Name: Anne of Brittany
Date of birth: January 25 or 26, 1477, in Nantes
Date of death: January 9, 1514, at the Château de Blois
Queen of France : from December 6, 1491 to April 7, 1498, then from January 8, 1499 to January 9, 1514
Husband : Charles VIII (king of France), then Louis XII (king of France)
Mother : Marguerite de Foix (Duchess of Brittany)
Father : Francis II of Brittany (Duke of Brittany)
Her biography
Daughter of François II, Duke of Brittany, she succeeded him at the head of the duchy in 1488, in the absence of a male heir. Because of its strategic position and its wealth, Brittany is an interesting territory for many European monarchs. She was first engaged to the son of the King of England, Edward IV, then married by proxy to Maximilian I of Habsburg, future Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. She had her marriage annulled to finally marry Charles VIII King of France in 1491 and resided mainly at the Château d’Amboise.
The premature death of Charles VIII will leave the young widow in a delicate position. She agrees, in accordance with the terms of her first marriage contract, to marry the new King of France, Louis XII. She then settled at the court of Blois. This tragic episode makes her the only woman to have twice held the title of Queen of France. Anne de Bretagne died at the Château de Blois in January 1514.
At the royal castle of Amboise
Singular destiny that of Anne de Bretagne, who will be twice Queen of France, a unique case in History! It was at the end of 1491 that the young Duchess of Brittany (14 years old) married Charles VIII and became Queen of France. She settled with her husband in the Loire Valley and resided mainly at the Château d’Amboise. With him, she will supervise the huge project aimed at transforming the old medieval stronghold into a sublime palace inspired by the new ideas of the Renaissance.
To see at the Royal Castle of Amboise
His portrait in the Drum Room.
The many ermines of Brittany in the carved decorations.