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This article is about the Reign character Louis of Condé. You may be looking for the Historical figure Louis, Prince of Condé.

I have to fight every instinct I have pulling me toward you. When I'm near you I am aware of every breath you take. And when I'm away even the wind in the trees reminds me of you.
Condé to Mary in The End of Mourning


Louis of Condé is a main character in the second season of Reign. He is portrayed by Sean Teale.

He became a friend of the new King of France but grew even closer to his wife, Mary Stuart. Condé is a member of the House of Bourbon by birth.

Biography

Early Life

Not much is known about Louis' earlier life. He comes from money and almost became the Dauphin of France when he and Francis were very young after the young Prince became sick. He was raised along side his older brother Antoine and many other siblings.

In the Series


Personality

Condé is a very principled and honest man, except for when it comes to sleeping with married women, which he lacks the moral high ground to resist doing. He is incredibly brave in the face of adversity and is a man of the people even though he comes from money and power.

Although he pretends not to care, Condé lusts after power and was even willing to betray Mary in an effort to acquire it. He usually has good intentions, but they get lost in translation. In the latter half of the second season, Condé's solid sense of loyalty to his family interferes with his growing feelings for Mary, and he ends up making questionable decisions in order to keep everyone happy.

By the end of the season, Condé has grown imperious, going as far as to attempt to usurp the throne and manipulate Mary to join him out of desperation. However, his plan fails and dooms him to a life as a fugitive.

Physical Appearance

Condé is a handsome young man, often referred to as "dashing", with short dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a neat beard/mustache.

Relationships

Josephine
Josephine is a married noblewoman whom Condé sleeps with in The Prince of the Blood. She doesn't appear again until Getaway when she tells on Condé for having the mark of the Three Dark Riders.

Claude de Valois
Claude and Condé are a political match instigated by Mary in Acts of War. The point of it is to smooth Catholic-Protestant relations which are growing tenser with every passing day.

When Claude and Condé first meet, they seem amused with each other, and they promise to give it a fair shot. However, less than a few days in, Condé decides to leave in the dead of night, claiming that he can't go through with the marriage as his heart already belongs to another.

Lola Narcisse
Lola and Condé are also a match made by Mary, but this time, the reason is not political but personal. By marrying off to one of Mary's ladies, Condé would likely stay at court, where Mary could keep an eye on him and keep him close. Lola, on the other hand, would have Condé to depend on and wouldn't need Francis as much.

While Lola agrees ethudiastically to the match, perhaps out of duty and love to her friend and queen, Condé is less pleased with the idea - he isn't fond of being treated like a game-piece. But Lola's fierce attitude manage to win him over and they begin courting.

In Sins of the Past, they attend the Winter's Ease Feast together, though both are too busy looking at their respective crushes. The pair seem closer in The End of Mourning where they are seen sledding together. Condé even asks Mary for permission to take Lola to his estate as part of their courtship, and Mary grants it to him, albeit reluctantly.

When Catherine finds out that someone has been poisoning her and her late husband, suspicion falls on Condé due to his illicit meeting with a servant who delivered the poison. Due to this, Francis tells Lola that their courtship is over - at least until they determine if Louis is innocent or not. Mary also tells Condé that he no longer need court Lola, going as far as to admit that she doesn't even want him to.

Mary Stuart
Francis introduces Condé to Mary in Drawn and Quartered as "the man who saved my life". This makes Mary view Condé as a good man, which he proves to be yet again in Coronation when he returns stolen prisoners so that Mary and Francis can trade them for much-needed grain.

Condé continues to be a good friend, such as when he supports Mary during her miscarriage, as well as a key ally.

Stéphane Narcisse
Condé and Narcisse have a long history which was never really elaborated on. Condé alludes to knowing what kind of person Narcisse is and all of the unscrupulous ways through which he got money and titles, which is why he doesn't like Narcisse. Narcisse, on the other hand, seems to simply dislike the Bourbons as a whole because of the claim they have to the French throne.

Francis II
Condé and Francis started out on good terms. Condé helped Francis out by giving him and Lola a place to stay, and Francis invited him to court as a show of gratitude. At court, Condé became one of Francis' closest confidantes, although the religious strife and Francis' policies increasingly became a point of dissent.

Things hit a breaking point in Banished when Condé openly blames Francis for Mary's rape at the hands of Protestant thugs who stormed the castle with the intention to kill the king for his policies against them. Condé and Francis agree to duel it out, though they get so aggresive with each other that they have to be separated.

Their relationship deteriorates further when Mary asks Francis for permission to be with Condé in Forbidden. As the episode title alludes, Francis forbids it, but believing that it would make Mary happy, he eventually caves in Tasting Revenge. However, he warns Mary that they have to be discreet, because if they are caught, he may not be able to protect either of them, and in Condé's case, he wouldn't even want to.

Condé takes his rivarly with Francis to another level in The Siege when he stages a coup on the castle in an attempt to take the throne of France, having the backing of England due to his illicit marriage to Elizabeth I. The odds are in his favour, but Mary single-handedly thwarts his plan and gives Francis such an advantage that he is able to defeat Condé and imprison him.

Appearances


Name

In French the meaning of the name Louis is: "Famous warrior", from the Old German 'Chlodovech'.

Trivia

  • Condé's full title is Louis I, Prince of Condé.
  • He was more closely related to Mary Stuart than to Francis de Valois, being her first cousin once removed through her mother, Marie de Guise.
  • It is a running gag in the series that Condé likes sleeping with married women.
  • Condé is revealed to have been branded with the mark of the Three Dark Riders on his chest in Blood for Blood, which he sports until it is cauterized by Leith Bayard in Getaway.
  • Condé agreed to marry Elizabeth I by proxy but the day after the marriage there was a fire, killing the documents of the marriage, the priest and the proxy, which undid the marriage.
  • Condé was supposed to make an appearance in Season Three.

In History

  • Unlike in the show, Louis, Prince of Condé absolutely did not have an affair with Mary, Queen of Scots. As a Bourbon, he was opposed to the Guise influence at court so it is likely that even if they met, they wouldn't have been friendly, let alone lovers.
  • In history, Condé neither courted Elizabeth nor married her. He was also never in contention for King of England. In the show, however, Condé marries Elizabeth I and together they attempt to take the French throne.
  • By contrast to the show, where Condé leads a siege against Francis II, the historical Condé didn't do that. He did, however, try to take the crown by force from Francis' brother, but he failed to do so.
  • In the show, Louis didn't have any children, while in history, Condé allegedly fathered a son with his mistress Isabelle de Limeuil, who was Maid of Honor to Catherine de' Medici, and a member of her Flying Squad. However, Condé denied paternity.
  • In the series, Antoine is very loyal to Condé, while in history, he was more loyal to the House of Valois.

Gallery

Louis of Condé has a photo gallery.

See Also

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