Louis, Grand Dauphin

Louis, Dauphin of France, commonly known as le Grand Dauphin, was the eldest son of King Louis XIV and his spouse, Maria Theresa of Spain and heir apparent to the French throne. He became known as the Grand Dauphin after the birth of his own son, Louis, Duke of Burgundy, the Petit (little) Dauphin. Both of them died before King Louis XIV and thus never became king. Instead, the Grand Dauphin's grandson became King Louis XV at the death of Louis XIV, and his second son inherited the Spanish throne as Philip V through his grandmother, founding the Spanish Bourbon line.