Eine wunderschöne Adventszeit, ein frohes Weihnachtsfest und einen guten Rutsch ins Neue Jahr 2026 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.
Von Madame de Motteville, einer Zeitgenossin von Françoise-Louise de La Baume Le Blanc, erfahren wir Folgendes über Letztere: "It was about this time [im Jahr 1661] that the king [Ludwig XIV.] first made known his inclination for Mademoiselle de La Vallière, one of Madame's [Henriette Anna von England, Herzogin von Orléans] maids of honour. She was amiable, and her beauty had great charms from the dazzling white and rose of her complexion, the blue of her eyes which had much sweetness, and the beauty of her blond hair which increased that of her face. ... The queen-mother [Anna von Spanien/Österreich, die Mutter von Ludwig XIV.] was distressed by this new passion ... several days earlier, she had been suspected of having commanded me [Madame de Motteville] to have Mademoiselle de Pons removed from Fontainebleau to Paris by my friend Madame du Plessis, to withdraw her from the eyes of the king ... The method that the queen-mother took to moderate this new inclination of the king for Mademoiselle de La Vallière was to warn him cordially, representing to him what he owed to God and to his kingdom, and telling him that he ought to fear that many persons would use that attachment to form intrigues about him which would some day be to his injury. She begged him also to help her to hide his passion from the queen [Maria Teresa von Spanien, der ersten Gattin von Ludwig XIV.], for fear her grief might cause some evil effects to the life of the child she was then bearing. The king esteemed this advice; and the secret was kept throughout the Court with such care that the queen, who was then pregnant some four or five months with Monseigneur the dauphin, concluded the period of her pregnancy without knowing it." (in: Memoirs of Madame de Motteville, Volume 3, id., pp. 259-260).
Aus der Kindheit der Madame de La Vallière laut Madame de Montespan: "Her father [Laurent de La Baume Le Blanc (1611-1651), Seigneur of La Vallière] died when she was quite young, and, when dying foresaw that his widow [Marie-Françoise Le Provost de La Coutelaye], being without fortune or constancy, would ere long marry again. To little Louise [Madame de La Vallère] he was devotedly attached. Ardently embracing her, he addressed her thus: 'In losing me, my poor little Louise, you lose all. What little there is of my inheritance ought, undoubtedly, to belong to you; but I know your mother; she will dispose of it. If my relatives do not show the interest in you which your fatherless state should inspire, renounce this world soon, where, separated from your father, there exists for you but danger and misfortune. Two of my ancestors left their property to the nuns of Saint Bernard at Gomer-Fontaines, as they are perfectly well aware. Go to them in all confidence; they will receive you without a dowry even; it is their duty to do so. If, disregarding my last counsel, you go astray in the world, from the eternal abodes on high I will watch over you; I will appear to you, if God empower me to do so; and, at any rate, from time to time I will knock at the door of your heart to rouse you from your baleful slumber and draw your attention to the sweet paths of light that lead to God.' This speech of a dying father was graven upon the heart of a young girl both timid and sensitive. She never forgot it ... Before becoming attached to the King, she opened out her heart to me with natural candour; and whenever in the country she observed the turrets or the spire of a monastery, she sighed, and I saw her beautiful blue eyes fill with tears." (in: Memoirs of Madame la Marquise de Montespan – Being Historic Memoirs of the Court of Louis XIV., Volume 1, pp. 69-70).
