Louis Henri, Duke of Bourbon

French politician and prince (1692-1740)

Louis Henri de Bourbon, Duke of Bourbon, Prince of Condé (Louis Henri Joseph; 18 August 1692 – 27 January 1740) was head of the Prince of Condé and a cousin of the then reigning House of Bourbon from 1710 to his death, and served as prime minister to his kinsman Louis XV from 1723 to 1726.

Louis Henri
Prince of Condé
Duke of Bourbon
The Duke of Bourbon wearing armour and the sash of the Order of the Holy Spirit by an unknown artist.
Prime Minister of France
PredecessorPhilippe d'Orléans
SuccessorAndré Hercule de Fleury
Reign2 December 1723 – 1726
Born(1692-08-18)18 August 1692
Palace of Versailles, France
Died27 January 1740(1740-01-27) (aged 47)
Château of Chantilly, France
Burial
Église Collégiale Saint-Martin, Montmorency
SpouseMarie Anne de Bourbon
Caroline of Hesse-Rotenburg
IssueLouis Joseph, Prince of Condé
Full name
Louis Henri Joseph de Bourbon
HouseBourbon
FatherLouis, Duke of Bourbon, Prince of Condé
MotherLouise Françoise de Bourbon
ReligionRoman Catholicism
SignatureLouis Henri's signature

Despite succeeding as head of the House of Condé in 1709, he never used that name, preferring the title "Duke of Bourbon", and was known at court as Monsieur le Duc. As a member of the reigning House of Bourbon, he was a Prince of the blood.

Marriages and children change

On 9 July 1713 at Versailles, he married Marie Anne de Bourbon who died in 1720. Marie Anne was the eldest daughter of Marie Thérèse de Bourbon and her husband, François Louis, Prince de Conti. The couple had no children.

Secondly on 23 July 1728 he married Caroline of Hesse-Rotenburg and they had one son;

  1. Louis Joseph de Bourbon (9 August 1736 – 13 May 1818), who led the "Army of Condé" during the French Revolutionary Wars. He also married twice.

Titles and styles change