GABRIELLE-ANGÉLIQUE DE BOURBON
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Although born to a bourgeois family at Orléans, Marie Touchet "held her row at court as well as any of the first class ladies". Her anagrammed name was even Je Charme Tout (the letters I and J were then considered interchangeable) meaning "I charm all." Henry, King of Navarre was responsible for this clever wordplay. By her late teens, she was mistress to King Charles IX. In 1573 she bore the king a son, Charles de Valois. It would be the king’s only son, for just one year later he died, at which time Charles was entrusted to the care of his younger brother and successor, King Henry III of France. The new king was faithful to his dead brother's wishes and dutifully raised little Charles Valois.
Marie Touchet received a pension for her services to Charles IX, and continued as a part of the royal circle. She went on to marry in 1578 the marquis d'Entragues, Charles Balzac d'Entragues, and in 1579 had a daughter, Catherine Henriette de Balzac d'Entragues. Marie died in Paris on 28 March 1638, aged 88 or 89. |
Catherine-Henriette de Balzac d'Entragues and her two sisters, the issue of the d’Entragues marriage, counted Charles de Valois, the Comte d'Auvergne, later Duc d'Angoulème, the son of Charles IX, as their half-brother. [He would also, then, be cousin of Gabrielle de Bourbon.]
Catherine-Henriette would follow in her mother's footsteps, and become the mistress of King Henry IV of France.
ABOUT CATHERINE
Catherine-Henriette de Balzac was raised at a time when women often sought to become a mistress to royalty. Catherine's family was no exception.
Catherine Henriette was ambitious, pretty, and intriguing. About six months after the death of the king's favored and official mistress, Gabrielle d'Estrées, she had succeeded in becoming mistress to Henry IV.
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Love Letter from the King Le cœur blessé, les yeux en larmes. Henri IV to Henriette de Balzac d'Entragues, August 1599 |
The reputation of Henriette, according to Sully, was not quite immaculate before her connection with Henry; and certainly the mercenary cunning which she displayed in the whole of her dealings with the King showed more of the spirit of the prostitute than the weakness of the inexperienced girl. She even managed to obtain from Henri, at her family’s property, a written promise of marriage if she produced a male child. Not that money, also, was not involved: 100,000 ecus was the cost to the French people for her to yield her virginity to him.
She eventually induced him into a promise to marry her at her family's property, the Château de Malesherbes.
In October 1599, at Malesherbes, the king wrote a letter promising to marry Catherine:
Nous, Henri Quatrième, par la grâce de Dieu, roi de France et de Navarre, promettons et jurons devant Dieu, en foi et parole de roi, à messire François de Balzac, sieur d’Entragues, chevalier de nos ordres, que nous donnant pour compagne demoiselle Catherine Henriette de Balzac, sa fille, au cas que dans six mois à commencer du premier jour du présent, elle devienne grosse et qu'elle accouche d'un fils, alors et à l'instant nous la prendrons à femme et légitime épouse, dont nous solenniserons le mariage publiquement et en face de notre Sainte Église, selon les solennités en tel cas requises et accoutumées (…). Aussitôt après que nous aurons obtenu de notre Saint Père le pape la dissolution du mariage entre nous et Madame Marguerite de France, avec permission de nous marier où bon nous semblera .
From the Memoirs of Hervé de Tocqueville: «Life at the château de Malesherbes was quite pleasant».
Before becoming the property of Chrétien-Guillaume-François de Lamoignon around 1726, the château de Malesherbes belonged to the d'Illiers d'Entragues family, who had owned it since the 16th century. The chateau's first owner, François de Balzac d'Entragues, remained well-known due to the relationship between his daughter, Henriette, and Henry IV. The story is told that the relationship began at the chateau de Malesherbes, and that the father of Henry IV's official favorite tried to take advantage of this before the king married Marie de Medicis. François de Balzac was then condemned to death by Parliament for conspiring with the Spanish court against the king, but his sentence was commuted to life in prison in the château de Malesherbes, where he died.
Henry, however, quite suddenly, without much advance notice, married Marie de Medici, by proxy, in October of 1600. This led to bitter scenes of jealousy and arguing at the Court.
Despite this the king was forced to yield to his ministers and make a state marriage with Marie de Medici, but he refused to give up Henriette. In mid-1600 Henriette gave birth to Henry’s son, but the infant lived only a few hours. Henry saw the death of this child as reason to free himself from his former promise of marriage.
