Charles XII of France
From Worldatplay
| His Most Christian Majesty King Charles XII | |
| King of France and Navarre | |
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 King of France and Navarre
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| Full title | His Most Christian Majesty Charles XII, By the Grace of God, King of France and Navarre, Eldest Son of the Church, Defender of the Faith |
| Reign November 20, 2006 - present | |
| Preceded by | Charles XI |
| Succeeded by | Incumbent |
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| Born | June 9th, 1980 Versailles, France |
| Consort | Unmarried |
| Heir presumptive | Louis, Comte de Provence |
| Profession | Monarch |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Royal House | House of Bourbon |
| Father | Charles XI of France |
| Mother | Sophia of Romania |
| Languages | French, English, German, Latin, Classic Greek, Dutch, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian |
Charles XII (baptized Charles Xavier Philippe Joseph Marie Maximilien, born June 9, 1980, Versailles) is the reigning King of France and Navarre. Having assumed the throne upon his father's assassination in the fall of 2006, Charles has been widely viewed as one of the most politically active monarchs since the end of the Second World War, having vetoed several pieces of government legislation, most notably the Life Peerage Bill in the spring of 2007. He has also presided over the foreign policy of the Bourbon monarchy in recent political turbulence on the European continent, particularly during the Madagascar crisis and defending Italian actions in the Sudan.
Early Life and Education
Charles was born on 9 June 1980 at the Palace of Versailles. His father was the Dauphin Charles (later King Charles XI), and his mother was the Dauphine Sophia of Romania. At birth, his grandfather Henri VII created him a Royal Highness and also as the Duke of Aquitaine, a title which he would hold until the accession of his father in 1990, when the young prince then became the Dauphin of France.
For most of his early life, up until he was 11, he was educated in the palace by various tutors, including the Austrian political philosopher Dr. Erik von Kuehnelt-Leddihn, who was a great friend of the Bourbon family and also the prince's godfather. He proved to be a rather precocious, intellectually gifted, and excited child that took to all opportunities to learn new things, in particular history, languages, and Catholic theology. He began attending the Lycee Henri IV in Paris when he was 14 as opposed to the normal starting age of 16 due to his intellectual talents, and graduated in 1996, having taken his exam in the humanities stream. Admitted to the Sorbonne, he pursued studies in 18th century European history and postwar philosophy and graduated with a bachelor's degree in the former in 2000. While Charles had initially planned to go on to graduate school to eventually earn his doctorate in history, his career choice was dramatically altered due to an unexpected vacancy in the Chamber of Peers in 2000.
Early political career
In 2000, the elderly Duc de Saint-Simon, who had sat in the Chamber of Peers since 1953, died of pancreatic cancer and thus opened up an at-large seat in the assembly, which, under the Constitution of 1815, is the King's perogative to fill. Political commentators had suggested that the Dauphin could be appointed, even though no Dauphin had served in the Chamber since the early days of the Restoration. However, the Dauphin, who had already made a name for himself by publishing scathing attacks on government policy in the newspapers, was viewed as an independent who could help balance the politics of the upper chamber. King Charles XI also explained that he wanted to give his son experience in playing the rather difficult game of dealing with politicians, and that there could be no better training befitting a future monarch.
While in the assembly, Charles remained officially unaffiliated with any party, so as to preserve the political neutrality of the Crown. However, he often voted with the small Liberal Alternative grouping in the Chamber, which consisted of some peers largely from northern and esastern France, and would often vote against any measure he believed increased state authority.
Ancestry
| Charles XII of France | Father: Charles XI of France | Paternal Grandfather: Henri VII of France | Paternal Great-grandfather: Henri, Dauphin of France |
| Paternal Great-grandmother: Princess Alice of Battenberg | |||
| Paternal Grandmother: Maria Teresa of Spain | Paternal Great-grandfather: Infante Fernando, Duke of Segovia | ||
| Paternal Great-grandmother: Princess Amalia of Orange | |||
| Mother: Sophia of Romania | Maternal Grandfather: Emmanuel III of Romania | Maternal Great-grandfather: Christian X of Romania | |
| Maternal Great-grandmother: Grand Duchess Kira Pavlovna of Russia | |||
| Maternal Grandmother: Archduchess Elisabeth of Austria | Maternal Great-grandfather: Charles I of Austria | ||
| Maternal Great-grandmother: Zita of Bourbon-Parma |
