Louise de La Fayette
Encyclopedia
Louise Angélique Motier de la Fayette (November 8, 1618 – January 11, 1665) was a French courtier
and close friend of King Louis XIII
who renounced the corruption of his court and entered a convent
.
.
When Louise became maid-of-honor
to Anne of Austria
, Cardinal Richelieu
sought to attract the attention of Louis XIII to her in the hope that she might counterbalance the influence exercised over him by Marie de Hautefort.
However,
The affair did not turn out as the minister wished. The King was attracted to Louise because of her innocence and purity, and he did indeed make her the confidante of his affairs. But when he divulged to her his resentment for the Cardinal, she, far from repeating Louis's confidences to the minister, set herself to encourage the King in his resistance to Richelieu's dominion.
She refused, nevertheless, to become Louis's mistress, and after taking leave of the King in Anne of Austria's presence, retired to the convent of the Filles de Sainte-Marie in 1637.
Here she was repeatedly visited by Louis, with whom she maintained a correspondence. Richelieu intercepted the letters, and by omissions and falsifications succeeded in destroying their mutual confidence. The cessation of their intercourse was regretted by the queen, who had been reconciled with her husband through the influence of Louise. At the time of her death in January 1665, Mlle de La Fayette was superior of a convent of her order which she had founded at Chaillot.
See Mémoires de Madame de Motteville; Victor Cousin
, Madame de Hautefort (Paris, 1868); L'Abbé Sorin, Louise-Angle de La Fayette (Paris, 1893).
Courtier
A courtier is a person who is often in attendance at the court of a king or other royal personage. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the residence of the monarch, and social and political life were often completely mixed together...
and close friend of King Louis XIII
Louis XIII of France
Louis XIII was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and of Navarre from 1610 to 1643.Louis was only eight years old when he succeeded his father. His mother, Marie de Medici, acted as regent during Louis' minority...
who renounced the corruption of his court and entered a convent
Convent
A convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
.
Life in the royal court
Louise was one of the fourteen children of Jean comte de La Fayette, and Marguerite de Bourbon-Busset. She was born in Amathay-VésigneuxAmathay-Vésigneux
Amathay-Vésigneux is a commune in the Doubs department in the Franche-Comté region in eastern France.-Population:-References:*...
.
When Louise became maid-of-honor
Maids of Honour
Maids of honour were the junior attendants of a queen in the royal households of England and later of the United Kingdom. Anne of Brittany is said to have instituted the queen's maids of honour at the court.-Role:...
to Anne of Austria
Anne of Austria
Anne of Austria was Queen consort of France and Navarre, regent for her son, Louis XIV of France, and a Spanish Infanta by birth...
, Cardinal Richelieu
Armand Jean du Plessis, Cardinal Richelieu
Armand Jean du Plessis, Cardinal-Duc de Richelieu et de Fronsac was a French clergyman, noble, and statesman.Consecrated as a bishop in 1608, he later entered politics, becoming a Secretary of State in 1616. Richelieu soon rose in both the Catholic Church and the French government, becoming a...
sought to attract the attention of Louis XIII to her in the hope that she might counterbalance the influence exercised over him by Marie de Hautefort.
However,
[t]he hedonism and promiscuity of many courtiers repelled [Louis XIII] and attempts to provide him with a mistressMistress (lover)A mistress is a long-term female lover and companion who is not married to her partner; the term is used especially when her partner is married. The relationship generally is stable and at least semi-permanent; however, the couple does not live together openly. Also the relationship is usually,...
failed lamentably.
The affair did not turn out as the minister wished. The King was attracted to Louise because of her innocence and purity, and he did indeed make her the confidante of his affairs. But when he divulged to her his resentment for the Cardinal, she, far from repeating Louis's confidences to the minister, set herself to encourage the King in his resistance to Richelieu's dominion.
She refused, nevertheless, to become Louis's mistress, and after taking leave of the King in Anne of Austria's presence, retired to the convent of the Filles de Sainte-Marie in 1637.
Here she was repeatedly visited by Louis, with whom she maintained a correspondence. Richelieu intercepted the letters, and by omissions and falsifications succeeded in destroying their mutual confidence. The cessation of their intercourse was regretted by the queen, who had been reconciled with her husband through the influence of Louise. At the time of her death in January 1665, Mlle de La Fayette was superior of a convent of her order which she had founded at Chaillot.
See Mémoires de Madame de Motteville; Victor Cousin
Victor Cousin
Victor Cousin was a French philosopher. He was a proponent of Scottish Common Sense Realism and had an important influence on French educational policy.-Early life:...
, Madame de Hautefort (Paris, 1868); L'Abbé Sorin, Louise-Angle de La Fayette (Paris, 1893).