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- padding-left: 3em; - text-indent: -3em; -} - -.poem .i1 { - display: block; - margin-left: 1em; - padding-left: 3em; - text-indent: -3em; -} - -.poem .i2 { - display: block; - margin-left: 2em; - padding-left: 3em; - text-indent: -3em; -} - -.poem .i9 { - display: block; - margin-left: 9em; - padding-left: 3em; - text-indent: -3em; -} - -.poem .i12 { - display: block; - margin-left: 12em; - padding-left: 3em; - text-indent: -3em; -} - -/* Transcriber's notes */ -.transnote {background-color: #E6E6FA; - color: black; - font-size:smaller; - padding: 1.5em; - margin-right: 5%; - margin-left: 5%; - font-family:sans-serif, serif; -} - </style> - </head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of La Grande Mademoiselle, by Arvede Barine - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - -Title: La Grande Mademoiselle - 1627 - 1652 - -Author: Arvede Barine - -Translator: Helen Meyer - -Release Date: December 19, 2015 [EBook #50717] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LA GRANDE MADEMOISELLE *** - - - - -Produced by Jane Robins and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - - - - - -</pre> - - - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/coverpage.jpg" alt="" title="Coverpage" /> -</div> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/frontice.jpg" alt="FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING" title="LA GRANDE MADEMOISELLE" /> -<div class="caption"><p>LA GRANDE MADEMOISELLE</p> - -<p>FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING</p></div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - -<h1>LA GRANDE<br /> -MADEMOISELLE</h1> - - -<p class="p5a">1627-1652</p> - -<p class="p1a">BY</p> - -<p class="p3">ARVÈDE BARINE</p> - -<p class="p1a">AUTHORISED ENGLISH VERSION BY</p> - -<p class="p5b">HELEN E. MEYER</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_002.png" alt="1902" title="G P PUTNAMS SONS NEW YORK AND LONDON The Knickerbocker Press" /> -</div> - -<p class="p3">G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS<br /> -<span class="smaller">NEW YORK AND LONDON</span></p> - -<p class="p5">The Knickerbocker Press</p> - -<p class="p6">1902</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_ii" id="Page_ii"></a></span></p> - - -<p class="center"><span class="smcap">Copyright, 1902</span></p> - -<p class="center">G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS</p> - -<hr class="r5" /> - -<p class="center">Published, November, 1902</p> - -<p class="p5">The Knickerbocker Press, New York</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_iii" id="Page_iii">[iii]</a></span></p> - - - - -<h2>PREFACE</h2> - - -<p>La Grande Mademoiselle was one of the most -original persons of her epoch, though it cannot -be said that she was ever of the first order. Hers -was but a small genius; there was nothing extraordinary -in her character; and she had too little -influence over events to have made it worth while -to devote a whole volume to her history—much -less to prepare for her a second chronicle—had -she not been an adventurous and picturesque princess, -a proud, erect figure standing in the front -rank of the important personages whom Emerson -called "representative."</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle's agitated existence was a marvellous -commentary on the profound transformation -accomplished in the mind of France toward the -close of the seventeenth century,—a transformation -whose natural reaction changed the being of -France.</p> - -<p>I have tried to depict this change, whose traces -are often hidden by the rapid progress of historical -events, because it was neither the most salient -feature of the closing century nor the result of a -revolution.</p> - -<p>Essential, of the spirit, it passed in the depths -of the eager souls of the people of those tormented<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_iv" id="Page_iv">[iv]</a></span> -days. Such changes are analogous to the changes -in the light of the earthly seasons. From day to -day, marking dates which vary with the advancing -years, the intense light of summer gives place to -the wan light of autumn. So the landscape is perpetually -renewed by the recurring influences of -natural revolution; in like manner, the moral atmosphere -of France was changed and recharged -with the principles of life in the new birth; and -when the long civil labour of the Fronde was ended, -the nation's mind had received a new and opposite -impulsion, the casual daily event wore a new -aspect, the sons viewed things in a light unknown -to their fathers, and even to the fathers the appearance -of things had changed. Their thoughts, -their feelings, their whole moral being had -changed.</p> - -<p>It is the gradual progress of this transformation -that I have attempted to show the reader. I know -that my enterprise is ambitious; it would have been -beyond my strength had I had nothing to refer to -but the Archives and the various collections of personal -memoirs. But two great poets have been -my guides, Corneille and Racine, both faithful interpreters -of the thoughts and the feelings of their -contemporaries; and they have made clear the -contrast between the two distinct social epochs—between -the old and the new bodies, so different, -yet so closely connected.</p> - -<p>When the Christian pessimism of Racine had—in -the words of Jules Lemaître—succeeded the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_v" id="Page_v">[v]</a></span> -stoical optimism of Corneille, all the conditions -evolving their diverse lines of thought had changed.</p> - -<p>The nature of La Grande Mademoiselle was -exemplified in the moral revolution which gave us -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Phédre</i> thirty-four years (the space of a generation) -after the apparition of <em>Pauline</em>.</p> - -<p>In the first part of her life,—the part depicted -in this volume,—Mademoiselle was as true a type -of the heroines of Corneille as any of her contemporaries. -Not one of the great ladies of her world -had a more ungovernable thirst for grandeur; not -one of them cherished more superb scorn for the -baser passions, among which Mademoiselle classed -the tender sentiment of love. But, like all the -others, she was forced to renounce her ideals; and -not in her callow youth, when such a thing would -have been natural, but when she was growing old, -was she carried away by the torrent of the new -thought, whose echoes we have caught through -Racine.</p> - -<p>The limited but intimately detailed and somewhat -sentimental history of Mademoiselle is the -history of France when Louis XIII. was old, and -when young Louis—Louis XIV.—was a minor, -living the happiest years of all his life.</p> - -<p>If I seem presumptuous, let my intention be my -excuse for so long soliciting the attention of my -reader in favour of La Grande Mademoiselle.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_vi" id="Page_vi"></a></span></p> - -<h3>ERRATA.</h3> - -<div class="container"> - <div class="text width35"> -<p>Page <a href="#Page_83">83</a>, ninth line from top, <em>read</em> de Lormes <em>for</em> -de Lorme.</p> - -<p>Page <a href="#Page_272">272</a>, fifth line from bottom, <em>dele</em> hypnotic.</p> - </div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_vii" id="Page_vii">[vii]</a></span></p> - - - - -<h2>CONTENTS</h2> - - -<p class="p5a"><a href="#CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER I</a><br /> -<span class="rightline">PAGE</span></p> - -<blockquote> -<p class="p4">I. Gaston d'Orléans—His Marriage—His Character—II. Birth of -Mademoiselle—III. The Tuileries in 1627—The Retinue of -a Princess—IV. Contemporary Opinions of Education—The -Education of Boys—V. The Education of Girls—VI. Mademoiselle's -Childhood—Divisions of the Royal Family <span class="rightline"><a href="#Page_1">1-80</a></span></p></blockquote> - - -<p class="p5a"><a href="#CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER II</a></p> - -<blockquote><p class="p4">I. Anne of Austria and Richelieu—Birth of Louis XIV.—II. -<i>L'Astrée</i> and its Influence—III. Transformation of the Public -Manners—The Creation of the Salon—The Hôtel de Rambouillet -and Men of Letters <span class="rightline"><a href="#Page_81">81-153</a></span></p></blockquote> - - -<p class="p5a"><a href="#CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III</a></p> - -<blockquote><p class="p4">I. The Earliest Influences of the Theatre—II. Mademoiselle and -the School of Corneille—III. Marriage Projects—IV. The -Cinq-Mars Affair—Close of the Reign <span class="rightline"><a href="#Page_154">154-236</a></span></p></blockquote> - - -<p class="p5a"><a href="#CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER IV</a></p> - -<blockquote><p class="p4">I. The Regency—The Romance of Anne of Austria and Mazarin—Gaston's -Second Wife—II. Mademoiselle's New Marriage -Projects—III. Mademoiselle Would Be a Carmelite Nun—The -Catholic Renaissance under Louis XIII. and the Regency—IV. -Women Enter Politics—The Rivalry of the Two Junior -Branches of the House of France—Continuation of the Royal -Romance <span class="rightline"><a href="#Page_237">237-327</a></span></p></blockquote> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_viii" id="Page_viii">[viii]</a></span></p> - -<p class="p5a"><a href="#CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER V</a></p> - -<blockquote><p class="p4">I. The Beginning of Trouble—Paris and the Parisians in 1648—II. -The Parliamentary Fronde—Mademoiselle Would Be Queen of -France—III. The Fronde of the Princes and the Union of -the Frondes—Projects for an Alliance with Condé—IV. La -Grande Mademoiselle's Heroic Period—The Capture of Orleans—The -Combat in the Faubourg Saint Antoine—The End of the -Fronde—Exile <span class="rightline"><a href="#Page_328">328-436</a></span></p></blockquote> - - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_ix" id="Page_ix">[ix]</a></span></p> - - -<h2>ILLUSTRATIONS</h2> - - -<div class="center"> -<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="ILLUSTRATIONS"> -<tr><td class="tdl"> </td><td class="tdr"><span class="smcap">page</span></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">La Grande Mademoiselle</span> <span style="margin-left: 8em;"><i>Frontispiece</i></span></td><td class="tdr"> </td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From a steel engraving.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Marie de Médicis</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_6">6</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From a steel engraving.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Château of Versailles from the Terrace</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_8">8</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">After the painting by J. Rigaud.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Tuileries from the Seine in the 16th Century</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_22">22</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From a contemporary print.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Madame de Sévigné</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_54">54</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From an engraving of the painting by Muntz.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Cardinal Richelieu</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_84">84</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Abbey of St. Germain Des-pres in the 16th Century</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_110">110</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From an old print.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Louis XIII., King of France and of Navarre</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_152">152</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From an old print.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Corneille</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_168">168</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From an engraving of the painting by Lebrun.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Racine</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_182">182</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From a steel engraving.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Hôtel de Richelieu in the 17th Century</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_204">204</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From a contemporary print.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">A Game of Chance in the 17th Century</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_210">210</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From an engraving by Sébastien Leclerc.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Marquis de Cinq-Mars</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_212">212</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Anne of Austria</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_242">242</a> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_x" id="Page_x">[x]</a></span></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">View of the Louvre from the Seine in the 17th Century</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_254">254</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From an old print.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Henriette, Duchesse d'Orléans</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_258">258</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From a steel engraving.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">St. Vincent De Paul</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_292">292</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From a steel engraving.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Duchesse de Chevreuse</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_300">300</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Cardinal Mazarin</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_320">320</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Mademoiselle de Montpensier</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_324">324</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From a steel engraving.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Tower of Nesle</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_342">342</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From a contemporary print.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Cardinal de Retz</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_344">344</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Madame de la Vallière</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_366">366</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From a steel engraving.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Vicomte de Turenne</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_398">398</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">View of the Luxembourg (Later Called the Palais</span></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tde"><span class="smcap">d'Orléans) in the 17th Century</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_410">410</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From an old print.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">La Rochefoucauld</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_416">416</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdd">From a steel engraving.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Prince de Condé</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_420">420</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Duc d'Orléans</span></td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_422">422</a></td></tr> -</table></div> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> - - -<h3>LA GRANDE MADEMOISELLE</h3> -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[1]</a></span></p> - - -<h5>THE YOUTH OF LA GRANDE<br /> -MADEMOISELLE</h5> - - - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_I" id="CHAPTER_I"></a>CHAPTER I</h2> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="p4a">I. Gaston d'Orléans—His Marriage—His Character—II. Birth of -Mademoiselle—III. The Tuileries in 1627—The Retinue of a -Princess—IV. Contemporary Opinions of Education—The Education -of Boys—V. The Education of Girls—VI. Mademoiselle's -Childhood—Divisions of the Royal Family.</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="drop-cap">I</span><span class="smcap">n</span> the Château of Versailles there is a full-length -portrait of La Grande Mademoiselle,—so called -because of her tall stature,—daughter of Gaston -d'Orléans, and niece of Louis XIII. When the -portrait was painted, the Princess's hair was turning -grey. She was forty-five years old. Her imperious -attitude and warlike mien befit the manners of the -time of her youth, as they befit her Amazonian -exploits in the days of the Fronde.</p> - -<p>Her lofty bearing well accords with the adventures -of the illustrious girl whom the customs and -the life of her day, the plays of Corneille, and the -novels of La Calprenède and of Scudéry imbued with -sentiments much too pompous. The painter of the -portrait had seen Mademoiselle as we have seen<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[2]</a></span> -her in her own memoirs and in the memoirs of her -companions.</p> - -<p>Nature had fitted her to play the part of the -goddess in exile; and it had been her good fortune -to find suitable employment for faculties -which would have been obstacles in an ordinary -life. To become the Minerva of Versailles, -Mademoiselle had to do nothing but yield to -circumstances and to float onward, borne by the -current of events.</p> - -<p>In the portrait, under the tinselled trappings -the deep eyes look out gravely, earnestly; the -thoughtful face is naively proud of its borrowed -divinity; and just as she was pictured—serious, -exalted in her assured dignity, convinced of her -own high calling—she lived her life to its end, too -proud to know that hers was the fashion of a bygone -age, too sure of her own position to note the -smiles provoked by her appearance. She ignored -the fact that she had denied her pretensions by her -own act (her romance with Lauzun,—an episode by -far too bourgeois for the character of an Olympian -goddess). She had given the lie to her assumption -of divinity, but throughout the period of her -romance she bore aloft her standard, and when it -was all over she came forth unchanged, still vested -with her classic dignity. The old Princess, who -excited the ridicule of the younger generation, was, -to the few surviving companions of her early years, -the living evocation of the past. To them she -bore the ineffaceable impression of the thought, the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[3]</a></span> -feeling, the inspiration, the soul of France, as they -had known it under Richelieu and Mazarin.</p> - -<p>The influences that made the tall daughter of -Gaston d'Orléans a romantic sentimentalist long -before sentimental romanticism held any place in -France, ruled the destinies of French society at -large; and because of this fact, because the same -influences that directed the illustrious daughter of -France shaped the course of the whole French -nation, the solitary figure—though it was never of -a high moral order—is worthy of attention. La -Grande Mademoiselle is the radiant point whose -light illumines the shadows of the past in which -she lived.</p> - - -<p class="p3">I</p> - -<p>Anne-Marie-Louise d'Orléans, Duchess of Montpensier, -was the daughter of Gaston of France, -younger brother of King Louis XIII., and of a -distant cousin of the royal family, Marie of Bourbon, -Duchess of Montpensier. It would be impossible -for a child to be less like her parents than was -La Grande Mademoiselle. Her mother was a beautiful -blond personage with the mild face of a sheep, -and with a character well fitted to her face. She -was very sweet and very tractable. Mademoiselle's -father resembled the decadents of our own -day. He was a man of sickly nerves, vacillating, -weak of purpose, with a will like wax, who formed -day-dreams in which he figured as a gallant and -warlike knight, always on the alert, always the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[4]</a></span> -omnipotent hero of singularly heroic exploits. He -deluded himself with the idea that he was a real -prince, a typical Crusader of the ancient days. In -his chaotic fancy he raised altar against altar, burning -incense before his purely personal and peculiar -gods, taking principalities by assault, bringing -the kings and all the powers of the earth into subjection, -bearing down upon them with his might, -and shifting them like the puppets of a chess-board. -His efforts to attain the heights pictured by his -imagination resulted in awkward gambols through -which he lost his balance and fell, crushed by the -weight of his own folly. Thus his life was a series -of ludicrous but tragic burlesques.</p> - -<p>In the seventeenth century, in flesh and blood, he -was the Prince whom modern writers set in prominent -places in romance, and whom they introduce -to the public, deluded by the thought that he is the -creature of their invention. Louis XIII. was a living -and pitiable anachronism. He had inherited all -the traditions of his rude ancestors. Yet, to meet -the requirements of his situation, nature had accoutred -him for active service with nothing but an -enervated and unbalanced character. One of his -most odious infamies—his first—served as a prologue -to the birth of "Tall Mademoiselle." In -1626, as Louis XIII. had no child, his brother -Gaston was heir-presumptive to the throne, and -he was a bachelor. They who had some interest -in the question were pushing him from all sides, -urging him not to fetter himself by the inferior<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[5]</a></span> -marriage of a younger son. They implored him to -have patience; to "wait a while"; to see if there -would not be some unlooked-for opening for him -in the near future. His own apparent future was -promising; there was much encouragement in the -fact that the King was sickly. What might not a -day bring forth?—"under such conditions great -changes were possible!"</p> - -<p>Monsieur's mind laid a tenacious grasp on the -idea that he must either marry a royal princess, or -none at all; and he was so imbued with the thought -that he must remain free to attain supreme heights -that when Marie de Médicis proposed to him a -marriage with the richest heiress of France, Mlle. -de Montpensier, he tried to evade her offer. He -encouraged Chalais's conspiracy, which was to be -the means of helping him to effect his flight from -Court; he permitted his friends to compromise -themselves, then without a shadow of hesitation -he sold them all. When the plot had been exposed, -he hastily withdrew his irons from the fire -by reporting everything to Richelieu and the Queen-mother. -His friends tried to excuse him by saying -that he had lost his head; but it was not true. His -avowals as informer are on record in the archives -of the Department of Foreign Affairs, and they -prove that he was a man who knew very well what he -was doing and why he was doing it, who worked -intelligently and systematically, planning his course -with matter-of-fact self-possession, selling his treason -at the highest market-price of such commodities.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[6]</a></span></p> - -<p>The 12th July, 1626, Monsieur denounced thirty -of his friends, or servitors, whose only fault had -lain in their devotion to his interests.</p> - -<p>Once when Marie de Médicis reproached him -for having failed to keep a certain written promise -"never to think of anything tending to separate -him from the King," Monsieur replied calmly that -he had <em>signed that paper</em> but that he never had <em>said</em> -that he would not do it,—that he "never had given -a verbal promise." They then reminded him that -he had "solemnly sworn several times." The -young Prince replied with the same serenity, that -whenever he took an oath, he did it "with a mental -reservation."</p> - -<p>The 18th, Monsieur, being in a good humour, -made some strong protestations to his mother, who -was in her bed. He again took up the thread of his -denunciations to Richelieu without waiting to be -invited to give his information. The 23d, he went -to the Cardinal and told him to say that he, Monsieur, -was ready to marry whenever they pleased, -"if they would give him his appanage at the time -of the marriage,"—after which announcement he -remarked that <i>the late M. d'Alençon had had -three appanages</i>. Monsieur sounded his seas, and -spied out his land in all directions, carefully -gathering data and making very minute investigations -as to the King's intentions. He intimated -his requirements to the Cardinal, who "sent the -President, Le Coigneux, to talk over his marriage -and his appanage."</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_006.jpg" alt="FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING" title="MARIE DE MEDICIS" /> -<div class="caption"><p>MARIE DE MEDICIS</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[7]</a></span></p> - -<p>His haggling and his denunciations alternated -until August 2d. Finally he obtained the duchies -of Montpensier and of Chartres, the county of -Blois, and pecuniary advantages which raised his -income to the sum of a million livres. His vanity -was allowed free play on the occasion of the signing -of the contract, but this was forgiven him because -he was only eighteen years old.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Monsieur had eighty French guards, all wearing casques, -and bandoleers of the fine velvet of his livery. Their helmets -were loaded, in front and behind, with Monsieur's initials -enriched with gold. He had, also, twenty-four Swiss guards, -who marched before him on Sundays and other fête days, with -drums beating, though the King was still in Paris. He was -fond of pomp. The lives of his friends did not weigh a -feather in the balance against a few provinces and a rolling -drum.</p></blockquote> - -<p>His guardian, Marshal d'Ornano, was a prisoner -in Versailles, where the Court was at that time. -Investigations against him were in rapid progress; -but the face of the young bridegroom was wreathed -with smiles when he led his bride to the altar, 5th -August, 1626. As soon as he had given his consent -they had hastened the marriage. The ceremony -took place as best it could. It was marriage -by the lightning process. There was no music, the -bridegroom's habit was not new. While the cortège -was on its way, two of the resplendent duchesses -quarrelled over some question of precedence. To -quote the <cite>Chronicles</cite>: "From words they came to -blows and from blows to scratches of their skins."</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[8]</a></span></p> - -<p>This event scandalised the public, but the splendour -of the fêtes effaced the memory of the regrettable -incidents preceding them. While the fêtes -were in progress, Monsieur exhibited a gayety which -astonished the people; they were not accustomed to -the open display of such indelicacy. It was known -why young Chalais had been condemned to death; -it was known that Monsieur had vainly demanded -that he be shown some mercy. When the 19th—the -day of execution—came, Monsieur saw fit to -be absent. The youthful Chalais was beheaded by -a second-rate executioner, who hacked at his neck -with a dull sword and with an equally dull tool used -by coopers. When the twentieth blow was struck, -Chalais was still moaning. The people assembled -to witness the execution cried out against it.</p> - -<p>Fifteen days later Marshal d'Ornano gave proof -of his accommodating amiability by dying in his -prison. Others who had vital interests at stake -either fled or were exiled.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_008.jpg" alt="After the Painting by J Rigaud" title="THE CHATEAU OF VERSAILLES FROM THE TERRACE" /> -<div class="caption"><p>THE CHATEAU OF VERSAILLES FROM THE TERRACE</p> - -<p class="smaller">AFTER THE PAINTING BY J. RIGAUD</p></div> -</div> - -<p>Judging from appearances, Monsieur had had -nothing to do with the condemned or the suspected. -His callous levity was noted and judged according -to its quality. Frequently tolerant to an extraordinary -degree, the morality of the times was firm -enough where the fidelity of man to master, or of -master to man, was concerned. The common idea -of decency exacted absolute devotion from the -soldier to his chief, from servant to employer, from -the gentleman to his seignior. Nor was the duty -of master to man less binding. Though his creatures<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[9]</a></span> -or servants were in the wrong, though their -failures numbered seventy times seven, it was the -master's part to uphold, to defend, and to give them -courage, to stand or to fall with them, as the leader -stands with his armies. Gaston knew this; he -knew that he dishonoured his own name in the -eyes of France when he delivered to justice the -men who had worn his colours. But he mocked at -the idea of honour, shaming it, as those among our -own sons—if they are unfortunate enough to -resemble him—mock at the higher and broader -idea of home and country,—the idea which, in our -day, takes the place of all other ideas exacting an -effort or a sacrifice.</p> - -<p>It must not be supposed that Monsieur was an -ordinary poltroon, bowed down by the weight of his -shame, desperately feeble, a mawkish and shambling -type of the effeminate adolescent; though a coward -in shirking consequences he was a typical "prince": -very spirited, very gay, and very brilliant; conscious -of the meaning of all his actions; contented in his -position,—such as he made it,—and resigned to act -the part of a coward before the world.</p> - -<p>His vivacity was extraordinary. The people -marvelled at his unfailing lack of tact. Though -very young, he was well grown. He was no longer -a child whose nurse caught him with one hand, -forcibly buttoning his apron as he struggled to run -away; yet he skipped and gambolled, spinning incessantly -on his high heels, his hand thrust into his -pocket, his cap over his ear. In one way or in<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[10]</a></span> -another he incessantly proclaimed his presence. -His sarcastic lips were always curved over his white -teeth; he was always whistling.</p> - -<p>"One can see well that he is high-born," wrote -the indulgent Madame de Motteville. "His restlessness -and his grimaces show it." But Madame -de Motteville was not his only chronicler. Others -relished his manners less. A gentleman who had -lived in his (Monsieur's) house when Monsieur was -very young, saw him again under Mazarin, and -finding that despite his age and size he was the -same peculiar being that he had been in infancy, -the old gentleman turned and ran away. "Well, -upon my word," he cried, "if he is not the same -deuced scamp as in the days of Richelieu! I shall -not salute him."</p> - -<p>Monsieur's portraits are not calculated to contradict -the impression given by his contemporaries. -He is a handsome boy. The long oval face is delicately -fine. The eyes are spiritual; and despite -its look of self-sufficiency the whole face is infinitely -charming. One of the portraits shows a certain -shade of sly keenness, but as a whole the face is -always indescribably attractive,—and yet as we -gaze upon it we are seized by an impulse to follow -the example of the old marquis, and run away without -saluting. In the portrait the base soul looks -out of the handsome face just as it did in life, manifesting -its deplorable reality through its mask of -natural beauty and intelligence. No one could say -that Monsieur was a fool. Retz declared: "M. le<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[11]</a></span> -Duc d'Orléans had a fine and enlightened mind." -It was the general impression that his conversation -was admirable; judged by his talk he was a being of -a superior order. His manners and his voice were -engaging. He was an artist, very fond of pictures -and rare and handsome trifles. He was skilful in -engraving on metals; he loved literature; he loved -to read; he was interested in new ideas and in the -march of thought. He knew many curious sciences. -He was a cheerful companion, easy-mannered, -sprightly, easy of approach, fond of raillery, and -full of his jests, but his jests were never ill-natured. -Even his enemies were forced to own that he had -a good disposition, and that he was naturally kind; -and this was the general opinion of the strange -being who was a Judas to so many of his most devoted -friends.</p> - -<p>Had Monsieur possessed but one grain of moral -consciousness, and had he been free from an almost -inconceivable degree of weakness and of cowardice, -he would have made a fine Prince Charming. But -his poltroonery and his moral debility stained the -whole fabric of his life and made him a lugubrious -example of spiritual infirmity. He engaged in all -sorts of intrigues because he was too weak to say -No, and owing to the same weakness he never -honestly fulfilled an engagement.</p> - -<p>At times he started out intending to do his duty, -then when midway on his route he was seized by -fear, he took the bit between his teeth, and ran, -and nothing on earth could stop him. He carried<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[12]</a></span> -out his cowardice with impudence, and his villainy -was artful and adroit. However base his action, he -was never troubled by remorse. He was insensible -to love, and devoid of any sense of honour. Having -betrayed his associates, he abandoned them to their -fate, then thrust his hand into his pocket, pirouetted, -cut a caper, whistled a tune, and thought no -more of it.</p> - - -<p class="p3">II</p> - -<p>The third week in October the Duchess of Orleans -returned to Paris. The Court was at the -Louvre. The young pair, Monsieur and his wife, -had their apartments in the palace, and the courtiers -were not slow in finding their way to them.