Die erste Begegnung des französischen Köngis Ludwig XIV. mit der hübschen, sanftmütigen, impulsiven und selbstlosen Mademoiselle La Vallière: "... Louis [Ludwig XIV.] now chose her [seiner Schwägerin Henriette Maria von Englands] fair young maid-of-honour, the little La Vallière, as she was called, to be the object of his attentions, and paid her a homage which excited general surprise. The poor girl, gentle and modest as she was, soon fell desperately in love with this handsome and attractive monarch ... the King's intrigue with La Vallière had assumed more serious proportions. So grave was the scandal, that one day Madame [Henriette Anna von England, die Herzogin von Orléans] herself told her young maid-of-honour that she must leave her service. La Vallière, overwhelmed with confusion, acknowledged the truth of her mistress's reproaches, and left the Tuileries that night. The next morning the King was informed of his mistress's flight. There was a great hue and cry, and Louis himself set out to find her retreat. ... At length, after a prolonged search, the unhappy La Vallière was discovered in a convent near Saint-Cloud, where she had taken refuge. The King himself brought her back to the Tuileries, and with tears in his eyes implored Madame to receive her. Henrietta [Anna] consented, but not without considerable reluctance, and is said to have told the King, that in future she would consider La Vallière as his property ... [Henriette Anna] begged the King to remove his mistress from her household. ... At length Louis acknowledged his mistake, and La Vallière was given separate apartments, and appeared no longer among Madame's ladies. And when, in the spring of 1663, her condition [sie war schwanger geworden] rendered further concealment impossible, she moved to the Palais Brion, a house in the gardens of Palais-Royal, which the King gave her as a residence." (in: Julia Mary Cartwright Ady: Madame, a life of Henrietta, daughter of Charles I. and Duchess of Orleans, id., pp. 105/114/122).
Ludwig XIV. liebte seine Mutter sehr, aber er wusste auch, dass sie gegen seine Mätresse, Mademoiselle de La Vallière, war. Und trotzdem hatte er das Bedürfnis, diese Frau, die er so sehr liebte, seiner Mutter im Jahr 1665 vorzustellen: "One day, after her return [die Rückkehr seiner Mutter] to Vincennes and while she still kept her chamber, the king brought Mademoiselle de La Vallière to her. He was not afraid that the queen [seine Gattin Maria Teresa von Spanien] would see her, because she was ill herself. But when she [seine Gattin] knew that the girl was in the queen-mother's room, playing cards with the king and Monsieur and Madame [ihrem jüngeren Sohn Philippe I. und dessen Gattin], she was excessively distressed; and as I [Madame de Motteville] happened to be with her at the time she commanded me to go and speak of it to the queen-mother. I found her in her oratory apparently much grieved at what the king had done. ... the next day she [die Mutter des Königs] talked of it with the queen her daughter[-in-law], and I know that they continued satisfied with each other." (in: Memoirs of Madame de Motteville, Volume 3, id., p. 306).
Was schrieb Madame de Montespan über ihre Vorgängerin als Hauptmätresse des französischen Königs Ludwig XIV., Madame de Vallière: "Mademoiselle de La Valliére was tall, shapely, and extremely pretty, with as sweet and even a temper as one could possibly imagine, which eminently fitted her for dreamy, contemplative love-making, such as one reads of in idyls and romances. She would willingly have spent her life in contemplating the King, - in loving and adoring him without ever opening her mouth; and to her, the sweet silence of a tête-à-tête seemed preferable to any conversation enlivened by wit. The King's character was totally different. His imagination was vivid, and mere love-making, however pleasant, bored him at last if the charm of ready speech and ready wit were wanting. I do not profess to be a prodigy, but those who know me do me the justice to admit that where I am it is very difficult for boredom to find ever so small a footing. Mademoiselle de la Vallière, after having begged me, and begged me often, to come and help her to entertain the King, grew suddenly suspicious and uneasy. She is candour itself, and one day, bursting into tears, she said to me, in that voice peculiar to her alone, 'For Heaven's sake, my good friend, do not steal away the King's heart from me!' When mademoiselle said this to me, I vow and declare in all honesty that her fears were unfounded, and that (for my part at least) I had only just a natural desire to gain the good-will of a great prince. My friendship for La Vallière was so sincere, so thorough, that I often used to superintend little details of her toilet and give her various hints as to attentive conduct of the sort which cements and revives attachments. ... Moreover, Mademoiselle de la Vallière never broke with me. She shed tears in abundance, and wounded my heart a thousand times by the sight of her grief and her distress ... [aber der König interessierte sich nicht mehr für sie, sondern für Madame de Montespan.]" (in: Memoirs of Madame la Marquise de Montespan – Being Historic Memoirs of the Court of Louis XIV, Volume 1, pp. 34-35).
