Madame de Ventadour

Family

Charlotte was the youngest of the three daughters of Philippe de La Mothe Houdancourt, Duke of Cardona and marechal de France (d. 1657), and Louise de Prie, Marquise of Toucy, Duchess of La Motte Houdancourt, marechale, governess to the children of France. Charlotte's sisters were:

Charlotte married Louis Charles de Levis, Duke of Ventadour and governor of the Limousin (1647–1717), on 14 March 1671 in Paris.

The duke was generally considered "horrific" — very ugly, physically deformed, and sexually debauched — yet the privileges of being a duchess compensated for the unfortunate match, e.g. le tabouret: In a letter to her daughter, Madame de Sevigne described an incident that took place at St. Germain during an audience with the Queen.

"… a lot of duchesses came in, including the beautiful and charming Duchess of Ventadour. There was a bit of a delay before they brought her the sacred stool. I turned to the Grand Master and I said, 'Oh, just give it to her. It certainly cost her enough,' and he agreed."

Charlotte and Louis Charles had one daughter, Anne Genevieve de Levis, born in February 1673. Anne Genevieve first married in 1691 Louis-Charles de la Tour d'Auvergne, prince de Turenne, the son of Maurice Godefroy de La Tour d'Auvergne, Duke of Bouillon, and his wife, Marie Anne Mancini.

After the death of her first husband, Anne Genevieve married secondly in 1694 Hercule Meriadec de Rohan, duc de Rohan-Rohan. Through this second marriage, Anne Genevieve de Levis became the grandmother of Charlotte de Rohan (1737–1760), the wife of Louis Joseph, Prince of Conde (1736–1818).

Royal governess

Madame de Ventadour was appointed governess to the royal children in 1704.

In 1712, an outbreak of measles struck the French royal family, causing a number of significant deaths. First to die was the Dauphine, Marie Adelaide of Savoy. Within a week of her death, her heartbroken husband, Louis the Dauphin, also died, leaving his sons Louis, Duke of Brittany, and Louis, Duke of Anjou, orphaned, and the elder son as heir to the throne.

The sickness, however, had not yet run its course: both the Duke of Brittany (now Dauphin) and the Duke of Anjou became ill with measles. The Dauphin was ministered to by the royal doctors, who bled him in the belief that it would help him to recover; instead, it merely weakened the young boy, who swiftly died, leaving the Duke of Anjou as Dauphin. Deciding that she would not allow the same treatment to be applied to the Duke of Anjou, Madame de Ventadour locked herself up with three nursery maids and refused to allow the doctors near the boy. Louis survived his disease, becoming King of France upon the death of his great-grandfather three years later.

Madame de Ventadour continued in her position as royal governess until 1717, when the boy king was deemed old enough to be raised by men. Her husband died in the same year. She then became Lady-in-waiting to Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate, Dowager Duchess of Orleans, widow of Philippe de France, Duke of Orleans, only sibling of Louis XIV.

She died at the Chateau de Glatigny, her residence in Versailles. Through her daughter she is an ancestress of the Princes of Guemene of the House of Rohan, who presently live in Austria.

Issue

Anne Genevieve de Levis Mademoiselle de Levis, Princess of Turenne, Duchess of Rohan-Rohan, Princess of Maubuisson, Princess of Soubise (February 1673 – 20 March 1727)

1. Married Louis Charles de La Tour d'Auvergne, Prince of Turenne in 1692 (son of Godefroy Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne and Marie Anne Mancini) had no issue;
2. Married Hercule Meriadec de Rohan, Duke of Rohan-Rohan in 1694 (son of Francois de Rohan and Anne de Rohan-Chabot, had issue.