Luisa Isabel de Orleans y Borbón was born on December 9, 1709 in the Palace of Versailles, the daughter of the Duke of Orleans, considered a man of dissolute life and great talent for government. The duke’s little interest in his children, especially those of the female sex, caused extreme behavior in them in their adulthood. The girl herself was raised in a convent near Paris, until she was claimed to marry the heir to the Spanish Crown. The jump, of course, could not have been longer.
Philip V’s abdication in early 1724 made not only his son Louis I King, but the extravagant Frenchwoman Queen. The English ambassador Stanhope was alarmed at the escalation of the young woman’s madness:
“There is nothing to justify the Queen’s inappropriate conduct. To her extravagances, like playing naked in the palace gardens; to her laziness, slovenliness and fondness for her must; to her demonstrations of ignoring the young monarch, responds to the increasingly clear distancing of Luis towards her ».
Luis could not understand what was happening to his wife, although science today would probably classify her behavior as that of a borderline personality disorder, which is characterized primarily by emotional instability, extremely polarized and dichotomous thinking and chaotic interpersonal relationships. Growing up despised by her parents left its mark on her personality.
Credits
Screenplay: Cesar Cervera.
Editing: Manuel Garre.
Voiceover: Manuel Garre, Jesus Garcia Calero, Patxi Fernandez, Blanca Nava Do and Maria Rosemary.
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