Charles de Bourbon, duc de Berry

Charles de Bourbon, portrait by an unknown artist

Charles de Bourbon, duc de Berry ( German  Karl of France, Duke of Berry ; born August 31, 1686 in Versailles , † May 4, 1714 in Marly ) was Duke of Berry (1686), Count of Ponthieu , Duke of Alençon , as well Duke of Angoulême (1710). As Prince of France, he was a candidate for the French throne. For this he renounced the Spanish throne in 1712.

Life

Duke Karl was born in Versailles, the third son of the Dauphin Ludwig von Bourbon and his wife Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria . He grew up at the court of his grandfather Louis XIV and in 1710 married Princess Marie Louise Elisabeth , the daughter of Duke Philip II of Orléans , who later became regent of France. This marriage resulted in two children, Karl and Marie Louise, who both died shortly after birth in 1713 and 1714.

In addition to the title of Duke of Berry, Charles also had the following other titles: Duke of Alençon and Angoulême, Count of Ponthieu (1710 to 1714). The title of Duke of Berry was only reassigned after his death in 1753, to the later King Louis XVI.

In the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, his older brother Philip was confirmed as King of Spain, but had to renounce all claims regarding the French crown for himself and for his ruling descendants. This moved the Duke of Berry in the French line of succession to the second place after his nephew Louis, who was born in 1710, the Duke of Anjou , who later became Louis XV. actually should become King of France.

Karl died in 1714 as a result of a hunting accident. Had the duke lived longer, he would have been a possible regent for Ludwig, who was still underage, after the death of Louis XIV on September 1, 1715.

His wife only survived him by five years, during which she often attracted negative attention at court due to an unsteady life.

literature

• Warren Hamilton Lewis: Louis XIV. The Sun King. 6th edition. Heyne, Munich 1989, ISBN 3-453-55034-X .