Mistress of Louis XV, born in Paris, France. A woman of remarkable grace, beauty, and wit, she became a queen of fashion, and attracted the eye of the king at a ball. Installed at Versailles (1745), and ennobled as marquise de Pompadour, she assumed the entire control of public affairs, and for 20 years swayed state policy, appointing her own favourites. She founded the royal porcelain factory at Sèvres, and was a lavish patroness of architecture, the arts, and literature. She was largely blamed for the French defeats in the Seven Years' War.
Madame de Pompadour (December 29, 1721 – April 15, 1764) was a well known courtesan and the famous mistress of King Louis XV of France.
Early life
Madame de Pompadour was born Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson on December 29, 1721 in Paris. It is suspected that her biological father was the rich financier Le Normant de Tournehem, who became her legal guardian when her official father was forced to leave the country in 1725 after a scandal and she lived with her mother and sister. Her younger brother was Abel-François Poisson de Vandières (who would later become the Marquis de Marigny).
She was married in 1741 (at the age of 19) to Charles-Guillaume Le Normant d'Etiolles, nephew of her guardian.
Contemporary opinion supported by artwork from the time considered Poisson to be quite beautiful, with her small mouth and oval face enlivened by her wit.
The King's mistress
Poisson caught the eye of the monarch Louis XV in 1745. A group of courtiers, including her father-in-law, endorsed her as courtesan to Louis XV, who was still mourning the death of his second mistress, the Duchess of Châteauroux. By March she had become a regular visitor and king's mistress, and the king installed her at Versailles. He also bought her Pompadour, the first of six residences. In July, Louis made her a marquise, had her legally separated from her husband, and on September 14 she was formally presented at court.
Madame de Pompadour was an accomplished woman, with a good eye for Rococo interiors. Contrary to popular belief - and contemporary opinion - she never had much direct political influence, but she supported Belle Île and endorsed the Duke of Choiseul to the king. However, she did wield considerable power and control behind the scenes, which was highlighted when another of the king's mistresses, Marie-Louise O'Murphy, attempted to replace her around 1754.
Choiseul encouraged the basic shift in French foreign policy away from Prussia and towards France's hereditary rival, the Austrian Habsburgs. However, Pompadour persisted in her support of these policies, and, when Bernis failed her, brought Choiseul into office and supported him in all his great plans: the Pacte de Famille, the suppression of the Jesuits, and the peace of Versailles that lost Canada.
Pompadour was a woman of verve and intelligence. She planned buildings like the Place de la Concorde and the Petit Trianon with her brother, the Marquis de Marigny.
Pompadour suffered two miscarriages in the 1750s, and she is said to have arranged lesser mistresses for the king's pleasure to replace herself. Although they did not sleep together after 1750, Louis XV remained devoted to her until her death in 1764 at the age of 42.
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