Louis Charles, Count of Eu
| Louis Auguste | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count of Eu | |||||
 | |||||
| Burial | Église, Sceaux, France | ||||
| |||||
| House | House of Bourbon | ||||
| Father | Louis Auguste de Bourbon | ||||
| Mother | Louise Bénédicte de Bourbon | ||||
Louis Charles de Bourbon, Count of Eu (October 15, 1701 – July 13, 1775) was a grandson of Louis XIV of France and his Maîtresse-en-titre Françoise-Athénaïs de Montespan. He was a member of the legitimised house of Bourbon du Maine. He was the last surviving member of the house.
Life
Born at his parents famous Château de Sceaux near Versailles on October 15 1701, he was the yongest and last surviving son of Louis Auguste de Bourbon, the duc du Maine and his wife, the salon hostess Anne Louise Bénédicte de Bourbon.
He grew up with his elder brother, Louis-Auguste (known as the prince de Dombes and was very close to him and his younger sister Louise Françoise de Bourbon (1707 - 1743), known as Mademoiselle du Maine.
Like his siblings he remained unmarried and childless all his life. On his father's death in 1736 he gained the title of Duke of Aumale. He was also made the Grand Maître de l'artillerie de France (Grand Master of the Artillery of France) which was a post that his father had also held.
It was his elder brother who was his father's main heir. On his brother's death in 1755 as a result of a duel, Louis Charles was his brother's heir and thus became the head of the House of Bourbon du Maine. He inherited the family titles; prince de Dombes[1] (1755-1762), prince d'Anet, duc de Gisors, comte de Dreux and baron de Sceaux. From his brothers death he also inherited the famed Governorship of Languedoc and his brothers many Châteaux.
Like his elder brother he was little seen at court and preferred to hunt on his estate of the Château d'Anet.
In March 1762 he exchanged with Louis XV the very profitable principality of the Dombes for the duchy of Gisors and lands of Gretz-Armainvilliers et de Pontcarré.
Like his cousin, the famously generous and wealthy Duke of Penthièvre, Louis-Charles was popular with the people of France as a result of his charitable doings. Again in 1773, he offered to sell the Duchy of Aumale, County of Eu and the lands of Anet to Louis XV. The sum agreed was a vast 12 Million Livres. [2].
It was at Sceaux that Louis Charles died at the age of 73 in October 1775. As he never had any children, he did not have an heir to the large Bourbon du Maine fortune. As a result, his chosen heir was his younger cousin the Duke of Penthièvre -son of the Count of Toulouse, the youngest brother of the duc du Maine.
Footnotes
- ^ This title was sold to the crown when his cousin, Louis XV of France offered to buy it; the payments were never made so it was returned to Louis-Charles
- ^ This payment was never made as a result of the death of Louis XV in 1774; the lands were given back to Louis Charles and the deal was disregarded by Louis XVI of France. They were later inherited by the duc de Penthièvre