Sechs Monate nach dem Tod der Mutter des französischen Königs, Anna von Spanien/Österreich, übertrug Ludwig XIV. laut Madame de Montespan "the Vaujours estate to his mistress [Madame de La Vallière], after formally constituting it a duchy, and owing to the two children of his duchy, Mademoiselle de la Vallière assumed the title of Duchess. ... La Vallière would have liked to enjoy her handsome lover in the shade and security of mystery, without exposing herself to the satire of courtiers and of the public, and, above all, to the reproaches of her family and relatives, who nearly all were very devout. ... she soon saw that such fears were exaggerated ... [Ihr Stiefvater, der Marquis de Saint-Rémy, und ihre Mutter - er war ihr zweiter Gatte - beglückwünschten sogar ihre Tochter.] ... when, a days afterwards, the King declared the rank of the two children to the whole assembled Parliament, the two families of Saint-Rémy and La Vallière offered congratulations to the Duchess, and received those of all Paris." (in: Memoirs of Madame la Marquise de Montespan – Being Historic Memoirs of the Court of Louis XIV., Volume 1, pp. 66-67).
Die Herzogin von La Vallière schenkte ihrem Geliebten, dem französischen König Ludwig XIV., folgende vier Kinder: 1. Charles, geboren am 19. Dezember 1663 und gestorben am 15. Juli 1665; 2. Philippe, geboren am 7. Januar 1665 und gestorben im Juli 1666; 3. Marie-Anne von Bourbon, geboren am 2. Oktober 1666 und gestorben am 3. Mai 1739; und 4. Louis, Graf von Vermandois, geboren am 2. Oktober 1667 und gestorben am 18. 11. 1693 (bei seinem ersten militärischen Einsatz).
"With the death of his mother [Anna von Spanien-Österreich], Louis [Ludwig XIV.] had thrown aside the last pretence at concealment. The son [Philippe] whom La Vallière had borne him, two years [wrong: one year] before, was brought up at the Tuileries, and treated with royal honours, and the deputations from the Parliament and Courts of Law, who came to Saint-Germain, to present their condolences on the Queen-mother's death, were amazed to see the King's mistress present among the ladies in attendance on the Queen [Ludwigs Gattin Maria Teresa von Spanien]. Marie Thérèse resented this bitterly, but her tears failed to move the King, who had listened with such remorse to his mother's dying exhortations, and when Madame [Ludwigs Schwägerin Henriette Anna von England], in compassion for her sister-in-law, ventured to take her part, she only drew the King's displeasure upon herself. 'The Queen of France,' writes an English correspondent, a few months later, 'perceiving Mademoiselle de la Vallière big with child, [sie war schwanger mit ihrer Tochter Marie-Anne] hath forbid her to appeare before her any more ..." (in: Julia Mary Cartwright Ady: Madame, a life of Henrietta, daughter of Charles I. and Duchess of Orleans, id., p. 230).
"M. Colbert, who owed everything to the King, entrusted Madame Colbert with the education of the new prince and princess [den Kindern von Madame de La Vallière]; they were brought up under the eyes of this statesman, who for everything found time and obligingness. The girl, lovely as love itself, took the name of Mademoiselle de Blois, while to her little brother was given the title of Comte de Vermandois." (in: Memoirs of Madame la Marquise de Montespan – Being Historic Memoirs of the Court of Louis XIV., Volume 1, p. 67).
