Anne of Austria, the eldest daughter of Philip III of Spain, was born in 1601, and married Louis XIII, King of France, in 1615. Upon the death of her consort in 1643, she was declared queen-regent during the minority of her son. She placed unbounded confidence in Cardinal Mazarin, whose rule was so unpopular that a civil war ensured, which compelled the queen and her son to fly from Paris and to solicit the aid of the great Conde. In 1661 the young king assumed the reins of government, and Anne retired to pass the remainder of her life in religious exercises. She died from the effects of a cancer in her breast in 1666.

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