Marie Caroline de Pracht

Marie Caroline (1665 - Present) was the Dauphine of Pracht as the wife of Louis Auguste, Monsieur le Dauphin. The Dauphin died prematurely and thus she never became Empress-Consort. She is the mother of Louis V.

Reign of Charles III - Sa Seigneurie, Dame de Berry
Marie Caroline was born on June 19th, 1665 at the Chateau de Berry. Her parents were the Comte and Comtesse de Berry, members of the princely house of Battenberg. Her birth wasn't celebrated within the family, as she was considered unimportant to them. She was educated quietly at the Chateau de Berry by her hired governess, the Dame d'Aunis.

She had a mostly quiet upbringing, joining court aged seven in 1677. She was very shy, rarely speaking to anyone at court. She also became very religious and devoted to family reputation and perfection. This devotion and pious demeanor would not go unnoticed by the Emperor, who in 1695 would begin arrangements for her to marry his son, Monsieur le Dauphin. There were a lot of arguments with these arrangements, nobody being able to settle on the terms for the marriage and what it meant for each partner. In the end, the arrangement was finally finalized and they married in 1686. She would have her hopes up for a happy marriage with the Dauphin, who outwardly would appear enthusiastic for the marriage, however she soon found out that inside he was dreading having to marry her.

Reign of Charles III - Son Altesse Imperiale, Madame la Dauphine
Marie Caroline, after her marriage, was now Madame la Dauphine. She had hoped for a happy marriage and a loving husband, but her hopes were in vain. The Dauphin would care little for Marie, rarely ever acknowledging her at all. It went documented the problems that the couple were having, for the marriage remained unconsummated for one and a half years. The Dauphin found Marie dull, unappealing and unattractive while she found him boring and somewhat annoying. Under pressure from the Imperial Family and the Emperor, the marriage was consummated in 1688. Marie gave birth to a male in 1689, who became the Duke of Bourgogne and more informally, le Petit Dauphin. Marie had wished to raise the child herself, but much to her bitter disappointment, her son was taken from her to be raised by a governess. She would have two more children

Just around a month after their youngest child was born, Monsieur le Dauphin contracted severe smallpox. After months of his illness, he died. There was much uncertainty on Marie's place at court after the death of the Dauphin, though the Emperor provided her with the title of la Grande Mademoiselle as a reparation. Her son would then become the new Dauphin. Charles III would also die in 1699, her son becoming Louis V. Her brother in law, Auguste Charles, became regent for the infant Emperor as instructed in the will of Charles III.

Regency of Auguste Charles - Son Altesse Serenissime, la Grande Mademoiselle
Marie Caroline insisted that she would go with her children to wherever they were to live. After much persuasion, the Regent finally allowed Marie to go to the Chateau d'Orleans with the young Emperor and her other children. Marie was to provide reports on the well-being of the Emperor during the regency. Marie lived quietly with her children and their entourage for the seven years of the regency period. Her weekly reports were never late and she was sure to send them on time and in much detail. In 1706, when Louis V was 16, the Regent stepped aside from his post, allowing the Emperor to take power for himself. Marie returned to court with her son, keeping her title of la Grande Mademoiselle as a customary title. She also received 250,000 Franks from the Emperor.

Reign of Louis V - Son Altesse Serenissime, la Grande Mademoiselle
Marie exercised great influence in the early years of Louis V's reign. However, when he married, Marie's influence began to wain in favour of the new Empress-Consort, Marie Johanne. Marie initially held a great resentment toward the Empress-Consort for, as she put it, "distracting the Emperor from myself.". The courtiers saw this resentment as a sign of jealousy from Marie that Johanne had become the Empress-Consort, a position that she was supposed to have but never got. Rumours flooding around for the reason of her hatred of the Empress, she finally smoothed the relationship over and eventually became friendly with Marie Johanne.

She'd be glad for the births of her grandchildren, her favourite of which being her eldest grandchild, Madame la Dauphine. Marie still exercised influence in this time, only that she had less influence over the Emperor's decisions than she had done in the past. Growing older, Marie felt the need to settle down and become less of a presence at court. She claimed ownership of her parents old Chateau de Berry, long since abandoned. She had it renovated and chose to take residence there, though still returning to court occasionally and keeping contact with her son. She resides at the Chateau de Berry today.

Issue

 * Louis Ferdinand V, l'Empereur de Pracht (6th May 1689 - Present)
 * Philippe Jacques, Duc d'Angouleme (18th August 1691 - Present)
 * Marie Josephe, Madame la Princesse (19th May 1694 - Present)

Titles and Styles
-19th June 1665 - 8th January 1689: Sa Seigneurie, Dame de Berry

-8th January 1698 - 18th November 1694: Son Altesse Imperiale, Madame la Dauphine

-18th November 1694 - Present: Son Altesse Serenissime, la Grande Mademoiselle

Honours

 * Knight of the Order of St. Joan