erlaubnis, Marie Louise zu besuchen, und zu unser großen Freude beschreibt sie ihre Begegnung mit der jungen Königin in einem Brief, geschrieben am 15. Dezember 1679: 'I entered by the apartment of the Mistress of the Robes, who received me with all sorts of civility. She took me through some little passages to a gallery, where I expected to see only the Queen, but, to my great surprise, I found myself before the whole royal family. The King was seated in a great arm-chair, and the two Queens on cushions. The Mistress of the Robes kept hold on my hand, telling me as we advanced how many courtesies I had to make, and I must begin with the King. She brought me up so close to his Majesty’s chair that I did not know what she wished me to do. For my part, I thought nothing more was required of me than a low courtesy, and without vanity, I may remark that he did not return it, though he seemed not sorry to see me. When I told M. de Villars [ihrem Gatten] about it afterwards, he said no doubt the Mistress of the Robes expected me to kiss the King’s hand. I thought so myself, but I felt no inclination to do so. ... There I was then, in the midst of these three Majesties. The Queen-Mother, as on the previous day, said many agreeable things, and the young Queen seemed very much pleased to see me, though I did my best that she should it in a discreet way. The King has a little Flemish dwarf who understands and speaks French very well, and he helped the conversation considerably. They brought one of the young ladies in a farthingale [Kleidungsstück], that I might examine the machine. The King had me asked what I thought of it, and I replied, through the dwarf, that I did not believe it was ever invented for a human form. He seemed very much of my opinion. They brought me a cushion, upon which I sat only for a moment in obedience to the sign made to me, but I took an opportunity immediately afterwards to rise, as I saw so many 'ladies of honour' standing, and I did not wish to offend them; though the Queens repeatedly told me to be seated. The young Queen had a collation served by her ladies on their knees – ladies of the most splendid names as Aragon, Castile and Portugal. The Queen-Mother took chocolate and the King nothing ... The gallery is rather long, the walls being covered with crimson damask or velvet, studded all over very close with gold trimmings. From one end to the other the floor is laid with the most lovely carpet I ever saw in my life, and on it there are tables, cabinets and brasiers, candlesticks being upon the tables. Every now and then very grandly dressed maids come in, each with two silver candlesticks, to replace others taken out for snuffing. These maids make very great, long courtesies, with much grace. A good way from the Queens there were some maids of honour sitting on the floor, and many ladies of advanced age, in the usual widow’s garb, were leaning standing against the wall. The King and Queen left in three quarter of an hour, the King walking first. The young Queen took her mother-in-law by the hand leading her to the door of the gallery and then she turned back quickly, and came to rejoin me. The Mistress of the Robes did not return, and it was evident that they had given the Queen full liberty to entertain me. There was only one old lady in the gallery, a long way off, and the Queen said that if she was not there she would give me a good hug. It was four o’clock when I arrived and half-past seven before I left, and then it was I who made the first move. I can assure you I wish the King, the Queen-Mother and the Mistress of the Robes could have heard all I said to the Queen. I wish you could have heard it too, and have seen us walking up and down that gallery, which the lights made very agreeable. This young Queen, in the novelty and beauty of her garments, and with an infinitude of diamonds, was simply ravishing. .. I think our young Princess is doing very well. She wished to see me every day, but I implored her to excuse me, unless I saw clearly that the King and the Queen-Mother wished it as much as she did ...' The King tried to please his lovely wife ... giving her many exquisite presents of jewellery and running in and out of her apartments to tell her bits of news, and so on. But the life was deadly dull. Charles had no amusements other than the most childish games and trivial pastimes: his intellect was not capable of sustaining a reasonable conversation, and after a day of stiff monotony, he and his wife went to bed every night at half-past eight, the moment they had finished supper: 'with the last morsel still in their mouths', as Madame Villars writes." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, pp. 435-438).
