A Cyclopaedia of Female Biography/Estrees, Gabrielle d', Duchess of Beaufort
ESTREES, GABRIELLE D', DUCHESS OF BEAUFORT,
The mistress of Henry the Fourth of France, born about 1671, was the daughter of Antoine d'Estrées, a descendant of one of the noblest houses in Picardy, for a long time grand maitre de l'artillerie, who distinguished himself in the defence of Noyon against the Duke of Mayenne, for which Henry the Fourth made him governor of the Isle de France. Gabrielle was about twenty years of age when Henry first saw her, on a visit to Cœuvres Castle; and her beauty immediately captivated him. Gabrielle, however, who was attached to the Duke of Bellegarde, was at first little inclined to gratify the wishes of the king. But Henry still urged his suit, and often stole by the sentinels of his enemies, in the dress of a peasant, to see the object of his love. The heart of the lady was at length moved by such ardour and devotion. She became the mistress of the chivalric monarch, who never loved any other woman so passionately. To escape the severe scrutiny of her father, Henry married her to a nobleman named Danierval, of Liancourt: but, says Sully, il sut empêcher la consommation du marriage, and subsequently dissolved the marriage. Henry intended to raise Gabrielle to the throne as his lawful wife. For this purpose he not only procured a divorce from Margaret of Valois, but also raised the county of Beaufort to a duchy, which he bestowed on Gabrielle, thus giving her a high rank at court. This design was strongly opposed by Sully, who often represented to the monarch the bad consequences of such a measure.
Notwithstanding the determination of the king, and the wishes of Gabrielle, their marriage never took place. Just before Easter, 1699, when negociations were already in train for the divorce of the king, she retired from court, by the advice of René Bénoit, the king's confessor, and went to Paris to spend the Passion-week. On Maundy Thursday, having eaten an orange after dinner, she was suddenly seized with convulsions, which distorted her beautiful countenance, and, on Saturday, she died in the most excruciating torments. Apoplexy, with convulsions, was the cause assigned for her death; but no one can doubt that she was poisoned. The king's grief for her loss was excessive; and, what is seldom the case, the royal mistress was universally lamented. Her amiable disposition, the gentleness of her character, and the modesty which prevented her from meddling with public affairs, won her general favour. She had three children by the king—Cæsar and Alexander, afterwards Dukes of Vendome, and a daughter, Catharine Henrietta, afterwards the wife of the Duke of Elbeuf. Her biography, which appeared some years ago in France, is accompanied by an interesting correspondence between Gabrielle and her royal lover.