Eine wunderschöne Adventszeit, ein frohes Weihnachtsfest und einen guten Rutsch ins Neue Jahr 2026 wünscht Ihnen, meine lieben Leser und Leserinnen, Ihre Maike Vogt-Lüerssen von Downunder.
Möge das nächste Jahr Ihnen Gesundheit und viel Liebe schenken. Ganz besonders möchte ich mich bei denjenigen bedanken, die meine Bücher und E-Books gekauft haben und mir damit ermöglichen, meiner großen Leidenschaft, der Geschichte, weiterhin nachgehen zu können.
"He [Philippe de Lorraine, "Chevalier de Lorraine"] was extremely handsome and seduced both women and men without distinction. His principal conquest was Monsieur [Philippe I., der Herzog von Orléans] - the king's brother ... - and by some accounts he was exiled [im Jahr 1670] at the behest of Madame [Philippes I. erste Gattin, Henriette Anna von England] ... Following this version of events the Chevalier de Lorraine was suspected of taking revenge on Madame by sending poison from Rome ... to cause her death; nothing was ever proven ... Another explanation for the chevalier's exile was that one of his mistresses had also slept with Louvois and had passed on to the chevalier the secret that the duchesse d'Orléans was to be sent on a diplomatic mission to her brother, Charles II of England; the chevalier had revealed the secret to the duc d'Orléans, which was infuriated by it, and the king had imprisoned and then exiled the chevalier for his indiscretion. [die zweite Version wird wohl der Grund für dessen Exil gewesen sein]" (in: Hortense Mancini and Marie Mancini: Memoirs, Edited and Translated by Sarah Nelson, id., p. 78 (Fußnote 126)).
"Already [um 1666] the Chevalier de Lorraine ... had won Monsieur's [Philippes I.] affection, and began to acquire that influence over him which was to prove so fatal to Madame's [Philippes Gattin Henriette Anna von England] happiness. This worthless man, who had nothing to recommend him but his cherub face, and who had long carried on a scandalous intrigue with Madame's maid-of-honour, Mademoiselle de Fiennes, had, by degrees, gained an absolute mastery over Monsieur's mind, and governed him and his whole household." (in: Julia Mary Cartwright Ady: Madame, a life of Henrietta, daughter of Charles I. and Duchess of Orleans, id., p. 231).
Henriette Anna von England, die Herzogin von Orléans, über ihren Gatten und seinen Liebhaber, Philippe de Lorraine: "He [ihr Gatte] has long since lost the use of his native tongue, and can only speak in the language which has been taught him by the Chevalier de Lorraine, whose will he follows blindly, and the worst is, I have no hope that he will ever mend his ways. ... As for good Père Zoccoli (Madame's [also ihr] Capuchin Confessor), he implores me every day to be kind to the Chevalier de Lorraine, and blames me for refusing to receive his insincere advances. I tell him that, in order to like a man who is the cause of all my sorrows, past and present, I ought at least to have some esteem for him, or else owe him some debt of gratitude, both of which are absolutely impossible, after the way in which he has behaved. Yet Monsieur [ihr Gatte] refused to communicate at Christmas, unless I would promise him, not to drive his favourite away. I did this to satisfy him, but at the same time, I had the pleasure of letting him know, how much wrong this intimacy did me, and what grief I felt at seeing how little he cared tor me ..." (in: Julia Mary Cartwright Ady: Madame, a life of Henrietta, daughter of Charles I. and Duchess of Orleans, id., p. 307).