</p> - -<p>Hardly had she arrived when Madame declared -her pregnancy. As there was no direct heir to the -crown, this event was of great importance. The -people precipitated themselves toward the happy -Princess who was about to give birth to a future -King of France. Staid and modest though she -was, her own head was turned by her condition. She -paraded her hopes. It seemed to her that even -then she held in her arms the son who was to take -the place of a dauphin. Every one offered her -prayer and acclamations; and every one hailed -Monsieur as if he had been the rising sun.<a name="FNanchor_1_1" id="FNanchor_1_1"></a><a href="#Footnote_1_1" class="fnanchor">[1]</a></p> - -<p>Monsieur asked nothing better than to play his -part; he breathed the incense offered to his brilliant -prospects with felicity.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[13]</a></span></p> - -<p>Husband and wife enjoyed their importance to -the full; they displayed their triumphant faces in -all parts of that palace that had seen so much bitterness -of spirit.</p> - -<p>In itself, politics apart, the Louvre was not a -very agreeable resting-place. On the side toward -Saint-Germain-l'Auxerrois its aspect was rough -and gloomy. The remains of the old fortress of -Philip Augustus and of Charles V. were still in existence. -Opposite the Tuileries, towards the Quai, -the exterior of the palace was elegant and cheerful. -There the Valois and Henry IV. had begun -to build the Louvre as we know it to-day.</p> - -<p>A discordant combination of extreme refinement -and of extreme coarseness made the interior of the -palace one of the noisiest and dirtiest places in the -world. The entrance to the palace of the King of -France was like the entrance to a mill; a tumultuous -crowd filled the palace from morning until -night; and it was the custom of the day for individuals -to be perfectly at ease in public,—no one -stood on ceremony. The ebbing and flowing tide -of courtiers, of business men, of countrymen, of -tradesmen, and all the throngs of valets and underlings -considered the stairways, the balconies, the -corridors, and the places behind the doors, retreats -propitious for the relief of nature.</p> - -<p>It was a system, an immemorial servitude, existing -in Vincennes and Fontainebleau as at the -Louvre,—a system that was not abolished without -great difficulty. In a document dated posterior to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[14]</a></span> -1670, mention is made of the thousand masses of -all uncleanness, and the thousand insupportable -stenches, "which made the Louvre a hot-bed of infection, -very dangerous in time of epidemic." The -great ones of earth accepted such discrepancies as -fatalities; they contented themselves with ordering -a sweep of the broom.</p> - -<p>Neither Gaston nor the Princess, his wife, descended -to the level of their critical surroundings. -They were habituated to the peculiar features of -the royal palaces; and certainly that year, in the -intoxication of their prospects, they must have considered -the palatial odours very acceptable.</p> - -<p>It did not agree with their frame of mind to note -that the always gloomy palace was more than usually -dismal. Anne of Austria had been struck to the -heart by the pregnancy of her sister-in-law. She -had been married twelve years and she no longer -dared to cherish the hope of an heir. She felt -that she was sinking into oblivion. Her enemies -had begun to insinuate that her usefulness was at -an end and that she had no reason for clinging to -life. The Queen of France lived so eclipsed a life -that to the world she was nothing but a pretty -woman with a complexion of milk and roses. The -people knew that she was unhappy, and they pitied -her. They never learned her true character until -she became Regent. Anne of Austria was not the -only one to drain the cup of bitterness that year. -Louis XIII. also was jealous of the maternity of -Madame. It was a part of his nature to cherish<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[15]</a></span> -evil sentiments, and his friends found some excuse -for his faults in his misfortunes. Since Richelieu -had attained power, Louis had succumbed to the -exigencies of monarchical duty. His whole person -betrayed his distress, exhaling constraint and -anxiety. The most mirthful jester quailed at the -sight of the long, livid face, so mournful, so expressive -of the mental torment of the Prince who -"knew that he was hated and who had no fondness -for himself."</p> - -<p>Louis was timid and prudish, and, like his -brother, he had sick nerves. Hérouard, who was -his doctor when he was a child, exhibits the young -Prince as a somnambulist, who slept with eyes open, -and who arose in his sleep, walking and talking in -a loud voice. Louis's doctors put an end to any -strength that he may have had originally. In one -year Bouvard bled him forty-seven times; and during -that one twelvemonth the child was given -twelve different kinds of medicines and two hundred -and fifteen enemas. Is it credible that after -such an experience the unhappy King merited the -reproach of being "obstreperous in his intercourse -with the medical faculty"?</p> - -<p>He had studied but little; he took no interest in -the things that pleased the mind; his pastimes -were purely animal. He liked to hunt, to work in -his garden, to net pouches for fish and game, to -make snares and arquebuses. He liked to make -preserves, to lard meat, and to shave. Like his -brother, he had one artistic quality: he loved music<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[16]</a></span> -and composed it. "This was the one smile, the -only smile of a natural ingrate."</p> - -<p>Louis XIII. was of a nature dry and hard. He -detested his wife; he loved nothing on earth but -his young favourites. He loved them; then, in an -instant, without warning, he ceased to love them; -and when he had ceased to love them he did not -care what became of them,—did not care whether -they lived or died. Whenever he could witness -the agony of death he did so, and turned the occasion -into a picnic or a pleasure trip. He enjoyed -watching the grimaces of the dying. His religious -devotion was sincere, but it was narrow and sterile. -He was jealous and suspicious, forgetful, frivolous, -incapable of applying himself to anything serious.</p> - -<p>He had but one virtue, but that he carried to -such lengths that it sufficed to embalm his memory. -This virtue was the one which raised the family of -Hohenzollern to power and to glory. The sombre -soul of Louis XIII. was imbued with the imperious -sentiment of royal duty,—the professional duty -of the man designed and appointed by Divine -Providence to give account to God for millions of -the souls of other men. He never separated either -his own advantage or his own glory from the advantage -and the glory of France. He forced his -brother to marry, though he knew that the birth of -a nephew would ulcerate his own flesh. He harboured -Richelieu with despairing resolution because -he believed that France could not maintain its existence -without the hated ministry. He had the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[17]</a></span> -essential quality, the one quality which supplies -the lack of other qualities, without which all other -qualities, great and noble though they be, are useless -before the State.</p> - -<p>Around these chiefs of the Court buzzed a swarm -of ambitious rivals and whispering intriguers all -animated by one purpose, to effect the discomfiture -of Richelieu. The King's health was failing. The -Cardinal knew that Louis "had not two days to live"; -he was seen daily, steadily advancing toward the -grave. In Michelet's writings there is a striking -page devoted to the "great man of business wasting -his time and strength struggling against I do -not know how many insects which have stung him." -Marie de Médicis was the only one who united -with the King in defending Richelieu in the critical -winter of 1626. The Cardinal was the Queen's -creature. The pair had many memories in common—and -of more than one kind. Some years -previous Richelieu had taken the trouble to play -lover to the portly quadragenarian, and he had -brought to bear upon his effort all the courage -requisite for such a suit. The Court of France -had looked on while the Cardinal took lessons in -lute playing, because the Queen-mother, notwithstanding -her age and her proportions, had had a -fancy to play the lute as she had done when a little -girl. Marie de Médicis had given proof that she -was not insensible to such delicate attentions, and -she had forgotten nothing; but the moment was -approaching when Richelieu would find that it had<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[18]</a></span> -been to no purpose that he had shouldered the -ridicule of France by sighing out his music at -the feet of the fat Queen.</p> - -<p>That year a stranger would have said that the -Court of France had never been more gay. Fête -followed fête. In the winter there were two grand -ballets at the Louvre, danced by the flower of the -nobility, the King at their head. Louis XIII. -adored such exhibitions, though they overthrow -all modern ideas of a royal majesty.</p> - -<p>The previous winter he had invited the Bourgeoisie -of Paris to the Hôtel-de-Ville to contemplate -their ghastly monarch masked for the carnival, -dancing his <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">grand pas</i>. "<em>It is my wish</em>," said he, -"<em>to confer honour upon the city by this action</em>." -The Bourgeoisie had accepted the invitation; man -and wife had flocked to the appointed place at the -appointed hour, and there they had waited from -four o'clock in the afternoon until five o'clock in -the morning, before the royal dancers had made -their appearance. The dance had not ended until -noon, when the honoured Bourgeoisie had returned -to their homes.</p> - -<p>Monsieur took his full share of all official pleasures, -and he had also some pleasures of his own,—and -purely personal they were. Some of them -were infantine; some of them, marked by intelligence, -were far in advance of the ideas of that -epoch. Contemporary customs demanded that -people of the world should relegate their serious -affairs to the tender mercies of the professional<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[19]</a></span> -keen wits, who made it their business to attend -to such questions. Gaston used to convene the -chosen of his lords and gentlemen, to argue subjects -of moral and political import. In discussion -Monsieur bore himself very gallantly. The -resources of his wit were inexhaustible, and the -justice of his judgment invariably evoked applause. -He was a sleep-walker, because awake or asleep he -was so restless that "he could not stay long in one -place."<a name="FNanchor_2_2" id="FNanchor_2_2"></a><a href="#Footnote_2_2" class="fnanchor">[2]</a> But he was not always asleep when he -was met in the night groping his way through the -noisome alleys. He used to jump from his bed, -disguise himself, and run about in the night, leading -a life like that of the wretched Gérard de Nerval, -lounging on foot through the little streets of -Paris which were very dark and suspiciously dirty. -It amused him to enter strange houses and invite -himself to balls and other assemblies. His behaviour -in such places is not recorded, but the -gentlemen who followed him (to protect him) let -it be understood that there was "nothing good -in it."</p> - -<p>Gaston of Orleans had all the traits common to -those whom we call "degenerate." His chief characteristic -was an active form of bare and shameless -moral relaxation. He was the mainspring of many -and various movements.</p> - -<p>One day when Richelieu was present, Louis XIII. -twitted the Queen with her fancies. He said that -she had "wished to prevent Monsieur from marrying<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[20]</a></span> -so that she could marry him herself when she -became a widow."</p> - -<p>Anne of Austria cried out: "I should not have -gained much by the change!"</p> - -<p>(Neither would France have "gained much by -the change," and it was fortunate for her that Louis -was permitted to retain possession of his feeble -rights.)</p> - -<p>The child so desired by some, so envied and so -dreaded by others, entered the world May 29, 1627. -Instead of a dauphin it was a girl—<i>La Grande -Mademoiselle</i>. Seven days after the child was -born the mother died.</p> - -<p>Louis XIII. gave orders for the provision of -royal obsequies, and he himself sprinkled the bier -with the blessed water, very grateful because Providence -had not endowed him with a nephew. Anne -of Austria, incognito, assisted at the funeral pomps. -This act was received with various interpretations. -The simple—the innocent-minded—said that it -was a proof of the compassion inspired by Madame's -sudden taking off; the malicious supposed that it -was just as the King had said: "The Queen loved -Monsieur; she rejoiced in his wife's death; she -hoped to marry him when she became a widow."</p> - -<p>The Queen was sincerely afflicted by Madame's -death. She cherished an open preference for her -second son, and the thought of his ambitious flight -had agreeably caressed her heart.</p> - -<p>Richelieu pronounced a few suitable words of -regret for the Princess who had never meddled<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[21]</a></span> -with politics, and Monsieur did just what he might -have been expected to do: he wept boisterously, -immediately dried his tears, and plunged into -debauchery.</p> - -<p>The Court executed the regulation manœuvres, -and came to the "about face" demanded by the -circumstances. Whatever may have been the calculations -made by individuals relative to the positions -to be taken in order to secure the best personal -results, and whatever the secret opinions may -have been (as to the advantages to be drawn from -the catastrophe), it was generally conceded that -the little Duchess had been fortunate in being left -sole possessor of the vast fortune of the late -Madame her mother.</p> - -<p>The latter had brought as marriage-portion the -dominion of Dombes, the principality of Roche-sur-Yon, -the duchies of Montpensier, Châtellerault, -and Saint-Fargeau, with several other fine -tracts of territory bearing the titles of marquisates, -counties, viscounties, and baronies, with very important -incomes from pensions granted by the -King and by several private individuals,—in all -amounting to three hundred thousand livres of -income.<a name="FNanchor_3_3" id="FNanchor_3_3"></a><a href="#Footnote_3_3" class="fnanchor">[3]</a></p> - -<p>The child succeeding to this immense inheritance -was the richest heiress in Europe. As her -mother had been before her, so Mademoiselle was -raised in all the magnificence and luxury befitting -her rank and fortune.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[22]</a></span></p> - - -<p class="p3">III</p> - -<p>They had brought her from the Louvre to the -Tuileries by the balustraded terrace along the -Seine.<a name="FNanchor_4_4" id="FNanchor_4_4"></a><a href="#Footnote_4_4" class="fnanchor">[4]</a></p> - -<p>She was lodged in the <i>Dôme</i>—known to the old -Parisians as the <i>pavillon d'Horloge</i>—and in the -two wings of the adjoining buildings. At that -time the Tuileries had not assumed the aspect of a -great barrack. They wore a look of elegance and -fantastic grace before they were remodelled and -aligned by rule. At its four corners the <i>Dôme</i> -bore four pretty little towers; on the side toward -the garden was a projecting portico surmounted -by a terrace enclosed by a gallery. On this terrace, -in time, Mademoiselle and her ladies listened -to many a serenade and looked down on many -a riot.</p> - -<p>The rest of the façade (as far as the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">pavillon -de Flore</i>) formed a succession of angles, now jutting -forward, now receding, in conformations very -pleasing to the eye. The opposite wing and the -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">pavillon de Marsan</i> had not been built. Close at -hand lay an almost unbroken country. The rear -of the palace looked out upon a parterre; beyond -the parterre lay a chaos from which the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Carrousel</i> -was not wholly delivered until the Second Empire. -There stood the famous Hôtel de Rambouillet, -close to the hotel of Madame de Chevreuse, confidential -friend of Anne of Austria and interested -enemy of Richelieu. There were other hotels, -entangled with churches, with a hospital, a "Court -of Miracles," gardens, and wild lands overgrown -with weeds and grasses. There were shops and -stables; and away at the far end of the settlement -stood the Louvre, closing the perspective.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[23]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_022.jpg" alt="FROM A CONTEMPORARY PRINT" title="THE TUILERIES FROM THE SEINE IN THE 16TH CENTURY" /> -<div class="caption"><p>THE TUILERIES FROM THE SEINE IN THE 16TH CENTURY</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM A CONTEMPORARY PRINT</p></div> -</div> - -<p>The Court and the city crowded together around -the Bird House and the Swans' Pond, in the Dedalus -and before the Echo, ogling or criticising one -another. At that time the Place de la Concorde -was a great, green field, called the Rabbit Warren. -In one part of the field stood the King's kennels.<a name="FNanchor_5_5" id="FNanchor_5_5"></a><a href="#Footnote_5_5" class="fnanchor">[5]</a> -The city's limits separated the Champs-Élysées -from the wild lands running down to the Seine at -the point where the Pont de la Concorde now -stands. This space, enclosed by the boundaries of -the city, assured to the Court a park-like retreat in -the green fields of the open country. The enclosure -was entered by the gate of the Conférence. The -celebrated "Garden of Renard" was associated -with Mademoiselle's first memories. It had been -taken from that part of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">La Garenne</i> which lay -between the gate of the Conférence<a name="FNanchor_6_6" id="FNanchor_6_6"></a><a href="#Footnote_6_6" class="fnanchor">[6]</a> and the -Garden of the Tuileries. Renard had been <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">valet-de-chambre</i> -to a noble house. He was witty, -pliable, complaisant to the wishes or the fancied -needs of his employers, amiable, and of "easy, accommodating -manners"<a name="FNanchor_7_7" id="FNanchor_7_7"></a><a href="#Footnote_7_7" class="fnanchor">[7]</a>; in short, he was a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[24]</a></span> -precursor of the Scapins and the Mascarelles of -Molière. Mazarin found pleasure and profit in -talking with him. Renard's garden was a bower of -delights. It was the preferred trysting-place of the -lordlings of the Court, and the scene of all things -gallant in that gallant day.</p> - -<p>The fair ladies of the Court frequented the place; -so did the crowned queens; and there many an -amorous knot was tied, and many a plot laid for -the fall of many a minister.</p> - -<p>There the men of the day gave dinners, and -rolled under the table at dessert; and in the bosky -glades of the garden the ladies offered their collations. -There were balls, comedies, concerts, and -serenades in the groves, and all the gay world met -there to hear the news and to discuss it. Renard -was the man of the hour, no one could live without -him.</p> - -<p>The Cours la Reine, created by Marie de Médicis, -was outside of Paris. It was a broad path, fifteen -hundred and forty common steps long, with a -"round square," or <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">rond-point</i>, in its centre. In -that sheltered path, the fine world, good and bad, -displayed its toilets and its equipages.</p> - -<p>Mlle. de Scudéry has given us a description of it -at the hour when it was most frequented. Two -of her characters entered Paris by the village of -Chaillot.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Coming into the city, where Hermogène led Bélésis, one -finds beside the beautiful river four great alleys, so broad, so -straight, and so shaded by the great trees which form them,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[25]</a></span> -that one could not imagine a more agreeable promenade. -And this is the place where all the ladies come in the evening -in little open chariots, and where all the men follow them on -horseback; so that having liberty to approach either one or -the other, or all of them, as they go up and down the paths -they all promenade and talk together; and this is doubtless -very diverting.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Hermogène and Bélésis having penetrated into -the Cours,</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>they saw the great alleys full of little chariots, all painted and -gilded; sitting in the chariots were the most beautiful ladies -of Suze (Paris), and near the ladies were infinite numbers of -gentlemen of quality, admirably well mounted and magnificently -dressed, going and coming, saluting as they passed.</p></blockquote> - -<p>In the summer they lingered late in the Cours la -Reine, and ended the evening at Renard's. Marie -de Médicis and Anne of Austria were rarely absent.</p> - -<p>Close by the Champs-Élysées lay a forest, through -which the huntsman passed to hunt the wolf in the -dense woods of the Bois de Boulogne. In the distance -could be seen the village of Chaillot, perched -on a height amidst fields and vines. Market gardens -covered the quarters of Ville l'Evêque and the -Chaussée d'Antin.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle was installed with royal magnificence -at the Tuileries. In her own words: "They -made my house, and they gave me an equipage -much grander than any daughter of France had -ever had."</p> - -<p>Thirty years later she was still happily surrounded -by the retinue provided by her far-seeing<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[26]</a></span> -guardians. Her servitors were of every grade, from -the lowest, who prepared a pathway for her feet, to -the highest, whose service added dignity to her -presence. By investing her with her nucleus of -domestic tributaries, her friends had established her -importance, even in her infancy, by manifestations -that could not be disputed. In that day people -were obliged to attach importance to such details. -But a short time had passed since brutal force had -been the only recognised right; and it was the way -of the world to judge the grandeur of a prince by the -length and volume of his train. It was because La -Grande Mademoiselle had, from earliest youth, -possessed an army of squires, of courtiers, of valets, -and of serving-men and serving-women—a horde -beginning with the fine milord and ending with -the hare-faced scullion, seen now and then in -some shadowy retreat of the palace, low-browed, -down-trodden, looking out with dazzled eyes upon -the world of life and luxury,—it was because she -had been a ruler even in her swaddling bands, that -she could aspire, naturally and without overweening -arrogance, to the hands of the most powerful -sovereigns. "The sons of France," says a document -of 1649, "are provided with just such officials -as surround the King; but they are less numerous.... -The Princes have officers in accordance with -their revenues and in accordance with the rank that -they hold in the kingdom."<a name="FNanchor_8_8" id="FNanchor_8_8"></a><a href="#Footnote_8_8" class="fnanchor">[8]</a></p> - -<p>The same document furnishes us with details of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[27]</a></span> -the installation of Anne of Austria. If, when we -estimate the equipage of Mademoiselle, we reduce -it by half of the estimate of the Queen's equipage, -we fall short of the reality. Like an army in campaign, -a Court ought to be sufficient unto itself, -able to meet all its requirements. The upper domestic -retinue of the Queen comprised more than -one hundred persons, <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">maîtres-d'hôtel</i> or stewards, -cup-bearers, carvers, secretaries, physicians, surgeons, -oculists, musicians, squires, almoners, nine -chaplains, "her confessor," a common confessor, -and too many other kinds of employees to be enumerated. -Under all these officials, each one of -whom had his own especial underlings, were equal -numbers of valets and of chambermaids who assured -the service of the apartments. The Court cooking -kept busy one hundred and fifty-nine drilled -knife-sharpeners, soup-skimmers, roast-hasteners, -and water-handers, or people to hand water as the -cooks needed it for their mixtures. There were -other servitors whose business it was to await the -beck and call of their superiors,—call-boys, always -waiting for signals. Then came the busy world of -the stables; then fifty merchants or shop-men, and -an indefinite number of artisans of all the orders of -all the trades. In all there were between six and -seven hundred souls, not counting the valets of the -valets or the grand "<em>charges</em>," the officials close to -the Queen, the Queen's chancellor, the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">chevaliers -d'honneur</i>, or gentlemen-in-waiting, the ladies in-waiting, -and maids of honour.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[28]</a></span></p> - -<p>The great and noble people were often very badly -served by their hordes of servants. Madame de -Motteville tells us how the ladies of the Court of -Anne of Austria were nourished in the peaceful -year 1644, when the Court coffers were yet full.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>According to the law of etiquette, the Queen supped in -solitary state. Her supper ended, we ate what was left. We -ate without order or measure, in any way we could. Our only -table service was her wash-cloth and the remnants of her -bread. And, though this repast was very ill-organised, it was -not at all disagreeable, because it had the advantage of what -is called "privacy," and because of the quality and the merit -of those who sometimes met there.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The most modern Courts still retain some vestiges -of the Middle Ages. Louis XIII. had, or had had, -four dwarfs, their salary being three hundred "tournois" -or Tours livres. The King paid a man to -look after his dwarfs, keep them in order, and -regulate their conduct.<a name="FNanchor_9_9" id="FNanchor_9_9"></a><a href="#Footnote_9_9" class="fnanchor">[9]</a></p> - -<p>To the day of her death, despite her exile and -her misery, Marie de Médicis maintained in her -service a certain Jean Gassan, who figures in her -will as employed in "keeping the parrot."</p> - -<p>When a child, Louis XIV. had two <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">baladins</i>. -Mademoiselle had a dwarf who did not retire from -her service until 1645. The registers of the Parliament -(date, 10th May, 1645) contain letters patent -and duly verified, by which the King accorded to -"Ursule Matton, the dwarf of Mademoiselle, sole -daughter of the Duke of Orleans, the power and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[29]</a></span> -the right to establish a little market in a court behind -the new meat market of Saint Honoré."<a name="FNanchor_10_10" id="FNanchor_10_10"></a><a href="#Footnote_10_10" class="fnanchor">[10]</a></p> - -<p>Marie de Médicis completed the house and establishment -of her granddaughter by giving her, for -governess, a person of much virtue, wit, and merit, -Madame de Saint Georges, who knew the Court -thoroughly. Nevertheless Mademoiselle asserted -that she had been very badly raised, thanks to the -herd of flattering hirelings who thronged the Tuileries, -and who no sooner surrounded her than they -became insupportable.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>It is a common thing [said she] to see children who are -objects of respect, and whose high birth and great possessions -are continually the subject of conversation, acquire sentiments -of spurious glory. I so often had at my ears people -who talked to me either about my riches or about my birth -that I had no trouble to persuade myself that what they said -was true, and I lived in a state of vanity which was very -inconvenient.</p></blockquote> - -<p>While very young she had reached a degree of -folly where it displeased her to have people speak -of her maternal grandmother, Madame de Guise. -"I used to say: '<em>She</em> is my <em>distant</em> grandmamma; -<em>she</em> is not Queen.'"</p> - -<p>It does not appear that Madame Saint Georges, -that person of so much merit, had done anything -to neutralise evil influences.</p> - -<p>Throughout the seventeenth century, opinions -on the education of girls were very vacillating because -little importance was attached to them. In<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[30]</a></span> -1687, after all the progress accomplished through -the double influence of Port Royal and Madame de -Maintenon, Fénelon wrote:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Nothing is more neglected than the education of girls. -Fashion and the caprices of the mothers often decide nearly -everything. The education of boys is considered of eminent -importance because of its bearing upon the public welfare; -and while as many errors are committed in the education of -boys as in the education of girls, at least it is an accepted -idea that a great deal of enlightenment is required for the -successful education of a boy.</p></blockquote> - -<p>It was supposed that contact with society would -be sufficient to form the mind and to polish the wit -of woman. In this fact lay the cause of the inequality -then noticeable in women of the same -class. They were more or less superior from various -points of view, as they had been more or less -advantageously placed to profit by their worldly -lessons, by the spectacle of life, and by the conversation -of honest people.</p> - -<p>The privileged ones were women who, like Mademoiselle -and her associates, had been accustomed -to the social circles where the history of their times -was made by the daily acts of life. Their best -teachers were the men of their own class, who intrigued, -conspired, fought, and died before their -eyes,—often for their pleasure. The agitated and -peril-fraught lives of those men, their chimeras, and -their romanticism put into daily practice, were admirable -lessons for the future heroines of the -Fronde. To understand the pupils, we must know<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[31]</a></span> -something of their teachers. What was the process -of formation of those professors of energy; in -what mould was run that race of venturesome and -restless cavaliers who evoked a whole generation -of Amazons made in their own image? The system -of the education of France of that epoch is in -question, and it is worthy of a close and detailed -examination.</p> - - -<p class="p3">IV</p> - -<p>From their infancy, boys were prepared for the -ardent life of their times. They were raised -according to a clearly defined and fixed idea common -to rich and poor, to noble and to plebeian. -The object of a boy's education was to make him a -man while he was still very young. The only difference -in the opinions of the gentleman and of the -bourgeois was this:</p> - -<p>The gentleman believed that action was the best -stimulant to action. The bourgeois thought that -the finer human sentiments, the so-called "humanities," -were the only sound foundations for a virile -and practical education. But whatever the method -used, in that day, a man entered upon life at the -age when our sons are but just beginning interminable -studies preliminary to their "examinations." -At the age of eighteen, sixteen—even fifteen years,—the -De Gassions, the La Rochefoucaulds, the -Omer Talons, and the Arnauld d'Andillys had become -officers, lawyers, or men of business, and in -their day affairs bore little resemblance to modern<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[32]</a></span> -affairs. In our day men do not enter active life -until they have been aged and fatigued by the -march of years. The time of entrance upon the -career of life ought not to be a matter of indifference -to a people. At the age of thirty years a -man no longer thinks and feels as he thought and -felt at the age of twenty. His manner of making -war is different; and there is even more difference -in his political action. He has different ambitions. -His inclinations lead him into different adventures. -The moments of history, when the agitators of the -nation were young men, glow with the light of no -other epoch. There was then an indefinable quality -in life,—an active principle, more ardent and -more vital. Under Louis XIII. there were scholars -to make the unhappy students of our own emasculated -times die of envy. Certain examples of our -modern school become bald before they rise from -the benches of their college.</p> - -<p>Jean de Gassion, Marshal of France at the age of -thirty years, who "killed men" at the age of thirty-eight -years (1647), was the fourth son, but not the -last, of a President of Parliament at Navarre, who -had raised his offspring with great care (having -destined him for the career of "Letters"). The -child took such advantage of his opportunities that -before he was sixteen years old he was a consummate -scholar. He knew several of the living -languages—German, Flemish, Italian, and Spanish. -Thus prepared for active life, he set out from -Pau astride of his father's old horse. When he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[33]</a></span> -had gone four or five leagues, the old horse gave -out. Jean de Gassion continued his journey on foot. -When he reached Savoy, they made war on him. He -enlisted as common soldier, and fought so well that -he was promoted cornet. When peace was declared, -he was in France. He determined to go to the King -of Sweden—Gustavus Adolphus,—who was said to -be somewhere in Germany. De Gassion had resolved -to offer the King the service of his sword, and -to ask to be allowed to lead the Swedish armies. But -as he had no idea of presenting himself to the King -single-handed, he persuaded some fifteen or twenty -cavaliers of his own regiment to go with him, and -embarked with them on the Baltic Sea. And—so -runs the story—he just happened to land where -Gustavus Adolphus was walking along the shore.