Marie Louise (1762), and Victoire (1764) Chouteau. Madame Chouteau at the time was married to another man, René Auguste Chouteau. Ten years her senior, Rene owned an inn and tavern at the time of their marriage. To the outsider, it was a good marriage, as Madame Chouteau had little to no dowry and little to recommend her. However, Rene turned out to be an abusive husband, and not long after the birth of their first son, Auguste Chouteau, left her alone in New Orleans and returned to France without her. Though it is documented that they had a strong relationship, Laclède's and Madame Chouteau's relationship was coated with difficulties. As divorce was not allowed during that time by the church or the state, Madame Chouteau remained married to Rene for the majority of hers and Laclède's relationship. This prompted lots of whispers and gossip, let alone the possible strain of Rene returning from France any day. Historians believe that this in addition was a contributing factor to Laclède's decision to travel upstream to a new trading post. Upon the founding of St. Louis, Laclède wrote to Madame Chouteau, telling her to come to the colony. Later that year, after she gave birth to her fifth child and Laclède's fourth, she traveled with all of their children to meet Laclède. There, Laclède built a house for them and bequeathed it to them in his will. Madame Chouteau in addition was well loved in the colony; she was kind but sensible, understanding but stubborn. Within a few years, people started referring to her as the "Queen" of St. Louis. A few years after arriving to St. Louis, René, Madame Chouteau's husband, returned to New Orleans, and required that his wife return to him. By law, he was allowed to do this. Various governmental officials tried to slow down the process of Madame Chouteau returning to her husband, sending letters that ended requiring more letters. However, before any real action could be taken, René Chouteau died in a drunken stupor one night, thus ending any potential threat from him. Founding of St. Louis Laclède was sponsored by the New Orleans merchant Gilbert Antoine de Saint-Maxent in 1763 to construct a trading post near the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. Maxent was offered monopolies by D'Abbadie, which were passed on to Laclède as a six-year trading monopoly with the area's Native Americans.