Catherine de Bourbon

Catherine de Bourbon (born February 7, 1559 in Paris , † February 13, 1604 in Nancy ) was the wife of Henry II , later Duke of Lorraine and Bar . From 1577 to 1592 she represented her brother, the French King Henry IV , as regent in the Kingdom of Navarre .

Life

Catherine was the daughter of Antoine de Bourbon , titular king of Navarre, and Jeanne d'Albret , a younger sister of the French king Henry IV. She was a highly educated princess, but in poor health. When she was not confined to bed by illness, she often accompanied her mother on her numerous journeys through Navarre. She was shaped by the religious zeal of her mother, whom she lost at the age of 13 on June 9, 1572, and remained a staunch Calvinist throughout her life . She went to Paris on the occasion of Henry IV's marriage to Margaret of Valois and, like her brother, had to adopt the Catholic faith on August 24, 1572 after St. Bartholomew's Night. After her brother had fled, she was allowed to leave the French court and meet Henry IV again in Béarn . She immediately resumed her old faith (1576). In 1577 she was appointed regent of Navarre by her brother and remained in this position until 1592. She took great care to defend her country during the wars against the Holy League , as her correspondence with the officers of Henry IV shows.

Because of Catherine's adherence to her religion, a number of marriage projects failed: for example, the Duke of Alençon tried to win her in vain. In addition, her marriage to King Philip II of Spain (1580), Duke Charles III. von Lorraine (1581) and Duke Charles Emanuel I of Savoy (1583) in the room. At that time she lived alternately in Pau and Nérac and often accompanied her brother. Because of the war preparations against the Catholic League, Catherine had to go to Navarrenx , the only fortified square in the principality, in 1585 . Since the spring of 1588, however, she lived almost constantly in Pau. After Henry IV ascended the French throne in 1589, Catherine was made Duchess of Albret and Countess of Armagnac . From about 1587 she was in love with her cousin Charles de Bourbon-Condé, comte de Soissons , and gave him a secret promise of marriage; and the courted one apparently returned their love. In 1592 he arrived in Pau, no doubt to marry or take Catherine with him. But Henry IV refused to give his consent because he had doubts about the loyalty of the Count of Soissons, and had him arrested on April 6, 1592 in the castle of Pau. Previously, Catherine had the marriage proposals of the Scottish King James VI. (1588) and Duke Christian von Anhalt (1591) rejected. In 1596 she also rejected the hand of Duke Henri de Bourbon, duc de Montpensier .

Henry IV was genuinely fond of his sister Catherine and borrowed her money or asked for jewelry as collateral for further loans. She remained a staunch Calvinist and stood up against her brother Henry IV's conversion to the Catholic faith (1593). Nevertheless, she became a good friend of her brother's mistress, the Catholic Gabrielle d'Estrées , and surprisingly advocated the couple's marriage. The efforts of Catherine and Gabrielle d'Estrées contributed to the enactment of the Edict of Nantes in 1598, which recognized the religious freedom of Huguenots in France.

In 1594 Henry IV had his sister Catherine called to Paris to inform her that he had chosen her to be the wife of the heir to the throne of Lorraine, Henry II of Lorraine. As part of the Peace of Saint-Germain-en-Laye between Henry IV and Duke Charles III. of Lorraine the marriage of his eldest son Heinrich (II.) to Catherine had been arranged. The marriage contract was signed on July 13, 1598. But Catherine remained true to her Calvinist faith and refused to convert to Catholicism, while her husband was a fundamentalist Catholic . Because of the different creeds of the spouses, a papal dispensation was therefore required to permit marriage , which Clement VIII expressly rejected on December 29, 1598. The angry French king intimidated the Archbishop of Reims into authorizing the marriage. So the wedding could take place on January 30, 1599 in Saint-Germain-en-Laye . Catharine was not happy about her marriage and was often sick. Her brother increased pressure on the Pope to receive the dispensation, but also on his sister to convert to Catholicism. But Catherine offered resistance to Cardinal Jacques-Davy Duperron , who was sent by the king, and therefore quarreled with her brother. She even had Calvinist pastors brought in. After five years of childless marriage, she died shortly after the Pope granted the dispensation.

literature

M. Prévost: Catherine de Bourbon . In: Dictionnaire de Biographie française . Volume 7. 1956, Col. 1414-1415.
Catherine of Bourbon . In: Women in World History . Volume 3. 1999, p. 536.

Web links

Commons : Catherine de Bourbon - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

↑ So the French Wikipedia; according to M. Prevost (see lit.), col. 1414 and others, Katharina was born on February 7, 1558.
↑ Ernest De Fréville; Sainte-Marie Mévil: Lettres inédites de Catherine de Bourbon, princesse de Navarre, recueillies par Ernest de Fréville [premier article . Bibliothèque de l'école des chartes, Année 1857 Volume 18 Numéro 18 pp. 127–152.

personal data
SURNAME	Bourbon, Catherine de
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Bourbon, Catherine of
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Regent of the Kingdom of Navarre (1577–1592), wife of the Duke of Lorraine
DATE OF BIRTH	February 7, 1559
PLACE OF BIRTH	Paris
DATE OF DEATH	February 13, 1604
Place of death	Nancy

[1] So the French Wikipedia; according to M. Prevost (see lit.), col. 1414 and others, Katharina was born on February 7, 1558.

[2] Ernest De Fréville; Sainte-Marie Mévil: Lettres inédites de Catherine de Bourbon, princesse de Navarre, recueillies par Ernest de Fréville [premier article . Bibliothèque de l'école des chartes, Année 1857 Volume 18 Numéro 18 pp. 127–152.