Als ihre Beziehung mit dem König zu Ende war, "The King no longer visited her as his mistress, but trusted and esteemed her as a friend and as the mother of his two pretty children." (in: Memoirs of Madame la Marquise de Montespan – Being Historic Memoirs of the Court of Louis XIV., Volume 1, p. 75). Ihren Abschiedsbrief an den König finden wir in den Memoiren der Madame de Montespan. Sie schrieb ihn im April 1674: "SIRE: - To-day I am leaving forever this palace, whither the cruellest of fatalities summoned my youth and inexperience. Had I not met you, my heart would have loved seclusion, a laborious life, and my kinsfolk. An imperious inclination, which I could not conquer, gave me to you, and, simple, docile as I was by nature, I believed that my passion would always prove to me delicious, and that your love would never die. In this world nothing endures. My fond attachment has ceased to have any charm for you, and my heart is filled with dismay. This trial has come from God; of this my reason and my faith are convinced. God has felt compassion for my unspeakable grief. That which for long past I have suffered is greater than human force can bear; He is going to receive me into His home of mercy. He promises me both healing and peace. In this theatre of pomp and perfidy I have only stayed until such a moment as my daughter and her youthful brother might more easily do without me [ihre Kinder sind sechs bzw. sieben Jahre alt]. You will cherish them both; of that I have no doubt. Guide them, I beseech you, for the sake of your own glory and their well-being. May your watchful care sustain them, while their mother, humbled and prostrate in a cloister, shall commend them to Him, who pardons all. After my departure, show some kindness to those who were my servants and faithful domestics, and deign to take back the estates and residences which served to support me in my frivolous grandeur, and maintain the celebrity that I deplore. Adieu, Sire! Think no more about me, lest such a feeling, to which my imagination might but all too readily lend itself, only beget links of sympathy in my heart which conscience and repentance would fain destroy. If God call me to himself, young though yet I am, He will have granted my prayers; if He ordain me to live for a while longer in this desert of penitence, it will never compensate for the duration of my error, nor for the scandal of which I have been the cause. Your subject from this time forth, LOUISE DE LA VALLIÈRE." (in: Memoirs of Madame la Marquise de Montespan – Being Historic Memoirs of the Court of Louis XIV., Volume 1, pp. 76-77).
Madame de Montespan über ihre Vorgängerin, Madame de La Vallière, als Mätresse von Ludwig XIV.: "Until the moment of her departure, Madame de la Vallière used always to visit me. The evening before her going she took supper with me, and I certainly had no cause to read in her looks either annoyance or reproach." (in: Memoirs of Madame la Marquise de Montespan – Being Historic Memoirs of the Court of Louis XIV., Volume 1, p. 264).
Im Kloster wurde sie fortan Schwester "Louise del Miséricorde" genannt.
"The Carmelite nuns of the Rue Saint Jacques loudly proclaimed this conversion, and in their vanity gladly received into their midst so modest and distinguished a victim [Madame de La Vallière], driven thither through sheer despair. The ceremony which these dames call 'taking the dress' attracted the entire Court to their church. The Queen [Maria Teresa von Spanien] herself desired to be present at so harrowing a spectacle, and by a curious contradiction, of which her capricious nature is capable, she shed floods of tears. La Vallière seemed gentler, lovelier, more modest and more seductive than ever. In the midst of the grief and tears which her courageous sacrifice provoked, she never uttered a single sigh, nor did she change colour once. Hers was a nature made for extremes; like Cæsar, she said to herself, 'Either Rome or nothing!'" (in: Memoirs of Madame la Marquise de Montespan – Being Historic Memoirs of the Court of Louis XIV., Volume 1, pp. 77-78).
Ihre Kinder hatten sehr unter der Trennung von ihr, nachdem sie ins Kloster gegangen war, gelitten. Von Madame de Montespan erfahren wir hierüber Folgendes: "When Madame de La Vallière ... left the Court and the world to shut herself up in a cloister, she committed a great imprudence ... The Carmelites in the Rue Saint-Jacques could easily do without her; her two poor little children could not. ... M. le Comte de Vermandois was only seven years old when exaggerated scruples and bad advice deprived him of his mother. This amiable child, who loved her, at first suffered much from her absence and departure. He had to be taken to the Carmelites, where the sad metamorphosis of his mother, whom he had seen so brilliant and alluring, made him start back in fright. He loved her always as much as he was loved by her, and in virtue of the permission formally given by the Pope, he went every week to pass an hour or two with her in her parlour. He regularly took there his singing and flute lessons; these were two amiable talents in which he excelled." (in: Memoirs of Madame la Marquise de Montespan, Volume 2, pp. 310-311).
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