...Making immediate use of his new-found freedom, the king not only negotiated a marriage contract with Marie de Medici...but also promised his mistress Henriette d'Entragues that he would wed her if she produced a male child. Since Henriette's first child proved still-born, Henry married Marie (consummating the union on the night before the ceremony); but he lodged her in the palace close to Henriette's apartment and slipped from one bed to another. Both women gave birth to his sons in 1601 and to his daughters in 1602. (Parker, p. 82; see below.)
Terribly infuriated and feeling betrayed, Catherine-Henriette carried her spite so far as to be deeply compromised in a conspiracy against the king in 1606, but escaped with only a slight punishment after the plot was foiled.
Henri’s marriage to Marie de Medicis so offended his haughty, jealous and intriguing mistress, that she became involved in several conspiracies to assasinate her royal lover. She conspired with the Spanish court to dethrone Henri and place the crown of France on the head of her son born in 1601, Henri de Bourbon. The intrigues were discovered and the accomplices punished.
Another conspiracy involved an alliance with Henry’s former friend the Duc de Biron, and Duke Carlo Emanuel of Savoy. This plot ended with Biron’ execution, while Henriette, who had been created marquise de Verneuil, was exiled from the court.
She was obviously consolable, because she subsequently bore him two children.
Catherine Henriette and her family were later discovered to be plotting to have Spain recognize her son Henri, as rightful heir to the throne on the death of the King. Although she was eventually reconciled with Henri, there are those who have accused her of being implicated with Ravaillac in Henri IV's assassination in 1610.
When the King died, his wife, Queen Marie d'Medici, was named Regent by Parliament, as her son, Louis XIII, was very young. The Queen immediately banished Catherine Henriette from the royal court. Little is known of her life after that.
Catherine Henriette, the Marquise de Verneuil died 9 February 1633 in Paris, France.
CHILDREN OF KING HENRY IV & CATHERINE HENRIETTE
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Gaston-Henri de Bourbon was born 27 October (or 3 November) 1601 at the Château de Vincennes. The king declared him legitimate in 1603, at the age of two. His half siblings included the King of France, Duchess of Savoy and Duke of Vendôme.
He was more frequently known as Henri de Bourbon.
Gaston-Henri de Bourbon
An article in the New Advent website states that Henri de Bourbon was appointed Bishop of Metz at the age of six, but the Pope didn't allow him to "serve" as bishop at that tender age.
Henri actually served as Bishop of Metz from 19 April 1612 to 1652 when he resigned in favor of Cardinal Mazarin.
He was knighted on December 31, 1661 and created Duke of Verneuil in 1663. In 1665 he became Ambassador to England and in 1666 was made Governor of Languedoc
Gaston-Henri de Bourbon, légitimé de France,
évêque (bishop) de Metz, then duc de Verneuil
He was knighted on 31 December 1661 and created duc de Verneuil in 1663. He would have been in his early sixties.
Appointed bishop in 1612, he resigned in 1652. He was knighted on December 31, 1661 and created duke of Verneuil in 1663. In 1665 he became ambassador to England and in 1666 was made governor of Languedoc. He married Charlotte, daughter of the chancellor Pierre Séguier and widow of Maximilien de Bethune, Duke of Sully, on October 29, 1668. He died without issue on May 28, 1682 at Château de Verneuil.
It is difficult to believe that the two portraits above are one and the same individual. Yet, an exhaustive search on the Internet has provided me with only these and two other portraits and all are cited to be one and the same person.
He was installed as a chevalier de l'ordre du Saint-Esprit on 31 December 1661, and then as a peer of France in 1663. In 1665 he became "ambassador extraordinaire" to England and in 1666 was made governor of Languedoc.
On 29 October 1668, he married Charlotte, daughter of the chancellor Pierre Séguier and widow of Maximilien de Bethune, duc de Sully.
Henri de Bourbon, duc de Verneuil, died without issue on 28 March 1682 at Château de Verneuil-sur-Oise, Eure, France. His age was 80 years.
An article (in French) gives us some information on the Château de Verneuil in the Village of Verneuil-en-Halette:
Androuet de Cerceau lui consacre dix planches dans son ouvrage " Les plus excellents batiments de France". Sa construction interrompue, reprend en 1600 lorsque Henri IV propriétaire charge Salomon de Brosse de la terminer. Les Princes de Condé, acquéreurs en 1705, commencent en 1734 la démolition de ce qui fut l'un des joyaux de la Renaissance française.