Marie Louises erster offizieller Auftritt in Madrid als die neue Königin von Spanien: "The Queen [Marie Louise von Orléans] mounted her horse, which was a fiery Andalusian, about eleven o'clock of the forenoon. Her long hair fell loose over her shoulders and forehead. She wore a richly embroidered riding habit and a small fardingal. Her hat was adorned with white and carnation coloured plumes, and was tucked up on one side by a diamond clasp, whence hung the celebrated pearl called Peregrina, which was of inestimable value, and as large as a small pear. She bore on one of her fingers the King's chief diamond, which surpassed in size and lustre every gem in the world. But the grace displayed by the Queen in all her movements, particularly in the management of her steed, and the charms of her person, attracted far more admiration than the jewels, dazzling as they were, by which she was adorned. She was now in the first bloom and radiance of youth, - her eyes were black, large, and lively, - her eyebrows arched, - her lips rosy but somewhat thick, and her hair, which she wore in great profusion, of dark chestnut colour." (in: John Dunlop: Memoirs of Spain – During the reign of Philip IV. and Charles II. From 1621 to 1700, Vol 2, id., pp. 168-169).
Es gab am spanischen Hof nicht viel zu tun für die junge Königin Marie Louise, außer die vielen Mahlzeiten zu genießen. Das konnte man mittlerweile an ihrer Figur sehen, wie Madame Villiars im Februar 1680 schrieb: "She [Marie Louise] had grown so fat, that if it goes much further, her face will be round. Her bosom, strictly speaking, is already too full; although it is one of the most beautiful I have ever seen. She usually sleeps ten or twelve hours, and eats meat four times a day. It is true that her breakfast and her luncheon (collation) are her best meals. She always has served for lunch a capon boiled and broth, and a roast capon. She laughs very much when I have the honour to be with her. I am quite sure that it is not I who am sufficiently agreeable to put her into such a good humour, and that she must be pretty comfortable generally. No one could behave better than she does, or be sweeter and more complaisant with the King. She saw his portrait before she married him, but they did not paint his strange humour, nor his love for solitude. The customs of the country have not all been turned upside down to make them more agreeable for her, but the Queen-mother does everything she can to soften them. ... When I tell you that she is fat, that she sleeps well and laughs heartily, I tell you no more than the truth; but it is no less true that the life she leads does not please her ..." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, p. 443).
"... she [Marie Louise] had neither brains, heart nor ambition to take a leading part in politics, or to play the role that she was intended to fill in Spain by her uncle King Louis [XIV.]. All that was left for her, then, was to eat, drink, sleep, and be as merry as her grim surroundings would allow ... Marie Louise took part in the King’s puerile pleasures of throwing eggshells full of scent at people, or playing with him for hours at his favourite game of spilikens for pens." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, p. 444).
Ein weiterer Besuch von Madame Villars bei der jungen Königin, als sie sich gerade ausruhte: "She [Marie Louise] rose at once. It is truly surprising how beautiful she has grown. She wore her hair tied up in great curls on her forehead, with rose coloured ribbons on her cap and on the top of her head; and she was not plastered over with rouge, as she is generally obliged to do. Her throat and bosom were admirable. She slipped on a French dressing gown, which she wore for the rest of the day. She stood thus for a short time regarding herself in a great mirror, and the view seemed to revive her. Her eyes looked as if she had been weeping much [zwei Französinnen in ihrem Dienst hatten nach Frankreich zurückzukehren]. As soon as she began to speak to me the King entered the room, and it is the rule in such cases for the ladies all to leave, except the Mistress of the Robes and some servants. I heard cards asked for, and I concluded that the Queen was going to be bored to death with the little game that the King is so fond of, at which, if you have very bad luck, you may loose a dollar. The Queen always plays it as if she was enraptured with the occupation." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, pp. 446-447).
