Anne-Marie-Louise d'Orléans, duchesse de Montpensier (1627–1693)

Anne-Marie-Louise d'Orleans, duchesse de Montpensier in her own right, was born at the royal palace of the Louvre in Paris. Her parents were Gaston, duc d' Orléans, brother of King Louis XIII of France, and his wife Marie de Bourbon, duchesse de Montpensier. She was thus a first cousin of King Louis XIV. Her courtesy title at court was La Grande Mademoiselle. She inherited fabulous wealth and her title from her mother, who died at her birth. She became a major figure in the 17th century French civil wars known as the Fronde. For this, she was exiled to her estates in the country for a time but then allowed to return. She wrote memoirs that provide a valuable account of the courts of Louis XIII and Louis XIV.