Henri IV a acquis ce château pour l'offrir à Henriette d'Entragues, Marquise de Verneuil. Leur fils, Henri de Bourbon Verneuil, Evêque de Metz, Abbé de St Germain des Prés, puis duc et gouverneur du Languedoc y mène une vie brillante durant le 17ème siècle. Henri-Gaston de Bourbon a été Prince, fils, frère et oncle des Rois de France, prélat, Abbé et Evêque, puis Duc, Pair de France, Gouverneur du Languedoc. Il est mort dans son château le 28 mai 1682. A l'intérieur de l'église, des traces d'une litre, c'est à dire d'un large bandeau noir parsemé de blasons du duc peinte en signe de deuil.
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GABRIELLE-ANGÉLIQUE DE BOURBON was born 1 February 1603 (or 21 January) at the Château de Vincennes. Her half siblings included the King of France, Duchess of Savoy and Duke of Vendôme. She was called Mademoiselle de Verneuil.
On 12 December 1622, Gabrielle married Bernard de Nogaret de La Valette, at Lyons, France. It was at this time that her birth was legitimized. Half siblings of her and her brother included the King of France (Louis XIII), the Duchess of Savoy and the Duke of Vendôme.
GO TO
BERNARD DE NOGARET DE LA VALETTE
Evidently Bernard, was not a very nice person. He was arrogant and prone to vice. He is reported to have beaten Gabrielle in public.
She was 24 years of age when she died on 24 April 1627 at Metz, France. Her son was just ten days old. She may have been poisoned and some accounts accuse her husband of doing just that, but no proof exists.
RESOURCES
Alexis de Tocqueville (in French) on Malesherbes. A colorful, beautiful web site.
The Balzac d'Entragues Family Line (in French).
de Béthune, Sully Maximilien. Mémoires de Sully, principal ministre de Henri-le-Grand (1814) p. 445.
Le château et la sirerie de Graville : Les Mallet de Graville (in French). On Catherine and her mother, Marie Touchet.
Château de Verneuil-sur-Oise (in French).
The village is north of Paris, near Creil. The remains of the château are situated on the NW intersection of rue du Président Wilson et rue Salomon de Brosse, 60550 Verneuil-en-Halatte.DUC D’ÉPERNON, Bernard de Nogaret / GRIGUETTE, Benigne [Dijon, 1656]. For sale at $16,500.
Hale, Sarah Josepha. Woman’s record: or, Sketches of all distinguished women, from the beginning till A.D. 1850, etc. (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1853) p. 544.
Henri de Bourbon-Verneuil (in German).
Henriette d’Entragues (all articles in French):
Les Bourbons: Henri, Sa Vie: Henriette d’Entragues: Le Roi Tombe Follement Amoreux;
Les Bourbons: Henri , Sa Vie: Henriette d’Entragues: Une favorite arrogante;
Les Bourbons: Henri , Sa Vie: Henriette d’Entragues: Le Complot Contre le Roi.James, George Payne Rainsford. The life of Henry the Fourth, king of France and Navarre. Vol. 3, p. 315.
Julg, Jean. Les évêques dans l'histoire de la France (2004) p. 264. ISBN 2740311354.
Malesherbes, in Châteaux of France.
Malesherbes, Village of.
Marcoussis, France. On Charles de Balsac.
Marie Touchet (Envied Histoire).
Montgomery-Massingberd, Hugh, ed. Burke's Royal Families of the World, Vol. 1: Europe & Latin America (London, U.K.: Burke's Peerage Ltd, 1977) pp.84-85.
New Advent. On Henri de Bourbon, Bishop of Metz.
Pardoe, Julia. The Life of Marie de Medicis: Queen of France. Vol. 1 of 32.
Parker, Geoffrey. Europe in crisis, 1598-1648, p. 82. Availabile at Google Books.
Roque, Louis, de la; and Félix Séguin, ed. Armorial de la Noblesse du Languedoc, or Noblesse de Languedoc (Paris, 1860) Tome I, p. 480. On Catherine-Henriette d’Entragues.
Vizetelly, Ernest Alfred, The favourites of Henry of Navarre (The Gorham Press, 1910), 297.
Women of History (A Bit of History website). On Henriette de Balzac d’Entragues, Marquise de Verneuil.
WIKIPEDIA ARTICLES
Château de Malesherbes (in French).
Henri de Bourbon-Verneuil (in French).
Henry, Duke of Verneuil (in English).
Louis-Charles de Nogaret de Foix, duc de Candale
Marie Touchet (in French).
Marie Touchet (in English).
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