</p> - -<p>(Such coincidences are possible only when youths -are in their teens; after the age of twenty, no man -need hope for similar experience.) Jean saluted -the King, and addressed him in excellent Latin. -He expressed his desire to be of service. The -King was amused; he received the strange offer -amiably, and consented to put the learned stripling -to the test. And so it was that Gassion was enabled -to attain to a colonelcy when he was but twenty-two -years old. His early studies had stood him in good -stead; had he not known his Latin, he would have -missed his career. His Ciceronian harangue, poured -out fluently just as the occasion demanded it, attracted -the favour of a King who was, by his own -might, a prince of letters.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[34]</a></span></p> - -<p>After the King of Sweden died, Gassion returned -to France. With Condé he won the battle of -Rocroy, and, during the siege, died of a bullet in -his head, leaving behind him the reputation of a -brilliant soldier and accomplished man of letters, -as virtuous as he was brave. He never wished to -marry. When they spoke to him of marriage, he -answered that he did not think enough of his life -to offer a share of it to any one. This was an -expression of pessimism far in advance of his -epoch.</p> - -<p>La Rochefoucauld, who will never be accused of -having been naturally romantic, offered another example -of the miracles performed by youths. Only -once in his life did he play the part of Paladin. -He launched himself in politics before he had a -beard. When he was sixteen years old, he entered -upon his grand campaign, bearing the title of -"Master of the Camp."</p> - -<p>The following year he was at Court, elbowing his -way among all the parties, busily engaged in opposition -to Richelieu. But his politics did not add -anything to his age; he was still an adolescent, -far removed from the enlightened theorist of the -<cite>Maximes</cite>.</p> - -<p>The peculiarly special savour of the springtime of -life was communicated to his soul at the hour appointed -by nature. In him it was impregnated by -a faint perfume of heroism and of poetry. He -never forgot the happiness with which for a week -or more he played the fool. He was then twenty-three<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[35]</a></span> -years old. Queen Anne of Austria was in -the depths of her disgrace, maltreated and persecuted -by her husband and by Richelieu.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>In this extremity [said Rochefoucauld], abandoned by all -the world, devoid of aid, daring to confide in no one but -Mademoiselle de Hautefort—and in me,—she proposed to me -to abduct them both and take them to Brussels. Whatever -difficulty I may have seen in such a project, I can say that it -gave me more joy than I had ever had in my life. I was at an -age when a man loves to do extraordinary things, and I could -not think of anything that would give me more satisfaction -than that: to strike the King and the Cardinal with one blow, -to take the Queen from her husband and from the jealous -Richelieu, and to snatch Mademoiselle de Hautefort from the -King who was in love with her!</p></blockquote> - -<p>In truth the adventure would not have been an -ordinary one; La Rochefoucauld assumed its duties -with enthusiasm, renouncing them only when -the Queen changed her mind.</p> - -<p>Like all his fellows, La Rochefoucauld had his -outburst of youth; but he fell short of its folly. -Recalling his extravagant project, he said: "Youth -is a continuous intoxication; it is the fever of -Reason."</p> - -<p>The memoirs of Arnauld d' Andilly tell us how -the sons of the higher nobility were educated -in the year 1600 and thereabout. Arnauld d' Andilly -began to study Greek and Latin at home, -under the supervision of a very learned father. -Toward his tenth year his family thought that the -moment had come to introduce into his little head -the meanings and the realities of speculation. The<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[36]</a></span> -child was destined for "civil employment." His -day was divided into two parts; one half was -devoted to "disinterested study"; the other half to -the study of things practical. So he served his apprenticeship -for business by such a system that his -themes and his versions lost none of their rights. -His mornings were consecrated to lessons and -tasks. They were long mornings; the family rose -at four o'clock. The little student became a good -Latinist, and even a good Hellenist. He wrote -very well in French, and he was a good reader.</p> - -<p>Ten or twelve volumes which belonged to him -are still in existence, and they attest that he knew -a great deal more than the graduates of our modern -colleges,—though he knew nothing of the things -they aim at. At eleven o'clock he closed his lexicons, -bade adieu to his preceptor and to the -pedagogy, bestrode his horse, and rode to Paris, -to the house of one of his uncles, who had taken it -upon himself to teach the boy everything that he -could not learn from his books. Our forefathers -carefully watched their sons' first contact with -reality. They tried not to leave to chance the -duties of so important an initiation; and as a -general thing their supervision left ineffaceable -traces. Uncle Claude de la Mothe-Arnauld, Treasurer-General -of France, installed his nephew in his -private cabinet and gave him various bundles of -endorsed papers to decipher. The child was -obliged to pick out their meaning and then render -a clear analysis of it in a distinct voice. When he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[37]</a></span> -was fifteen years old another uncle, a Supervisor of -the National Finances, caused the student to "put -his fist into the dough" in his own office. At sixteen -years of age, "little Arnauld" was "M. Arnauld -d' Andilly"; vested with office under the -State, received at Court, and permitted to assist -behind the chair of the King, at the Councils of -Finance, so that he might hear financial arguments, -and learn from the Nation's statesmen how to decide -great questions. His education was not an -exceptional one. The sons of the bourgeoisie were -raised in like manner. Attempts to educate boys -were more or less successful, according to the -natural gifts of the postulants. Omer Talon, Advocate-General -of the Parliament of Paris, and one -of the great Parliamentary orators of the century, -had pursued extensive classical studies, and "as he -spoke, Latin and Greek rushed to his lips." He -had "vast attainments in law," a science much more -complicated in the sixteenth century than in our day. -But, learned though he was, he had not lingered -on the benches of his school. He was admitted -to the Bar when he was eighteen years old, and -"immediately began to plead and to be celebrated."</p> - -<p>Antoine Le Maïtre, the first "Solitaire" of Port -Royal, began his career by appearing in public as -the best known and most important and influential -lawyer in Paris when he was twenty-one years old.</p> - -<p>Generally, the nobility sacrificed learning, which -it despised, to an impatient desire to see its sons "in -active life." The nobles made pages of their sons as<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[38]</a></span> -soon as they were thirteen or fourteen years old, -or else sent them to the "Academy" to learn how -to make proper use of a horse, to fence, to vault, -and to dance.<a name="FNanchor_11_11" id="FNanchor_11_11"></a><a href="#Footnote_11_11" class="fnanchor">[11]</a></p> - -<p class="p7">In the eyes of people of quality books and writings -were the tools of plebeians; good enough for -professional fine wits, or lawyers' clerks, but not fit -for the nobility.</p> - -<p class="p7">In the reign of Louis XIII.,<a name="FNanchor_12_12" id="FNanchor_12_12"></a><a href="#Footnote_12_12" class="fnanchor">[12]</a> M. d'Avenal wrote -thus: "Gentlemen are perfectly ignorant,—the -most illustrious and the most modestly insignificant -alike. In this respect, with few exceptions, there -is absolute equality between them."</p> - -<p>The Constable, De Montmorency, had the reputation -of a man of sound sense, "though he had no -book learning, and hardly knew how to write his -own name." Many of the great lords knew no -more; and this ignorance was not shameful; on the -contrary it was desired, affected, gloried in, and -eagerly imitated by the lesser nobility.</p> - -<p>"I never sharpen my pen with anything but my -sword," proudly declared a gentleman.</p> - -<p>"Ah?" answered a wit; "then your bad writing -does not astonish me!"</p> - -<p>The exceptions to the rule resulted from the -caprices of the fathers; and they were sometimes -found where least expected. The famous Bassompierre, -arbiter of fashion and flower of courtiers,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[39]</a></span> -who, at one sitting, burned more than six thousand -letters from women, who wore habits costing -fourteen thousand écus, and could describe their -details twenty years after he had worn them, had -been very liberally educated, and according to a -method which as may be imagined, was far in -advance of the methods of his day. He had followed -the college course until the sixteenth year of -his age, he had laboured at rhetoric, logic, physics, -and law, and dipped deep into Hippocrates -and Aristotle. He had also studied <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">les cas de -Conscience</i>. Then he had gone to Italy, where he -had attended the best riding schools, the best fencing -schools, a school of fortifications, and several -princely Courts. At the age of nineteen years he -was a superb cavalier and a good musician, he -knew the world, and had made a very brilliant first -appearance at Court.</p> - -<p>The great Condé, General-in-Chief at the age of -twenty-two years, had followed a college course at -the school of Bourges, and had been "drilled" at -the "Academy." He was tried by the fire of many -a hard school. Wherever he went he was preceded -by tart letters of instruction from his father. By -his father's orders he was always received and -treated as impartially as any of the lesser aspirants to -education; he was severely "exercised," put on his -mettle in various ways, and compelled to start out -from first principles, no matter how well he knew -them. When seven years old he spoke Latin -fluently. When he reached the age of eleven he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[40]</a></span> -was well grounded in rhetoric, law, mathematics, -and the Italian language. He could turn a verse -very prettily; and he excelled in everything -athletic.</p> - -<p>Louis XIII. applauded this deep and thorough -study,—perhaps because he regretted his lost opportunities. -He told people that he should "wish -to have ... Monsieur the Dauphin," educated -in like manner.<a name="FNanchor_13_13" id="FNanchor_13_13"></a><a href="#Footnote_13_13" class="fnanchor">[13]</a></p> - -<p>In measure as the century advanced it began to -be recognised that a nobleman could "study" without -detracting from his noble dignity. Louis de -Pontis, who started out as a D'Artagnan, and ended -at Port Royal,<a name="FNanchor_14_14" id="FNanchor_14_14"></a><a href="#Footnote_14_14" class="fnanchor">[14]</a> wished that time could be taken to -instruct the youth of the nation. Answering some -one who had asked his advice as to the education -of two young lords of the Court, he wrote<a name="FNanchor_15_15" id="FNanchor_15_15"></a><a href="#Footnote_15_15" class="fnanchor">[15]</a>:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I will begin by avowing that I do not share the sentiments -of those who wish for their children only so much science as -is "needed"—as they call it—"for a gentleman"; I do not -see things in that light. I should demand more science.</p> - -<p>Since science teaches man how to reason and to speak -well in public, is it not necessary to men, who, by the grandeur -of their birth, their employment, and their duties, may need -it at any moment, and who make use of it in their numerous -meetings with the enlightened of the world? There are several -personages who hold that the society of virtuous and -talented women expands and polishes the mind of a young -cavalier more than the conversation of men of letters; but I -am not of their opinion....</p></blockquote> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[41]</a></span></p> - -<p>Notwithstanding this declaration, Pontis desired -that great difference should be established between -the treatment of a child training for the robes and -the treatment of one training for military service. -"The first ought never to end his studies; it is -sufficient for the second to study until his fifteenth -or sixteenth year; after that time he ought to be -sent to the Academy...."</p> - -<p>In this opinion Pontis echoed the general impression. -At the time when La Grande Mademoiselle -was born, the man of quality no longer had a -right to be "brutal,"—in other words, to betray -coarseness of nature. New customs and new manners -exacted from the man of noble birth tact and -good breeding, not science. But it was requisite -that the nobleman's mind should be "formed" by -the influence and discourse of a man of letters, so -that he might be capable of judging witty and intellectual -works ("works of the mind").</p> - -<p>Marshal Montmorency,<a name="FNanchor_16_16" id="FNanchor_16_16"></a><a href="#Footnote_16_16" class="fnanchor">[16]</a> son of the Constable, -who "hardly knew how to write his own name," -had always in his employ cultured and intellectual -people, who "made verses" for him on a multitude -of such subjects as it was befitting his high estate -that he should know; such subjects as were calculated -to give him an air of intelligence and general -information. His intellectual advisers informed -him what to think and what to say of the current -questions of the day.<a name="FNanchor_17_17" id="FNanchor_17_17"></a><a href="#Footnote_17_17" class="fnanchor">[17]</a> It was good form for -great and noble houses to entertain at least one<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[42]</a></span> -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">autheur</i>. As there were no public journals or reviews, -the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">autheur</i> took the place of literary chronicles -and literary criticism. He talked of the last -dramatic sketch, or of the last new novel.</p> - -<p>It was not long before another step in advance -was taken, by which every nobleman was permitted -to entertain his own personal <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">autheur</i>, and to -compose "works of the mind" for himself. But -he who succumbed to the epidemic (<i xml:lang="la" lang="la">cacoëthes -scribendi</i>), owed it to his birth and breeding to hide -his malady, or to make excuses for it.</p> - -<p>Mlle. de Scudéry puts in the mouth of <i>Sapho</i> -(herself) in <i>Le Grand Cyrus</i><a name="FNanchor_18_18" id="FNanchor_18_18"></a><a href="#Footnote_18_18" class="fnanchor">[18]</a>:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Nothing is more inconvenient than to be intellectual or to -be treated as if one were so, when one has a noble heart and -a certain degree of birth; for I hold that it is an indubitable -fact that from the moment one separates himself from the -multitude, distinguishing one's self by the enlightenment of -one's mind; when one acquires the reputation of having more -mind than another, and of writing well enough—in prose or -in verse—to be able to compose books, then, I say, one loses -one half of one's nobility—if one has any—and one is not one -half as important as another of the same house and of the -same blood, who has not meddled with writings....</p></blockquote> - -<p>About the time this opinion saw the light, Tallemant -des Réaux wrote to M. de Montausier, husband -of the beautiful Julie d'Angennes, and one of -the satellites of the Hôtel de Rambouillet: "He -plys the trade of a man of mind too well for a man -of quality—or at least he plays the part too seriously -... he has even made translations...."<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[43]</a></span> -This mention is marked by one just feature: the -man who wrote, who could write, or who indulged -in writing, was supposed to have judgment enough -to keep him from attaching importance to his works. -The fine world had regained the taste for refinement -lost in the fracas of the civil wars; but in the -higher classes of society was still reflected the -horror of the preceding generations for pedants -and for pedantry.</p> - -<p>Ignorant or learned, half-grown boys were cast -forward by their hasty education into their various -careers when they had barely left the ranks of infancy. -They were reckless, still in the flower of -their giddy youth; but they were enthusiastic and -generous. France received their high spirits very -kindly. Deprived of the good humour, and stripped -of the illusions furnished by the young representatives -of their manhood, the times would have been -too hard to be endured. The traditions of the -centuries when might was the only right still -weighed upon the soul of the people. One of those -traditions exacted that—from his infancy—a man -should be "trained to blood." A case was cited -where a man had his prisoners killed by his own -son,—a child ten years old. One exaction was -that a man should never be conscious of the sufferings -of a plebeian.</p> - -<p>France had received a complete inheritance of -inhuman ideas, which protected and maintained -the remains of the savagery that ran, like a stained -thread, through the national manners, just falling<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[44]</a></span> -short of rendering odious the gallant cavaliers. -All that saved them from the disgust aroused by -the brutal exercise of the baser "rights" was the -bright ray of poetry, whose dazzling light gleamed -amidst their sombre faults.</p> - -<p>They were quarrelsome, but brave. Perchance -as wild as outlaws, but devoted, gay, and loving. -They were extraordinarily lively, because they were—or -had been but a short time before—extraordinarily -young, with a youth that is not now, nor -ever shall be.</p> - -<p>They inspired the women with their boisterous -gallantry. In the higher classes the sexes led nearly -the same life. They frequented the same pleasure -resorts and revelled in the same joys. They met -in the lanes and alleys, at the theatre (<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Comédie</i>), at -balls, in their walks, on the hunt, on horseback, and -even in the camps. A woman of the higher classes -had constantly recurring opportunities to drink in -the spirit of the times. As a result the ambitious -aspired to take part in public life; and they shaped -their course so well, and made so much of their opportunities, -that Richelieu complained of the importance -of women in the State. They were seen -entering politics, and conspiring like men; and they -urged on the men to the extremes of folly.</p> - -<p>Some of the noblewomen had wardrobes full of -disguises; and they ran about the streets and the -highways dressed as monks or as gentlemen. -Among them were several who wielded the sword -in duel and in war, and who rode fearlessly and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[45]</a></span> -well. They were all handsome and courageous, -and even in the abandon of their most reckless -gambols they found means to preserve their delicacy -and their grace. Never were women more -womanly. Men adored them, trembling lest something -should come about to alter their perfection. -Their fear was the cause of their desperate and -stubborn opposition to the idea of the education of -girls, then beginning to take shape among the elder -women.</p> - -<p>I cannot say that the men were not in the wrong; -but I do say that I understand and appreciate their -motives. Woman, or goddess, of the order of the -nobles of the time of Louis XIII., was a work of -art, rare and perfect; and to tremble for her safety -was but natural!</p> - -<p>It happened that La Grande Mademoiselle came -to the age to profit by instruction just when polite -circles were discussing the education of girls. The -governess whose duty it had been to guide her -mind was caught between two opposing forces: -the defendants of the ancient ignorance and the -first partisans of the idea of "<em>enlightenment for all</em>."</p> - - -<p class="p3">V</p> - -<p><i>Les Femmes Savantes</i> might have been written -under Richelieu. <i>Philamente</i> had not awaited the -advent of Molière to protest against the ignorance -and the prejudice that enslaved her sex. When -the piece appeared, more than half a century had -elapsed since people had quarrelled in the little<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[46]</a></span> -streets about woman's position,—what she ought to -know, and what she ought not to know. But if the -piece had been written long before its first appearance, -the treatment of the subject could not have -been the same. It would have been necessary to -agree as to what woman ought to be in her home -and in her social relations; and at that time they -were just beginning to disagree on that very subject. -Nearly all men thought that things ought -to be maintained in the existing conditions. The -nobles had exquisite mistresses and incomparable -political allies; the bourgeois had excellent housekeepers; -and to one and all alike, noble and bourgeois, -it seemed that any instruction would be -superfluous; that things were perfect just as they -were. The majority of the women shared the opinions -of the men. The minority, looking deeper into -the question, saw that there might be a more serious -and more intellectual way of living to which ignorance -would be an obstacle; but at every turn they -were met by men stubbornly determined that -women should not be made to study. Such men -would not admit that there could be any difference -between a cultivated woman and "<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Savante</i>,"—the -term then used for "blue-stocking." It must be -confessed that there was some justice in their judgment. -For a reason which escapes me, when -knowledge attempted to enter the mind of a woman -it had great trouble to make conditions with nature -and simplicity. It was not so easy! Even to-day -certain preparations are necessary,—appointment<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[47]</a></span> -of commandants, the selection of countersigns, establishment -of a picket-line—not to say a deadline. -We have <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">précieuses</i> in our own day, and their -pretensions and their grimaces have been lions in -our path whenever we have attempted the higher -instruction of our daughters; the truly <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">précieuses</i>, -they who were instrumental in winning the cause -of the higher education of women—they who, -under the impulsion given by the Hôtel de Rambouillet, -worked to purify contemporary language -and manners—were not ignorant of the baleful -affectation of their sisters, nor of the extent of -its compromising effect upon their own efforts. -Mlle. de Scudéry, who knew "nearly everything -that one could know" (by which was probably meant -"everything fit to be known"), and who piqued -herself upon being not less modest than she was -wise, could not be expected to share, or to take part -in, and in the mind of the public be confounded -with, the female <em>Trissotins</em> whose burden of ridicule -she felt so keenly. She would not allow herself to -resemble them in any way when she brought them -forth in <em>Grand Cyrus</em>, where the questions now called -"feminist" were discussed with great good sense.</p> - -<p><em>Damophile</em>, who affects to imitate <em>Sapho</em>, is only -her caricature. <em>Sapho</em> "does not resemble a '<em>Savante</em>'"; -her conversation is natural, gallant, and -easy (commodious).</p> - -<p><em>Damophile</em> always had five or six teachers. I believe -that the least learned among them taught her -astrology.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[48]</a></span></p> - -<p>She was always writing to the men who made a -profession of science. She could not make up her -mind to have anything to say to people who did -not know anything. Fifteen or twenty books were -always to be seen on her table; and she always -held one of them in her hand when any one entered -the room, or when she sat there alone; and -I am assured that it could be said without prevarication -that one saw more books in her cabinet than -she had ever read, and that at <em>Sapho's</em> house one -saw fewer books than she had read.</p> - -<p>More than that, <em>Damophile</em> used only great -words, which she pronounced in a grave and imperious -voice; though what she said was unimportant; -and <em>Sapho</em>, on the contrary, used only -short, common words to express admirable things. -Besides that, <em>Damophile</em>, believing that knowledge -did not accord with her family affairs, never had -anything to do with domestic cares; but as to -<em>Sapho</em>, she took pains to inform herself of everything -necessary to know in order to command even -the least things pertaining to the household.</p> - -<p><em>Damophile</em> not only talked as if she were reading -out of a book, but she was always talking about -books; and, in her ordinary conversation, she spoke -as freely of unknown authors as if she were giving -public lessons in some celebrated academy.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>She tries ... with peculiar and strange carefulness, -to let it be known how much she knows, or thinks that she -knows. And that, too, the first time that a stranger sees her. -And there are so many obnoxious, disagreeable, and troublesome<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[49]</a></span> -things about <em>Damaphile</em>, that one must acknowledge -that if there is nothing more amiable nor more charming than -a woman who takes pains to adorn her mind with a thousand -agreeable forms of knowledge,—when she knows how to use -them,—nothing is as ridiculous and as annoying as a woman -who is "stupidly wise."</p></blockquote> - -<p>Mlle. de Scudéry raged when people, who had -no tact, took her for a <em>Damophile</em>, and, meaning -to compliment her, consulted her "on grammar," -or "touching one of Hesiod's verses." Then the -vials of her wrath were poured out upon the -"<em>Savantes</em>" who gave the prejudiced reason for -condemning the education of woman, and who provoked -annoying and ridiculous misconception by -their insupportable pedantry; when there were so -many young girls of the best families who did not -even learn their own language, and who could not -make themselves understood when they took their -pens in hand.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"The majority of women," said Nicanor, "seem to try to -write so that people will misunderstand them, so strange is -their writing and so little sequency is there in their words."</p> - -<p>"It is certain," replied Sapho, "that there are women who -speak well who write badly; and that they do write badly is -purely their own fault.... Doubtless it comes from the -fact that they do not like to read, or that they read without -paying any attention to what they are doing, and without reflecting -upon what they have read. So that although they -have read the same words they use when they write, thousands -and thousands of times, when they come to write they write -them all wrong. And by putting some letters where other -letters ought to be, they make a confused tangle which no one -can distinguish unless he is well used to it."</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[50]</a></span></p> - -<p>"What you say is so true," answered Erinne, "that I saw it -proved no longer ago than yesterday. I visited one of my -friends, who has returned from the country, and I carried her -all the letters she wrote to me while she was away, so that she -might read them to me and let me know what was in them."</p></blockquote> - - -<p>Mademoiselle de Scudéry did not exaggerate; our -great-grandmothers did not see the utility of applying -a knowledge of spelling to their letters. In -that respect each one extricated herself by the -grace of God.</p> - -<p>The Marchioness of Sablé, who was serious and -wise, and, according to the testimony of <em>Sapho</em>, -"the type of the perfect <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">précieuse</i>" had peculiar -ways of her own in her spelling. She wrote, -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">J'hasse, notre broulerie votre houbly</i>. Another -"<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">précieuse</i>," Madame de Brégy, whose prose and -verse both appeared in print, wrote to Madame de -Sablé, when they were both in their old age:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Je vous diré que je vieus d'aprendre que samedi, Monsieur, -Madame, et les poupons reviene a Paris, et que pour -aujourd'hui la Rayue et Madame de Toscane vout a Saint-Clou -don la naturelle bauté sera reausé de tout les musique -possible et d'un repas magnifique don je quiterois tous les -gous pour une écuelle non pas de nantille, mes pour une devostre -potage; rien n'étan si délisieus que d'an mauger en -vous écoutan parler. (19th September, 1672.)</p></blockquote> - -<p>It is but just to add that as far as orthography -was concerned many of the men were women. The -following letter of the Duke of Gesvres, "first -gentleman of Louis XIV.," has no reason to envy -the letter of the old Marchioness.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[51]</a></span></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>(Paris, this 20th September, 1677.) Monsieur me trouvant -oblige de randre vuue bonne party de l'argan que mais enfant -out pris de peuis quil sont en campane Monsieur cela m'oblije -a vous suplier très humblement Monsieur de me faire la -grasse de Commander Monsieur quant il vous plaira que l'on -me pay le capitenery de Movsaux monsieur vous asseurant que -vous m'oblijeres fort sansiblement Monsieur, comme ausy de -me croire avec toute sorte de respec Monsieur vastre très -humble et très obeissant serviteur.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Enough is as good as a feast! Though we stand -in no superstitious awe of orthography, we can but -laud Mademoiselle de Scudéry for having crossed -lances in its favour. And well might she wish that -to the first elements of an education might be added -a certain amount of building material suitable for -a foundation so solid that something more serious -than dancing steps and chiffons might at a later -date be introduced into the brains of young girls.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Seriously, [she said] is there anything stranger than the -way they act when they prepare to enter upon the ordinary -education of woman? One does not wish women to be -coquettish or gallant, and yet they are permitted to learn -carefully everything that has anything to do with gallantry; -though they are not permitted to know anything that might -fortify their virtue or occupy their minds. All the great -scoldings given them in their first youth because they are not -proper<a name="FNanchor_19_19" id="FNanchor_19_19"></a><a href="#Footnote_19_19" class="fnanchor">[19]</a>—that is to say dressed in good taste, and because they -do not apply themselves to their dancing lessons and their singing -lessons—do they not prove what I say? And the strangest -of all is that this should be so when a woman cannot, with any -propriety, dance more than five or six years of all the years of -her life! And this same person who has been taught to do<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[52]</a></span> -nothing but to dance is obliged to give proof of judgment to -the day of her death; and though she is expected to speak -properly, even to her last sigh, nothing is done—of all that -might be done—to make her speak more agreeably, nor to -act with more care for her conduct; and when the manner in -which these ladies pass their lives is considered, it might be -said that they seem to have been forbidden to have reason and -good sense, and that they were put in the world only that -they might sleep, be fat, be handsome, do nothing, and say -nothing but silly things.... I know one who sleeps more -than twelve hours every day, who takes three or four hours -to dress herself, or, to speak more to the point: not to dress -herself—for more than half of the time given to dressing is -passed either in doing nothing or in doing over what has been -done. Then she employs fully two or three hours in consuming -her divers repasts; and all the rest of the time is -spent receiving people to whom she does not know what to -say, or in paying visits to people who do not know what to say -to her.</p></blockquote> - -<p>In spite of her strictness, Mlle. de Scudéry was -no advocate of the idea which makes a woman -her husband's servant, or installs her as the slave -of the stew-pan. Whenever she was urged to -"tell precisely what a woman ought to know," -the problem was so new to her that she did not -know how to answer it. She evaded it, rejecting -its generalities. She had only two fixed ideas: -that science was necessary to women; and that the -women who attained it must not let it be known -that they had attained it. She expressed her two -opinions clearly:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>It [science] serves to show them the meaning of things; -it makes it possible for them to listen intelligently when their<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[53]</a></span> -mental superiors are talking—even to talk to the point and -to express opinions—but they must not talk as books talk; -they must try to speak as if their knowledge had come naturally, -as if their inherent common sense had given them an -understanding of the things in question.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Mademoiselle had in her mind one woman whom -she would have liked to set up as a pattern for all -other women. That one woman knew Latin, and -because of her sense and propriety, was esteemed -by Saint Augustine, and yet no one had ever -thought of calling her a "<i>Savante</i>."