author
Madame de Maintenon
1635–1719
Rising from a difficult childhood to the inner circle of Versailles, she became one of the most influential women in the court of Louis XIV. She is remembered both for her close, secret marriage to the king and for founding the school of Saint-Cyr for girls.
1 Audiobook
The Correspondence of Madame, Princess Palatine, Mother of the Regent; of Marie-Adélaïde de Savoie, Duchesse de Bourgogne; and of Madame de Maintenon, in Relation to Saint-Cyr
by Madame de Maintenon, Duchess of Burgundy of Savoy Marie Adelaide, duchesse d' Charlotte-Elisabeth Orléans
About the author
Born Françoise d'Aubigné in 1635, Madame de Maintenon lived through striking reversals of fortune. After an impoverished early life, she married the writer Paul Scarron and entered literary society in Paris, where she gained a reputation for intelligence, restraint, and tact.
She later became governess to the children of Louis XIV and Madame de Montespan, a role that brought her close to the royal household. Over time she became one of the king's most trusted companions, and she is widely described as his secret second wife, though she was never publicly acknowledged as queen.
Maintenon also left a lasting mark through education. She founded the Maison royale de Saint-Louis at Saint-Cyr, a school created for girls of impoverished noble families, reflecting the serious moral and religious tone for which she became known in later life.