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Diane de Poitiers
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Diane de Poitiers
Diane de Poitiers (9 January 1500 – 25 April 1566) was a French noblewoman and courtier who wielded much power and influence as King Henry II's royal mistress and adviser until his death. Her position increased her wealth and family's status. She was a major patron of French Renaissance architecture.
Diane de Poitiers was born on 9 January 1500, in the Château de Saint-Vallier. Her parents were Jean de Poitiers and Jeanne de Batarnay. She became a keen athlete, and frequently went riding and swimming for exercise.
When still a girl, Diane was briefly in the retinue of Princess Anne de Beaujeu, King Charles VIII's eldest sister who skillfully held the regency of France during his minority. Like her fellow charges, Diane was educated according to the principles of Renaissance humanism, including Greek and Latin, rhetoric, etiquette, finance, law, and architecture.
On 29 March 1515, at the age of 15, Diane was married to Louis de Brézé, seigneur d'Anet, Count of Maulévrier, and Grand Seneschal of Normandy, who was 39 years her senior. He was a grandson of King Charles VII by his mistress Agnès Sorel and served as a courtier to King Francis I. By Louis, Diane had two daughters, Françoise (1518–1574) and Louise (1521–1577).
Shortly after her marriage, Diane became lady-in-waiting to Queen Claude of France. After the Queen died, she served in the same capacity to Louise of Savoy, the King's mother, and then to Francis' second wife, Queen Eleanor of Austria.
In 1523, her husband uncovered a plot against the King by the Constable of France, Charles de Bourbon, unaware that his father-in-law was also involved. Jean de Poitiers was accused of treason and in 1524 sentenced to death, but this sentence was commuted. He was instead confined to prison until the signing of the Treaty of Madrid in 1526.
After her husband died in 1531 in Anet, Diane adopted the habit of wearing black and white for the rest of her life. They were among the permitted colours of mourning and the symbolic colours of the sides of the moon, playing on her name which derived from the Roman moon goddess. She commissioned sculptor Jean Goujon to build a tomb for Louis in the Cathedral of Rouen.
Diane's keen interest in financial matters and legal acumen became apparent for the first time during this period. She managed to retain her late husband's emoluments as grand seneschal of Normandy and challenged in court the obligation to return the family's appanages to the royal domain. Impressed, King Francis I allowed the widowed Diane to manage her inherited estates without the supervision of a male guardian and keep their considerable revenues.
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Diane de Poitiers
Diane de Poitiers (9 January 1500 – 25 April 1566) was a French noblewoman and courtier who wielded much power and influence as King Henry II's royal mistress and adviser until his death. Her position increased her wealth and family's status. She was a major patron of French Renaissance architecture.
Diane de Poitiers was born on 9 January 1500, in the Château de Saint-Vallier. Her parents were Jean de Poitiers and Jeanne de Batarnay. She became a keen athlete, and frequently went riding and swimming for exercise.
When still a girl, Diane was briefly in the retinue of Princess Anne de Beaujeu, King Charles VIII's eldest sister who skillfully held the regency of France during his minority. Like her fellow charges, Diane was educated according to the principles of Renaissance humanism, including Greek and Latin, rhetoric, etiquette, finance, law, and architecture.
On 29 March 1515, at the age of 15, Diane was married to Louis de Brézé, seigneur d'Anet, Count of Maulévrier, and Grand Seneschal of Normandy, who was 39 years her senior. He was a grandson of King Charles VII by his mistress Agnès Sorel and served as a courtier to King Francis I. By Louis, Diane had two daughters, Françoise (1518–1574) and Louise (1521–1577).
Shortly after her marriage, Diane became lady-in-waiting to Queen Claude of France. After the Queen died, she served in the same capacity to Louise of Savoy, the King's mother, and then to Francis' second wife, Queen Eleanor of Austria.
In 1523, her husband uncovered a plot against the King by the Constable of France, Charles de Bourbon, unaware that his father-in-law was also involved. Jean de Poitiers was accused of treason and in 1524 sentenced to death, but this sentence was commuted. He was instead confined to prison until the signing of the Treaty of Madrid in 1526.
After her husband died in 1531 in Anet, Diane adopted the habit of wearing black and white for the rest of her life. They were among the permitted colours of mourning and the symbolic colours of the sides of the moon, playing on her name which derived from the Roman moon goddess. She commissioned sculptor Jean Goujon to build a tomb for Louis in the Cathedral of Rouen.
Diane's keen interest in financial matters and legal acumen became apparent for the first time during this period. She managed to retain her late husband's emoluments as grand seneschal of Normandy and challenged in court the obligation to return the family's appanages to the royal domain. Impressed, King Francis I allowed the widowed Diane to manage her inherited estates without the supervision of a male guardian and keep their considerable revenues.
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