List of countesses and duchesses of Orléans Facts for Kids

Orléans is a historic city in France, and for many centuries, important women held the titles of Countess or Duchess of Orléans. These women were often wives of powerful French princes or kings. Their lives were closely tied to the history of France, as they were part of royal families and played roles in the court. This article will introduce you to some of these remarkable women, from different royal families or "houses" that ruled France over time.

Meet the Countesses of Orléans
Discover the Duchesses of Orléans
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Meet the Countesses of Orléans

Early Countesses: Merovingian Era

During the time of the Merovingian kings, one of the earliest known countesses was a woman whose name isn't fully recorded, often called NN. She was married to Count Willachar. Their daughter, Chalde of Orléans, later married Chramn, who was the son of King Chlothar I.

Carolingian Countesses: A New Era

The Carolingian period saw more women holding the title of Countess of Orléans. These women were often connected to powerful families of their time.

Picture	Name	Father's Family	Born	Married	Became Countess	Stopped Being Countess	Died	Husband
	Waldrada de Wormsgau	Erphold ? (Nibelungid or Widonid)	-	-	-	821 Husband's death	824	Adrian
We don't have records of Matfrid, Count of Orléans having a wife, or her name if he did.
	Engeltrude de Fézensac	Leuthard I, Count of Paris and Fézensac (Girardid)	805	825	827 Husband became Count	834 Husband's death	853	Odo I
	Richilde of Vermandois	Pepin, Count of Vermandois	-	-	-	-	-	William
	Agane	-	-	-	-	before 862		Robert
	Adelaide of Tours	Hugh, Count of Tours (Etichonid)	805	after 862		15 September 866 Husband's death	886	Robert
	Théodrate of Troyes	Aleran, Count of Troyes	868	881/before 885		29 February 888 Became Queen	903	Odo II
	Judith	-	-	922		925		Hugh I
	Eadhild of England	Edward the Elder, King of the Anglo-Saxons (Wessex)	907/910	926/7		26 January 937
	Hedwige of Saxony	Henry I the Fowler, King of the East Franks (Liudolfings)	910/22	14 September 938		16 June 956 Husband's death	10 May 965
	Adelaide of Aquitaine	William III, Duke of Aquitaine (Ramnulfids)	945	970		3 July 987 Became Queen	15 June 1004/06	Hugh II

Capetian Countesses: Royal Connections

The Capetian family took over the French throne, and their members also held the title of Countess of Orléans.

Picture	Name	Father's Family	Born	Married	Became Countess	Stopped Being Countess	Died	Husband
	Isabella of Aragon	James I of Aragon (Barcelona)	1247	28 May 1262		25 August 1270 Became Queen	28 January 1271	Philip of France

Discover the Duchesses of Orléans

Later, the title of Orléans was raised to a "Duchy," which is a higher noble rank. This meant the wives of the Dukes of Orléans were known as Duchesses.

The Valois Duchesses

The House of Valois was a branch of the Capetian dynasty. They ruled France and held the title of Duke of Orléans at different times.

First Creation of the Duchy

Picture	Name	Father's Family	Born	Married	Became Duchess	Stopped Being Duchess	Died	Husband
	Blanche of France	Charles IV of France (Capet)	1 April 1328	8 January 1345		1 September 1376 Husband's death	8 February 1393	Philippe of Valois

Second Creation of the Duchy

Name	Father's Family	Born	Married	Became Duchess	Stopped Being Duchess	Died	Husband
Valentina Visconti	Giangaleazzo Visconti, Duke of Milan (Visconti)	1366	17 August 1389		23 November 1407 Husband's death	4 December 1408	Louis I
Isabella of Valois	Charles VI of France (Valois)	9 November 1389	29 June 1406	23 November 1407 Husband became Duke	13 September 1409		Charles I
Bonne d'Armagnac	Bernard VII, Count of Armagnac (Armagnac)	19 February 1392	15 August 1410		1430/5
Marie de Clèves	Adolph I, Duke of Cleves (De la Marck)	19 September 1426	27 November 1440		5 January 1465 Husband's death	23 August 1487
Joan of France, Duchess of Berry	Louis XI of France (Valois)	23 April 1461	8 September 1476		7 April 1498 Became Queen	4 February 1505	Louis II

Third Creation of the Duchy

Picture	Name	Father's Family	Born	Married	Became Duchess	Stopped Being Duchess	Died	Husband
	Catherine de' Medici	Lorenzo II de' Medici, Duke of Urbino (Medici)	13 April 1519	28 October 1533		10 August 1536 Title passed to brother-in-law	5 January 1589	Henri I

The Bourbon Duchesses

The House of Bourbon became the ruling family of France after the Valois. They also held the title of Duke of Orléans.

Fourth Creation of the Duchy

There were no Duchesses of Orléans during this period.

Fifth Creation of the Duchy

Picture	Name	Father's Family	Born	Married	Became Duchess	Stopped Being Duchess	Died	Husband
	Marie de Bourbon, Mademoiselle de Montpensier Duchess of Montpensier	Henri de Bourbon, Duke of Montpensier (Bourbon-Montpensier)	15 October 1605	6 August 1626		4 June 1627		Gaston
	Marguerite of Lorraine	Francis II, Duke of Lorraine (Lorraine)	22 July 1615	2 to 3 January 1632		2 February 1660 Husband's death	13 April 1672	Gaston

The House of Orléans Duchesses

This branch of the Bourbon family specifically took the name House of Orléans. They were very important figures in French history.

Sixth Creation of the Duchy

Name	Father's Family	Born	Married	Became Duchess	Stopped Being Duchess	Died	Husband
Princess Henrietta of England and Scotland	Charles I of England and Scotland (Stuart)	26 June 1644	31 March 1661		30 June 1670		Philippe de France
Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate	Charles I Louis, Elector Palatine (Palatinate-Simmern)	27 May 1652	16 November 1671		9 June 1701 Husband's death	9 December 1722	Philippe de France
Françoise Marie de Bourbon, Légitimée de France Mademoiselle de Blois	Louis XIV of France (Bourbon (Illegitimate))	25 May 1677	18 February 1692	9 June 1701 Husband became Duke	2 December 1723 Husband's death	1 February 1749	Philippe d'Orléans
Margravine Johanna of Baden-Baden	Louis William, Margrave of Baden-Baden (Zähringen)	10 November 1704	13 July 1724		8 July 1726		Louis d'Orléans
Louise Henriette de Bourbon, Mademoiselle de Conti Duchess of Étampes	Louis Armand de Bourbon, Prince of Conti (Bourbon)	20 June 1726	17 December 1743	4 February 1752 Husband became Duke	9 February 1759		Louis Philippe d'Orléans
Louise Marie Adélaïde de Bourbon Mademoiselle de Penthièvre	Louis Jean Marie de Bourbon, Duke of Penthièvre (Bourbon)	13 March 1753	8 May 1768	18 November 1785 Husband became Duke	6 November 1793 Husband's execution	23 June 1821	Louis Philippe Joseph d'Orléans
Princess Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily	Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies (Two Sicilies)	26 April 1782	25 November 1809		9 August 1830 Became Queen	24 March 1866	Louis Philippe d'Orléans
Duchess Helen of Mecklenburg-Schwerin	Frederick Louis, Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (Mecklenburg-Schwerin)	24 January 1814	30 May 1837		13 July 1842 Husband's death	17 May 1858	Ferdinand Philippe