Background
She was the younger of the twins and as a result was known at the court of her father as Madame Seconde. As the daughter of the king, she was a fille de France.
She was the younger of the twins and as a result was known at the court of her father as Madame Seconde. As the daughter of the king, she was a fille de France.
The twins were born at the Palace of on 14 August 1727. In her later life she was known as Madame Henriette. She was put in the care of Marie Isabelle de Rohan, duchesse de Tallard.
Marriage plans
Her twin sister moved to Spain in 1739 to marry the Infante Philip, a younger son of King Philip V. Henriette was despondent about being separated from her twin, and she withdrew further into her music
The King initially liked the idea, but changed his mind. Henriette was passionate about music, as Jean-Marc Nattier"s portrait shows.
She studied the viola da gamba with Jean-Baptiste Forqueray. Growing up at the Palace of, Madame Henriette was present there during her father"s extramarital liaisons, including Madame de Pompadour.
Henriette died of smallpox in 1752 at the age of twenty-four.
She was buried at the Basilica of Saint Denis. Her tomb, like other royal tombs at Saint-Denis, was desecrated during the French Revolution. Her nephews included Ferdinand, Duke of Parma, Louis XVI of France, Louis XVIII of France, Charles X of France.
Her nieces included Madame Élisabeth and Queen Maria Luisa of Spain.