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| − | Charles X (born Charles Philippe) (9 October 1757 – 6 November 1836) was King of France from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. | + | {{Infobox officeholder |
| | + | |name=Charles X |
| | + | |image= |
| | + | |birth_date=October 9, 1757 |
| | + | |birth_place=[[Versailles]], France |
| | + | |death_date=November 6, 1836 |
| | + | |death_place=Görz, Austrian Empire |
| | + | |resting_place= |
| | + | |religion= |
| | + | |spouse= |
| | + | |children= |
| | + | |alma_mater= |
| | + | |party= |
| | + | |office=King of France |
| | + | |term_start=1824 |
| | + | |term_end=1830 |
| | + | |preceded=[[Louis XVIII]] |
| | + | |succeeded=[[Louis Philippe I]] |
| | + | }} |
| | + | '''Charles X''' (October 9, 1757 – November 6, 1836) was King of France from September 16, 1824 until August 2, 1830. |
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| − | An uncle of the uncrowned Louis XVII and younger brother to reigning kings Louis XVI and Louis XVIII, he supported the latter in exile. After the Bourbon Restoration in 1814, Charles (as heir-presumptive) became the leader of the ultra-royalists, a radical monarchist faction within the French court that affirmed rule by divine right and opposed the concessions towards liberals and guarantees of civil liberties granted by the Charter of 1814.
| + | == Birth == |
| | + | Charles X was born in Versailles, France on October 9, 1757, he was the son of Louis, Dauphin of France, the only surviving son of Louis XV |
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| − | His reign of almost six years proved to be deeply unpopular from the moment of his coronation in 1825, in which he tried to revive the practice of the royal touch. The governments appointed under his reign reimbursed former landowners for the abolition of feudalism at the expense of bondholders, increased the power of the Catholic Church, and reimposed capital punishment for sacrilege, leading to conflict with the liberal-majority Chamber of Deputies.
| + | == Reign == |
| | + | Charles X was an unpopular king due to him attempting to revive the [[Royal Touch]], he instigated press censorship in France and he abdicated during the [[July Revolution]] in 1830. |
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| − | Charles also initiated the French conquest of Algeria as a way to distract his citizens from domestic problems. He eventually appointed a conservative government under the premiership of Prince Jules de Polignac, who was defeated in the 1830 French legislative election. He responded with the July Ordinances disbanding the Chamber of Deputies, limiting franchise, and reimposing press censorship.
| + | == The July Revolution == |
| − | | + | When the French populace became more annoyed at his rule, he was forced to abdicate during the July Revolution, officially abdicating on August 2, 1830. |
| − | Within a week France faced urban riots which led to the July Revolution of 1830, which resulted in his abdication and the election of Louis Philippe I as King of the French. Exiled once again, Charles died in 1836 in Gorizia, then part of the Austrian Empire.
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| − | Childhood and adolescence
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| − | Charles Philippe of France was born in 1757, the youngest son of the Dauphin Louis and his wife, the Dauphine Marie Josèphe, at the Palace of Versailles. Charles was created Count of Artois at birth by his grandfather, the reigning King Louis XV.
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| − | Louis XV fell ill on 27 April 1774 and died on 10 May of smallpox at the age of 64.
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| − | Marriage and private life
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| − | In November 1773, Charles married Marie Thérèse of Savoy.
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| − | In 1775, Marie Thérèse gave birth to a boy, Louis Antoine, who was created Duke of Angoulême by Louis XVI. Louis-Antoine was the first of the next generation of Bourbons, as the king and the Count of Provence had not fathered any children yet, causing the Parisian libellistes (pamphleteers who published scandalous leaflets about important figures in court and politics) to lampoon Louis XVI's alleged impotence.
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| − | Charles was thought of as the most attractive member of his family, bearing a strong resemblance to his grandfather Louis XV.
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| − | Reign
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| − | Charles' brother King Louis XVIII's health had been worsening since the beginning of 1824, Suffering from both dry and wet gangrene in his legs and spine, he died on 16 September of that year, aged almost 69. Charles, by now in his 67th year, succeeded him to the throne as King Charles X of France.
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| − | In his first act as king, Charles attempted to unify the House of Bourbon by granting the style of Royal Highness to his cousins of the House of Orléans, who had been deprived of this by Louis XVIII because of the former Duke of Orléans' role in the death of Louis XVI.
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| − | While his brother had been sober enough to realize that France would never accept an attempt to resurrect the Ancien Régime, Charles had never been willing to accept the changes of the past four decades. He gave his Prime Minister, Jean-Baptiste de Villèle, lists of laws that he wanted ratified every time he opened parliament. In April 1825, the government approved legislation proposed by Louis XVIII but implemented only after his death, that paid an indemnity to nobles whose estates had been confiscated during the Revolution (the biens nationaux).
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| − | On 29 May 1825, King Charles was anointed at the cathedral of Reims, the traditional site of consecration of French kings; it had been unused since 1775, as Louis XVIII had forgone the ceremony to avoid controversy.
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| − | When it became apparent that a mob of 14,000 people was preparing to attack, the royal family left Rambouillet and, on 16 August, embarked for the United Kingdom on packet steamers provided by Louis Philippe. Informed by the British Prime Minister, the Duke of Wellington, that they needed to arrive in Britain as private citizens, all family members adopted pseudonyms; Charles X styled himself "Count of Ponthieu". The Bourbons were greeted coldly by the English, who upon their arrival mockingly waved the newly adopted tri-colour flags at them.
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