Editing Louis XIII (section)

==Marriage==
[[File:Anna of Austria by Rubens (1622-1625, Norton Simon Museum).jpg|thumb|upright|Anne of Austria, Queen of France, wife of Louis XIII (by [[Peter Paul Rubens]], 1625)]]
On 24 November 1615, Louis XIII married [[Anne of Austria]], daughter of [[Philip III of Spain]].{{sfn|Kleinman|1985|p=?}} The couple were second cousins, by mutual descent from [[Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor]]. This marriage followed a tradition of cementing military and political alliances between the Catholic powers of France and Spain with royal marriages. The tradition went back to the marriage of [[Louis VII of France]] and [[Constance of Castile]]. The marriage was only briefly happy, and the King's duties often kept them apart. After 23 years of marriage and four stillbirths, Anne finally gave birth to a son on 5 September 1638, the future [[Louis XIV]].

Many people regarded this birth as a miracle and, in show of gratitude to God for the long-awaited birth of an heir, his parents named him Louis-''Dieudonné'' ("God-given"). As another sign of gratitude, according to several interpretations, seven months before his birth, France was dedicated by Louis XIII to the [[Virgin Mary]], who, many believed, had interceded for the perceived miracle.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nd-de-graces.com/history/brother_fiacre.htm |title=Apparition story of the Virgin Mary in Cotignac (Var, Provence) |access-date=2008-01-31 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071014072153/http://www.nd-de-graces.com/history/brother_fiacre.htm |archive-date=14 October 2007}} Our Lady of Graces and the birth of Louis XIV, The website of the [http://www.nd-de-graces.com/accueil.php Sanctuary of Our Lady at Cotignac, Provence] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080513203930/http://www.nd-de-graces.com/accueil.php |date=13 May 2008 }}. Retrieved 24 January 2008</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Brémond|1908|pp=[https://archive.org/details/laprovencemysti00bremgoog/page/n415 381]}} "Sans l'assurance d'avoir un fils, Louis XIII n'aurait pas fait le voeu de 1638." Translation: "Without the assurance of having a son, Louis XIII would not have made the vow of 1638."</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761572792/Louis_XIV.html |title=Louis XIV |publisher=MSN Encarta |year=2008 |access-date=20 January 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091028021603/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761572792/Louis_XIV.html |archive-date=28 October 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref> But the text of the dedication does not mention the royal pregnancy and birth as one of its reasons, and Louis XIII himself is said to have expressed his scepticism with regard to the miracle after his son's birth.<ref>[[Claude Dulong|Dulong, Claude]], ''Anne d’Autriche''. Paris: Hachette, 1980. "Irrité de voir tant de courtisans parler de "miracle", Louis XIII aurait répliqué que "ce n'était point là si grand miracle qu'un mari couchât avec sa femme et lui fasse un enfant." Translation: "Irritated to see so many courtiers speak of a 'miracle', Louis XIII is said to have replied: 'it was not such a great miracle that a husband slept with his wife and made a child with her'."</ref> In gratitude for having successfully given birth, the queen founded the [[Benedictine]] abbey of the [[Val-de-Grâce]], for which Louis XIV laid the cornerstone of its [[Church of the Val-de-Grâce|church]], an early masterpiece of French Baroque architecture.