Louis Philippe I

Louis Philippe I (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850) was King of the French from 1830 till 1848 when he was forced into exile after abdicating the throne as a result of the February 1848 Revolution.

Background
Louis Philippe was born the eldest son of Louis Philippe I), and his wife Louise Marie Adélaïde de Bourbon in the Palais Royal, the residence the House of Orléans in Paris and his father allowed him to be tutored by the liberal Madame de Genlis. His father was an active critic of his own cousin Louis XVI of France and the young Duke of Chartres would even attend Revolutionary clubs in Paris with his father. Following the execution of King Louis XVI in January of 1793, Louis Philippe's own father was also executed in November of the same year having also supported the execution of the King. Louis Philippe fled to went to Zürich with his younger brothers but they were asked to leave for fear of compromising Swiss neutrality. While living in the Upper Rhine he was appointed a mathematics and modern languages, at a boys' boarding school where he stayed for just one month before he relocated g to Bavaria then Hungary even travelling to Finland in 1795. The exiled Duke also travelled to Philadelphia where he was reunited with his brothers. Louis Philippe was allowed to return to France after the abdication of Napoleon which allowed Louis XVIII to regain the French throne. Following King Charles X of France being overthrown as a result of the July Revolution Louis Philippe was officially sworn in as King Louis Philippe I of the French 9 August 1830

Marriage
In Palermo, on 25 November 1809, His Most Serene Highness The Duke of Orléans married Princess Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily. She was a daughter of King Ferdinand IV of Naples and Maria Carolina of Austria as well as a niece of the murdered Marie Antoinette.

Legacy as King
On 13 August 1830, King Louis Philippe I signed a decree that entitled his children and legitimate descendants the title of Prince or Princess of Orléans with the style of Royal Highness from birth. His descendants still claim both though are not recognised due to France now being a Republic.

Children

 * 1) Ferdinand Philippe of Orléans, Duke of Orléans (3 September 1810 – 13 July 1842) married Princess Helene of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and had children.
 * 2) Louise o Orléans (3 April 1812 - 11 October 1850) married King Leopold I of Belgium and had children.
 * 3) Marie  d'Orléans (12 Aprile 1813 - 6 January 1839) married married Duke Alexander of Württemberg and had children.
 * 4) Louis of Orléans, Duke of Nemours  (25 October 1814 – 26 June 1896) married Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha an had children.
 * 5) François of Orléans, Prince of Joinville (14 August 1818 – 16 June 1900) married Princess Francisca of Brazil an had children.
 * 6) Françoise d'Orléans  (26 March 1816	- 20 May 1818) died young.
 * 7) Princess Clémentine of Orléans  (6 March 1817 – 16 February 1907) married Prince August of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha an had children.
 * 8) Charles of Orléans, Duke of Penthièvre (1 January 1820 – 25 Julie 1828) died young.
 * 9) Henri of Orléans, Duke o Aumale (January 16 1822 – May 7 1897) married Princess Carolina Augusta of the Two Sicilies had children.
 * 10) Prince Antoine of Orléans, Duke of Montpensier (31 Julie 1824 – 4 February 1890) married Infanta Luisa Fernanda of Spain an had children.

Titles and styles

 * 6 October 1773 – 18 November 1785 His Most Serene Highness The Duke of Valois, Prince of the French royal blood.
 * 18 November 1785 – 6 November 1793 His Most Serene Highness The Duke of Chartres, Prince of the French royal blood.
 * 6 November 1793 – 21 September 1824 His Most Serene Highness The Duke of Orléans, Prince of the French royal blood.
 * 21 September 1824 – 9 August 1830 His Royal Highness The Duke of Orléans, First Prince of the French royal blood.
 *  9 August 1830 – 24 February 1848 His Majesty The King [of the French]
 * 24 February 1848 – 26 August 1850 His Majesty King Louis Philippe.

Honours

 * Knight of the Order of the Holy Spirit (France)
 * Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece (Spain)
 * Knight Grand Cross of the Military Order of William (The Netherlands)
 * Knight of the Order of the Garter (United Kingdom)
 * Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Ferdinand and of Merit (Two Sicilies)
 * Knight of the Order of Saint Januarius (Two Sicilies)
 * Knight of the Order of the Blood (Tunisia)