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| Keywords: henrieta maria henrietamaria queen of britain queenofbritain stuart royals united kingdom unitedkingdom portrait charles i Henrietta Maria of France, Queen consort of England, Scotland and Ireland (25 November[1] 1609 – 10 September 1669) was the consort of Charles I. She was the mother of two kings, Charles II and James II, and was grandmother to Mary II, William III, and Anne of Great Britain. Henriette-Marie de France was born the daughter of the King of France and Navarre, Henry IV; her mother was the Italian Marie de Medici and was the second consort of Henry IV. As the daughter of the king, she was a Fille de France. She was the youngest sister of the future King Louis XIII of France. Her father was killed before she was under a year old in Paris on 14 May 1610; her mother was banished from the royal court in 1617. From birth she was a member of the House of Bourbon, Maison de Bourbon in French. She was born at the Palais du Louvre on 25 November 1609, but some historians give her a birthdate of 26 November. In England, where the Julian calendar was still in use, her date of birth is often recorded as 16 November. Henrietta Maria was brought up as a Roman Catholic. After her older sister Christine Marie of France married the Sovereign Duke of Savoy in 1619, Henriette Marie took on the highly prestigious style of Madame Royale; this style was used by the most senior royal princess at the French court. She first met her future husband while he was travelling to Spain to arrange a marriage with the Infanta Maria Anna of Spain; Charles met Henriette Marie in Paris en route. The trip however ended badly as the Spanish King Philip III demanded that Charles convert to Roman Catholicism and remain in Spain for a year after the wedding as a sort of hostage to ensure England's compliance with all the terms of the treaty. Charles was outraged, and upon their return in October, he and Buckingham demanded that King James declare war on Spain. Charles then looked elsewhere for a bride. He looked to France where the attractive Henriette Marie lived at the court of her brother and was still unmarried by 1625. This made her an unpopular choice of wife for the English King Charles I of England, whom she married by proxy on 11 May 1625, shortly after his accession to the throne. They were married in person at St. Augustine's Church, Canterbury, Kent, on 13 June 1625. However, her religion made it impossible for her to be crowned with her husband in an Anglican service. Initially their relationship was rather frigid. Henrietta Maria had brought a large and expensive retinue with her from France, all of them Roman Catholic. It is said that eventually Charles sent them home to France, only allowing his teenage bride to retain her chaplain and confessor, Robert Phillip, and two ladies in waiting. Finding her sadly watching the retinue depart for France at the window of a palace, Charles angrily and forcibly dragged his wayward queen away.[citation needed] Charles had intended to marry Maria Anna, a daughter of Philip III of Spain, but a mission to Spain in 1623 had failed. Perhaps this earlier disappointment explains why relations with his French bride were strained; every time the couple met, they started arguing and would separate, not seeing each other for weeks. When next they met, again they had to separate, because they could not stop arguing. Henrietta Maria took an immediate dislike to George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, the King's favourite. However, after Buckingham's death in August 1628, her relationship with her husband, Charles I, improved and they finally forged deep bonds of love and affection. Her refusal to give up her Catholic faith alienated her from many of the people and certain powerful courtiers such as William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury and Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford. Charles, on the other hand, had definite leanings towards Catholicism, and, once he had reached maturity, did not share his father's sexual ambivalence. Henrietta Maria increasingly took part in national affairs as the country moved towards open conflict through the 1630s. She despised Puritan courtiers to deflect a diplomatic approach to Spain and sought a coup to pre-empt the Parliamentarians. As war approached she was active in seeking funds and support for her husband, but her concentration on Catholic sources like Pope Urban VIII and the French angered many in England and hindered Charles' efforts. She was also sympathetic to her fellow Catholics and even gave a requiem in her private chapel at Somerset House for Father Richard Blount, S.J. upon his death in 1638. In August 1642, when the conflict began, she was in Europe. She continued to raise money for the Royalist cause, and did not return to England until early 1643. She landed at Bridlington in Yorkshire with troops and arms, and joined the Royalist forces in northern England, making her headquarters at York. She remained with the army in the north for some months before rejoining the King at Oxford. The collapse of the king's position following Scottish intervention on the side of Parliament, and his refusal to accept stringent terms for a settlement led her to flee to France with her sons in July 1644. Charles was executed in 1649, leaving her almost destitute. She settled in Paris, appointing as her chancellor the eccentric Sir Kenelm Digby. She angered both Royalists in exile and her eldest son by attempting to convert her youngest son, Henry, to Catholicism. She returned to England following the Restoration in October 1660 and lived as 'Dowager Queen' and 'Queen Mother' at Somerset House in London until 1665 when she returned permanently to France. After her son's restoration she returned to England where Pepys, on 22 November 1660, met her and described her as a 'very little plain old woman, and nothing more in her presence in any respect nor garb than any ordinary woman'. Her financial problems were resolved by a generous pension. She founded a convent at Chaillot, where she settled. In 1661 she saw her youngest daughter Henrietta Anne[2] marry the Duke of Orléans, only sibling of Louis XIV; that marriage made Henrietta Maria the maternal line great grand mother of Louis XV of France and as such, a descendant of the present Juan Carlos I of Spain, as well as the Duke of Parma and reigning Grand Duke of Luxembourg. Henrietta Maria died at Château de Colombes, and was buried in the royal tombs at Royal Basilica