Das Verhalten von Philippe de Lorraine in den Jahren 1669 und 1670 am Hofe seines herzoglichen Liebhabers Philippe I.: "... the Chevalier de Lorraine's insolence had become daily more insufferable [für Henriette Anna, die Gattin von Philippe I.]. He boasted of his supremacy in Monsieur's house, and talked openly of a divorce between him and Madame. On the 30th of January [1670], Monsieur, who was still as infatuated with his minion as ever, begged the King to give the Chevalier the revenues of two Abbeys which had fallen vacant by the death of the Bishop of Langres. Louis [XIV.] met this request with a flat refusal, and when his brother remonstrated, told him frankly that his favourite's conduct was intolerable. Monsieur flew into a rage, and vowed that he would leave Court at once, adding that, if he has a house a thousand leagues from Saint-Germain, he would go there on the spot, and never see his brother's face again. The King replied by ordering the immediate arrest of the Chevalier, who was taken by the royal guards to Pierre-Encise, near Lyons, and there imprisoned. Monsieur fainted on hearing of his favourite's removal, and, throwing himself at the King's feet, implored him with tears to recall his order. This Louis absolutely refused to do, upon which Monsieur ordered his rooms to be dismantled, and left Saint-Germain the same evening for Paris, taking Madame with him. ... Monsieur's rage was unbounded, and Mademoiselle [seine Cousine Anne Marie Louise d'Orléans (1627-1693)], who had arrived at the Luxembourg the day before he and Madame came to Paris, was shocked at the violence of his language, and at the unkindness with which he treated his wife. Madame, on her part, spoke very gently to him, and remarked that, although she had no great reason to like the Chevalier, she was much distressed at the pain which his arrest had given Monsieur. ... his [Philippes I.] deep attachment to the Chevalier, whom he called the best friend that he had in the world. On receiving this angry epistle [von Philippe I.], Colbert hastened to Villers-Cotterests [wo sich Philippe I. mit seiner Gattin befand], in the hope that Monsieur would, by this time, have got over his first paroxysm of rage, and would be ready to lend a willing ear to his advice. But, to his surprise, Monsieur absolutely refused to return to Court unless Lorraine were recalled. It was now the King's turn to be angry, and hearing that his brother kept up a daily correspondence with his captive friend, he ordered the Chevalier to be removed to the fortress of Château d'If, at Marseilles, and to be allowed no communications with his friends. So great was the scandal excited by this open rupture between the royal brothers, that the King actually informed his ambassadors at foreign courts, of the steps which Monsieur's extraordinary conduct had compelled him to take, adding, however the expression of his fervent hope that his brother would soon return to a sense of his duty. In Paris and the provinces alike, Lorraine's arrest and Monsieur's quarrel with the King were freely discussed. ... At the same time [am 24. Februar 1670] the French secretary of State, speaking in the King's name, requested Monsieur to return to Court, and informed him that the Chevalier de Lorraine had been set at liberty, and allowed to go into Italy, on condition that he should not present himself at Court. Monsieur was only too glad to avail himself of this offer, and on the same day, the 24th of February, he and Madame travelled to Paris in a carriage with Colbert and the English ambassadors." (in: Julia Mary Cartwright Ady: Madame, a life of Henrietta, daughter of Charles I. and Duchess of Orleans, id., pp. 308-314).
"Der Chevalier de Lorraine hauchte im Dezember 1702 sein Leben aus, durch das Spiel ruiniert und trotz seiner hohen Pensionen, seiner vier Abteien und der enormen Summen, die er Monsieur und dem König unterschlagen hatte, von seinen Leuten bis zum letzten ausgenommen. Seine Freunde mußten Geld zusammenlegen, um seine Beerdigung bezahlen zu können. Er starb, wie er gelebt hatte: in der Nacht vor seinem Tod erzählte er einer seiner Freundinnen in allen Einzelheiten von seinen Lastern und Ausschweifungen. Als es am pikantesten wurde, traf ihn der Schlag, und eine Stunde später war er tot." (in: Dirk Van der Cruysse: „Madame sein ist ein ellendes Handwerk“: Liselotte von der Pfalz – eine deutsche Prinzessin am Hof des Sonnenkönigs, S. 463-464).
Die Frauen der Sforza II: Caterina Sforza - Die Amazone der Sforza und die Muse von Botticelli
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