Dauphin The heir of the French crown under the Valois and Bourbon dynasties. Guy VIII., Count of
Vienne, was the first so styled, because he wore a dolphin as his cognisance. The title descended in the
family till 1349, when Humbert II., de la tour de Pisa, sold his seigneurie, called the Dauphiné, to King
Philippe VI. (de Valois), on condition that the heir of France assumed the title of le dauphin.