Philippe Auguste de France

## Monseigneur le Dauphin

Philippe Auguste, Dauphin de France et Prince-Impériale des Romains, c. 1693

[others TBD]

**Philippe, Monseigneur le Dauphin** (Philippe Auguste Charles François Xavier; born 6th May 1676) is the eldest son and heir of Élisabeth II, Impératrice de France et des Romains and her consort, François Valérien d'Évreux de Bourgogne. Upon the death of his great-grandfather, Philippe X, he became Dauphin de France and Prince-Impériale des Romains as heir apparent to the throne. At. birth, he was third-in-line to the French throne after his grandfather and his mother, Élisabeth. His mother became the heir presumptive to the French throne upon the death of his grandfather, the Dauphin Louis, who lacked sons. To preserve the lineage of the house of Évreux, Élisabeth was wed to François Valérien, who was a prince du sang and member of the Évreux de Bourgogne cadet branch by birth. This allowed for the male-line of the imperial family to remain unbroken. From birth until the death of Philippe X, he was known as *Duc d'Orléans.*

He was known as a generally polite and mild-mannered young man, though he was not without a temper in some situations. He was diligent, intelligent and well-educated. In his youth, he idolised his great-grandfather, Philippe X, who was renowned as one of the greatest monarchs in French history. This would lead him to work hard in the hopes of some day matching or even surpassing the renown of Philippe X as Emperor. He was prone to constantly weighing himself up against others, especially his mother's predecessors on the throne. In this respect, he was somewhat insecure about his own abilities, constantly making observations about his own shortcomings. He was very much a traditionalist, with a strong faith in God and in the divine right of kings.

## Biography

### **Birth**

Philippe Auguste Charles François Xavier de France was born on May 6th, 1676 at the Château de Versailles. He was the eldest son of Élisabeth de France, then second-in-line to the throne, and her husband, François Valérien d'Évreux de Bourgogne. Through his mother, he was the grandson of Louis, Dauphin de France and Prince-Impériale des Romains, the son and heir of Emperor Philippe X. His maternal grandmother was Catherine Marguerite de Dreux de Montfort, Duchesse-Souveraine de Bretagne. His paternal grandfather was Louis II, Électeur de Bourgogne, the male-line grandson of Emperor François IV. His paternal grandmother was Henriette d'Angleterre, the daughter of the beheaded Charles I, King of England and his wife, Henriette Marie de France. He was therefore an agnatic descendant of the Évreux emperors through his father, allowing the male-line of the House of Évreux to continue. Philippe was named *Duc de Milan* by his great-grandfather. He was to be brought up primarily in the Grand Trianon of the Château de Versailles, a private imperial residence on the grounds of the château, away from the bustle of court life.

### **Early Years**

In his earliest years, Philippe was a slight child in ever-precarious health, prone to frequent illnesses. He was far smaller and weaker than other boys his age, which caused those responsible for his care to become overly protective, and regulate strictly who the young prince was allowed to be around. His health was a constant concern to the court, and there were numerous health scares during his infancy. Royal physicians considered it miraculous that he survived many of these scares. He was not able to walk without assistance until the age of three-and-a-half, and even then required regular supervision. It was after aging out of early infancy and into childhood that his health became less of a worry, though he would always be more fragile than others the same age. Despite all of this, it was noted that Philippe was a highly intelligent and precocious boy. He could talk in incomplete sentences by the age of one, and had begun to learn to read by the age of one-and-a-half. By the age of three, he could read well and had developed basic writing skills.

Given his fragility, he was rarely allowed to participate in overly physical activities, which often made him feel sidelined and isolated as other children played. He turned to intellectual pursuits as an alternative, enjoying reading, writing poetry and the pursuit of knowledge. He spent much of his time in his library at the Trianon, and it was said that by the age of eleven, he had read through every book in there. He asked to be taught Latin so that he might be able to read the Bible, and had a decent handle on the language by age fourteen. After he reached the age of ten, his physicians deemed it acceptable for him to go on horserides around the grounds of Versailles, the belief being that the fresh air and light exercise would be beneficial for his health. He would go on almost daily rides, and after some time was allowed to accompany the Emperor's hunting party, though he was never allowed to hunt himself. He was kept at a safe distance from the hunting, sat upon his horse with at least two attendants nearby to keep an eye on him. He was generally seen by those who did not know him well as a melancholy and pensive boy. When he visited court and was brought for official engagements by his great-grandfather, he was painfully shy, struggling to bring himself to make conversation with courtiers and dignitaries.

Philippe was never particularly close with much of his family. It was no secret that his mother, Élisabeth, greatly favoured his younger brother, the Duc de Parme, and gave few cares for her quiet, weepy elder son, as she seemed to see him. He was certainly closer with his father than with his mother, though they infrequently saw one another. He was, however, very close with his maternal grandfather, the Dauphin Louis, who was very caring toward him. He was devastated upon the Dauphin's death in 1687, when Philippe was eleven. He was also close with his paternal grandmother, the Électrice de Bourgogne, and had an amiable relationship with his maternal grandmother, the Duchesse de Bretagne. His great-grandfather, Emperor Philippe X, was disappointed with his physical shortcomings, though he was fairly impressed by his precociousness and acuity. He seemed to have an intense dislike for his younger brother, the Duc de Parme, perhaps as a result of his mother's neglect of him in Parme's favour. He was, however, very close with his younger sister, Madame Élisabeth.

## Character Synopsis

### **Appearance**

Philippe had naturally black hair and dark brown eyes. He was of fair complexion, rather paler than most, and often wore rouge. He had himself kept clean-shaven by his barber. Philippe was generally considered fair enough to look upon, though he had a fair few abnormalities in his appearance. His right arm was four inches longer than his left, though with careful positioning and choices of clothing, this was easy to disguise. He had one slightly lazy eye, though it was hardly noticeable at a glance - one would have to concentrate to truly take note of it. He was also prone to slouching. He was rather diminutive in stature, standing at just under 5'1" tall, shorter than many of his contemporaries. In an attempt to appear taller, he would wear even larger heels than were the fashion, as well as taller wigs and tricorns, which served to make him appear larger than the reality. In build, he was rather scrawny and unimpressive. To make up for this, he would pad his clothing and dress extravagantly in order to make his body appear fuller and more imposing. Despite his physical shortcomings, Philippe was in generally good health after surviving the health troubles in his infancy.

## Titles, Styles and Honours

### **Titles and Styles**

* **6th May 1676 - 15th August 1683:** *Son Altesse Impériale, Monseigneur le Duc de Milan*
* **15th August 1687 - 12th January 1693:** *Son Altesse Impériale, Monseigneur le Duc d'Orléans*
* **12th January 1693 - Present:** *Son Altesse Impériale, Monseigneur le Dauphin de France, Monseigneur le Prince-Impériale des Romains, Duc d'Aquitaine*

### **Honours**

* **Chevalier Grand Croix de l'Ordre du Saint-Esprit**
* **Chevalier Grand Croix de l'Ordre de Saint-Michel**
* **Chevalier Grand Croix de l'Ordre de Saint-Louis**
* **Chevalier de l'Ordre de la Toison d'Or**