</p> - -<p>Mlle. de Scudéry was very grateful to the charming -Mme. de Sévigné, because she plead the cause -of woman's education by so fine an example, and -she depicted her admirable character with visible -complaisance, under the name of Clarinte.<a name="FNanchor_20_20" id="FNanchor_20_20"></a><a href="#Footnote_20_20" class="fnanchor">[20]</a></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Her conversation is easy, diverting and natural. She -speaks to the point, and evinces clear judgment; she speaks -well; she even has some spontaneous expressions, so ingenuous -and so witty that they are infinitely pleasing.... Clarinte -dearly loves to read; and what is better, without playing the -wit, she is admirably quick to seize the hidden meaning of -fine ideas. She has so much judgment that, though she is -neither severe, nor shy, she has found the means to preserve -the best reputation in the world.... What is most marvellous -in this person is that, young as she is, she cares for -her household as prudently as if she had had all the experience -that time can give to a very enlightened mind; and what I admire -still more, is that whenever it is necessary she can do -without the world, and without the Court; she is as happy in -the country, she can amuse herself as well there, as if she had -been born in the woods.... I had nearly forgotten to tell<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[54]</a></span> -you that she writes as she speaks; that is to say, most agreeably -and as gallantly as possible.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The programme used for the distribution of -studies by means of which the De Sévignés were -fabricated is not revealed. Nature herself must -have furnished a portion of the plan. As far as we -can judge the part played by education was restricted -to the adoption of some of the suggestions -of very rich moral endowments.</p> - -<p>Mlle. de Chantal had been admirably directed -by her uncle, the Abbé de Coulanges, and, aside -from the cares of the profession which now presides -over the education of woman, it is probable that more -efficient means could not be found for the proper -formation of the character of a girl than it was -Mademoiselle de Chantal's good fortune to enjoy.</p> - -<p>Ménage and Chapelain had been her guides in -rhetoric. She had read Tacitus and Virgil in the -original all her life. She was familiar with Italian -and with Spanish, and had ancient and modern -history at her tongue's end,—also the moralists -and the religious writers.</p> - -<p>These serious and well-grounded foundations, -which she continually strengthened and renewed -until death, did not prevent her from "adoring" -poetry, the drama, and the superior novels,—in -short, all things of enlightenment and worth -wherever she found them and under whatever -form. She was graceful in the dance; she sang -well,—her contemporaries said that her manner of -singing was "impassioned."</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_054.jpg" alt="FROM AN ENGRAVING OF THE PAINTING BY MUNTZ" title="MADAME DE SÉVIGNÉ" /> -<div class="caption"><p>MADAME DE SÉVIGNÉ</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM AN ENGRAVING OF THE PAINTING BY MUNTZ</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[55]</a></span></p> - -<p>The Abbé Coulanges had raised her so carefully -that she was orderly; and, unlike the majority, she -liked to pay her debts. She was a perfect type of -woman. She even made a few mistakes in orthography, -taking one, or more, letter, or letters, for -another, or for others. In short, she made just the -number of errors sufficient to permit her to be a -writer of genius without detracting from her air of -distinguished elegance, or from the obligations -and the quality of her birth.</p> - -<p>There were others at Court and in the city who -confirmed their right to enlightenment, thereby justifying -the theses of Mademoiselle de Scudéry. But -a large number of women gave the lie to her theories -by their resemblance to <em>Damophile</em>. Of these latter -was "the worthy Gournay," Montaigne's "daughter -by alliance," who, from the exalted heights of her -Greek and Latin, and in a loud, insistent voice, -discoursed like a doctor of medicine on the most -ticklish of subjects,—subjects far from pleasing -when rolled out of the mouth of a woman, even -when so displaced in the name of antiquity and all -that is venerable! (For in these names "the good -Gournay" evoked them.) There was another -pedant, the Viscountess d'Auchy, who had "founded -conferences" in her own house; the people of the -fine world flocked there to smother as they listened -while it was proved, for their edification, that the -Holy Trinity had natural reasons for its existence. -On those "foundations" the Innate Idea also was -proved by demonstrative reason by collecting and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[56]</a></span> -by analysing the ideas of young children concerning -philosophy and theology. The lady who founded -the conferences had bought some manuscript <cite>Homilies -on the Epistles of St. Paul</cite>, of a doctor of theology. -She had had them imprinted and attached -to portraits of herself. Thus accoutred for their -mission, they were circulated with great success, -and their proceeds formed the endowment fund of -the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Conférence</i> Library.</p> - -<p>"The novelty of seeing a great lady of the Court -commenting on the most obscure of the apostles -caused every one to buy the book."<a name="FNanchor_21_21" id="FNanchor_21_21"></a><a href="#Footnote_21_21" class="fnanchor">[21]</a> It ended by -the Archbishop of Paris intimating to the "Order -of the Conferences" that they "would better leave -Theology to the Sorbonne."</p> - -<p>Mlle. Des Jardins declaimed her verses in the -salons with great "contortions" and with eyes rolling -as if in death; and she was not at all pleased when -people preferred Corneille's writings to her own.</p> - -<p>Mlle. Diodée frightened her hearers so that they -took to their heels when she began to read her fine -thoughts on Zoroaster or on Hermes Trismegistus. -Another learned lady would speak of nothing but -solar or lunar eclipses and of comets.</p> - -<p>The pedantry of this high order of representative -woman transported the "honest man" with -horror. The higher the birth of the man the -greater his fear lest by some occult means he might -be led to slip his neck into the noose of a "<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Savante</i>." -But there was one counter-irritant for this virulent<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[57]</a></span> -form of literary eruption. The young girls of the -highest nobility were all extremely ignorant. Mlle. -de Maillé-Brézé, niece of Cardinal de Richelieu, -had not an idea of the most limited degree of the -knowledge of books when she married the great -Condé (1641). She knew nothing whatever. It was -considered that ignorance carried to such length -proved that neglect of instruction had gone too -far, and when the great Condé went on his first -campaign, friends seized the opportunity to add a -few facets to the uncut jewel. She was turned -and turned about, viewed in different lights, and -polished so that her qualities could be seen to the -best advantage. "The year after her marriage," -says Mlle. de Scudéry, "she was sent to the Convent -of the Carmelite Nuns of Saint Denis, to be -taught to learn to read and write, during the absence -of Monsieur her husband."</p> - -<p>The <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Contes de Perrault</i>—faithful mirror of the -habits of those days—teaches us what an accomplished -princess ought to be like. All the fairies to -be found in the country had acted as godmothers -to the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Belle-au-Bois-dormant</i>,</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>so that each one of them could bring her a gift ... consequently -the princess had acquired every imaginable perfection.... -The youngest fairy gave her the gift of being -the most beautiful woman in the world; the one who came -next gave her the spirit of an angel; the third endowed her -with power to be graceful in everything that she did; the -fourth gave her the art of dancing like a fairy; the fifth the -art of singing like a nightingale; and the sixth endowed her -with the power to play all kinds of instruments to perfection.</p></blockquote> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[58]</a></span></p> - -<p>Perrault had traced his portraits over the strongly -defined lines of real life. La Grande Mademoiselle -was trained after the manner of the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Belle-au-Bois-dormant</i>. -Her governess had had too much experience -to burden her with a science that would have made -her redoubtable in the eyes of men; so she had -transferred to the fairies the task of providing her -young charge with a suitable investiture. Unhappily -for her eternal fame, when she distributed her -powers of attorney some of the fairies were absent; -so Mademoiselle neither sang like a nightingale, -nor displayed classic grace in all her actions. But -her resemblance to Perrault's heroines was striking. -The fairies empowered to invest her with mind and -delicacy of feeling had been present at her baptism, -and they had left indisputable proof of the origin of -her ideas. Like their predecessors, the elves of the -<em>Contes</em>, they had never planned for anything less than -the marriage of their god-daughter to the King's -son. By all that she saw and heard, Mademoiselle -knew that Providence had not closed an eye at the -moment of her creation. She knew that her quality -was essential. She knew that it was written on -high that she should marry the son of a great King.</p> - -<p>Her life was a conscientious struggle to "accomplish -the oracle"; and the marriages that she missed -form the weft of her history.</p> - - -<p class="p3">VI</p> - -<p>The first of the <cite>Mémoires</cite> show us the Court of -Louis XIII. and the affairs of the day as seen by a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[59]</a></span> -little girl. This is an aspect to which historians -have not accustomed us; and as a natural result of -the infantine point of view the horizons are considerably -narrowed. The little Princess did not know -that anything important was taking place in Germany. -She could not be ignorant of the fact that -Richelieu was engaged in a struggle with the high -powers of France; she read the general distress -in the clouded faces surrounding her. But in her -mind she decided that it was nothing but one of -her father's quarrels with the Cardinal. The judgments -she rendered against the high personages -whose houses she frequented were dictated by purely -sentimental considerations. "Some she liked; -some she did not like"; consequently the former -gained, and the latter lost. Many contestants were -struggling before her young eyes; Louis XIII. was -among the winners.</p> - -<p>He was a good uncle, very affectionate to his -niece, and deeply grateful that she was nothing -worse than a girl. He could never rid himself of -the idea that his brother might have endowed him -with an heir. He had Mademoiselle brought to -the Louvre by the gallery along the river, and -allowed himself to be cheered by her turbulence -and uncurbed indiscretions.</p> - -<p>Anne of Austria exhibited a deep tenderness for -Mademoiselle; but no one can deceive a child. "I -think that all the love she showed me was nothing -but the effect of what she felt for Monsieur," writes -Mademoiselle; and further on she formally declares<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[60]</a></span> -that the Queen, believing herself destined to a -near widowhood, had formed the "plan" of marrying -Monsieur. Whatever the Queen's plans may -have been, it is certain that she caressed the -daughter for love of the father. Anne of Austria -never forgave Mademoiselle for the part that she -had played before her birth, in the winter of 1626-1627, -when the Duchess of Orleans so arrogantly -promised to bring forth a Dauphin. Monsieur had -no reason to fear the scrutiny of a child. He was -a charming playfellow; gay, complaisant, fond of -his daughter, at least for the moment,—no one -could count upon the future!</p> - -<p>Cardinal de Richelieu could not gain anything by -thoughtful criticism. To the little Princess he was -the Croquemitaine of the Court. When we think -of his ogre face—spoil sport that he was! as he -appeared to the millions of French people who were -incapable of understanding his policy—the silhouette -traced by the hand of Mademoiselle appears in -a new light, and we are forced to own that its profound -and simple ignorance is instructive.</p> - -<p>Marie de Médicis had managed to disappear -from the Luxembourg and from Paris, after the -<cite>Journée des Dupes</cite> (11 November, 1630), and her -little granddaughter had not noticed her departure. -She writes: "I was still so young that I do -not remember that I ever saw her." The case was -not the same after the departure of Monsieur. He -had continually visited the Tuileries, and when he -came no more the child knew it well enough. She<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[61]</a></span> -understood that her father had been punished, and -she was not permitted to remain ignorant of the -identity of the insolent personage who had placed -him on the penitential stool. Mademoiselle, then -less than four years old, was outraged in all her -feelings by the success of Richelieu. She made -war upon him in her own way; and, dating from -that day, became dear to the people of Paris, who -had always loved to vex and to humble the Government. -She wrote with a certain pride: "On -that occasion my conduct did not at all answer to -my years. I did not want to be amused in any -way; and they could not even make me go to the -assemblies at the Louvre." As she had no better -scapegoat, her bad humour was vented on the King. -She constantly growled at him, demanding that he -should bring back her "papa." But Mademoiselle -was never able to pout to such purpose that she -could stay away from the palace long, for she was -a true courtier, firmly convinced that to be away -from Court was to be in a desert, no matter how -many servants and companions might surround -her. She soon mended her broken relations with -the assemblies and the collations of the Louvre, -and could not refrain from "entering into the -joy of her heart" when "Their Majesties" sent -word to her guardians to take her to Fontainebleau. -But she never laid down her arms where Richelieu -was concerned. She knew all the songs that were -written against him.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile Monsieur had not taken any steps<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[62]</a></span> -to make himself interesting. As soon as he had -crossed the French frontier he entered upon a -pleasure debauch which rendered him unfit for -active service, for a time at least. He paid for -his high flight in Spanish money. In 1632 he -further distinguished himself by entering France -at the head of a foreign army. On that occasion -he caused the death of the Duke of Montmorency, -who was executed for "rebellion."</p> - -<p>Immediately after the Duke's execution, it was -discovered that Monsieur had secretly married a -sister of the Duke of Lorraine. He, Monsieur, -crowned his efforts by signing a treaty with Spain -(12 May, 1634), for which act France paid by -yielding up strips of French territory.</p> - -<p>But to his daughter Monsieur was always the -victim of an impious persecution. Speaking of the -years gorged with events so closely concerning her -own life, she says:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Many things passed in those days. I was only a child; -I had no part in anything, and could not notice anything; All -that I can remember is that at Fontainebleau (5 May, 1663) -I saw the Ceremony of the Chevaliers of the Order. During -the ceremony they degraded from the Order Monsieur the -Duke d'Elbœuf, and the Marquis de la Vieu Ville. I saw -them tear off and break the arms belonging to their rank,—a -rank equal to all the others; and when I asked the reason -they told me they had insulted them "because they had followed -Monsieur." Then I wept. I was so wounded by this -treatment that I would have retired from Court; and I said -that I could not look on this action with the submission that -would become me.</p></blockquote> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[63]</a></span></p> - -<p>The day after the ceremony an incident exciting -much comment added to Mademoiselle's grief. -Her enemy, the Cardinal, took part in the promotion -of the Cordons Bleus. On this occasion Louis -XIII. wished to exalt his Minister by giving him a -distinguishing mark of superiority. He wished to -distinguish him, and him only, by giving him a -present. His choice of a present fell upon an object -well fitted to evoke the admiration of a child. -The chevaliers of the <cite>Saint Esprit</cite> were at a banquet. -At dessert they brought to Richelieu the -King's gift, an immense rock composed of various -delicate confitures. From the centre of the rock -jetted a fountain of perfumed water. Given under -solemn circumstances and to a prince of the -Church, it was a singular present. It attracted remark, -its familiarity tended to give colour to the -rumours circulating to the effect that an alliance -then in process of incubation would eventually -unite the House of France and the family of a -very powerful Minister. The people voiced the -current rumour volubly; they said that "Gaston's -marriage with a Lorraine" would never be recognised, -and that the young Prince would buy his -pardon by marrying the niece of the Cardinal. -Mademoiselle heard the rumours and her heart -swelled with anguish at the thought of her father's -dishonour.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I was not so busy with my play that I did not listen attentively -when they spoke of the "accommodating ways" of -Monsieur! The Cardinal de Richelieu, who was first minister<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[64]</a></span> -and master of affairs, had made up his mind that it should be -so,—that he should marry <em>that one!</em> and he had expressed his -wishes with such shameful suggestions that I could not hear -them mentioned without despair. To make peace with the -King, Monsieur must break his marriage with Princesse Marguerite -d'Orléans, and marry Mlle. de Combalet, niece of the -Cardinal, now Madame d'Aguillon! From the time I first -heard of the project I could not keep from weeping when -it was spoken of; and, in my wrath, to avenge myself, I sang -all the songs against the Cardinal and his niece that I knew. -Monsieur did not let himself be "arranged" to suit the Cardinal. -He came back to France without the assistance of the -ridiculous condition. But how it was done I do not know. I -cannot say anything about it, because I had no knowledge of it.</p></blockquote> - -<p>If it is true that Mademoiselle did not know -the details of the quarrels in which the House of -France engaged during her childhood, she was -not inquisitive. Her knowledge in that respect -had been at the mercy of her own inclination. By -the thoughtful care of Richelieu, all the correspondence -and all the official reports exposing the -Court miseries were placed where all might read -who ran. Richelieu had divined the power of the -press over public opinion, although in that day -there was no press in France. There were no -journals to defend the Government. The <cite>Mercure -Française</cite><a name="FNanchor_22_22" id="FNanchor_22_22"></a><a href="#Footnote_22_22" class="fnanchor">[22]</a> was not a journal; it appeared once a -year, and contained only a brief narration of "the -most remarkable things that had come to pass" in -the "four parts of the world." Renaudot's <cite>Gazette</cite><a name="FNanchor_23_23" id="FNanchor_23_23"></a><a href="#Footnote_23_23" class="fnanchor">[23]</a> -was hardly a journal, though it appeared every<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[65]</a></span> -eight days, and numbered Louis XIII. among its -contributors. Louis furnished its military news. -Richelieu and "Father Joseph" furnished its politics. -Neither Renaudot nor his protectors had any -idea of what we call a "premier Paris" or an -"article de fond"; they had never seen such -things and they would not have been capable of -compassing such inventions. The <cite>Gazette</cite> was not -a sheet of official information; it did not contain -matter enough for one page of the <cite>Journal des -Débats</cite>. But the necessity of saying something -to France was a crying one. It had become absolutely -necessary to put modern royalty in communication -with the nation, and to explain to the -people at large the real meaning of the policy of -the Prime Minister. The people must be taught -why wars, alliances, and scaffolds were necessary. -Something must be done to defend France against -the attacks of Marie de Médicis and the cowardly -Gaston. At that time placards and pamphlets rendered -the services now demanded of the journals. -By means of the placards the King could speak directly -to the people and take them to witness that -he was in difficulty, and that he was trying to do -his best. In his public letters he confided to them -his family chagrins, and the motives of his conduct -toward the foreign powers. His correspondence -with his mother and his brothers was printed as -fast as it was written or received by him. Apologies -for his conduct were supported by a choice of -documents. From time to time the pamphlets were<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[66]</a></span> -collected and put in volumes—the volumes which -were the ancestors of our "yellow books."</p> - -<p>I have before me one of these volumes, dated -1639, without name of editor or publisher. It -bears the title: <cite>Recueil de divers pièces pour servir -a l'histoire</cite>. Two thirds of its space are consecrated -to the King's quarrels with his family. Mademoiselle -must have learned from it many things -which she has not the air of suspecting. Perhaps -she found it convenient or agreeable to be ignorant -of them. In the pages of this instructive volume -none of her immediate relations appear to any advantage. -Louis XIII. is invariably dry and bombastic, -or constrained and affected; he shows no -trace of emotion when, in his letter of 23 February, -1631, he informs the people that</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>being placed in the extremity of choosing between our mother -and our minister we did not even hesitate, because they have -embittered the Queen our very honoured lady and mother -against our very dear and very beloved cousin, Cardinal de -Richelieu; there being no entreaty, no prayer or supplication, -nor any consideration, public or private, that we have -not put forward to soften her spirit; our said cousin recognising -what he owes her, by reason of all sorts of considerations, -having done all that he could do for her satisfaction; -the reverence that he bears her having carried him to the -point of urging us and supplicating us, divers times, to find it -good that he should retire from the management of our affairs; -a request which the utility of his past services and the interests -of our authority have not permitted us to think of -granting.... And recognising the fact that none of the -authors of these differences continue to maintain their disposition -to diverge from our royal justice, we have not found a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[67]</a></span> -way to avoid removing certain persons from our Court, nor -even to avoid separating ourselves, though with unutterable -pain, from the Queen, our very honoured lady and mother, -during such time as may be required for the softening of her -heart....</p></blockquote> - -<p>Another letter, from the King to his mother, is -revolting in its harshness. After her departure -from France, Marie de Médicis addressed to him -some very tart pages in which she accused Richelieu -of having had designs on her life. In the same -letter she represented herself as flying from her -son's soldiers:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I will leave you to imagine my affliction when I saw -myself in flight, pursued by the cavalry with which they had -threatened me! so that I would be frightened and run the -faster out of your kingdom; by that means constraining me to -press on thirty leagues without either eating or drinking, to -the end that I might escape from their hands. (Avesnes, 28 -July, 1631.)</p></blockquote> - -<p>Instead of feeling pity for the plaints of the old -woman who realised that she had been conquered, -Louis XIII. replied:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Madame, I am the more annoyed by your resolution to retire -from my state because I know that you have no real reason for -doing so. The imaginary prison, the supposititious persecutions -of which you complain, and the fears that you profess to -have felt at Compiègne during your life there, were as lacking -in foundation as the pursuit that you pretend my cavalry made -when you made your retreat.</p></blockquote> - -<p>After these words, the King delivered a pompous -eulogy on the Cardinal and ended it thus:</p> - -<blockquote> -<p>You will permit me, an it please you, to tell you, Madame,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[68]</a></span> -that the act that you have just committed, and all that has -passed during a period more or less recent, make it impossible -for me to be ignorant of your intentions in the past, and the -action that I have to expect from you in the future. The respect -that I owe to you hinders me from saying any more.</p></blockquote> - -<p>It is true that Marie de Médicis received nothing -that she did not deserve; but it may be possible -that it was not for her son to speak to her with -brutality.</p> - -<p>In their way Gaston's letters are <i>chefs-d'œuvre</i>. -They do honour to the psychological sensibility of -the intelligent <i>névrosé</i>. Monsieur knew both the -strength and the weakness of his brother. He -knew him to be jealous, ulcerated by the consciousness -of his own insignificance—an insignificance -brought into full relief by the importance of the -superior Being then hard at work making "of a -France languishing a France triumphant"<a name="FNanchor_24_24" id="FNanchor_24_24"></a><a href="#Footnote_24_24" class="fnanchor">[24]</a>; and -with marvellous art he found the words best qualified -to irritate secret wounds.</p> - -<p>His letters open with insinuations to the effect -that Richelieu had a personal interest in maintaining -the enmity between "the King and his own -brother," so that the King, "having no one to defend -him," could be held more closely in his, Richelieu's, -grasp.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I beseech ... your Majesty ... to have the -gracious prudence to reflect upon what has passed, and to -examine more seriously the designs of those who have been<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[69]</a></span> -the architects of these plans; if you will graciously examine -into this matter you will see that there are interests at stake -which are not yours,—interests of a nature opposed to your -interests, and which aim at something further, and something -far in advance of anything that you have thought of up to -the present time (March 23, 1631).</p></blockquote> - -<p>In the following letter Monsieur addresses himself -directly to Louis XIII.'s worst sentiments and to -his kingly conscience. He feigns to be deeply -grieved by the deplorable condition of his brother, -who, as he says, is reduced, notwithstanding</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"the very great enlightenment of his mind" to the plight of a -puppet ... nothing but the shadow of a king, a being -deprived of his authority, lacking in power as in will, counted -as nothing in his own kingdom, devoid even of the external -lustre ordinarily attached to the rank of a sovereign.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Monsieur declares that Richelieu has left the King</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"nothing but the name and the figure of a king," <em>and that for -a time only</em>; for as soon as he has ridded <em>himself of you ... -and of me! ... he means to take the helm and steer the -Ship of State in his own name</em>.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Monsieur depicted the new "Mayor of the Palace" -actually reigning in overburdened, crushed, and -oppressed France,</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>whom he has ruined and whose blood he has sucked pitilessly -and without shame. In his own person he has consumed more -than two hundred millions since he took the rule of your -affairs ... and he expends daily, in his own house, ten -times more than you do in yours.... Let me tell you -what I have seen! In your kingdom not one third of your -subjects eat bread made of wheat flour; another third eats<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[70]</a></span> -bread made of oats; and another third not only is reduced to -beggary, but it is languishing in need so crying that some are -actually starving to death; those who are not dying of hunger -are prolonging their lives with acorns, herbs, and like substances, -like the lower animals. And they who are least to be -pitied among these last are living on bran and on blood which -they pick up in the gutters in front of the butchers' shops. I -have seen these things with my own eyes, and in different parts -of the country, since I left Paris.</p></blockquote> - -<p>In this Monsieur told the truth. The peasant -had come to that point of physical degradation. -But his sufferings could not be diminished by provoking -a civil war, and Richelieu did not fail to -make the fact plain in the polemics of the <i>Recueil</i>, -written under his supervision—when it was not -written in his own hand. He (Richelieu) defended -his policy tooth and nail, he justified his millions, -his accumulated official honours.</p> - -<p>One of Monsieur's letters bears copious notes -made throughout its length and breadth in the -Cardinal's own hand. Without any of the scruples -of false shame, he inspired long factums to the glory -of the Prime Minister of France.</p> - -<p>In the pages inspired by him there are passages -of peculiar inhumanity. In one place, justifying the -King for the treatment inflicted upon his mother, -he says that "the pain of the nine months that she -carried him would have been sold by her at too -high a price, had the King, because of it, been -forced to let her set fire to his kingdom."<a name="FNanchor_25_25" id="FNanchor_25_25"></a><a href="#Footnote_25_25" class="fnanchor">[25]</a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[71]</a></span></p> - -<p>Other passages are equally heartless: "Do they -blame the Prime Minister for his riches?—and if the -King had seen fit to give him more? The King is -free to give or to take away. Can he not act his -pleasure; who has the right to say him nay?"</p> - -<p>The <i>Recueil</i> shows passages teeming with cynical -and pampered pride. In favour of himself -Richelieu wrote:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The production of these great geniuses is not an ordinary -bissextile work. Sometimes the revolution of four of -Nature's centuries are required for the formation of a mind -of such phenomenal proportions, in which are united all the -excellencies, any one of which would be enough to set far -above the ordinary character of man the being endowed with -them. I speak not only of the virtues that are in some sort -the essence of the profession made by their united representative -types,—Pity, Wisdom, Prudence, Moderation, Eloquence, -Erudition, and like attributes,—I speak of other virtues, the -characteristic qualities of another and separate order, like -those composing the perfections of a chief of war ... etc.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Among the official documents in the volume just -quoted are instruments whose publication would -have put any man but Gaston d'Orléans under -ground for the rest of his days, among other -things, his treaty of peace (1632), signed at -Béziers (20th September) after the battle of -Castelnaudary, where the Duc de Montmorency -had been beaten and taken before his eyes. In -that treaty Monsieur had pledged himself to -abandon his friends,—not to take any interest in -those who had been allied with him "on these -occasions," and "not to pretend that he had any<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[72]</a></span> -cause for complaint when the King made them -submit to what they deserved." He promised "to -love, especially, his cousin Richelieu." In recompense -for this promise and the other articles of -the treaty the King re-established his brother "in -all his rights." As we know, the treaty of Béziers -ended nothing. Gaston saw all his partisans beheaded -as he recrossed the frontier. He did not -enter France to remain there until October, 1634. -Then he went home "on the faith" <em>of the King's -declaration</em>, which closes the volume. By this -declaration Monsieur was again re-established in -the enjoyment of all his rights, appanages, pensions, -and appointments. For him this was the important -article. As Richelieu took the trouble to -have all his monuments of egotism and barrenness -of heart re-imprinted, it is probable that he did not -intend to let the country forget them. In that -case he attained his ends.</p> - -<p>The public had formed its opinion, and in consequence -it took no further interest in the royal -family, always excepting Anne of Austria, who -had retired among the shadows.