Louise d’Orléans, first Queen of the Belgians. A Romantic Destiny

1. Ary Scheffer (1795-1858)
Henri d’Orléans, Duc d’Aumale,
at About Ten Years of Age, 1832
Watercolour - 19 x 15.5 cm
Brussels, Royal Palace Archives
Photo: Royal Palace Archives

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Among the many children of Louis-Philippe and Marie-Amélie, three stand out: Ferdinand, the eldest, who represented the hopes of the dynasty but died at an early age in a carriage accident. Then there was Marie, the family artist, who also died very young, and Henri, Duc d’Aumale (ill. 1), one of the greatest collectors of his time, who bequeathed the Château de Chantilly and its collections to the Institut.

The first recently had a very interesting exhibition at the Montauban Museum (see article), the second had a retrospective at the Louvre and Chantilly in 2008 (see article), while the third has a permanent tribute at the Musée Condé.
Louise d’Orléans, a year older than Marie, who married Leopold I, King of the Belgians, who was twice her age, is a lesser-known member of the family, which also includes the Duc de Nemours, Clémentine d’Orléans, the Prince de Joinville and the Duc de Montpensier. The Château de Chantilly, bequeathed t by her brother, was the ideal place to pay tribute to her, as the Orléans family are remembered there.

2. France, circa 1825
The Orléans family: Queen Marie-Amélie, Princess Louise, Princess Marie, the Duke of Orléans, the Duke of Nemours and the Prince of Joinville
Watercolour - 10.3 x 18.5 cm
Chantilly, Musée Condé
Photo: Musée Condé

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Both historical and artistic, with a wealth of works from the Belgian royal collections, the exhibition provides an opportunity to discover this engaging personality who also died young, at the age of thirty-eight.
This short life was no less full. The union with Leopold enabled the French king to take his place among the European sovereigns, who took a less than friendly view of the coronation of an Orléans, the descendant of a…