Marie-Adélaïde, duchesse de Bourgogne

Translated Print Title: 
[Marie-Adélaïde, Duchess of Burgundy]
Date(s): 
ca. 1698

Marie-Adélaïde of Savoy was the granddaughter of Louis XIV’s brother Philippe. On December 7, 1697, one day after turning 12, she was married to the king’s eldest grandson, Louis, duke of Burgundy. (The marriage was not consummated until two years later.) The aging king adored the lively, playful princess and had the Versailles Menagerie refurbished for her personal enjoyment. Marie-Adélaïde went on to become a central and influential figure at court but died of measles in 1712, followed shortly afterward by her husband and their second son. Only their youngest child survived; in 1715, at the age of 5, he became Louis XV.

Private collection.