Queen of Versailles: Madame de Maintenon, First Lady of Louis XIV's France

The rise to power of Françoise d'Aubigné, Marquise de Maintenon (1635-1719), a queen in all but name, was nothing short of extraordinary. Born into poverty and ignominy, she used her intellect, charisma, and connections to join the ranks of fashionable society, eventually establishing herself at the French court as governess to the legitimized children of Louis XIV. Her relationship with the Sun King gradually flourished, and after the death of the queen in 1683 the couple secretly married. Although their marriage was never made public, Maintenon came to wield unparalleled influence as Louis XIV's closest confidante and most trusted political adviser. The aging king required her daily presence in governmental meetings and relied on her for advice on crown appointments, state business, and policy making. Her modest suite of apartments at Versailles became the heart of the court and she was pursued by officials and dignitaries, popes and princes from across Europe, all anxious to appropriate her influence. She used her expansive social network to intervene in a range of political, religious, and royal family affairs, but not always with the king's knowledge, and her successes were often outweighed by controversy and failure. In Queen of Versailles Mark Bryant explores the remarkable life and court career of Madame de Maintenon. A study in queenship, it reveals how the dynamics of power and gender operated within the realms of early modern high politics, church-state affairs, and international relations while providing unique insights into the Sun King and his court.

About the Author :
Mark Bryant is senior lecturer in early modern European history at the University of Chichester.

Review :
"Bryant ably demonstrates how, over time, a number of Maintenon's protégés were appointed to privileged and influential positions and that, by the early eighteenth century, her own status was 'quasi-ministerial'. Determining Maintenon's precise role in matters such as the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685 ... or disputes over Spanish succession in the following decade is ... no easy task. Bryant's meticulous and nuanced investigations into these complex questions draw on an impressively wide range of primary materials, notably Maintenon's own writings and especially her voluminous correspondence with a large number of agents, including courtiers, members of various royal families, ambassadors and popes, as well as her personal confessors." TLS "Queen of Versailles thoroughly explores the roles Madame de Maintenon played in the reign of Louis XIV. Mark Bryant follows Maintenon through the morass of seventeenth-century politics, religious controversies, and court factions to produce a truly impressive work of scholarship, demonstrating a confident command of a vast array of sources." Kathleen Wellman, Southern Methodist University and author of Queens and Mistresses of Renaissance France "This is first rate research. Byrant is among the first people to bear insights drawn from modern gender history on Maintenon, who was one of the most powerful women in early modern Europe. Every scholar interested in the history of Louis XIV's Europe will read this book and it will be a vitally important addition to early modern women’s history." James Collins, Georgetown University and author of The State in Early Modern France