A Biographical Dictionary of the Celebrated Women of Every Age and Country/Valentinois, (Diana de Poitiers, Duchesse de)
VALENTINOIS (DIANA DE POICTIERS, DUCHESSE DE); born about 1496, or 1500; died 1566;
So that she must have been at least forty years of age, when Henry II. at the age of eighteen, became so deeply attached to her: and though near sixty at the death of this prince, she had always maintained her ascendancy over him. She married, 1541, Lewis de Brezé, at that time grand seneschal of Normandy; and married her daughters very advantageously, the second to the Prince de Sedan. In 1549 she was made Duchesse de Valentinois. In 1552 she nursed the queen in a dangerous illness, notwithstanding she did not love her. She preferred the interest of the state to the aggrandizement of her family, and she loved the glory of her King. Her charities were immense; and every man distinguished for genius was sure of her support. Yet, towards the end of the reign of Henry, she did not make so good use of her power, for she persuaded him to break the truce with Spain, which was the source of many evils to France. She had done this at the instance of the Cardinal of Lorrain, who, with the rest of the Guises, no sooner saw the event, than they leagued with the Queen Catherine de Medicis, to ruin Diana, if she would consent to the marriage of their niece, Mary, Queen of Scots, to the dauphin. This was done, and the duchess remained without support: but she lost not her firmness; and, on the return of the king, he promised to inform her of all the plots of her enemies. But he died of a wound received in a tournament, 1558, when he wore her colours, black and white, for it was then the custom for widows always to remain in mourning. Catherine sent her an order to deliver up the royal jewels, and retire to one of her castles. "Is the King dead?" said she, "No, madam, but he cannot live till night." "Well then," said she, "I have as yet no master. And when he shall be no more, I fear them not. Should I be so unfortunate as to survive him, for any length of time, I shall be too wretched, to be sensible of their malice." Catherine, however, was persuaded not to persecute the duchess, who in gratitude made her a present of a superb mansion, situated amidst the lands belonging to the queen's dowry; who, in return, gave her another. Diana retired to Anet, but was recalled, in 1561, by Catherine, to detach the constable from his nephews, the Chatillons; which service she performed, as she had the greatest influence over his mind. She was sixty years old at the time of her death. She was tall, had very black curling hair, and a white skin, beautiful teeth, a fine form, and a noble mien.
"Six months before her death," says Brantome, "I saw her so handsome, that no heart of adamant would have been insensible of her charms, though she had sometime before broken one of her legs upon the paved stones of Orleans. She had been riding on horseback, and kept her seat as dextrously and well as she had ever done. One would have expected that the pain of such an accident would have made some alteration at least in her lovely face: but this was not the case; she was as beautiful, graceful, and handsome, in every respect, as she had always been." She is the only mistress, I believe, whose medal was struck. "M. Pierce," says l'Etoile, "sent me the model of the Duchess de Valentinois, struck in copper: on one side is her effigy, with this inscription, Diana, Dux Valentinorum clarissima; and on the reverse, Omnium victorum vici, I have conquered the conqueror of all." I believe it was the city of Lyons, where this duchess was much beloved, that caused this medal to be struck, and that the inscription applied to Henry II. who had another medal struck, in 1552, where she is represented under the figure of Diana; with these words, Nomen ad Astra. The Henry and Diana, with crescents, that is to say, the H's and D's, which were cyphered in the Louvre, are still greater proofs of the passion of this prince. She told Henry II. who wished to acknowledge a daughter he had by her, "I was born of a family, (the old counts of Poictiers) which entitled me to have had legitimate children by you; I have been your mistress, because I loved you; but I will not suffer any arrêt to declare me so." She was fond of exercise, and enjoyed uninterrupted health.