</p> - -<p>Marie de Médicis was now free to cry aloud in -her paroxysms of fury. Gaston could henceforth -pose as a martyr, and Louis XIII., withered by -melancholy, dried remnant of his former pompous -dignity, might be blown into a corner or be borne -away by the wind like a dead leaf in autumn, and -not a soul in France would hail it by the quiver of -an eyelash. If Richelieu had hoped that profit<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[73]</a></span> -would accrue to him from the royal unpopularity -he had counted without the great French host. -Despite the fact that his importance and the terror -he inspired had increased tenfold, he also had become -tainted by the insignificance of the royal -family. But to all the people he seemed the ogre -dreaded by Mademoiselle in her infancy, though -indisputedly an unnatural ogre, possessing genius -far beyond the reach of the normal man. He was -universally looked upon as a leader of priceless -value to a country in its hour of crisis, and as a -companion everything but desirable. He appalled -the people. His first interviews with Gaston after -the young Prince's return to France were terrible. -Monsieur was defenceless; the Cardinal was -pitiless.</p> - -<p>"Mademoiselle had run ahead to meet her father. -In her innocence she had rejoiced to find him unchanged." -Richelieu also believed that Monsieur -had not changed, and he was all the more anxious -to get him out to his (Richelieu's) château at -Rueil. He pretended that there was to be a fête at -the château. Monsieur did not leave Rueil until -he had opened his heart to the Cardinal, just as he -had done in regard to the affair Chalais.</p> - -<p>Turned, and re-turned, by his terrible cousin, -the unhappy wretch denounced mother and -friends,—absent or present,—those who had -plotted to overthrow the prime ministry and -those who had (according to Gaston's story) -tried to assassinate the Cardinal on such a day<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[74]</a></span> -and in such a place. "Not," said Richelieu in -his <i>Mémoires</i>,—"not that Monsieur recounted these -things of his own accord. He did not do that; -but the Cardinal asked him if it was not true that -such a person had said such and such things, and -he confessed, very ingenuously, that it was."</p> - -<p>Truly the fête at Rueil had sinister results for -the friends of Monsieur.</p> - -<p>Monsieur retired to Blois, but he often returned -to Paris, and whenever he returned he fulfilled his -fatherly duties in his own fashion, romping and -chattering with Mademoiselle. He amused himself -by listening to her songs against Richelieu, -and for her pleasure he organised a <i>corps-de-ballet</i> -of children. All the people of the Court flocked -to the palace to witness the ballet.</p> - -<p>On the occasion of another ballet danced at the -Louvre he displayed himself to Mademoiselle in -all his glory (18th February, 1635). The King, the -Queen, and the principal courtiers of their suite -were among the dancers.</p> - -<p>This last solemnity left mingled memories, both -good and bad, in Mademoiselle's mind. One of -her father's most faithful companions in exile was -to have danced in the ballet. During a rehearsal, -Richelieu had him arrested and conducted to the -Wood of Vincennes, "where he died very suddenly."<a name="FNanchor_26_26" id="FNanchor_26_26"></a><a href="#Footnote_26_26" class="fnanchor">[26]</a> -The rôle in which he should have acted -was danced by one of the other courtiers, and -therefore Gaston did not appear to be affected.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[75]</a></span></p> - -<p>The <cite>Gazette</cite> informed the public that the fête had -"succeeded admirably"; that every one had carried -away from the place so teeming with marvels the -same idea that Jacob had entertained when, having -looked upon the angels all the night, he believed -that the earth touched the confines of heaven! -But, at least, there was one person for whom the -sudden disappearance of Puylaurens had spoiled -everything. Mademoiselle had "liked him and -wished him well." He had won her heart by -giving her bonbons, and she felt that the ugly -history reflected upon her father. "I leave it," -she said, "to people better instructed and more -enlightened than I am to speak of what Monsieur -did afterward to Puylaurens' prison."</p> - -<p>The following year she had to swallow an insult -on her own account. The lines which appeared in -one of the gazettes of July, 1636, must have -seemed insupportable to a child full of unchecked -pride.</p> - -<p>"The 17th, Mademoiselle, aged nine years and -three months, was baptised in the Louvre, in the -Queen's chamber, by the Bishop of Auxerre, First -Almoner to the King, having for godmother and -godfather the Queen and the Cardinal Duke -(<cite>Richelieu</cite>), and was named Anne Marie."</p> - -<p>Mention of this little event is made in Retz's -<cite>Mémoires</cite>. "M. le Cardinal was to hold at the font -Mademoiselle, who, as you may judge, had been -baptised long before; but the ceremonies of the -baptism had been deferred."</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[76]</a></span></p> - -<p>This godfather, who was not a prince, was a -humiliation to Mademoiselle, and to crown her -distress he thought that he ought to make himself -agreeable to his god-daughter.</p> - -<p>By his intention to be amiable he "made her -beside herself" because he treated her—at nine -years!—as if she had been a little girl. "Every -time that he saw me he told me that that spiritual -alliance obliged him to take care of me, and that -he would arrange a marriage for me (a discourse -that he addressed to me, talking just as they do to -children to whom they incessantly repeat the same -thing)."</p> - -<p>A journey through France, which she made in -1637, "put balm on the wounds of her pride." -They chanted the <cite>Te Deum</cite>, the Army Corps -saluted her, a city was illuminated, and the nobility -offered her fêtes. She "swam in joy"; for thus she -had always thought that the appearance of a person -of her quality should be hailed. She ended -her tour in Blois where Monsieur, the ever good -father, desired that he, in person, should be the one -to initiate his child in the morality of princes, -which virtue in those aristocratic times had nothing -in common with the bourgeois's morality. For the -moment he was possessed of an insignificant mistress, -a young girl of Tours called "Louison." -Monsieur took his daughter to Tours so that he -might present his mistress to her. Mademoiselle -declared herself satisfied with her father's choice. -She thought that Louison had "a very agreeable<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[77]</a></span> -face, and a great deal of wit for a girl of that -quality who had never been to Court." But -Mme. de Saint Georges saw the new relations -with an anxious eye; she submitted her scruples -to Monsieur:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Madame de Saint Georges ... asked him if the girl was good, -because, otherwise, though she had been honoured by his good -graces, she should be glad if she would not come to my -house. Monsieur gave her every assurance and told her that -he would not have wished for the girl himself without that -condition. In those days I had such a horror of vice that I -said to her: "Maman (I called her thus), if Louison is not -virtuous, even though my Papa loves her I will not see her -at all; or if he wishes me to see her I will not receive her -well." She answered that she was really a very good girl, and -I was very glad of it, for she pleased me much—so I saw her -often.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Mademoiselle did not suspect that there was anything -comical in this passage; had she done so she -would not have written it, because she was not one -of those who admit that it is sometimes permissible -to smile at the great.</p> - -<p>On her return from her journey she resumed her -ordinary life.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I passed the winter in Paris as I had passed my other -winters. Twice a week I went to the assemblies given by -Mme. the Countess de Soissons at the Hôtel de Brissac. At -these assemblies the usual diversions were comedies [plays] -and dancing. I was very fond of dancing and, for love of me, -they danced there very often....</p></blockquote> - -<p>There were also assemblies with comedies at -the Queen's, at Richelieu's, and at a number of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[78]</a></span> -personages', and Mademoiselle herself received at -the Tuileries.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The night of the 23d-24th January (1636) [reports the -<cite>Gazette</cite>] Mademoiselle in her lodgings at the Tuileries, gave a -comedy and a ball to the Queen, where the Good Grace of this -princess in the dawn of her life, gave proof of what her noontide -is to be. The 24th February, Monsieur gave a comedy -and a collation to His Royal Highness of Parma at Mademoiselle -his daughter's, in her apartments at the Tuileries.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Mademoiselle passed the days and the nights in -fêtes. Her studies did not suffer by it because she -never studied and never knew anything of study -outside of reading and writing, making a courtesy, -and carefully observing the rules of a minute -etiquette.</p> - -<p>It is probable that she owed the little that she -knew to several months of forced retreat in a convent, -when she was nine years old. She made -herself so intolerable to every one,—it is she -who tells it,—she was so vexatious, with her -"grimaces" and her "mockeries," that they put her -in a cloister to try to discipline her and to correct -her faults; the plan succeeded: "They saw me return ... -wiser, and better than I had been." -Yes, more sober, better behaved, and a little less -ignorant, but not much less. The following letter, -bearing the date of her maturity, shows more clearly -than all the descriptions in the world, the degree of instructions -which satisfied the seventeenth century's -ideas of the education of a princess. The letter is -addressed to Colbert ("a Choisy ce 5 Août 1665"):</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[79]</a></span></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Monsieur, le sieur Segrais qui est de la cademy et qui a bocoup -travalie pour la gloire du Roy et pour le public, aiant este -oublie lannee passée dans les gratifications que le Roy a faicts -aux baus essprit ma prie de vous faire souvenir de luy set un -aussi homme de mérite et qui est a moi il ya long tams jespere -que cela ne nuira pas a vous obliger a avoir de la consideration -pour luy set se que je vous demande et de une croire, -monsieur Colbert, etc.</p></blockquote> - -<p>This orthography did not hinder Mademoiselle -when, under the name of "Princess Cassandane" -she figured in the <cite>Grand Dictionnaire des Précieuses</cite>; -and according to the distinctions established -between the "true <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">précieuse</i>" and the -"<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Savante</i>" by Mademoiselle de Scudéry, she had a -right to figure there, as had many of her noble contemporaries, -who would have been the shame of -the humblest of the schools.</p> - -<p>The "true <i>précieuse</i>," she who left comets and -the Greek language to the "<i>Savantes</i>," applied herself -to the task of penetrating the mysteries of -the heart. That was her science, and from certain -points of view it was worth as much as any -other.</p> - -<p>La Grande Mademoiselle devoted her talents -and her life to the perfection of her particular art. -Keeping well within the limits that she herself had -set, she made a special study of the hearts of princesses -and of everything concerning them; and she -professed that she had established, definitely, the -only proper methods by which persons of her quality -should, bound in duty to themselves, look upon -love, and upon glory.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[80]</a></span></p> - -<p>The wells from which she drew her spiritual -draughts were not exclusively her own; she shared -their benefits with all honest people, of either sex, -engaged in completing the sentimental education -by the essential principle of life.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[81]</a></span></p> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_II" id="CHAPTER_II"></a>CHAPTER II</h2> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I. Anne of Austria and Richelieu—Birth of Louis XIV.—II. <i>L'Astrée</i> -and its Influence—III. Transformation of the Public Manners—The -Creation of the Salon—The Hôtel de Rambouillet and Men of -Letters.</p></blockquote> - - -<p class="p3">I</p> - -<p><span class="drop-cap">B</span><span class="smcap">ut</span> little information concerning the affairs of -the day previous to the last months of the -reign of Louis XIII. can be gleaned from the -<cite>Mémoires</cite> of La Grande Mademoiselle. It is hardly -credible that a young girl raised at the Court of -France, not at all stupid, and because of her birth -so situated as to see and to hear everything, could -have gone through some of the most thrilling -catastrophes of that tragic time without seeing -or hearing anything. At a later day Mademoiselle -was the first to wonder at it; she furnishes an -example surpassing imagination.</p> - -<p>In 1637, before starting on her journey into -the province, she went to bid adieu to "their -Majesties," who were at Chantilly. Mademoiselle -fell upon a drama. Richelieu had just disgraced -the Queen of France, who had been declared -guilty of abusing her religious retreat at the -Convent of Val-de-Grâce by holding secret correspondence -with Spain. Val-de-Grâce had been<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[82]</a></span> -ransacked, and one of Anne of Austria's servants -had been arrested. Anne herself had been questioned -like a criminal, and she had had a very bitter -<em>tête-à-tête</em> in her chamber with such a Richelieu as -she had never met before.</p> - -<p>It was then ten years since Louis XIII., abruptly -entering his wife's private apartments, had interrupted -a declaration of love made by his Minister. -After Marie de Médicis, Anne of Austria! Evidently -it was a system of policy in which pride of -personal power played its part. Possibly the heart -also played some small rôle when Anne of Austria -was young and beautiful; but it was the heart of a -Richelieu, and unless we know what such a thing is -like it is difficult to explain the Minister's attitude -at Chantilly. Historians have not taken the trouble -to tell us, because there were things more important -to them and to the history of Europe than the -exploits of so high-flying a Cardinal. Nevertheless, -even an historian could have made an interesting -chapter out of the sentimental life of Richelieu. -It was a violent and cruel life; as violent and as -pitiless as the passions that haunted his harrowed -soul. Michelet compared the Duke's life to "a -lodging that had been ransacked." In him love -was a cloak thickly lined with hatred. Mme. de -Motteville, who witnessed Richelieu's courtship -of the Queen, was astonished by his way of -making love. "The first marks of his affection," -she writes, "were his persecutions of her. They -burst out before everybody, and we shall see that<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[83]</a></span> -this new way of loving will last as long as the -Cardinal lives."</p> - -<p>Anne of Austria felt only his persecutions. -Richelieu was not pleasing to women. He was -the earthly All-powerful. He possessed riches and -genius, but they knew that he was cruel—even -pitiless—in anger; and he could not persuade -them to pretend to love him; all, even Marion -de Lorme, mocked and laughed at him, and Retz -gave a reason for their conduct:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Not being a pedant in anything else, he was a thorough -pedant in gallantry, and this is the fault that women never -pardon. The Queen detested Richelieu, and she made him -feel it; but he took his revenge at Val-de-Grâce. After the -outburst—after the word <em>treason</em> had been spoken—it rested -with him to have mercy, or to send into shameless banishment -the barren Queen. It gave him pleasure to see her cowering -before him, frightened and deprived of all her pride. He -exulted in disdaining her with an exaggerated and insulting -affectation of respect, and fearing lest the scene should not -be known to posterity, he painted it with all the zest of the -reaction of his wounded dignity.<a name="FNanchor_27_27" id="FNanchor_27_27"></a><a href="#Footnote_27_27" class="fnanchor">[27]</a> He listened complacently -while she drove the nails into her coffin, rendering more -proofs of her docility "than he should have dared to expect"; -incriminating herself, as she explained in her own -way, by palpable untruths, all her treasonable letters to her -brothers and to her friends in Spain. When she had told a -great deal more than she knew, Richelieu put a few sharp -questions, and the Queen completely lost her head.</p> - -<p>Then [wrote Richelieu, in his chronicle] she confessed -to the Cardinal everything which is in the paper signed by<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[84]</a></span> -her afterwards. She confessed with much displeasure and -confusion, because she had taken oaths contrary to what she -was confessing. While she made the said confession to the -Cardinal her shame was such that she cried out several times, -"Oh, how kind you must be, Monsieur the Cardinal!" protesting -that all her life she should be grateful and recognise -the obligation she was under to those who drew her out -of the affair. She had the honour to say to the Cardinal: -"Give me your hand," presenting her own as a mark of the -fidelity with which she should keep all her promises. Through -respect the Cardinal refused to give her his hand. From the -same motive he retired instead of approaching her.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Officially Louis XIII. pardoned the intrigue of -Val-de-Grâce, but the courtiers were not deceived, -and they immediately deserted the Queen's apartment. -When they passed her windows they -modestly lowered their eyes. It was just at that -time that Mademoiselle arrived. It was at the -end of August. She read her welcome in every -face. Now that she had come gayety became a -duty and amusements an obligation. The feeling -of relief was general. Mademoiselle wrote:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I put all the Court in good humour. The King was in -great grief because of the suspicions they had awakened -against the Queen, and not long before that they had found -the strong box that had made all the trouble at Val-de-Grâce, -about which too much has been said already. I found -the Queen in bed, sick. Any one would be sick after such an -affront as she had received.</p></blockquote> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_084.jpg" alt="" title="CARDINAL RICHELIEU" /> -<div class="caption"><p>CARDINAL RICHELIEU</p></div> -</div> - -<p>Of all at Court, Anne of Austria was not the -least happy to see Mademoiselle. Now she could -pour out her sorrow. Mme. de Saint Georges, -Mademoiselle's governess, was one of her familiar<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[85]</a></span> -friends. The Queen told her everything. Mademoiselle -was permitted to sit with the two ladies -to avert suspicion. So the child found herself in -possession of secrets whose importance and danger -must have been known to her. It may be that she -would have liked nothing better than to recount -them in her memoirs, but she was "forced to admit -with sheepish reticence that to her grief she had -never remembered anything of it."</p> - -<p>Some months later she was entangled in the -King's romance with Mlle. de Hautefort, and "did -not notice anything"—and this is to her credit—of -all the struggles made by the Cabals to turn the -adventure to their profit. In spite of her lack of -memory she had opened wide both eyes and ears. -The schemes of lovers always interested her, as -they interest all little girls. To this instinct of her -sex we owe a very pretty picture of the transformation -of man by love. And the man was no -other than the annoying and annoyed Louis XIII. -Mademoiselle gives us the picture in default of -more serious proof of her observation. Hunting -was the King's chief pleasure.</p> - -<p>In 1638, during the luminous springtime, he -was seen in the forests gay, at times actually -happy—thanks to two great blue eyes. When he -followed his dogs he took his niece and other -young people with him that he might have an excuse -for taking Mlle. de Hautefort.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>We were all dressed in colours [recounts Mademoiselle]. -We were on fine, ambling horses, richly caparisoned, and to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[86]</a></span> -guarantee us against the sun each of us had a hat trimmed -with a quantity of plumes. They always turned the hunt so -that it should pass fine and handsome houses where grand -collations could be found, and, coming home, the King placed -himself in my coach, between Mme. de Hautefort and me. -When he was in good humour he conversed very agreeably to -us of everything. At that time he suffered us to speak freely -enough of the Cardinal de Richelieu, and the proof that it -did not displease him was that he spoke thus himself.</p> - -<p>Immediately after the hunting party returned they went to -the Queen. I took pleasure in serving at her supper, and her -maids carried the dishes (viands). There was a regular programme. -Three times a week we had music, they of the -King's chamber sang, and the most of the airs sung by them -were composed by the King. He wrote the words, even; and -the subject was never anything but Mme. de Hautefort. The -King was in humour so gallant that at the collations that he gave -us in the country he did not sit at table at all; and he served -us nearly everything himself, though his civility had only one -object. He ate after us, and did not seem to feel more complaisance -for Mme. de Hautefort than for the others, so afraid -was he that some one should perceive his gallantry.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Despite these precautions, the Court and the city, -Paris, and the province were informed of the least -incidents of an affair of such importance. The -only person whom the King's passion left indifferent -was the Queen. Anne of Austria had never -been jealous. She did not consider Louis XIII. -worth the pains of jealousy,—and now jealousy -would have been out of place. Anne, after twenty-three -years of marriage, was <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">enceinte</i>. The people -who had loaded her with outrages while she was -bowed by shame now knelt at her feet, sincere<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[87]</a></span> -in their respectful demonstrations of devotion for -the wife of the King who might one day become -Queen-mother, or even Regent of France. It was -like one of the fairy plays in a theatre. Nature -had waved her wand, and the disgraced victim of -enchantment had arisen "clothed on with majesty." -It was an edifying and delightful transformation. -After all her shame, the novelty of being cared for -and treated gently was so great and so agreeable -that when she saw her royal spouse sighing before -the virtuous and malignant de Hautefort—"whose -chains" were said to be heavy and hard to -bear—she looked upon it very lightly. Anne of -Austria smiled at the benumbed attitudes of the -King, at his awkward ardour, and equally awkward -prudery. The Queen learned with amusement -that when among her companions, the young girls -of the Court, Mlle. de Hautefort mocked the -King, and boasted that he "dared not approach -her, though he maintained her," and that she was -"bored to death by his talk of dogs, and birds, and -the hunt." Friends repeated these criticisms. -Louis XIII. heard of them and took offence "at -the ingrate," and the Court went into mourning. -"If there should be some serious quarrel between -them," wrote Mademoiselle, "all the comedies and -the entertainments will be over. At that time, when -the King came to the Queen's apartments, he did -not speak to anybody, and nobody dared to speak -to him. He sat in a corner, and very often he -yawned and went to sleep. It was a species of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[88]</a></span> -melancholy which chilled the whole world, and -during this grief he passed the most of the time -writing what he had said to Mme. de Hautefort, -and what she had answered. It is so true that -after he died they found great bundles of papers -recounting all his differences with his mistresses—to -the praise of whom it must be said, and to his -praise also, that he had never loved any women -who were not very virtuous."</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle never seemed to realise the political -importance of the King's favourites. That -subject, like all else serious, escaped her. She -writes:</p> - -<p>"I listened to all that they told me—all that I -was old enough to hear."</p> - -<p>We need not hope to learn from her what -Richelieu thought of the King's chaste affection; -why, though he had encouraged it, he was angered -by it; why he looked with disfavour upon Mlle. -de Lafayette, and manipulated her affairs so well -that he introduced her into the cell of a convent, -and ordered the King to take medicine whenever -he suspected that Louis aspired to contemplate -her through the grating of her prison; if Mademoiselle -had ever known such things "they had -never presented themselves to her memory." -Nor will it do us any good to search her memoirs -for reasons making it clear why Louis XIII., who -worked incessantly against Richelieu, and "did -not love him," sacrificed, for the Cardinal's pleasure, -all his friends and near relations. Throughout all<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[89]</a></span> -the reverses of 1635 and 1636, when France was -trembling under the trampling feet of the invader, -when the enemy's skirmishers lay at the gates of -Pontoise, the King was faithful to the dictator, -whose policy had drawn ruin on the nation. -Mademoiselle had never known these things. They -had been far below her horizons. The ungrateful -years had buffeted her as they passed. She had -been pretty and sprightly in early childhood. At -the age of eleven she was a buxom girl, with -swollen cheeks, thick lips, and a stupid mien,—in -a word: a frankly ill-favoured creature, too absorbed -in the preoccupations of animal life (the need to -skip and jump, to be seen and heard) to listen, to -observe, or to reflect. The Queen's condition -gave her one more occasion to manifest the lengths -to which she had carried her innocence, though -she had lived in a world where innocence was not -regarded as the most important item in an outfit. -She rejoiced that there was to be a Dauphin. -Evidently she did not know that his advent would -strip her father of his rights as heir-presumptive -to the throne. In her own words, she "rejoiced -without the least reflection." Anne of Austria was -touched by a simpleness of heart to which her life -had not accustomed her. "You shall be my -daughter-in-law!" she cried repeatedly to her -young niece. For she could not bear the thought -that the child's later reflections might awake -regret.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle embraced the idea only too<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[90]</a></span> -ardently, and to it she owed one of the bitterest -hours of her existence.</p> - -<p>The child who was to be Louis XIV. was born at -the Château of Saint Germain, 5th September, 1638. -Mademoiselle made him her toy. She writes: -"The birth of Monsieur the Dauphin gave me a -new occupation. I went to see him every day and -I called him <i>my little husband</i>. The King was -diverted by this and he thought that I did well." -She had counted without her godfather the Cardinal, -who was more of a Croquemitaine, and more -of a spoil-sport than he had ever been. He considered -her childish talk very indecorous. Mademoiselle -pursues:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Cardinal de Richelieu, who does not like me to accustom -myself to being there, nor to have them accustomed to seeing -me there, had me given orders to return to Paris. The Queen -and Mme. de Hautefort did all that was possible to keep me. -They could not obtain their wish,—which I regretted. It was -all tears and cries when I left there. Their Majesties gave -many proofs of friendship, especially the Queen, who made -me aware of a particular tenderness on that occasion. After -this displeasure I had still another to endure. They made me -pass through Rueil to see the Cardinal, who usually lived -there when the King was at Saint Germain. He took it so to -heart that I had called the little Dauphin <i>my little husband</i> -that he gave me a great reprimand: he said that I was too -large to use such terms; that I had been ill-behaved to -do so. He spoke so seriously—just as if I had been a -person of judgment—that, without answering him, I began to -weep. To pacify me he gave me collation, but I did not -pass it over. I came away from there very angry at all he -had said to me.</p></blockquote> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[91]</a></span></p> - -<p>Richelieu meant that his orders should be obeyed. -Mademoiselle adds: "When I was in Paris I only -went to Court once in two months; and when I -did go there I only dined with the Queen and -then returned to Paris to sleep." It must be said -that if the Cardinal had submitted to it for a -night or two, she might have found it difficult to -sleep at the château. At that time our kings had -strange and very inconvenient arrangements for -receiving guests; their household appointments -had brought them to such a pass that they had -suppressed their guest-chamber. When the royal -family went to Saint Germain there was a regular -house-moving; they carried all their furniture with -them, and nothing was left in the Louvre,—not -even enough for the King to sleep on when business -called him to the capital. Henry IV., a -monarch who did not stand on ceremony, invited -himself to the house of some lord or of some rich -bourgeois, where he put himself at his ease, receiving -the Parliament, and also his fair friends, and -bidding adieu to his hosts only when he was ready -to go home. He took leave of them in his own -time and at his own hour.</p> - -<p>The timid Louis XIII. had never dared to -do such things; he had never thought of having -two beds: one in the city, the other in the -country.</p> - -<p>When the Court came back to Paris they -brought all their furniture; not a mattress was left -in the palace at Saint Germain. This singular<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[92]</a></span> -custom had evolved another, which appears to us -to have lacked hospitality. When the King of -France invited distinguished guests, he never furnished -their rooms. He offered them the four -walls, and let them arrange themselves as best they -could. From as far back as people could remember, -they had seen the great arrive at the château -closely followed by their beds, their curtains, and -even their cooks and their stew-pans. This was -the case with Monsieur and his daughter; and so -it was with Mazarin, in the following reign. Mademoiselle -was not ignorant of the peculiar methods -of the royal housekeeping. She knew that the -King's friends could not be made comfortable for -the night, on the spur of the moment, and she -rested very well in Versailles, and thought of -nothing but her amusements.</p> - -<p>The people saw a gratuitous malevolence in her -exile from Court; but the Fronde proved the justice -of the Cardinal's action. La Grande Mademoiselle -made civil war to constrain Mazarin to marry -her to Louis XIV., who was eleven years her -junior. Her godfather had guessed well: the -idea of being Queen had germinated rapidly in -the little head in which the influence of <i>Astrée</i>—still -active despite its age—was busily forming -romantic visions far in advance of its generation. -D'Urfé died in 1620; to his glory be it said that -we are obliged to go back to him and to his -work when we would explain the moral state of -the later days.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[93]</a></span></p> - - -<p>II</p> - -<p>Few books in any country or in any time have -equalled the fortune of <i>Astrée</i>,<a name="FNanchor_28_28" id="FNanchor_28_28"></a><a href="#Footnote_28_28" class="fnanchor">[28]</a> a pastoral romance -in ten volumes, in which the different effects of -honest friendship are deduced from the lives of -shepherds and others, under a long title in the -style of the century. Honoré d'Urfé's work immediately -became the "code of polite society" and -of all who aspired to appear polite. Everything -was <i>à l'Astrée</i>—fashions, sentiments, language, the -games of society, and the conversation of love. -The infatuation extended to classes of society who -read but little. In a comedy familiar to the lesser -bourgeoisie,<a name="FNanchor_29_29" id="FNanchor_29_29"></a><a href="#Footnote_29_29" class="fnanchor">[29]</a> some one reproached marriageable -girls for permitting themselves to be captured by -the insipid flattery of the first coxcomb who addresses -them thus:</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">—Bien poli, bien frisé</div> - <div class="i0">Pourvu qu' il sache un mot des livres d'<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Success had crossed the frontiers of France. People -in foreign lands found material for their instruction -in <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>. The work was a novel with a key; a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[94]</a></span> -story with a meaning. "Celadon" was the author; -"Astrée" was his wife (the beautiful Diane de Chateaumorand, -with whom he had not been happy). -The Court of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">le grand Enric</i> was the Court of Henry -IV. "Galatée" was the Queen (Marguerite) and -so on. "All the stories in <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> were founded on -truth," wrote Patru, who had gathered his information -from the lips of d'Urfé. But "the author has -romanced everything—if I dare use the word." -The charm found in the scandalous reality of the -scenes and in the truth of the characters crowned -the work's success; the book was translated in -most languages, and devoured with the same avidity -by all countries. In Germany there was an -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Académie des Vrais Amants</i> copied from the -"Academy" of Lignon. In Poland, in the last half -of the century, John Sobieski, who was not by any -means one of the be-musked knights of the carpet, -played at Astrée and Celadon, with Marie d'Arquien. -"To grass with the matrimonial love which -turns to friendship at the end of three months! -... Celadon am I, now as in the past; the ardent -lover of those first glad days!"