Karl II., ihr Gatte, ..."loved her with unabated affection. Amid the restraints of Spanish formality, he was occasionally much delighted by that simplicity and freedom of manner which she had brought with her from France, and which she still, in some decree, retained ... The amusement in which she was most frequently indulged, was the privilege of accompanying the King to the chase. His Majesty had presented her with a spirited steed from Andalusia; and a circumstance which occurred one day when she had mounted it in the court of the palace, displays, in a striking point of view, the ridiculous forms established at the palace of Madrid. The animal having begun to rear, the Queen fell from her seat, and her foot having been entangled in the stirrup, the horse dragged her along. Charles, who saw this accident from the balcony of one of the palace windows, became motionless from terror. The court, at the moment, was filled with guards and grandees, but no one dared to run the hazard of assisting her Majesty in this peril, as it was a species of treason for any one to touch the person of a Consort of Spain; and, which one would hardly expect, it is a more heinous offence to touch her foot than any other part of the body. At length, two Spanish cavaliers, Don Louis de-las-Torres and Don Jayme de Sotomayor, resolved, at all risks, to save their Queen. The former seized the bridle of the palfrey, while his companion extricated her Majesty's foot from the stirrup. Having rendered her this service, they went home with all possible expedition, and ordered their steeds to be saddled that they might fly from the resentment of the King. The young Count of Peñaranda, who was the friend of both, approached the Queen, and respectfully informed her of the danger in which her preservers might be placed, unless she interceded in their favour. His Majesty, who had now come to the spot, listened to the entreaties which she offered up to him, and a messenger, who was immediately despatched with a pardon to the cavaliers, reached them just in time to prevent their flight into a foreign land." (in: John Dunlop: Memoirs of Spain – During the reign of Philip IV. and Charles II. From 1621 to 1700, Vol 2, id., pp. 201-202).
"The Duchess of Terranova [mistress of the robes], from the first day, had been remonstrating with the Queen [Marie Louise] against her insisting upon riding a great horse over the wretched rain-soaked tracts that did duty for roads. Spanish ladies, she was told, travelled in closely-curtained carriages or litters, or, in case of urgent need, upon led mules, but never upon horses thus, and Marie Louise, who was a splendid horsewoman, had excusably defended the custom of the Court in which she had been reared. This was the first cause of disagreement between Marie Louise and her mistress of the robes, but others followed quickly." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, p. 428).
"In January 1685 the Duke of Montalto in Madrid wrote to Pedro Ronquillo, the ambassador in London: 'The king [Karl II.] attends to nothing but his hunting pastimes, and the Queen [Marie Louise] in tiring horses, as if she were a skilled horse-breaker. That is a pretty way to become pregnant! In short, my dear sir, it is quite clear that God determines to punish us on every side.' Marie Louise managed, it is true, by her charm and beauty to keep her husband deeply in love with her in his maudlin fashion, but, weak as he was, she failed to influence him politically." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, p. 462).
Natürlich stellt man sich die Frage, war Marie Louise d'Orléans jemals schwanger in ihrer Ehe mit Karl II. Es gibt in der Tat zeitgenössische Quellen, die uns berichten, dass sie mindestens zweimal schwanger gewesen war. Aber sie muss die Kinder verloren haben. Sie hatte also mehrere Fehlgeburten erlitten: Der Herzog von Montalto schrieb am 30. August 1685 Folgendes: " ... that for months the Queen had not gone out in public, in which she was wise, particularly when the anti-French riots were taking place, as the mob might have attacked her: 'They say again that she is pregnant, but there is not much belief in it, as the same thing has happened several times before. She had got up a very grand comedy for St. Louis’ day; but it had to be deferred, because of this pregnancy rumour, and not even the usual comedies in the palace were given for the same reason.'" Vermutlich hatte sie auch dieses Kind verloren, und ihr Gatte, der sie sehr liebte, wollte sie durch den Umzug des Hofes im Oktober 1685 nach Retiro trösten und aufheitern: "... which place the Queen is very fond of, because there she can enjoy her country sport, and especially ride about on horseback every afternoon. In order to have her horses nearer to her, she has had a place made for them near the large pond, where she goes every morning to visit them." Im April 1686 schreibt der Herzog von Montalto: "Things are in the greatest embarrassment for the government, owing to the fancies and caprices of the Queen; for nothing is done by any other rule than her whim." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, pp. 473-474). Im Jahr 1688 lesen wir: "A week or so later Marie Louise had recovered her health, and the long-prepared comedy [in der Marie Louise die Rolle eines Jungen spielen wollte] was played with great brilliancy. The King went to the full rehearsal two days before the public performance; and although shocked and annoyed by his wife’s caprice in playing a male part, had not strength of will enough to forbid it. When, however, the piece was represented publicly, and all the principal ladies in Madrid, with the gentlemen of the household, were present to praise and applaud, poor, unstable Charles was so charmed with his wife, even on the stage, that he testified his delight at her performance, and the entertainment was repeated again and again during the summer. Once more at this time there was a belief that the Queen was pregnant ..." Aber auch dieses Kind ging verloren. Marie Louise muss in ihrer Ehe sehr viele Fehlgeburten erlitten haben. Der Herzog von Montalto "says that the Queen had explained, in answer to an inquiry of her father, that the reason for her lack of issue was not the impotence of the King, but his excessive concupiscence..." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, p. 478).
