Maria Caterina Brignole was born on 7 October 1737 as the daughter of Giuseppe Maria Brignole Sale, 7th Marchese di Groppoli and Maria Anna Balbi. Her father was the Genovese ambassador to France, and so Maria Caterina and her mother regularly attended Versailles and the salons of Paris. Maria Caterina fell in love with Louis-Joseph de Bourbon, Prince [read more]