Suzanne Henriette of Lorraine

Suzanne Henriette
File:Suzanne Henriette of Lorraine duchess of Mantova.jpg Lorraine by Rigaud
Duchess of Mantua and Montferrat
Tenure	8 November 1704 – 5 July 1708
Born	(1686-02-01)1 February 1686 France
Died	Paris, France
Burial	Carmel du faubourg Saint-Germain, Paris
Spouse	Ferdinand Charles Gonzaga
Full name Suzanne Henriette de Lorraine
House	House of Lorraine
Father	Charles of Lorraine, Duke of Elbeuf
Mother	Françoise de Montault de Navailles

Suzanne Henriette of Lorraine (1 February 1686 – 19 October 1710) was a member of the House of Lorraine and was the Duchess of Mantua by marriage. Her husband Ferdinand Charles Gonzaga was the last Gonzaga Duke of Mantua.

Biography

Suzanne Henriette was the penultimate daughter of Charles of Lorraine, Duke of Elbeuf and his third wife Françoise de Montault de Navailles. Her two older half brothers, Henri and Emmanuel Maurice were successively Dukes of Elbeuf. She was known as Mademoiselle d'Elbeuf, derived from her fathers title.

Although the Lorraine-Elbeufs were reckoned among the princes etrangers at the court of France, as a cadet branch (Elbeuf) of a non-reigning cadet branch (Guise) of the House of Lorraine, it was not their custom to marry crowned heads. Nevertheless, Ferdinando Carlo Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat sought Suzanne Henriette's hand in pursuit of a dynastic alliance with another reigning ducal house under French influence. She married Gonzaga in Milan on 8 November 1704 accompanied by her grandmother Catherine Henriette de Bourbon. To the French, her husband was known as Charles de Gonzagne.

The Prince of Condé (son of le Grand Condé) had proposed his daughter Marie Anne, Mademoiselle de Montmorency to marry Ferdinando Carlo Gonzaga, ruler of the Duchies of Mantua and Montferrat. He had lost his first wife Anna Isabella Gonzaga and subsequent first cousin in August 1703 and was childless. Gonzaga however did have illegitimate children with his mistress Eleonora Parma, a line which died out in the mid 18th century and were not able to inherit Mantua. The couple were married in Milan on 8 November 1704. Her husband died on 5 July 1708 leaving her a widow at the age of 22.

Suzanne Henriette returned to France and was later involved in a lawsuit between Leopold, Duke of Lorraine and Anne of Bavaria, Princess of Condé over inheritance of the Guise fortune. Residing in Paris, she died there in 1710 at the age of 24. She was buried at the Carmel du faubourg Saint-Germain in the crypt of her grandfather, the Maréchal de Navailles. Saint-Simon noted that she died in the flower of her youth after a long illness and was considered to have been a beauty at the time. He also wrote that her "bizarre" marriage had been the cause of her sad life.

Titles, styles, honours and arms

Titles and styles

• 1 February 1686 – 8 November 1704 "Mademoiselle d'Elbeuf"
• 8 November 1704 – 5 July 1708 Her Highness The Duchess of Mantua
• 5 July 1708 – 19 October 1710 Her Highness The Dowager Duchess of Mantua

Ancestry

Family of Suzanne Henriette of Lorraine

16. René of Lorraine, Marquis of Elbeuf               8. Charles of Lorraine, Duke of Elbeuf                       17. Louise de Rieux               4. Charles of Lorraine, Duke of Elbeuf                             18. Léonor Chabot, Count of Charny               9. Marguerite Chabot, Countess of Charny                       19. Françoise de Rye, Dame de Longwy               2. Charles of Lorraine, Duke of Elbeuf                                   20. Antoine de Bourbon, King of Navarre               10.Henry IV of France                       21. Jeanne III of Navarre               5. Catherine Henriette de Bourbon, Légitimée de France                             22. Antoine d'Estrées, Marquis of Coeuvres               11.Gabrielle d'Estrées                       23. Françoise Babou de La Bourdaisière               1. Suzanne Henriette de Lorraine                                         24. Bernard de Montault, Baron of Beynac               12. Philippe de Montault, Duke of Lavedan                       25. Tabitha de Gabaston, Dame de Bassillon               6. Philippe de Navailles, Duke of Montault                             26. Hélie de Gontaut de Saint Geniès, Baron of Badefol               13. Judith de Gontaut, Dame de Badefol                       27. Jacqueline de Béthune               3. Françoise de Montault de Navailles                                   28. Jean de Baudéan, Seigneur de Parabère               14. Charles de Baudéan, Count of Parabère                       29. Louise Gillier, Dame de Salles               7. Susanne de Baudéan                             30. Michel Adam Tiraqueau, Seigneur de Laubier               15. Françoise Louise Tiraqueau                       31. Suzanne Gobin