Louis, Grand Dauphin
Louis, the Grand Dauphin (
le Grand Dauphin in
French) (
1 November ,
1661 -
14 April,
1711) was the eldest son and heir of King
Louis XIV of France and
Queen Maria Theresa of Spain. Born heir apparent to the King of France, Louis was styled "
dauphin" from the day of his birth. It was foretold at his birth that he would be 'son of a king, father of a king, but never a king' before he died.
Louis' paternal grandparents were
Louis XIII of France and
Anna of Austria. His maternal grandparents were
Philip IV of Spain and
Elisabeth of France. Elisabeth was a younger sister of
Louis XIII, while
Philip IV was a brother of
Anna of Austria; thus, Louis' parents were double-first-cousins to each other.
Louis was called le Grand Dauphin because of his large physical size (
grand in
French means
large). Louis did not play an important part in French politics but due to being Louis XIV's heir was constantly surrounded by cabals battling for future prominence. His involvement in international politics was limited to a bit-player in the
War of the Spanish Succession, in which he gave up his rights to the Spanish throne (as inherited from his mother) in favour of his second son, Philippe, duc d'Anjou
Philip V of SpainApart from ensuring the continuance of the senior French Bourbon line (Louis XV was his grandson) and the establishment of the Spanish Bourbon dynasty (through Anjou), he engaged in more leisurely pursuits and was esteemed for his magnificent collection of art at Versailles and his private establishment at Meudon. It was said that he hunted all wolves to extinction in the
Île-de-France. He died of natural causes in
1711 at the age of fifty, predeceasing his father. It could be said that the prophecy was fulfilled.
Louis was wed to
Maria Anna of Bavaria; their children included:
*
Louis, Duke of Burgundy (father of
Louis XV of France)
* Philip,
Duke of Anjou, later
Philip V of Spain*
Charles, Duc de Berry, Alençon and Angoulême, also Count of Ponthieu (b.1686-d.1714).
*
French monarchs family tree* http://genealogy.euweb.cz