<a name="FNanchor_30_30" id="FNanchor_30_30"></a><a href="#Footnote_30_30" class="fnanchor">[30]</a> he wrote after -marriage.</p> - -<p>When the people's infatuation had passed, the -book still remained the standard of all delicate -minds, and it continued to wield its literary influence.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Through two centuries [said Montégut] <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> lost nothing -of its renown. The most diverse and the most opposite<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[95]</a></span> -minds alike loved the book; Pellisson and Huet the Bishop -of Avranches were enthusiastic admirers of its qualities. La -Fontaine and Mme. de Sévigné delighted in it. Racine, in his -own silent and discreet way, read it with fond pleasure and -profit, but did not say so.</p> - -<p>Marivaux had read it and drawn even more benefit from it -than Racine.... Last of all, Jean Jacques Rousseau -admired it so much that he avowed that he had re-read it -once a year the greater part of his life. Now as Jean Jacques -exerted a dominant influence upon the destinies of our modern -imaginative literature, it follows that the success of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> has -been indirectly prolonged even to our own day. Madame -George Sand, for example, derived some little benefit from -d'Urfé, though she was not too well aware of it.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Montégut had forgotten the Abbé Prévost; but -M. Brunetière repairs the omission, and adds: "One -may say that <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée's</i> success shaped the channel -for the chief current of our modern literature."</p> - -<p>Its social influence was equal to its influence -upon literature. And yet, to-day, not one of all -the books that had their time of glory and of popularity -is more neglected. No one reads <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> -now, and no one can read it; with the best will in -the world, the most indulgent must throw the book -down, bored by its dulness. It has become impossible -to endure the five thousand pages of the -amorous dissertations of the shepherds of Lignon. -At the best such a debauch of subtlety would be -only tolerable, even had it emanated from a writer -of genius. And d'Urfé had no genius; he had -nothing but talent.</p> - -<p>D'Urfé was a little gentleman of Forez, whom his<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[96]</a></span> -epoch (he was born in 1568) had permitted to examine -the society of the Valois. We know that no -social body was ever more corrupt; nevertheless -those who saw it were dazzled by it; and because -they had looked upon it they were considered—in -the time of Louis XIII.—exquisitely elegant -and polite; they were regarded as the survivors of -a superior civilisation.</p> - -<p>The ladies of the Court of Anne of Austria were -proud of their power to attract the notice of the -elderly noblemen "thanks to whom," in the words -of a contemporary writer, "remnants of the polite -manners brought by Catherine de Médicis from -Italy were still seen in France." The homage of -the antique gentlemen was insistent, of a kind which -refuses to be repelled. Even the Queen accepted it. -Anne of Austria, whose habitually correct attitude -was notable, felt that she was constrained to receive -the attentions of the old Duc de Bellegarde, -though the Duke's character and customs were -notorious. Duc de Bellegarde had been one of -the deplorable favourites of Henri III.</p> - -<p>Anne of Austria was hypercritical in regard to -forms of conversation; her own language was fastidiously -delicate; she exacted minute attention to -the superficial details of civility; yet the notorious de -Bellegarde sat at ease before the Court, displaying -all the peculiar gallantry of his epoch, "and," said -the Queen's friend, Mme. de Motteville, "it was the -more noticeable and the fame of it was the more -scandalous because the Queen did not hesitate to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[97]</a></span> -accept from him incense whose smoke might well -blacken her reputation. The Queen permitted the -Duke to treat her as he had treated the women of -his own day, a day when gallantry and women -reigned."</p> - -<p>The civil wars swept away the splendid but rotten -world, but the prestige of the Valois still asserted -its power.</p> - -<p>In 1646, a posthumous romantic tale appeared -in Paris, entitled <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Orasie</i>. It was generally attributed -to the pen of Mlle. de Senterre, a maid-of-honour -of the Court of Catherine de Médicis. "This -book," said the editorial preface, "is a true history, -full of very choice events; there is nothing fictitious -in it but the names given to its heroes and its -heroines. <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Orasie</i> is a mirror reflecting the most -magnificent and the most pompous of kingly -Courts, the Court where reigned the truest civility -and the purest politeness, where false gallantry, like -base action, was unknown."</p> - -<p>The Court thus eulogised had been the centre of -delicate mannerism and the incubating cell of the -refinement of vice. Though the civil wars had -annihilated the splendid rottenness of the Court, the -memory of the delicacy of the Valois survived. -When peace was declared, when men had leisure to -look about them, they were confronted by the rude -Court of Henry IV. They felt the need of a -re-establishment of polite society, but where could -they find the elements of such society? Foreign -influences had enervated the national imagination,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[98]</a></span> -Spanish literature with its romances of cruel chivalry, -its pastorals, and its theatrical dramas had -imbued the Romanticism of France with its poison, -and symptoms of moral debility were generally -evident. A period of fermentation and expectancy -follows war. When the civil wars were over, the -men of France sat waiting; their need was pressing, -but they could form no idea of its nature. At such -a time the eager watchmen on the towers acclaim the -bearer of tidings, be they tidings of good or of evil.</p> - -<p>Honoré d'Urfé's chief merit lay in the fact that -he was the man of the hour, he came when he was -most needed, holding the mirror up to nature, and -clearly reflecting the common feeling. If I may -use the term, he presented his countrymen with -an intelligent mirror reflecting their confused and -agitated aspirations. Nature and occasion had fitted -him for his work: he had all the accessories and all -the requirements of his art; best of all, he had the -imperious vocation which is the first and the essential -qualification of authorship, without which no -man should have the hardihood to lay hold upon -an inkstand. D'Urfé knew that war demoralises -a people; he comprehended the situation of his -country; he had been a member of the League, and -one of the last to surrender. He knew that the -spirit of love was hovering over France, waiting to -find a resting-place. François de Sales and d'Urfé -were friends, and in such close communion of -thought that, to quote the words of Montégut, -"there was not a simple analogy, there was almost<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[99]</a></span> -an identity of inspiration and of talent between -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> and the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Introduction à la vie dévote</i>."</p> - -<p>D'Urfé had only to remember the æstheticism -which surrounded his expanding youth to comprehend -the general weariness caused by the lack of -intellectual symmetry and by the rusticity of the -manners of the new reign. He was a serious and -thoughtful man; he had devoted long months, even -years, to meditation and to study before he had -touched his pen, and by repeated revisions he had -ranged in his book the greater part of the thoughts -and the aspirations of his epoch. In a word, the -obscure provincial writer who had never entered the -Louvre had composed a quasi-universal work resuming -all the intellectual and sentimental life of an -epoch. <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> was a powerful achievement; but one, -or at most but two, such books can be produced in -a century.<a name="FNanchor_31_31" id="FNanchor_31_31"></a><a href="#Footnote_31_31" class="fnanchor">[31]</a> D'Urfé's laborious efforts attained a -double result. While he extricated and brought -into the light the ideal for which he had searched -years together, he excited his contemporaries to -strive to be natural and real, and the first French -novel, <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>, was our first romance with a thesis. -The subject is commonplace: lovers whose theme -is love, and a lovers' quarrel; in the last volume of -the book, love triumphs, the quarrel is forgotten, -and the lovers marry.</p> - -<p>In the beginning of the work, the shepherdess -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>, beside herself with causeless jealousy, overwhelms -the shepherd Celadon with reproaches and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[100]</a></span> -Celadon, tired of life, throws himself into the Lignon. -Standing upon the bank of the river, he -apostrophises a ring and the riband left in his hand -when his shepherdess escaped his grasp:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"Bear witness, O dear cord! that rather than break one -knot of my affections I will renounce my life, and then, -when I am dead, and my cruel love beholds thee in my hand, -thou shalt speak for me, thou shalt say that no one could be -loved as I loved her.... Nor lover wronged like me!" -Then he appeals to the ring. "And thou, emblem of eternal, -faithful love, be glad to be with me in death, the only -token left me of her love!"</p></blockquote> - -<p>Hardly has he spoken when, turning his face toward -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>, he springs with folded arms into the -water. The nymphs save him, and his romantic -adventures serve as the wire carrying the action -of the romance.</p> - -<p>But the system is inadequate to its strain. Dead -cars bring about a constantly recurring block, and -more than an hundred personages of more or -less importance stop the way by their gallant intrigues. -The romance mirrors the passing loves and -the fevered and passionate life of the be-ribanded -people who hung up their small arms in their panoplies, -twisted their lances into pruning-hooks, and -replaced the pitiless art of war by the political arts -of peace. Honoré d'Urfé's heroes appear to be -more jealously careful of their fine sentiments -than of the sword-thrusts lavishly distributed by -the lords and gentlemen of their days. They are -much more zealous in their search for elegant expressions -than in bestirring themselves to serious<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[101]</a></span> -action. The perfumed students of phraseology -have changed since the night of Saint Bartholomew, -when more than one of them fought side by -side with Henry de Guise; but it is not difficult -to recognise the precursors of the Fronde in the -druids, shepherds, and chevaliers of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>, and so -thought d'Urfé's first readers.</p> - -<p>With extreme pleasure they contemplated themselves -in the noble puppets seen in the romance, -basking in the sun of peace. Away with care! -They had nothing worse to fight than lovers' casuistries, -and they lay in the shadows of the trees, -enjoying the riches of a country redeemed by their -own blood. With them were their ladies; lover and -lass were disguised as shepherd and shepherdess, -or as mythological god and goddess. Idle and elegant -as they were, the happy lovers had been tortured -by wounds, racked by pride, stung by the fire -of battle; to sleep for ever had been the vision of -many a bivouac, and now war was over, and to lie -in a day-dream fanned by the summer winds and -watched by the eye of woman,—this was the evolution -of the hope of death! This was the restorative -desired by the provincial nobles when they stood -firm as rocks in ranks thinned and broken by -thirty years of civil and religious war. Such a -rest the jaded knights had hoped for when they -accepted their one alternative, and, by their recognition -of Henry IV., acknowledged submission to a -principal superior to private interest and personal -ambition.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[102]</a></span></p> - -<p>The high nobility had soon tired of order and -obedience. Never was it more turbulent or more -undisciplined than under Louis XIII. and in the -minority of Louis XIV., but it must be noted as -one of the signs of the times that it no longer -carried its jaunty ease of conscience into its plots -and its mutinies. Curious proofs of this fact are -still in existence; the revolting princes and lords -stoutly denied that they had taken arms against the -King. If they had openly made war, and so palpably -that they could not deny it, they invariably -asserted with affirmations that they had done it "to -render themselves useful to the King's service." -Gaston d'Orléans gave the same reason for his -conduct when he deserted France for a foreign -country. All averred that they had been impelled -to act by a determination to force the King to -accept deliverance from humiliating tyranny, or -from pernicious influences. During the Fronde, -when men changed parties as freely as they changed -their gloves, the rebels protested their fidelity to -the King, and they did it because the idea of -infidelity was abhorrent to them.</p> - -<p>No one in France would have admitted that it -could be possible to hold personal interests or -personal caprice above the interests of the State, -and in the opinion of the French cavalier this -would have been reason enough for any action; but -there was a more practical reason; the descendants -of the great barons were beginning to doubt their -power to maintain the assertion of their so-called<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[103]</a></span> -rights. By suggesting subjects for the meditations -of all the people of France who could read or write -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> had contributed a novelty in scruples. In -our day such a book as <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> would excite no -interest; the reiteration of the "torrents of tenderness" -to which it owed its sentimental influence -would make it a doubtful investment for any -publisher, and even the thoughtful reader would -find its best pages difficult reading; but when all is -said and done, it remains, and it shall remain, the -book which best divines our perpetually recurring -and eternal necessities.</p> - -<p>It treats of but one passion, love, and yet it -gives the most subtle study in existence. In it all -the ways of loving are minutely analysed in interminable -conversations. All the reasons why man -should love are given, with all the reasons why he -should not love. All the joys found by the lover -in his sufferings are set forth, with all the sufferings -that his joys reserve for him. All the reasons for -fidelity and all the reasons for inconstancy are openly -dissected. A complete list is given of all the intellectual -sensations of love (and of some sensations -which are not intellectual). In short, <i>Astrée</i> is a -diagnosis of the spiritual, mental, and moral condition -of the love-sick. It contains all the "cases -of conscience" which may or might arise, under -the same or different circumstances, in the lives of -people who live to love, and who, thus loving, see -but one reason for existence—people who severally -or individually, each in his own way and according<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[104]</a></span> -to his own light, exercise this faculty to love,—still -loving and loving even then, now, and -always.</p> - -<p>D'Urfé's conception was of the antique type. -He regarded love as a fatality against which it -were vain to struggle. Toward the middle of -the book the sorrowful Celadon, crushed by -the wrath of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>, is hidden in a cavern where -he "sustains life by eating grasses." The druid -Adamas knows that Celadon is perishing by inches, -and he essays to bring the lover to reason. Celadon -answers him:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"If, as you say, God gave me full possession of power over -myself, why does He ask me to give an account of myself?—for -just as He gave me into my own hands and just as He gave me -to myself, so have I given myself to her to whom I am consigned -for ever. First of all! If He would have account of -Celadon, let Him apply to her of whom I am! Enough for -me if I offend not her nor violate my sacred gift to her. God -willed my life, for by my destiny I love; and God knows it, -and has always known it, for since I first began to have a will -I gave myself to her, and still am hers. In brief, I should not -have been blest by love as I have been in all these years had -God not willed it.<a name="FNanchor_32_32" id="FNanchor_32_32"></a><a href="#Footnote_32_32" class="fnanchor">[32]</a> If He has willed it would it be just to -punish me because I still remain as He ordained that I should -be? No! for I have not power to change my fate. So be it, -if my parents and my friends condemn me! They all should -be content and glad, when for my acts, I give my reason; <i>that -I love her</i>."</p> - -<p>"But," answered Adamas, "do you count on living long in -such away?"</p> - -<p>"Election," answered Celadon, "depends not on him who -has neither will nor understanding."</p></blockquote> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[105]</a></span></p> - -<p>La Grande Mademoiselle and most of her contemporaries -escaped <i>Astrée's</i> influence in this respect; -they did not admit that man has "neither -will nor understanding" where his passions are -concerned; or that his feelings depend on "destiny." -Corneille, who had confronted the question, -set forth the principle that the heart should defer -to the will. "The love of an honest man," he wrote -in 1634,<a name="FNanchor_33_33" id="FNanchor_33_33"></a><a href="#Footnote_33_33" class="fnanchor">[33]</a>—"The love of an honest man should -always be voluntary. One ought never to love to -the point where he cannot help loving, and if he -carries love so far, he is the slave of a tyranny -whose yoke he should shake off."</p> - -<p>In her youth Mademoiselle de Montpensier was -one of the truest of the Cornéliennes of her generation; -she practised what others were contented to -restrict to preaching. Love's tyranny appeared to -her a shameful thing, and she was so convinced -that it rested with the lover whether he should -be a slave or free himself "by shaking off the -yoke," that even the most honest attacks of moral -faintness were, in her eyes, occasions for judgment -without mercy. One day—she tells it herself—she -turned a young <i>femme de chambre</i> out of her -service simply "because the girl had married for -love." The shame then attendant upon love increased -in proportion to the "condition" of the -slaves of the questionable passion. The lower -orders were insignificant, and their loves and their -antipathies, like their sufferings, were beneath the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[106]</a></span> -consideration of reason, but when men were of a -certain rank, sentiment was debarred from the -conditions of marriage. Mademoiselle followed all -the precepts of high quality, and throughout the -first half of her life her line of action lay parallel -with the noble principles introduced by Corneille. -Jansenism, which, like Corneille, raised the veil of -life for many of the humbler human hearts, made -no impression upon "tall Mademoiselle." Lauzun -was needed to break her pride.</p> - -<p>Concerning moral questions, public sentiment -was calm; the only serious difference raised by -d'Urfé's work during a period of half a century was -the conflict of opinions<a name="FNanchor_34_34" id="FNanchor_34_34"></a><a href="#Footnote_34_34" class="fnanchor">[34]</a> on human liberty; on all -other subjects, notably the things of taste, d'Urfé -was in harmony with public feeling; at times <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> -exceeded public feeling, but it seldom conflicted -with it. The sentiments of the book were far in -advance of the epoch.</p> - -<p>But the nature with which d'Urfé communed -and which he loved was the nature viewed by -Louis XIII., and fashioned according to the royal -taste, improved, repaired, decorated with artificial -ornaments, and confined within circumscribed -landscapes composed of complicated horticultural -figures; a composite nature in which verdure was -nothing but a feature. The fashion of landscape-gardening—an -invention of the Renaissance—had -arrived in France from Italy. In the land -of its birth very amusing specimens of the picturesque<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[107]</a></span> -were maintained by intelligent property-owners.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"There are fountains," [said M. Eugene Muntz,]<a name="FNanchor_35_35" id="FNanchor_35_35"></a><a href="#Footnote_35_35" class="fnanchor">[35]</a> "groves, -verdant bowers, trellises, vine-wreathed arbours, flowers cherished -for their beauty, and plants cultivated for their medicinal -properties; and under ground there are caves and grottoes. -There are bird-houses, hydraulic organs, single statues, groups -of statues, obelisks, vases, pavilions, covered walks, and bathhouses; -everything is brought together within a limited space -to charm the eye and to favour the imagination."</p></blockquote> - -<p>The landscape-gardening of France offered the -same spectacle, and the cultivated parks bore close -resemblance to the shops of the venders of <em>bric-à-brac</em>. -"In those rare gardens," said an enthusiastic -historian, "he who promenades may pass from one -surprise to another, losing himself at every step in -all sorts of labyrinths." ("Dedalus" was the name -in use, for in those days much was borrowed from -mythology and from other ancient sources.) The -labyrinths were complicated by ingenious devices -intended to deceive the vision. Æstheticism of style -demanded such delusions. The most renowned -landscape-gardens were the royal parks, on which -money had been freely lavished to perfect and to -elaborate nature. Among the "rarities" in the -gardens of the Gondis and at Saint Cloud, were -fountains whose waters played invisible instruments. -At the Duke de Bellegarde's (rue de -Grenelle Saint Honoré) the most marvellous thing -in the garden was an illuminated grotto of arcades,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[108]</a></span> -ornamented with grotesques and with marine columns, -and covered with a vaulting encrusted with -shells and with a quantity of rock-work; and more -than that, so full of water-spouts, canals, water-jets, -and invisible faucets<a name="FNanchor_36_36" id="FNanchor_36_36"></a><a href="#Footnote_36_36" class="fnanchor">[36]</a> that even the King had no -greater number on his terraces at Saint Germain—nor -had Cardinal de Richelieu a greater number in -his gardens at Rueil, though the first artificial cascades -ever seen in France[2] had been built in his -garden.<a name="FNanchor_37_37" id="FNanchor_37_37"></a><a href="#Footnote_37_37" class="fnanchor">[37]</a> At the Château of Usson, the home of -Queen Marguerite, who appears in <i>Astrée</i> under -the name of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Galatée</i>, the garden was provided with -all the rarities the place would hold. Nothing that -artifice could add to it had been forgotten. The -woods were embellished with divers grottoes so -well counterfeiting nature that the eye often deceived -the judgment.<a name="FNanchor_38_38" id="FNanchor_38_38"></a><a href="#Footnote_38_38" class="fnanchor">[38]</a> The most remarkable grotto was</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>the cave of old Mandragora, a place so full of witcheries -that surprise followed surprise, and hour by hour, something -continually occurred to delight the vision. The vaulting of -the entrance was sustained by two sculptured figures very industriously -arrayed with minute stones of divers colours; the -hair, the eyebrows, and the beards of the statues, and the two -sculptured horns of the god Pan were composed of sea shells -so neatly and so properly set in that the cement could not be -seen. The outer coping of the door was formed like a rustic -arch, and garlands of shells, fastened at the four corners, -ended close to the heads of the two statues. The inside of -the arch tapered to a rocky point, which, in several places, -seemed to drip saltpetre. The retaining walls of the arch were<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[109]</a></span> -set back in niches to form fountains, and all of the fountains -depicted some of the various effects of the power of love. In -the grotto arose a tomb-like monument ornamented with -images representing divers objects, all formed of coloured -marble, and trimmed with pictures; wherever such an effect -was possible, the trees were pruned to take the appearance of -some other object or objects.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Thus the laborious and unrestrained intervention -of man evoked a factitious type of nature as far -from precious as the false <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i>. By the unreserved -admiration of its florid descriptions <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> -had consecrated the artificial mode. Nature demanded -Lenôtre to strip her gardens of their ridiculous -decorations, and to redeem them by simplicity, -but when Lenôtre accomplished the work of regeneration -the public taste was wounded; the people -had become accustomed to the sight of parks -decorated like the stage of the theatre, and the -simplicity of nature shocked them. La Grande -Mademoiselle considered Chenonceaux incomplete; -she complained that it "looked unfinished"; -her artificially nourished taste missed something, -because the owners of Chenonceaux had respected -the work of God, and left their park just as they -had received it from the hand of its Creator; she -wondered why Provence was called beautiful—to -her it seemed "ugly enough." She lived at the -gate of the Pyrenees thirty days and never entered -the country, yet she delighted in the pretentious -trinkets with which the landscape-gardeners of the -Italian school decorated French woods and gardens. -Honoré d'Urfé was responsible for her ignorance.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[110]</a></span> -Many of d'Urfé's tastes<a name="FNanchor_39_39" id="FNanchor_39_39"></a><a href="#Footnote_39_39" class="fnanchor">[39]</a> were noble, and <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> was -a work of excellent purpose—almost a great work; -but it lacked the one thing demanded by true art,—love -of nature in its simplicity.</p> - -<p>D'Urfé's artificial taste was more regrettable -because his successors, they who continued his -work, accentuated his faults, as, generally speaking, -the disciples of all innovators accentuate the faults -of their masters. Few among the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i> knew -how to sift the chaff from the wheat when the time -came to take or to leave the varied gifts of their -inheritance. The true <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i> precipitated the -revolution of which d'Urfé had been the prophet; -they alone consummated the moral transformation -which, according to his light, he had prepared.</p> - -<p>During the changing years of half a century the -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i> "kept the school" of manners and fine -language, laying on the ferule whenever they -found pupils as recalcitrant as the damsel whose -story I am attempting to relate. They did not -try—far from it!—to train the public taste, to correct -it, or to guide it aright; they urged France -into the tortuous by-paths of false ethics and superficial -art; but, taken all in all, their influence -was good. La Grande Mademoiselle, the abrupt -cavalier-maiden, proved its virtue. To the Hôtel -de Rambouillet she owed it that she did not end as -she began—a dragoon in petticoats, and she recognised -the fact, and was grateful for the benefits -that she had received.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[111]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_110.jpg" alt="FROM AN OLD PRINT" title="THE ABBEY OF ST. GERMAIN DES-PRES IN THE 16TH CENTURY" /> -<div class="caption"><p>THE ABBEY OF ST. GERMAIN DES-PRES IN THE 16TH CENTURY</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM AN OLD PRINT</p></div> -</div> - -<p>It has been asked: Was the Society of the -<i>Précieuses</i> a result of the influence of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>? -With the exception noted, it is probable that -d'Urfé made no attempt to form new intellectual -or sentimental currents; he confined himself to the -observation of the thoughts and the feelings at -work in the depths of human souls within his -own view; he was a close student of character, his -book was a study, and his influence reformed opinions -and manners; but as the Society of the -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i> was in process of incubation before -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> appeared, it must have taken shape had -d'Urfé never written his book. The world of fashion -had long deemed it witty to ridicule the -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i>; from too much handling, jests upon -that subject had lost their effervescence, and in -time it was considered more original to find virtue -in the delicate mannerisms of the refined ladies -than to adhere to the old fashion of mocking -them. Their exaggerations were numerous and -pronounced, but their civility was in pleasant contrast -with the abrupt indelicacies of the Béarnais; -and even now, looking back to them across the -separating centuries, we can find few causes for -reproach. They subjected their literature to the -yoke of the Spanish and Italian schools, but they -could hardly have done less at a time when the -Court was Italian, and when Spanish influences -were entering by all the frontiers. Aside from -their submission to foreign influences, the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i> -were sturdy champions of the right, and unless we<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[112]</a></span> -are prepared to falsify more than thirty years of -our history of morals, and of literature, we must -admit that they rendered us services which cannot -be forgotten or misunderstood.</p> - -<p>They were women of the world, important after -the fashion of their day, and by the power of their -worldly influence they freed literature from the -pedantry with which Ronsard—and Montaigne, -also, to a certain extent—had entangled it. They -forced the writers to brush the dust from their -bookshelves; they imposed upon them some of the -exigencies of their own sex, and by the bare fact -of their influence literature which had been almost -wholly erudite acquired a quality assimilating it -to the usages of the world, and an air of decency -and of civility which it had always lacked. The -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i> compelled men to grant them the respect -due to all women under civilisation, and to count -them as members of the body politic; they exacted -concessions to their modesty; they purified -language; they obliged "all honest men" to select -their topics of conversation; they habituated people -to discern the delicate shades of thought and to -dissect ideas and find the hidden meanings of -words; they made demands for concessions to the -rights of precocity, and, as a result, propriety of -verbal expression and closely attentive analyses -entered conversation hand in hand. Many and -eminent were the services rendered unto France -by the amiable band of worldly reformers; theirs -was a mighty enterprise; we cannot measure the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[113]</a></span> -transformation wrought by the influence of women -in the indecent manners of that day unless we -make a minute examination of the subject. Before -the advent of the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i>, exterior elegance and -a graceful bearing had been a cloak covering the -words and the conduct of barbarians. Proofs of -this fact abound in the records of that day. La -Grande Mademoiselle was of the second generation -of the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i>; her wit, her love of wit, and her -intellect, gave her rank in the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Livré d'Or</i><a name="FNanchor_40_40" id="FNanchor_40_40"></a><a href="#Footnote_40_40" class="fnanchor">[40]</a>; but the -habits of youth are difficult to overcome, and when -she first visited the Hôtel de Rambouillet she used -the words and the gestures of a pandour, her -squared shoulders and out-thrust chest bore evidences -of the natural investiture of the Cossack. -Speaking of that epoch, her most impartial critic -tells us that she "voiced a thousand imprecations."<a name="FNanchor_41_41" id="FNanchor_41_41"></a><a href="#Footnote_41_41" class="fnanchor">[41]</a> -In one of her attacks of indignation she threatened -the Maréchal de l'Hôpital: "I will tear your beard -out with my own hands!" she cried fiercely, and -the marshal took fright and ran away. -Several ladies of Mademoiselle's society were -known to possess brisk and heavy hands, and feet -of the same alert and virile character. Their -people and their lovers knew something of their -"manuals and pedals," and bore visible tokens of -the efficacy of those phenomenal members on their -own persons,—and in all the colours of the rainbow. -Madame de Vervins, who assisted with La -Grande Mademoiselle at the fêtes given in honour<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[114]</a></span> -of Mademoiselle de Hautefort, "basted her lackeys -and other servants at will," and she did it with -no slack hand. One of the subjects on whom she -plied her dexterity died under the operation, and -the people of Paris avenged his death by sacking -her palace.