Louise de la Valliere

At the Louis XIV discussion group, we are discussing once again one of Louis XIV's mistresses, Louise de la Valliere.

The odd thing about Louise is that I believe that she may be my brother reincarnated today, so I am always a bit careful about what I say about her. He knows that I believe this to be the case, mostly on the reason that when he and his wife came to the house to visit one time it was when I had just been back in time to see Louise ride up to the king in her own carriage. I have never forgotten her carriage. It is most impressive as it is only that of a mistress, but still has all the royal trappings, not quite as extravagant as the Queen's carriage, but nonetheless very impressive.

Of all the women in the king's life, she is also the one that I can appreciate in many ways as I have also done as she had done, and that is not be totally impressed with the office of the person, but rather be interested in the person rather than the office. I have had that in my own personal experience today which I may discuss at some time or other, but not yet.

However, because I do not want to again cause unhappiness in the Louis XIV discussion group by mentioning my returns to the past, I am using this blog to do that instead. After all, people are not reading this as a part of a discussion about historical figures.

I have seen Louise de la Valliere at least three times in the past...as I said, one of the times was when I saw her carriage come up with very elaborate details on the side of the carriage showing that she is the king's mistress, or his property at least. Believe it or not, the king owns everything in France anyway, if he chooses, and so his mistresses are his property as such.

Louise is a quiet and subdued personality. She did at this one time though show her emotional feelings towards him, and when I read this episode it shamed me terribly as it reminded me of a time when I had done something similar to what the king had done to a friend in my hometown when only a senior in high school. So sometimes I relate Louise to that friend also.

The king admonished Louise, rightfully so, for forgetting her place with regard to the Queen. While Louis may have needed a mistress for his wandering heart, he was well aware of court protocol and the rights of the queen and did not want her to be insulted. She was of his bloodline, being first cousins.

So when I read that scolding that he gave her, it reminded me of a time when I had been so bold and probably rude to a friend who had likewise done something out of line with my way of thinking about the way friends should behave in a home. I am not going to go into details but I have never forgotten it and wonder sometimes how and why we stayed friends after my saying what I did, but she quickly forgave me, and I also quickly amended what I had said to her as well...but when I read that episode it reminded me of it, and made my face red again...there is something that when one reads of some similar situation that one feels the humilation over again.

So I quickly forgave the King and Louise as well for her indiscretion, believing that the king loved her so that he would accept her immediately. However, instead, it gave her grave doubts about his feelings for her...she was very insecure in many ways, and did not fully realize what court protocol meant to others.

On that Saint Simon would never have found favor in her at all, as he was one of the most snobbish about it, as Louis was not quite that bad at all, which made a lot of courtiers disgusted with him, including Philippe's second wife, Lizelotte, at the behaviour at Marly...Marly was one of those "at ease" places where people could relax and let their hair down a bit...but that is one good reason why Saint Simon would never receive an invitation, since he was such a prude and stickler for everything being up to snuff.

At any rate, I had another memory of Louise where she too, like all the others, is waiting patiently for the king to arrive. I am in the person of the king, and I can see her waiting, and then when she notices that I am about to approach her, suddenly she sits up straight, and tall, and comes to life, as before that she is rather listless and probably bored...I could see her expression change...

Louise is a physically imperfect young woman but her charm was in her innocence, youthfulness, and athleticism. She could ride atop a horse in her bare feet despite being a bit lame...that lameness apparently stemmed from childhood, and was never corrected yet it did not impair her ability to ride on the top of the back of a horse with her bare feet. That was when the king noticed her, and he liked her vivacity then, and her sincere interest in him.

One of the reasons that I believe that possibly she is my brother today (and I have an identity for him in Alexander's time as well) is due to a memory of my being in bed with Louise (I am the king in this memory) and it made me think of a time when my brother and I were in bed together in VW when my uncle was babysitting us...that is what really tipped me off to the possibility...there is no assurance of that but I have two things which connect the two of them: the carriage and his arrival, and that bed scene.

In fact, Louis and Louise are very innocent in that bed scene...as are my brother and I in the one I remember from our childhood. My brother and I liked to play games on each other, trying to scare each other to death...in some ways, we still have not grown up.

To my way of thinking, Louise is the least important of Louis's casual affairs even though she had several children by him. The reason she is the least important is that she left him to go into the Carmelite convent, and apparently, served the rest of her time in repentance...she appears to have disavowed her own children, and left them to the king's care.

She left the most honorably of all. She was the one who suffered the most at the court due to the Queen's dislike of her. The Queen had to repent that herself, and came to realize later that Louise had been the kindest and sweetest of all the women whom the King had enjoyed in a "lustful" way.

I won't try to explain the king's affairs, of which there were many, but let me just say that it was accepted and expected that he would have affairs, and would pay well for the fun of it, so many men encouraged their wives to solicit the king for favors as well.

However, much of it is exaggerated. (I have had some fun realizing that maybe many of the men I have known before had been connected to me because of past life experiences...)