French Royalty, Military Commander. The youngest child of Louis XIII of France and Anne of Austria, he was born at the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France. His older brother was Louis, Dauphin of France, who succeeded to the French throne and became Louis XIV, the Sun King. Philippe received the title of Duke of Anjou at birth. After the death of his uncle Gaston, he became the Duke of Orléans. He purchased the Château de Saint Cloud in 1658. Despite his homosexuality, he fulfilled his dynastic duty. The Duke married twice, and fathered children with both wives. His first marriage was to his first cousin Princess Henrietta of England, daughter of King Charles I of England and Queen Henrietta Maria. They married on March 31, 1661 at the Palais Royal. They had four children, including Marie Louise d'Orléans who became the Queen of Spain, and Anne Marie d'Orléans who became the Queen of Sardinia. Philippe's wife Henrietta was instrumental in the negotiation of the Secret Treaty of Dover, signed on June 1, 1670. She died unexpectedly later that month, on June 30th. Philippe's second marriage was to Elizabeth Charlotte, Princess Palatine, a Protestant. She converted to Roman Catholicism and they married in 1671. There were three children from that union, including their son Philippe II, Duke of Orléans who served as Regent of France until Louis XV reached his majority. Through the children of his marriages, Philippe became an ancestor of much of the more recent Roman Catholic royalty, thus, the nickname "the grandfather of Europe." Philippe established himself as a military commander during the 1667 War of Devolution and ten years later in the sieges of Flanders. He was promoted to Lieutenant general, second in command to Louis XIV. One of his greatest achievements was his decisive victory at the Battle of Cassel on April 11, 1677. He also greatly augmented the wealth of the House of Orléans. The construction of his Canal d'Orléans was considered an engineering feat. After Philippe's death in 1701 at the Château de Saint-Cloud, his heart was taken to Val-de-Grâce Convent, and his body was taken to the Basilica of Saint Denis.