"Her Majesty [Marie Louise von Orléans] had enjoyed uninterrupted good health till the close of 1688, when she was afflicted with the small-pox; and she had afterwards some severe attacks of disorder in the stomach, accompanied with Calenture. From these, however, though much weakened, she partially recovered, till, in the beginning of February of this year [1689], after too violent exercise on horseback, she was seized with cholera morbus. During her short and severe illness, she conducted herself with much fortitude and resignation, and shewed, in all her expressions and actions, an exemplary piety. ... Such was the ascendency she had at last acquired over the mind of her husband, that he was about to send for her half-brother the Duke of Chartres ... and was then fourteen years of age, to constitute him heir to the monarchy, and bring him up in the manners and institutions of Spain [was ihm nicht gelang]." (in: John Dunlop: Memoirs of Spain – During the reign of Philip IV. and Charles II. From 1621 to 1700, Vol 2, id., pp. 244-246).
Über den Verlauf ihrer Krankheit im Jahr 1687 erfahren wir Folgendes: Im Sommer/Juli/August 1687 schrieb der Herzog von Montalto: "She [Marie Louise] was lately ill with fever, owing to the rubbish she is always eating. Nobody can control her, and she looks consumptive. Those of us who are not much attached to her are not sorry to see her afflicted. ... She is dreadfully thin and languid, and will take no remedies but those prescribed by her own caprice and distrust. ...... He [Karl II.] gives no more than a quarter of an hour to business in the day, and the whole of the rest of his time is spent in such trifles as running backwards and forwards through these saloons, and from balcony to balcony, like a child of six, and his conversation would match about the same age. The Queen [Marie Louise] is dreadfully ill and thin, and has quarrelled with the Queen-Mother (Maria Anna]." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, p. 476). Es schien ihr im Jahr 1688 laut den Berichten des Herzogs von Montalto gesundheitlich wieder besser zu gehen (War sie im Jahr 1687 nicht krank, sondern nur schwanger und litt an Schwangerschaftsübelkeit?): "Yesterday it was my turn for duty at the Retiro ... The King’s great business whilst I was there was to see the matting taken up in the rooms and to count the pins and trifles of that sort. The Queen blurts whatever comes uppermost, and indulges to the full in her craze for riding on horseback, prancing about indecorously over the neighbourhood. She has again had her ladies mounted, knowing that the King hates to see it. ... As usual she will do as she likes. There are constant tourneys and balls because she insists upon them, and there is no influence or reason that can keep her within bounds. The Queen-Mother pays great attention to her, but is cruelly slighted by her. ... She [Marie Louise] had had a magnificent theatre constructed at the Retiro, with lavish ornaments, etc. in which she has wasted thousands of ducats, and yet there is not a real for urgent needs. The King is a cypher, and allows things to be done before him of which he entirely disapproves. I positively dread my turn of duty, for I see the King does nothing but run about like an imp, and if he goes into the garden it is only to pick strawberries and count them." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, pp. 477-478).
Im Herbst 1688 wurde Marie Louise jedoch wirklich krank: "In autumn 1688 Marie Louise fell ill of smallpox in the palace of Madrid, the King was to have started for the Escorial at the time his wife was attacked by the malady, and was obliged to delay the departure, though fear of contagion kept him away from her ... Before she was fit to be moved the Queen insisted upon being carried in a Sedan chair to the Retiro to pass her period of convalescence there, first visiting the church of Atocha, whilst Charles departed to spend a month at Escorial." (in: Martin Hume: Queens of Old Spain. London 19112, p. 478). Sie sollte sich von den Folgen der Krankheit nicht mehr erholen und starb am 12. Februar 1689.
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