<a name="FNanchor_42_42" id="FNanchor_42_42"></a><a href="#Footnote_42_42" class="fnanchor">[42]</a> Following is the record:</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">On brisa vitré, on rompit porte, ...</div> - <div class="i1">Bref: si fort s'accrut le tumulte</div> - <div class="i1">Que de peur de plus grande insulte,</div> - <div class="i2">Cette dame s'enfuit exprès,</div> - <div class="i2">Et se sauva par le marais.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>But if the ladies were not lambs, the gentlemen -were not sheep. They were no laggards in war. -When they turned the flank of the enemy they did -not mince matters, and upon occasion they drew -the first blood. Once upon a time, at a dance, -Comte de Brégis, having received a slap from his -partner, turned upon her and pulled her hair down -in the midst of the banquet. At a supper, in the -presence of a great and joyous company, the Marquis -de la Case snatched a leg of mutton from a -trencher and buffeted his neighbour in her face, -smearing her with gravy. As she was a lady of an -even temper, she laughed heartily,<a name="FNanchor_43_43" id="FNanchor_43_43"></a><a href="#Footnote_43_43" class="fnanchor">[43]</a> and the incident -was closed. Malherbe confessed to Madame de -Rambouillet that he had "cuffed the ears of the -Viscountess d'Auchy until she had cried for aid." -As he was a jealous man, his action was not without -cause, and in that day to flog a woman was a -thing that any gentleman felt free to do.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[115]</a></span></p> - -<p>The regenerating <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i> had not arrived too -soon. Ignoble jests and obscenities too foul to -recount were accepted as conversation by both -sexes. The father of the great Condé, who was -president of a "social" club whose rules compelled -members to imitate every movement made by their -leader, ate, and forced his fellow members (including -the ladies) to eat—I dare not say what; do -not try to guess—you could never do it!</p> - -<p>The modest and timid Louis XIII. could—when -he set about it—give his Court very unappetising -examples. In a book of <cite>Edification</cite>, bearing date -1658, we read that "the late King, seeing a young -woman among the crowds admitted to his palace -so that they might see the King eat, said nothing, -and gave no immediate evidence that he had seen -her; but, as he raised his glass for the last sup, before -rising from the table, he filled his mouth with -wine, and having held it thus sanctuaried for an instant, -launched it forth into the uncovered chest of -the watchful lady," who had been too eager to witness -the mastications of royalty.</p> - -<p>Aristocratic traditions exacted that the nobles -should flog their inferiors, and the nobles conformed -to the traditional exactions freely. Men -and women were flogged for "failures" of the least -importance, and knowing those antique customs as -we do, we may be permitted to wonder that we -have so few records of the music of that eventful -day.</p> - -<p>Richelieu "drubbed his people," he drubbed his<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[116]</a></span> -officers, he drubbed (so it was said) his ministers. -The celebrated Duke d'Épernon, the last of the -great Seigniors after Saint Simon, was "as mild-mannered -a man as ever cut a throat or scuttled a -ship"; one day when he was discussing some official -question with his Eminence, the Archbishop -of Bordeaux, he gave the exalted prelate "three -clips of his fist full in the archiepiscopal face -and breast, supplementing them by several cuts -of the end of his cane in the pit of the stomach." -We are not told how the priest received his -medicine, but history records that "this done, -Monsieur the Duke bore witness to his Lordship -(the Archbishop) that had it not been for the respect -due to his character, he (the Duke) should -have tipped him over on the pavement." One day -when the feelings of the Maréchal de Mauny were -outraged because a farmer had kept the de Mauny -servitors waiting for their butter and eggs, he (the -Maréchal) rushed from his palace like a madman, -fell upon the first peasants who crossed his path, and -with sword-thrusts and with pistol-shots wounded -two of the "aggressors" mortally. This last event -occurred in Burgundy; it was merely an incident. -In Anjou, Comte de Montsoreau maintained a private -money-coining establishment in the wood -near, or on, his property, halted the travellers on -the highways, obliged them to pay their ransom, -and, at the head of a band of twenty men, all being -brigands of his own species, swept over the country, -pillaging in all directions. The daily occurring duels<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[117]</a></span> -accustomed men to look lightly upon death, and -contempt for human life prevailed. When the -Chevalier d'Andrieux was thirty years old, he had -killed seventy-two men. In such cases edicts were -worthless; the national need demanded a radical -change of morals. Nine years after the death of -Louis XIII., Maréchal de Grammont said in -one of his letters: "Since the beginning of the -Regency, according to the estimate made, nine -hundred and forty gentlemen have been killed in -duels." That was an official estimate, and it did -not include the deaths which, though they were -attributed to other causes, were the direct and -immediate results of honourable encounters; the -dead thus enumerated having been killed on the -spot.<a name="FNanchor_44_44" id="FNanchor_44_44"></a><a href="#Footnote_44_44" class="fnanchor">[44]</a></p> - -<p>At that time the duel was not attended by ceremonies; -it was a hand-to-hand encounter between -barbarians. The contestants fought with any weapons -that came to hand, and in the way most convenient -to their needs. All means were considered -proper for the killing of men, though it was generally -conceded that for killing well the different -means were, or might be made, more or less -courteous. This being the case, the duel was in -more or less good or bad taste, according to the -means used in its execution, and according to the -regularity, or the lack of regularity, employed in -their use.</p> - -<p>In 1612, Balagny and Puymorin alighted from<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[118]</a></span> -their horses and drew swords in the rue des Petits -Champs. While they were fighting, a valet took a -pitchfork and planted it in Balagny from the back. -Balagny died of the wound inflicted by the valet, -and Puymorin also died; he had been wounded -when the valet interfered. Still another lackey -killed Villepreau in the duel between Beaupré and -Villepreau. That duel also was fought in the street -(rue Saint Honoré.) When young Louvigny<a name="FNanchor_45_45" id="FNanchor_45_45"></a><a href="#Footnote_45_45" class="fnanchor">[45]</a> -fought with d'Hocquincourt, he said: "Let us take -our swords!" As the other bent to comply with -the suggestion, Louvigny gave a great sword-thrust, -which, running his adversary through and -through, put him to death. Tallemant des Reaux -qualified the act as "appalling," but it bore no -consequences for Louvigny.</p> - -<p>Maréchal de Marillac (who was beheaded in -1632) killed his adversary before the latter had -time to draw his sword. We should have called -it an assassination, but our forefathers saw no -harm in such duelling. They reserved their criticisms -for the timidly peaceable who objected to a -fight.</p> - -<p>The salon, with its ultra-refinement and its -delicacy, followed close upon the heels of these -remnants of barbarity. The salon gave form to -the civility which forbade a man to pierce the -fleshy part of the back of an adversary with a -pitchfork. Polite courtesy also restrained gentlemen<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[119]</a></span> -from forcing ladies to swallow all uncleanness -under the pretence of indulging in a merry -jest. As good manners make for morality, let us -thank the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i> for the reform they accomplished -when they moulded men for courteous -intercourse with their fellow-men; and to Madame -de Rambouillet, among others, let thanks be given, -for she made the achievement possible by opening -the way and beginning at the beginning. Womanly -tact, a decorous keeping of her house, love -of order and of beauty inspired her with the -thought that the arrangements made in the old -hotels of Paris for the people of ancient days were -not fitted for the use of the enlightened age of the -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i>. There were no salons in the old -hotels; the salon was unknown; therefore there -was no room in which to frame the society then -in formation. Tallemant tells us that the only -houses known at that time were built with a hall -upon one side, a room upon the other side, and a -staircase in the middle. The <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">salle</i> was a parade-room, -a place to pass through, a corridor where -no one lingered. People received visitors in the -room in which they happened to be when the -visitors arrived; at different times they happened -to be in different rooms. Very naturally at eating-time -they were in rooms where they could sit -at meat. There were no rooms devoted to the -daily meals. The table on which viands were -served was placed in any room large enough to -contain the number of persons who were to be<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[120]</a></span> -entertained. If there were few guests, the table was -placed in a small room; when the guests were -numerous, they were seated in a large room, or the -table, ready served, was carried into any room -large enough to hold the company. It was all a -matter of chance. Banquets were given in the -corridor, in the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">salle</i>, in the ante-room, or in the -sleeping-room,<a name="FNanchor_46_46" id="FNanchor_46_46"></a><a href="#Footnote_46_46" class="fnanchor">[46]</a> because literary intuition was undeveloped. -Madame de Rambouillet was the first -to realise that the spirit of conversation is too rare -and too delicate a plant to thrive under unfavourable -conditions, and that in order to establish conversational -groups, a place must be provided in -which they who favour conversation may talk at -ease. Every one recognises that fact now, and -every one ought to recognise it. No one—man -or woman—is justified in ignoring the influences -of the localities that he or she frequents. It should -be generally known that sympathies will not group, -that the current of thought will not flow freely -when a table is unfavourably placed for the seating -of society expected to converse.</p> - -<p>Three hundred years ago the creator of the first -French salon discovered this fact, and her discovery -marked a date in the history of our social life.</p> - -<p>Mme. de Rambouillet owned a dilapidated mansion -standing between the Tuileries and the courtyard -of the Louvre, near the site of the now existing -Pavillon de Rohan.<a name="FNanchor_47_47" id="FNanchor_47_47"></a><a href="#Footnote_47_47" class="fnanchor">[47]</a> She had determined to rebuild<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[121]</a></span> -the house, and no one could draw a plan -suited to her ideas. Her mind was incessantly -busy with her architectural scheme, and one evening -when she had been sitting alone deep in meditation -she cried out! "Quick! A pencil! paper! I -have found a way to build my house."<a name="FNanchor_48_48" id="FNanchor_48_48"></a><a href="#Footnote_48_48" class="fnanchor">[48]</a> She drew -her plan at once, and the arrangement was so -superior to all known architectural designs that -houses were built according to "the plans of Mme. -de Rambouillet all over France." Tallemant says:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>They learned from Mme. de Rambouillet how to place -stairways at the sides of houses so that they might form -great suites of rooms<a name="FNanchor_49_49" id="FNanchor_49_49"></a><a href="#Footnote_49_49" class="fnanchor">[49]</a> and they also learned from her how to -raise floors and to make high and broad windows, placed one -opposite another so that the air might circulate with freedom; -this is all so true that when the Queen-mother ordered the -rebuilding of the Luxembourg she sent the architects to glean -ideas from the Hôtel de Rambouillet.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Until that time the interiors of houses had been -painted red or tan colour. Mme. de Rambouillet -was the first to adopt another colour and her innovation -gave the "Blue Room" its name. The -famous Blue Room in which the seventeenth -century acquired the even and correct tone of -conversation was disposed with a skilful and -scientific tact which has survived the rack of three -hundred years of changes, and to-day it stands as -the perfect type of a temple fully adequate to the -exigencies of intellectual intercourse.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122">[122]</a></span></p> - -<p>In it all spaces were measured and the seats -were systematically counted and distributed to the -best advantage; there were eighteen seats; neither -more nor less. Screens shut off certain portions -of the room and facilitated the formation of -intimately confidential groups; flowers perfumed -the air; objects of art caressed the vision, and, taken -all together, so perceptible a spirit of the sanctuary -enshrining thought was present that the habitués -of the Salon de Rambouillet always spoke of it as -"the Temple." Even La Grande Mademoiselle, -the irrepressible, felt the subtle influences of that -calm retreat of the mind, and when she entered the -Blue Room she repressed her Cossack gestures and -choked back her imprecations. She knew that she -could not evade the restraining influence of the -hushed tranquillity which pervaded "the Temple," -and she drooped her sparkling eyes, and accepted -her discipline with the universally prevalent docility. -In her own words, Mme. de Rambouillet was -"adorable."</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I think [wrote Mademoiselle in 1659], that I can see her -now in that shadowy recess,—which the sun never entered, -though the place was never left in darkness,—surrounded by -great crystal vases full of beautiful spring flowers which were -made to bloom at all seasons in the gardens near her temple, -so that she might look upon the things that she loved. -Around her were the pictures of her friends, and the looks -that she gave them called down blessings on the absent. -There were many books on the tables in her grotto and, as one -may imagine, they treated of nothing common. Only two, or -at most three persons were permitted to enter that place at<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[123]</a></span> -the same time, because confusion displeased her and noise -was adverse to the goddess whose voice was loud only in -wrath. Our goddess was never angry. She was gentleness -itself.</p></blockquote> - -<p>According to the inscription on a stone preserved -in the Musée Cluny the Hôtel de Rambouillet was -rebuilt in 1618. The mistress of the house consumed -ten industriously filled years constituting, installing, -and habituating the intellectual groups of her -salon; but when she had perfected her arrangements -she maintained them in their splendour until -the Fronde put an end to all intellectual effort.</p> - -<p>When the Hôtel de Rambouillet was in its apogee -La Grande Mademoiselle was in the flush of early -youth. She was born in 1627. Mme. de Sévigné -was Mademoiselle's elder by one year.</p> - -<p>When we consider the social and intellectual -condition of the times we must regard many features -of the enterprise of "fair Arthénice" as -wonderful, but its most characteristic feature was -the opportunity and the advancement it accorded -to men of letters. Whatever "literary" men were -elsewhere, they were received as the equals of the -nobility in the Salon de Rambouillet. Such a sight -had never been seen! Superior minds had always -been regarded leniently. They had had their -periods of usefulness, when the quality had been -forced to recognise their existence, but the -possessors of those minds had been treated—well, -to speak clearly, they had been treated as -they had expected to be treated; for how could the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[124]</a></span> -poor fellows have hoped for anything better when -they knew that they passed two thirds of their time -with spines humbly curved and with palms outstretched -soliciting equivocal complaisancies, or inviting -écus, or struggling to secure a seat at the -lower end of dinner tables by means of heartrending -dedications?</p> - -<p>Alack! how many Sarrazins and Costars there -were to one Balzac, or to one d'Urfé! how numerous -were the natural parasites, piteous leeches! -whose wit went begging for a discarded bone! -How many were condemned by their vocation to -die of hunger;—and there was no help for them! -Had their talent been ten times greater than it was -it would have been equally impossible for them to -introduce dignity into their existence. There were -no journals, no reviews where an author could -present his stuff or his stories for inspection; no -one had ever heard of authors' rights; and however -successful a play, the end of the dramatist was the -same; he was allowed no literary property. How -then could he live if not by crooked ways and -doubtful means? If a certain amount of respect, -not to say honour, were due to his profession, by -what means could he acquire his share of it? Any -yeoman—the first country squire—could, when so it -pleased him, have a play stricken from the roll; if so -it pleased him could have the rod laid over the author's -back, amidst the plaudits of the contingent -which we should call the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">claque</i>. Was it any wonder -that authors were pedants to the marrow of their<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[125]</a></span> -bones when pedantry was the only paying thing in -their profession? Writers who chanted their own -praises did good unto themselves and enjoyed the -reputation of the erudite. They were regarded as -professors of mentality, they reflected credit upon -the men who lodged and nourished them. For that -reason,—and very logically,—when a man knew that -he was being lodged and nourished for the sake of -his <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">bel esprit</i> if there was any manhood in him he -entered heart and soul into his pretensions; and -sleeping or waking, night or day, from head to foot, -and without one hour of respite, played the part of -"man of letters"; he mouthed his words, went about -with brows knit, talked from his chest, and, in short, -did everything to prove to the world that he was -wise beyond his generation; his every effort was -bent to manifest his ability; and his manners, his -costumes, and his looks, all proved him to be a -student of books. And when this was proven his -master—the man who lodged and nourished him—was -able to get his full money's worth and to stand -up before the world revealed in the character of -benefactor and protector of Belles Lettres. In our -day things wear a different aspect. The author has -reached his pinnacle, and in some cases it may even -be possible that his merits are exaggerated.</p> - -<p>Knowing this, it is difficult for us to appreciate -the conditions existing when the Salon of the Hôtel -de Rambouillet was opened. We know that -there is nothing essentially admirable in putting -black marks on white paper, and we know that a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[126]</a></span> -good shoemaker is a more useful citizen than can -be made of an inferior writer, and knowing these -facts, and others of the same sort, we can hardly -realise that only three hundred years ago there -were honest boys who entered upon the career of -Letters when they might have earned a living -selling tallow.</p> - -<p>The Hôtel de Rambouillet regulated the scale of -social values and diminished the distance between -the position accorded to science, intellect, and -genius and the position accorded to birth. For -the first time within the memory of Frenchmen -Men of Letters tasted the sweets of consideration; -their eloquence was not forced back, nor was it -drawn out by the imperious demands of hunger; -authors were placed on a footing with their fellow-men; -they were still expected to discourse, but as -their wit was the result of normal conditions, it -acquired the quality of order and the flavour of -nature. In the Blue Room the weary writers were -allowed to rest. They were not called upon to give -proofs of their intellect; they were led gently forward, -placed at a distance that made them appear -genial, persuaded to discard their dogmatism, -and by inferences and subtle influences taught -to be indulgent and to distribute their wisdom -with the philosophical civility which was then -called "the spirit of the Court,"—and the term -was a just one; a great gulf lay between the -incisive rushing expression of the thought of Condé, -the pupil of Mme. de Rambouillet, and the laboured<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[127]</a></span> -facitiæ of Voiture and the Academician, Jacques -Esprit, although Voiture and Esprit were far in -advance of their predecessors. Under the beneficent -treatment of the Hôtel de Rambouillet the Men -of Letters gradually lost their stilted and pedagogic -airs. The fair reformers of "the circle" found many -a barrier in their path; the gratitude of the pedants -was not exhilarating, the leopards' spots long -retained their colour,—Trissotin proved that,—but -by force of repeated "dippings" the dye was -eventually compelled to take and the stains that -it left upon the fingers of "fair Arthénice" were not -disfiguring.</p> - -<p>A glance at Racine or at Boileau shows us the -long road traversed after the Salon de Rambouillet -instituted the recognition of merit regardless of -rank and fortune. Love of intellectual pleasures, -courage, and ambitious determination had ordered -a march resumed after forced halts; and at last, -when the ardent innovators reached the port from -which they were to launch their endeavour, recognition -of merit had become a custom, and the first -phase of democratic evolution was an accomplished -fact. Our own day shows further progress; the -same evolution in its untrammelled freedom tends -to cast suspicion upon personal merit because it -unhinges the idea of equality.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"All Paris" of that day filed through the portals -of the Hôtel de Rambouillet and passed in review -before the Blue Room. Malherbe was one of the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[128]</a></span> -most faithful attendants of the Salon whose -Laureate he remained until he died (1628). Yet -according to Tallemant and to many others he was -boorish and uncivil. He was abrupt in conversation, -but he wrote excellent poetry and never -said a word that did not reach its mark. When -he visited the Salon he was very amiable; and his -grey beard made him a creditable dean for the -circle of literary companions. He wrote pretty -verses in honour of Arthénice, he was diverting and -instructive—in a word, he made himself necessary -to the Salon. But he was too old to change either -his character or his appearance, and his attempts -to conform to the fashions of the hour made him -ridiculous. He was "a toothless gallant, always -spitting."</p> - -<p>He had been in the pay of M. de Bellegarde, from -whom he had received a salary of one thousand -livres, table and lodging, and board and lodging for -one lackey and one horse. He drew an income -from a pension of five hundred écus granted by -Marie de Médicis; he was in possession of numerous -gratuities, perquisites, and "other species of -gifts" which he had secretly begged by the sweat -of his brow. Huet, Archbishop of Avranche, -wrote: "Malherbe is trying his best to increase his -fortunes, and his poetry, noble though it be, is not -always nobly employed." M. d'Yveteaux said that -Malherbe "demanded alms sonnet in hand." The -greedy poet had one rival at the Hôtel de Rambouillet; -a very brilliant Italian addicted to flattery, whom<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[129]</a></span> -all the ladies loved. Women were infatuated by -him, as they are always infatuated by any foreign -author—be he good or bad! Marini—in Paris they -called him "Marin"—conversed in long sentences -joined by antitheses. In his hours of relaxation -when his thoughts were supposed to be in literary undress, -he called the rose "the eye of the springtide."<a name="FNanchor_50_50" id="FNanchor_50_50"></a><a href="#Footnote_50_50" class="fnanchor">[50]</a> -At the time of which I now speak he was labouring -upon a poem of forty-five thousand verses, entitled -<cite>Adonis</cite>. Every word written or uttered by him -was calculated to produce its effect. "The Circle," -to the disgust of Malherbe, lay at the feet of the -Italian pedant, swooning with ecstasy. "Marin's" -influence over the first Salon of France was deplorable, -and a contemporary chronicler recorded his -progress with evident dejection<a name="FNanchor_51_51" id="FNanchor_51_51"></a><a href="#Footnote_51_51" class="fnanchor">[51]</a>; "In time he relieved -the country of his presence; but he had -remained in it long enough to deposit in fruitful -soil the germs of his factitious preciosity."</p> - -<p>Chapelain was of other metal. He began active -life as a teacher. M. de Longueville, who was the -first to appreciate his merits, granted him his first -pension (two thousand livres). Chapelain was -fond of his work, a natural writer, industrious, and -frugal. He went into retirement, lived upon his -little pension, and brought forth <cite>La Pucelle</cite>. De -Longueville was delighted by the zeal and the talent -of his protégé and he added one thousand livres to his -pension. Richelieu also granted Chapelain a pension -(one thousand livres) and when Mazarin came<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[130]</a></span> -to power he supplemented the gift of his predecessor -by a pension of five hundred écus.</p> - -<p>It was not a common thing for authors to make -favourable arrangements with a publisher, but -Chapelain had made excellent terms for that -epoch. <cite>La Pucelle</cite> had sold for three thousand livres. -He (Chapelain) was in easy circumstances, but his -unique appearance excited unique criticisms. He -was described as "one of the shabbiest, dirtiest, most -shambling, and rumpled of gallows-birds, and one -of the most affectedly literary characters from head -to heels who ever set foot in the Blue Room." It -was said he was "a complete caricature of his idea." -Though Mme. de Rambouillet was accustomed -to the aspect of Men of Letters, she was struck -dumb when Chapelain first appeared. As his mind -was not visible, she saw nothing but an ugly little -man in a pigeon-breast satin habit of antique date, -covered with different kinds of ill-assorted gimp. -His boots were not matched (each being eccentric -in its own peculiar way). On his head -was an old wig and over the wig hovered a -faded hat. Mme. de Rambouillet regained her -self-command and decided to close her eyes to -his exterior. His conversation pleased her, and -before he had left her presence he had impressed -her favourably. In truth Chapelain merited respect -and friendship. He was full of delicacy of -feeling, extremely erudite, and impassioned in his -love for things of the mind. His keen, refined, -critical instinct had made him an authority on all<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[131]</a></span> -subjects. His correspondence covered all the -literary and learned centres of Europe, and he -was consulted as an oracle by the savants of all -countries. He was interested in everything. His -mind was singularly broad, modest, frank, and open -to conviction; and while his nature was essentially -French, his mental curiosity, with its innumerable -outstretching and receptive channels, made him a -representative of cosmopolitan enlightenment.</p> - -<p>Chapelain was one of the pillars of the Salon,—or, -to speak better, he was the pendentive of the -Salon's literary architecture. After a time repeated -frequentation of the Salon amended his "exterior" -to some extent. He changed his fanciful attire for -the plain black costumes worn by Vadius and by -Trissotin, but his transformation was accomplished -invisibly, and during the transition period he did -not cease to be shabby and of a suspiciously neglected -aspect, even for one hour. "I believe," said -Tallemant, "that Chapelain has never had anything -absolutely new."</p> - -<p>Ménage, another pillar of the Salon de Rambouillet, -was one of the rare literary exceptions to -the rule of the solid provincial bourgeoisie. He -was the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">rara avis</i> of his country, and not only a -pedant but the pedant <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">par excellence</i>, the finished -type of the "litterateur" who "sucks ink and bursts -with pride at his achievement." He was always -spreading his feathers and bristling like a turkeycock -if he was not appreciated according to his -estimate of himself. From him descended some<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[132]</a></span> -of the "literary types" still in existence, who cross-question -a man in regard to what he knows of -their literary "work." No matter what people were -talking about, Ménage would interrupt them with -his patronising smile and "Do you remember -what I said upon that subject?" he would ask. -Naturally no one remembered anything that he had -written, and when they confessed that they had -forgotten he would cry out all sorts of piquancies -and coarseness. Every one knew what he was. -Molière used him as a model for Vadius, and the -likeness was striking. He was dreaded, and people -loved literature to madness and accepted all its -excrescences before they consented to endure his -presence. "I have seen him," said Tallemant, "in -Mme. de Rambouillet's alcove cleaning the insides -of his teeth with a very dirty handkerchief, and that -was what he was doing during the whole visit." -He considered his fine manners irresistible. He -pursued Mme. de Rambouillet, bombarding her -incessantly with declarations. A pernicious vanity -was one of his chief failings. It was his habit to -give people to understand that he was on intimate -terms with women like Mme. de Lafayette and -Mme. de Sévigné; but Mme. de Sévigné did -not permit him to carry his boasts to Paradise. -One day after she had heard of his reports she -invited him to accompany her alone in her carriage. -She told him that she was "not afraid that any one -would gossip over it." Ménage, whose feelings -were outraged by her contempt, burst into a flood<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[133]</a></span> -of reproaches. "<em>Get into my carriage at once!</em>" she -answered. "<em>If you anger me I will visit you in your -own house!</em>"<a name="FNanchor_52_52" id="FNanchor_52_52"></a><a href="#Footnote_52_52" class="fnanchor">[52]</a></p> - -<p>People tolerated Ménage because he was extraordinarily -wise, and because his sense of justice -impelled him to admirably generous deeds. The -Ministers, Mazarin and Colbert, always sent to -him for the names of the people who were worthy -of recompence, and Ménage frequently nominated -the men who had most offended him. Justice was -his passion. Under the vulgar motley of the -pedant lay many excellent qualities, among them -intense devotion to friends. Throughout his life -he rendered innumerable services and was kind and -helpful to many people. Ménage had a certain -amount of money, nevertheless he gave himself -into the hands of Retz, and Retz lodged and -nourished him as he lodged and nourished his own -lackey. Ménage lived with Retz, berating him as -he berated every one; and Retz cared for him, -endured his fits of anger, and listened to his scoldings -ten years. Ménage "drew handsome pecuniary -benefits from some other source," saved money, -set out for himself, and founded a branch Blue -Room in his own house. His receptions, which -were held weekly on Wednesday, were in high -esteem. The people who had free access to good -society considered it an honour to be named as his -guests.</p> - -<p>Quite another story was "little Voiture," a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[134]</a></span> -delicate pigmy who had "passed forty years of -his life at death's door." He was an invalid even -in early youth. When very young he wrote to -Mme. de Rambouillet from Nancy:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Since I have not had the honour of seeing you, madame, I -have endured ills which cannot be described. As I traversed -Epernay I visited Marechal Strozzi for your sake, and his -tomb appeared so magnificent, and the place so calculated to -give repose, that as I was in such condition and so fit for -burial, I longed to be laid beside him; but as they found that -there was still some warmth in me, they made difficulties -about acceding to my wishes. Then I resolved to have my -body carried as far as Nancy, where, at last, madame, it has -arrived, so meagre and so wasted, that I do assure you that -there will be very little for them to lay in the ground.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Ten years later he drew the following sketch of -himself:</p> - -<p>"My head is handsome enough; I have many -grey hairs. My eyes are soft, but a little distraught.... -My expression is stupid, but to -counterbalance this discrepancy, <em>I am the best boy -in the world</em>."