of Saint Denis near Paris. Her son in law the Duke of Orléans was buried there in 1701. Henrietta Maria of France, Queen consort of England, Scotland and Ireland (25 November[1] 1609 – 10 September 1669) was the consort of Charles I. She was the mother of two kings, Charles II and James II, and was grandmother to Mary II, William III, and Anne of Great Britain. Henriette-Marie de France was born the daughter of the King of France and Navarre, Henry IV; her mother was the Italian Marie de Medici and was the second consort of Henry IV. As the daughter of the king, she was a Fille de France. She was the youngest sister of the future King Louis XIII of France. Her father was killed before she was under a year old in Paris on 14 May 1610; her mother was banished from the royal court in 1617. From birth she was a member of the House of Bourbon, Maison de Bourbon in French. She was born at the Palais du Louvre on 25 November 1609, but some historians give her a birthdate of 26 November. In England, where the Julian calendar was still in use, her date of birth is often recorded as 16 November. Henrietta Maria was brought up as a Roman Catholic. After her older sister Christine Marie of France married the Sovereign Duke of Savoy in 1619, Henriette Marie took on the highly prestigious style of Madame Royale; this style was used by the most senior royal princess at the French court. She first met her future husband while he was travelling to Spain to arrange a marriage with the Infanta Maria Anna of Spain; Charles met Henriette Marie in Paris en route. The trip however ended badly as the Spanish King Philip III demanded that Charles convert to Roman Catholicism and remain in Spain for a year after the wedding as a sort of hostage to ensure England's compliance with all the terms of the treaty. Charles was outraged, and upon their return in October, he and Buckingham demanded that King James declare war on Spain. Charles then looked elsewhere for a bride. He looked to France where the attractive Henriette Marie lived at the court of her brother and was still unmarried by 1625. This made her an unpopular choice of wife for the English King Charles I of England, whom she married by proxy on 11 May 1625, shortly after his accession to the throne. They were married in person at St. Augustine's Church, Canterbury, Kent, on 13 June 1625. However, her religion made it impossible for her to be crowned with her husband in an Anglican service. Initially their relationship was rather frigid. Henrietta Maria had brought a large and expensive retinue with her from France, all of them Roman Catholic. It is said that eventually Charles sent them home to France, only allowing his teenage bride to retain her chaplain and confessor, Robert Phillip, and two ladies in waiting. Finding her sadly watching the retinue depart for France at the window of a palace, Charles angrily and forcibly dragged his wayward queen away.[citation needed] Charles had intended to marry Maria Anna, a daughter of Philip III of Spain, but a mission to Spain in 1623 had failed. Perhaps this earlier disappointment explains why relations with his French bride were strained; every time the couple met, they started arguing and would separate, not seeing each other for weeks. When next they met, again they had to separate, because they could not stop arguing. Henrietta Maria took an immediate dislike to George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, the King's favourite. However, after Buckingham's death in August 1628, her relationship with her husband, Charles I, improved and they finally forged deep bonds of love and affection. Her refusal to give up her Catholic faith alienated her from many of the people and certain powerful courtiers such as William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury and Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford. Charles, on the other hand, had definite leanings towards Catholicism, and, once he had reached maturity, did not share his father's sexual ambivalence. Henrietta Maria increasingly took part in national affairs as the country moved towards open conflict through the 1630s. She despised Puritan courtiers to deflect a diplomatic approach to Spain and sought a coup to pre-empt the Parliamentarians. As war approached she was active in seeking funds and support for her husband, but her concentration on Catholic sources like Pope Urban VIII and the French angered many in England and hindered Charles' efforts. She was also sympathetic to her fellow Catholics and even gave a requiem in her private chapel at Somerset House for Father Richard Blount, S.J. upon his death in 1638. In August 1642, when the conflict began, she was in Europe. She continued to raise money for the Royalist cause, and did not return to England until early 1643. She landed at Bridlington in Yorkshire with troops and arms, and joined the Royalist forces in northern England, making her headquarters at York. She remained with the army in the north for some months before rejoining the King at Oxford. The collapse of the king's position following Scottish intervention on the side of Parliament, and his refusal to accept stringent terms for a settlement led her to flee to France with her sons in July 1644. Charles was executed in 1649, leaving her almost destitute. She settled in Paris, appointing as her chancellor the eccentric Sir Kenelm Digby. She angered both Royalists in exile and her eldest son by attempting to convert her youngest son, Henry, to Catholicism. She returned to England following the Restoration in October 1660 and lived as 'Dowager Queen' and 'Queen Mother' at Somerset House in London until 1665 when she returned permanently to France. After her son's restoration she returned to England where Pepys, on 22 November 1660, met her and described her as a 'very little plain old woman, and nothing more in her presence in any respect nor garb than any ordinary woman'. Her financial problems were resolved by a generous pension. She founded a convent at Chaillot, where she settled. In 1661 she saw her youngest daughter Henrietta Anne[2] marry the Duke of Orléans, only sibling of Louis XIV; that marriage made Henrietta Maria the maternal line great grand mother of Louis XV of France and as such, a descendant of the present Juan Carlos I of Spain, as well as the Duke of Parma and reigning Grand Duke of Luxembourg. Henrietta Maria died at Château de Colombes, and was buried in the royal tombs at Royal Basilica of Saint Denis near Paris. Her son in law the Duke of Orléans was buried there in 1701. | ||||
