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Victoire ValoisLast child of King Henry II of France and Catherine de Medici
Date of Birth: 24.06.1556
Country:  France |
Content:
Biography of Victoria Valois
Victoria Valois was the last child of King Henry II and Catherine de' Medici of France. She was born alongside her stillborn twin sister, Jeanne de Valois. Victoria's birth came as a difficult one for her 37-year-old mother, as it was her ninth pregnancy and all her children, except one, were alive at that time. The delivery, which took place on the Feast of St. John the Baptist, was complicated and nearly caused Catherine de' Medici's death, according to the Spanish ambassador Simon Renard. After the birth of the first of the twins, Victoria, the mother's condition started to deteriorate. To save her life, surgeons had to break Jeanne's legs to remove her from the womb. Jeanne passed away without ever seeing the light of day, having remained dead in the womb for several hours. Victoria was baptized and given the name "Victoria," which was unprecedented in the history of the dynasty. Her godparents were Cardinal Antonio Carafa, Duke François de Guise, and the duchesses Marie de Saint-Pol and Louise de Montpensier. Victoria lived for only six weeks before passing away. Both sisters were buried in the royal necropolis of the Basilica of Saint-Denis in Paris, alongside their father (who passed away three years later) and brother Louis.
Image of the Sisters
Despite one of them being stillborn, an image of the Valois sisters has been preserved in Catherine de' Medici's "Book of Hours," along with their brother Louis, who also died in infancy. After the birth, doctors advised the royal couple not to consider having any more children. Following this advice, Henry stopped visiting his wife's chambers and spent all his free time with his favorite, Diane de Poitiers.
