Louis (XVII)

Louis (XVII)

▪ king of France
also called (1789–93)  Louis-Charles, duc (duke) de Normandie , or  Louis-Charles de France 
born March 27, 1785, Versailles, France
died June 8, 1795, Paris
 titular king of France from 1793. Second son of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie-Antoinette, he was the royalists' first recognized claimant to the monarchy after his father was executed during the French Revolution.

      Baptized Louis-Charles, he bore the title duc de Normandie until he became dauphin (heir to the throne) on the death of his eight-year-old elder brother, Louis-Joseph, in June 1789, shortly after the outbreak of the Revolution. With the overthrow of the monarchy in the popular insurrection of August 10, 1792, Louis-Charles was imprisoned with the rest of the royal family in the Temple in Paris. Louis XVI was beheaded on January 21, 1793, and French émigrés (nobles in exile) immediately proclaimed Louis-Charles the new king of France.

      Since France was at war with Austria and Prussia, Louis XVII became a valuable pawn in negotiations between the revolutionary government and its enemies. On July 3, 1793, he was taken from his mother and put under the surveillance of a cobbler, Antoine Simon. Marie-Antoinette was guillotined on October 16, 1793, and in January 1794 Louis was again imprisoned in the Temple. The harsh conditions of his confinement rapidly undermined his health. His death was a severe blow to the constitutional monarchists, who had once again become a powerful political force. An inquest established that Louis had succumbed to scrofula (tuberculosis of the lymph glands).

      The secrecy surrounding the last months of Louis XVII's life gave rise to rumours. Some said that he was not dead but had escaped from the Temple. Others alleged that he had been poisoned. During the next few decades, more than 30 persons claimed to be Louis XVII. Hoping to end the controversy, scientists began DNA testing on a preserved heart, ostensibly that of Louis XVII, in late 1999, comparing it to hair samples from various royal family members, including Marie-Antoinette. The findings, announced in April 2000, confirmed that the young boy who died in prison was in fact Louis XVII.

Additional Reading
André Castelot, Louis XVII (1960).

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Louis XVII — ( Louis Charles of France ) 1785 95, titular king of France 1793 95 (son of Louis XVI). * * * orig. Louis Charles born March 27, 1785, Versailles, France died June 8, 1795, Paris Titular king of France from 1793. The second son of Louis XVI and… …   Universalium

  • Louis XVII — (1785 1795) fils de Louis XVI et de Marie Antoinette; il mourut dans la prison du Temple. Certains historiens admettent qu il en fut enlevé …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Louis XVII — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Louis. Louis XVII …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Louis XVII — (1785 1795)    king of France    Born Louis Charles of France at Versailles, Louis XVII was the second son of louis XVI and marie Antoinette. After having borne the title duke of Normandy, he became dauphin in 1789 upon the death of his older… …   France. A reference guide from Renaissance to the Present

  • Louis XVII de France — Louis XVII Louis Charles de France pa …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Louis XVII — ( Louis Charles of France ) 1785 95, titular king of France 1793 95 (son of Louis XVI) …   Useful english dictionary

  • Louis XVII of France — Infobox French Royalty|monarch name = Louis XVII title =King of France and Navarre caption =Louis in 1792, portrait by Alexander Kucharsky reign =de jure 21 January, 1793 – 8 June, 1795 full name =Louis Charles titles = HMCM The King HRH The… …   Wikipedia

  • Louis XVII — /ˈlui/ (say loohee) noun 1785–95, son of Louis XVI. He never reigned, but was called king of France 1793–95, by the monarchists …  

  • LOUIS XVII —    second son of the preceding, shut up in the Temple, was, after the execution of his mother, proclaimed king by the Emigrants, and handed over in his prison to the care of one Simon, a shoemaker, in service about the prison, to bring him up in… …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Louis-Charles de France — Louis XVII Louis Charles de France pa …   Wikipédia en Français

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