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).