<a name="FNanchor_53_53" id="FNanchor_53_53"></a><a href="#Footnote_53_53" class="fnanchor">[53]</a></p> - -<p>Voiture was called "the dwarf king." He was -a charming conversationalist; he was a precursor -of the Parisian of the eighteenth century, of whom -his winged wit and foaming gayety made him a -fair antetype; he was "the life and the soul" of -the Hôtel de Rambouillet, and when the ponderous -minds had left the Salon, after he had -helped the naturally gay ladies to lift the helmet of -Minerva from their heads—and the weights from<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135">[135]</a></span> -their heels—he taught them the light laughter -which sits so well on "airy nothings." But he had -his defects, defects so grave that the critics said: -"If Voiture were of our condition it would be impossible -to endure him!" He was a dangerous -little gossip, constantly taking liberties and forcing -people to recall him to his place. Though he was -a child in size, he was a man of mature years, and -the parents and guardians of young girls were -forced to watch him, though it is probable that his -intentions were innocent enough. One day, when -he was on a visit, he attempted to press his lips to -the arm of one of the daughters of the house. -That time he "caught it on his fingers"; he -begged pardon for his sin; but he did not correct -his faults; vanity forbade him to do that, and -vanity made him very jealous and hot tempered. -Mlle. de Scudéry (who was not censorious) called -him "untrustworthy." His literature was like his -person and his character. Everything that he -wrote was delicate, coquettish, and very graceful, -but often puerile. His literary taste was not -keen; when the Circle sat wrapt in admiration just -after Corneille had read them <i>Polyeucte</i>, Voiture -hurried to the author's side and told him that he -"would better go home and lock that drama up in -his bureau drawer."</p> - -<p>Toward the end of his life Voiture dyed both -hair and beard, and his manner was just what -it had been in his youth; he could not realise -that he was not a boy; it was said that he was<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136">[136]</a></span> -"tiresome, because he did not know how to grow -old."</p> - -<p>His irritable disposition made him a trying -companion, but to his last day he was the "spoiled -child" of Madame de Rambouillet and all the -society of the Salon; he was gay, simple, boyish, -and natural, and the Circle loved him "because he -had none of the affected gravity and the importance -of the other men of letters, and because his -manners were not precise." More than thirty -years after his death Mme. de Sévigné recalled -"his free wit and his charming ways" with delight. -("So much the worse," she said, "for them -who do not understand such things!"<a name="FNanchor_54_54" id="FNanchor_54_54"></a><a href="#Footnote_54_54" class="fnanchor">[54]</a>)</p> - -<p>Voiture might have lived independently and -dispensed with the favours and the benefits which -he solicited. His father was a very successful -business man (he dealt in wines), but in those days -it was customary for literary men to depend upon -other men, and "little Voiture," thinking that it -was a part of his glory to take his share of the -general cake, profited by his social relations, and -stretched his hands out in all directions, receiving -such pensions, benefits, and "offices" as were bestowed -upon all prominent men of letters. His -income was large, and as he was nourished and cared -for by Madame de Rambouillet, he had few expenses.</p> - -<p>Valentin Conrart, the first perpetual Secretary of -the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Académie Française</i>, was the most useful, if not -the most brilliant member of the Salon; he was<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[137]</a></span> -the common sense of the Blue Room: the wise -and discreet friend to whom the most delicate secrets -were fearlessly confided, the unfailing referee -to whom the members of the Circle applied for decisions -of all kinds, from the question of a debated -signification to the pronunciation of a word; naturally -he was somewhat pedagogical; incessant correction -of the works of others had impressed him with -the instincts and the manners of a teacher; to the -younger members of the Circle he was a most -awe-inspiring wiseacre. Conrart bore the mark of -a deep-seated consciousness of Protestantism, and -whether he was speaking, walking, or engaged in his -active duties it was evident that he was absorbed -in reflections concerning his religious origin; people -who had seen him when he was asleep affirmed that -he wore an alert air of cogitation when wrapt in slumber, -and when he was rhyming his little verses to -<em>Alphise</em> or to <em>Lycoris</em> his aspect was the same. His -attitude was logical: he knew that he was a Protestant; -he knew that that fact was a thing that no -man could be expected to forget. In 1647 he wrote -to a fellow coreligionist<a name="FNanchor_55_55" id="FNanchor_55_55"></a><a href="#Footnote_55_55" class="fnanchor">[55]</a>: "As the world regards it, -what a disadvantage it is to be a Huguenot!" -The Académie Française emanated from social -meetings held in Conrart's house and the serious association -could not have had a more suitable cradle.</p> - -<p>It is a pleasure to think of that easy and independent -home, where guests were met with outstretched -hands, where wisdom was dispensed<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[138]</a></span> -without thought of recompense. Conrart was generous -and just, a loyal and indulgent friend who did -good for the love of goodness. The wife of Conrart -was an excellent and worthy creature, who received -dukes and peers and the ladies of the Court -as simply as she received the friends of her youth; -she was not a respecter of persons and she saw no -reason for embarrassment when the Marquise de -Rambouillet wished to dine with her. She took -pride in "pastelles," cordials, and other household -delicacies, which she made and offered to her husband's -friends with her own hands.</p> - -<p>Vaugelas was timid and innocent; misfortune -was his habit; he had always been unfortunate, and -no one expected him to be anything else. He was -very poor; he had been stripped of everything -(even to the pension given him by the King) -as punishment for following Gaston d'Orléans. -Everything that he did turned against him. One -day when he was in great need Mme. de Carignan -told him that she would hire him as tutor; she had -two sons whom she aspired to educate according to -the methods of the Hôtel de Rambouillet. Naturally -the impecunious Vaugelas thanked God for -his rescue. When his pupils were presented to him -he found that one of them was deaf and dumb, the -other was a phenomenal stutterer, barely able to -articulate his name. Vaugelas had been so uniformly -unfortunate that his woes had created a -nervous tension in the minds of the Circle, and -every new report of his afflictions called forth an<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[139]</a></span> -outburst of hysterical laughter from his sympathisers. -The Hôtel de Rambouillet knew his intrinsic -value. Fair Arthénice and her company -essayed to bring him forward, and failed; he was -bashful, an inveterate listener, obstinately silent; in -the Salon he sat with head drooping and with lips -half open, eagerly listening to catch the delicately -turned phrases of the quality, or to surprise some -noble error; a grammatical <i>lapsus</i> stung his keen -perceptions, and he was frequently seen writhing -as if in agony, no one knew why. In a word -he was worthless in a salon,—and the same -must be said of Corneille. Corneille felt that -he was not brilliant, and he never attended the -Salon unless he had written something new; he -read his plays to "the Circle" before he offered -them to the publishers. Men of genius are not -always creditable adjuncts to a salon; Corneille -was known in the fine world as "that fellow Corneille." -As far as his capacity for furnishing the -amount of amusement which all men individually -owe it to their fellows to provide is concerned, it -is enough to say that he was one of the churchwardens -in his parochial district; this fact, like the -accident of birth, may pass as a circumstance extenuating -his involuntary evil. Speaking of the -Salon la Bruyère wrote: "Corneille, another one -who is seen there, is simple, timid, and—when he -talks—a bore; he mistakes one word for another, -and considers his plays good or bad in proportion -to the money he gains by them. He does not<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140">[140]</a></span> -know how to recite poetry, and he cannot read his -own writing."</p> - -<p>In a club of pretty women ten Corneilles would -not have been worth one Antoine Godeau. Godeau -was as diminutive in his verse as in his person; but -he was a fiery fellow and a dashing gallant, always -in love. When he was studying philosophy the -German students in his boarding-house so attached -themselves to his lively ways that they could not -live away from him. The gravest of the bookworms -thought that they could study better in his -presence, and his chambers presented the appearance -of a class-room. He sat enthroned at his -table, and the Germans sat cross-legged around -him blowing clouds from their china pipes and -roaring with laughter at his sallies. He sang, he -rhymed, he drank; he was always cracking his -funny jokes. He was born to love, and as he was -naturally frivolous, his dulcineas were staked out -all over the country awaiting his good pleasure. -Presented to the Circle of the Hôtel de Rambouillet -when he was very young, he paled the star of -"little Voiture." When Voiture was at a distance -from Paris Mlle. de Rambouillet wrote to him: -"There is a man here now who is a head shorter -than you are, and who is, I swear to you, a thousand -times more gallant!"</p> - -<p>Godeau was a conqueror; he had "entrapped -all the successes." Every one was amazed when -it was discovered that he was a bishop, and they -had barely recovered from their amazement when<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[141]</a></span> -it was learned that he was not only a bishop but -a good bishop. He had other titles to distinction -(of one kind or another), "and withal he still -remained" (as Sainte Beuve said) "the foppish -spark of all that world." The only passport required -by the Hôtel de Rambouillet was intellect. -The Circle caressed Sarrazin, despite his baseness, -his knavery, his ignoble marriages, and his -ridiculous appearance, because he was capable of -a pleasant repartee when in general conversation. -George de Scudéry, a "species of captain," -was protected by the Circle because he was an -author. Scudéry was intolerable! his brain cells -were clogged by vanity, he was humming from -morning till night with his head high in the clouds, -beating his ancestors about the ears of any one who -would listen to him, and prating of his "glory," his -tragic comedies, and his epic poem <i>Alaric</i>. He -was on tiptoe with delight because he had eclipsed -Corneille. The Hôtel de Rambouillet smiled upon -Colletet, the clever drunkard who had taken his -three servants to wife, one after the other, and who -had not talent enough to counterbalance his gipsy -squalor. But all passed who could hold a pen. -Many a scruple and many a qualm clamoured in -vain for recognition when the fair creator of the -Circle organised the Salon. Nothing can be created—not -even a salon—without some sacrifice, -and Mme. de Rambouillet laid a firm hand upon -her predilections and made literary merit the only -title to membership in the Salon. Every one knew<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142">[142]</a></span> -the way to the Hôtel de Rambouillet. Every -one but Balzac was seen there. Balzac lived in -a distant department (la Charente), so it is probable -that he knew Mme. de Rambouillet only by -letter, though he is named as an attendant of -the Salon. Had the Salon existed in this day it -is possible that our moderns, who demand a finer -mortar, would have left the coarser pebbles in the -screen, but Mme. de Rambouillet closed her eyes, -put forth her hand, and as blindly as Justice drew -authors out of their obscure corners and placed -them on a footing with the fine flower of the Court -and the choice spirits of the city, with all that was -gay or witty, with all who were possessed of curiosity -concerning the things of the mind. She forced -the frivolous to habituate themselves to serious -things, she compelled the pedants to toss their caps -to the thistles, to cast aside their pretensions and -their long-drawn-out phrases, and to stand forth as -men. No one carried the accoutrements of his -authorship into the Blue Room, no one was permitted -to play the part of "pedant pedantising"; -all was light, rapid, ephemeral; the atmosphere -was fine and clear, and to add to the tranquil aspect -of the scene, several very youthful ladies (the young -daughters of Mme. de Rambouillet and "la pucelle -Priande" among others) were permitted to pass -like butterflies among the thoughtful groups; their -presence completed the illusion of pastoral festivity. -Before that time young girls had never mingled -freely with their elders.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[143]</a></span></p> - -<p>As mixed as the gatherings were, and as radical -as was the social revolution of the Salon, the presence -of innocent youth imposed the tone of careful -propriety. I am not counting "La Belle Paulet" -as an innocent young girl, though she too was of -the Salon. Paulet was called "the lioness" because -of the ardent blonde colour of her hair; she was -young enough, and amiable even to excess, but she -had had too much experience. She was "a bit -of driftwood," one of several of her kind whom -Mme. de Rambouillet had fished from the vortex, -dried, catechised, absolved, and restored to regular -conduct and consideration. Neither do I class -"the worthy Scudéry" among young girls. She -could not have been called "young" at any age. -She was (to quote one of her contemporaries) "a -tall, black, meagre person, with a very long face, -prolix in discourse, with a tone of voice like a -schoolmaster, which is not at all agreeable." Although -Tallemant drew this picture, its lines are -not exaggerated. It is impossible to regard Mlle. -de Scudéry as a young girl. When I say that -there were young girls in the Salon, I have in mind -the daughters of the house, from whom emanated -excess of delicacy, precocity, and decadence, Julie -d'Angennes, for whom was created "the garland of -Julie," who became Mme. Montausier, Angélique de -Rambouillet,—the first of de Grignan's three wives,—and -Mlle. de Bourbon, who married de Longueville, -and at a later day was known as the heroine -of the Hôtel-de-Ville. We must not imagine that a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[144]</a></span> -reception at the Hôtel de Rambouillet was a convocation -like a seance at the Institute of France. At -such an assembly a de Sévigné, a Paulet, a Lafayette -would have been out of place, nor would -they have consented to sit like students in class discussing -whether it were better to say <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">avoine</i> and -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">sarge</i> (the pronunciation given by the Court) or -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">aveine</i> and <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">serge</i> (the pronunciation used by the -grain-handlers in the hay-market). Neither would -it have been worth while to collect such spirits had -the sole object been a discussion of the last new -book, or the last new play; but literary and grammatical -questions were rocks in the seas on which -the brilliant explorer of the Blue Room had set -sail and on the rocks she had planted her buoys. -She navigated sagaciously, taking the sun, sounding -and shaping her course to avoid danger. "Assaults -of eloquence," however important, were cut -short before they resembled the lessons of the -schoolroom. Before the innovation of the Salon, -the critics had dealt out discipline with heavy -hands. We are confounded by the solemnity with -which Conrart informed Balzac of a "tournament" -between Voiture and Chapelain on the subject of -one of Ariosto's comedies, when "decisions" were -rendered with all the precision of legal sentences by -"the hermit of Angoumois."<a name="FNanchor_56_56" id="FNanchor_56_56"></a><a href="#Footnote_56_56" class="fnanchor">[56]</a> So manifest a waste -of energy proved that it was time for the world's -people to interfere, to restrain the savants from taking -to heart things which were not worth their pains.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[145]</a></span></p> - -<p>The authors produced their plays or their poems -and carried their manuscripts to the Hôtel de Rambouillet, -where they read them in the presence of -the company, and the Circle listened, approved, -criticised, and exchanged opinions. All of Corneille's -masterpieces cleared that port in disguise; -their creator presenting them as the works of a -strange author. When he read <cite>Polyeucte</cite> the Salon -supposed that the drama was the work of a person -unknown to them; all listened intently and criticised -freely. No one suspected the real author, and -when the last word was read, Voiture made haste -to warn Corneille that he "would better lock up the -play." When the Circle first heard the <em>Cid</em> they -acclaimed it, and declared that it was the work of -genius. Richelieu objected to it, and the Salon -defended it against him. Books and plays were -not the only subjects of discussion; in the Blue -Room letters from the absent were read to the -company, verses were improvised and declaimed, -plays were enacted, and delicately refined expressions -were sought with which to clothe the sentiment -and the passion of love. Great progress was -made in the exercise of wit, and at times the Circle, -excited by the clash of mind with mind, exhibited -the effervescent joy of children at play when fun -runs riot in the last moment of recess, before the -bell rings to recall them to the schoolroom. At -such a time the members of the Circle were marshalled -back to order and set down before the -savants to contemplate the "ologies." Such was<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[146]</a></span> -the first period of the reign of the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i>, a -period whose history La Bruyère gathered from -the recitals of the old men of that day.</p> - -<p>Voiture and Sarrazin were born for their century, -and they appeared just at the time when they -might have been expected; had they come forward -with less precipitation they would have been -too late; it is probable that had they come in our -day they would have been just what they were at -their own epoch. When they came upon the stage -the light, sparkling conversations, the "circles" of -meditative and critical groups convened to argue -the literary and æsthetic questions of the day, had -vanished, with the finely marked differences, the -spiritual jests, the coquettish meanings hidden -amidst the overshadowing gravity of serious discussion.</p> - -<p>The Circle no longer formed little parties admitting -only the men who had proved their title to -intellect; but the fame of the first Salon de Rambouillet—or, -to speak better, the fame of the -ideal Salon of the world—still clung to its successor. -As children listen to tales told by their grandfathers, -the delicate mind of Voiture listened to -the story of those first days; Sarrazin the Gross -might scoff, but Voiture gloried in the thought -that it had all been true; the lights, the music, the -merry jests, the spring flowers growing in the -autumn, the flashing lances of the spirit, the gay -letters from the absent.... And well might -he glory! there had, in truth, been one supreme<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147">[147]</a></span> -moment in the literary life of France, a moment -as rapid, as fleeting as a smile, lost even as it came, -never to appear again until long after the pigmy -body which enshrined the winged soul that loved -to dream of it had turned to dust.</p> - -<p>The memory of that first Salon was still so -vivid that Saint Simon wrote: "The Hôtel de -Rambouillet was the trysting-place of all then existent -of knowledge and of wit; it was a redoubtable -tribunal, where the world and the Court were -brought to judgment."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>But the followers of Arthénice did not shrink -from mundane pleasures. In the gracious presence -of their hostess the young people danced -from love of action, laughed from love of -laughter, and, dressed to represent the heroes and -the heroines of <cite>Astrée</cite>, or to represent the tradesmen -of Paris, went into the country on picnics, -and enacted plays for the amusement of their -guests, playing all the pranks of collegians in -vacation. One day when they were all at the -Château de Rambouillet the Comte de Guiche ate -a great many mushrooms. In the night one of -the gay party stole into his room and "took in" -all the seams in his garments. In the morning it -was impossible for de Guiche to dress; everything -was too narrow to be buttoned; in vain he tugged -at the edges of his garments,—nothing would -come together; the Comte was racked by anxiety. -"Can it be," he asked anxiously, "because<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148">[148]</a></span> -I ate too many mushrooms? Can it be possible -that I am bloated?" His friends answered that -it might well be possible. "You know," said -they, "that you ate till you were fit to burst." De -Guiche hurried to his mirror, and when he saw his -apparently swollen body and the gaps in his clothing, -he trembled, and declared that he was dying; -as he was livid and about to swoon, his friends, -thinking that the jest had gone far enough, undeceived -him. Mme. de Rambouillet was very -fond of inventing surprises for her friends, but her -jests were of a more gallant character. One day -while they were at the Château de Rambouillet -she proposed to the Bishop de Lisieux, who was -one of her guests, to walk into the fields adjoining -the château, where there was, as she said, a -circle of natural rocks set among great trees. -The Bishop accepted her invitation, and history -tells us that "when he was so near the rocks -that he could distinguish them through the trees, -he perceived in various places, as if scattered -about—[I hardly know how to tell it]—objects -fairly white and glistening! As he advanced it -seemed to him that he could discern figures of -women in the guise of nymphs. The Marquise -insisted that she could not see anything but trees -and rocks, but on advancing to the spot they -found—Mlle. de Rambouillet and the other -young ladies of the house arrayed, and very effectively, -as nymphs; they were seated upon the -rocks, where they made the most agreeable of pictures."<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[149]</a></span> -The good fellow was so charmed with the -pleasantry that thereafter he never saw "fair -Arthénice" without speaking of "the Rocks of -Rambouillet."<a name="FNanchor_57_57" id="FNanchor_57_57"></a><a href="#Footnote_57_57" class="fnanchor">[57]</a> The Bishop de Lisieux was an excellent -priest; decorum did not oppose such surprises, -even when the one surprised was a bishop. -One day when the ladies were disguised to represent -shepherdesses, de Richelieu's brother, the -Archbishop of Lyons, appeared among them in -the dress of a shepherd.</p> - -<p>One of the most agreeable of Voiture's letters -(addressed to a cardinal)<a name="FNanchor_58_58" id="FNanchor_58_58"></a><a href="#Footnote_58_58" class="fnanchor">[58]</a> contains an account of -a trip that he had made into the country with the -Demoiselles de Rambouillet and de Bourbon, chaperoned -by "Madame the Princess," mother of the -great Condé; Mlle. Paulet (the bit of driftwood) -and several others were of the party.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>We departed from Paris about six o'clock in the evening, -[wrote Voiture], to go to La Barre,<a name="FNanchor_59_59" id="FNanchor_59_59"></a><a href="#Footnote_59_59" class="fnanchor">[59]</a> where Mme. de Vigean -was to give collation to Madame the Princess.... We -arrived at La Barre and entered an audience-room in which -there was nothing but a carpet of roses and of orange blossoms -for us to walk upon. After having admired this magnificence, -Madame the Princess wished to visit the promenade -halls while we were waiting for supper. The sun was setting -in a cloud of gold and azure, and there was only enough of it -left to give a soft and misty light. The wind had gone down, -it was cool and pleasant, and it seemed to us that earth and -heaven had met to favour Mme. de Vigean's wish to feast the -most beautiful Princess in the world.</p></blockquote> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[150]</a></span></p> -<blockquote> - -<p>Having passed a large parterre, and great gardens, all full -of orange trees, we arrived at a wood which the sunlight had -not entered in more than an hundred years, until it entered -there (in the person of Madame). At the foot of an avenue -so long that we could not fathom its vista with our eyes until -we had reached the end of it, we found a fountain which threw -out more water than was ever thrown by all the fountains of -Tivoli put together. Around the fountain were ranged twenty-four -violinists with their violins, and their music was hardly -able to cover the music of the fountain. When we drew near -them we discovered a niche in the palisado, and in the niche -was a Diana eleven or twelve years old, more beautiful than -any goddess of the forests of Greece or of Thessaly. She -bore her arrows in her eyes, and all the rays of the halo of her -brother surrounded her. In another niche was one of Diana's -nymphs, beautiful and sweet enough to attend Diana. They -who doubt fables said that the two visions were only Mlle. de -Bourbon and la Pucelle Priande; and, to tell the truth, there -was some ground for their belief, for even we who have always -put faith in fables, we who knew that we were looking upon a -supernatural vision, recognised a close resemblance. Every -one was standing motionless and speechless, with admiration -for all the objects so astonishing both to ear and to eye, when -suddenly the goddess sprang from her niche and with grace -that cannot be described, began a dance around the fountain -which lasted some time, and in which every one joined.</p></blockquote> - -<p>(Here Voiture, who was under obligations to his -correspondent, Cardinal de La Valette, represents -himself as having wept because the Cardinal was -not there. According to Voiture's account he communicated -his grief to all the company.)</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>... And I should have wept, and, in fact, we all should -have mourned too long, had not the violins quickly played a -saraband so gay that every one sprang up and danced as joyously -as if there had been no mourning; and thus, jumping,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[151]</a></span> -dancing, whirling, pirouetting, and capering, we arrived at the -house, where we found a table dressed as delicately as if the -faëries had served it. And now, Monseigneur, I come to a -part of the adventure which cannot be described! Truly, -there are no colours nor any figures of rhetoric to represent -the six kinds of luscious soups, all different, which were first -placed before us before anything else was served. And among -other things were twelve different kinds of meats, under the -most unimaginable disguises, such as no one had ever heard of, -and of which not one of us has learned the name to this day! -As we were leaving the table the music of the violins called us -quickly up the stairs, and when we reached the upper floor we -found an audience-room turned into a ball-room, so well lighted -that it seemed to us that the sun, which had entirely disappeared -from earth, had gone around in some unknown way -and climbed up there to shine upon us and to make it as -bright as any daylight ever seen. There the dance began -anew, and even more perfectly than when we had danced -around the fountain; and more magnificent than all else, -Monseigneur, is this, that <i>I danced there!</i> Mlle. de Bourbon -said that, truth to tell, I danced badly, but that doubtless I -should make an excellent swordsman, because, at the end of -every cadence, I straightened as if to fall back on guard.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The fête ended in a display of fireworks, after -which the company "took the road" for Paris by -the light of twenty flambeaux, singing with all the -strength of their lungs. When they reached the -village of La Villette they caught up with the violinists, -who had started for the city as soon as the -dance was ended and before the party left the château. -One of the gayest of the company insisted -that the violinists should play, and that they should -dance right there in the street of the village. It -was between two and three o'clock in the morning<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[152]</a></span> -and Voiture was tired out; he "blessed Heaven" -when it was discovered that the violins had been -left at La Barre.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>At last [Voiture wrote to the Cardinal] we reached Paris.... -Impenetrable darkness wrapped the city, silence and -solitude lay on every hand, the streets were deserted, and we -saw no people, but now and then small animals, frightened -by the glaring flames of our torches, fled before us, and we -saw them hiding on the shadowy corners.</p></blockquote> - -<p>We learn from this letter how the companions of -the Hôtel de Rambouillet passed their evenings.</p> - -<p>In Paris and in the distant provinces there were -many imitations of the Salon; the germs of the -enterprise had taken root all over France with -literary results, which became the subject of serious -study. The political consequences of the literary -and social innovations claimed less attention. The -domestication of the nobility originated in the -Salon. When delicacy of manner was introduced -as obligatory, the nobleman was in full possession -of the rights of power; he could hunt and torture -animals and inferior men, he could make war upon -his neighbours, he could live in egotistical isolation, -enjoying the luxuries bestowed by his seigniory, -while the lower orders died of hunger at his door, -because his rank was manifested by his freedom -from rules which bound classes below his quality. -The diversions introduced at the Salon de Rambouillet -exacted sacrifice of self to the convenience -of others. In the abstract this was an excellent -thing, but its reaction was felt by the aristocracy;<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[153]</a></span> -from restraining their selfishness the gallant courtiers -passed on to the self-renunciation of the -ancient Crusaders, and when Louis XIV. saw fit -(for his own reasons) to turn his nobles into peaceful -courtiers and grand barons of the ante-chamber, -he found that his work had all been done; it -was not possible to convert his warriors into courtiers, -for he had no warriors; all the warriors had -turned to knights of the carpet; their swords were -wreathed with roses, and the ringing notes which -had called men to arms had changed to the sighing -murmurs of Durandarte; every man sat in a perfumed -bower busily employed in making "sonnets -to his mistress's eyebrows." Louis XIV. fumed because -his Court resembled a salon; the incomparable -Arthénice had given the restless cavaliers a -taste for fine conversation and innocent pleasures, -and by doing so she had minced the King's spoonmeat -too fine; the absolute monarch could only -modify a transformation accomplished independent -of his will.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_152.jpg" alt="FROM AN OLD PRINT" title="LOUIS XIII., KING OF FRANCE AND OF NAVARRE" /> -<div class="caption"><p>LOUIS XIII., KING OF FRANCE AND OF NAVARRE</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM AN OLD PRINT</p></div> -</div> - -<p>We have now to determine how much of their -false exalted sentiment and their false ambition the -princes, the chevaliers of the Fronde, and all the -gallants of the quality owed to the dramatic theatre -of their day; that estimated, we shall have gained -a fair idea of the chief elements of the social body -idealised by Corneille,—of all the elements save -one, the element of Religion; that was a thing -apart, to be considered especially and in its own -time.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154">[154]</a></span></p> - - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III"></a>CHAPTER III</h2> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I. The Earliest Influences of the Theatre—II. Mademoiselle and the -School of Corneille—III. Marriage Projects—IV. The Cinq-Mars -Affair—Close of the Reign.</p></blockquote> - - -<p class="p3">I</p> - -<p><span class="drop-cap">L</span><span class="smcap">a Grande Mademoiselle</span> and her -companions cherished the still existent passion -for the theatre, which is a characteristic of the -French people. The great received comedians, or -actors, in their palaces; the palace had audience-rooms -prepared to permit of the presentation of -theatrical plays; in the summer, when the social -world went into the country, the comedians accompanied -or followed them to their châteaux. Society -required the diversion of the play when it -journeyed either for pleasure or for duty, and play-acting, -whatever its quality and whatever the subject -of its action, elicited the indulgent satisfaction -and the applause that it elicits to-day, be its subject -and its quality good or bad. At the end of the -sixteenth century, play-actors superseded the magicians -who until that time had afforded public -amusement; the people hailed the change with -enthusiasm; and the innovation prevailed. The -courtiers loved the spectacle, and from the beginning -of the reign of Louis XIII. the Court and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156">[156]</a></span> -the comedy were inseparable. Louis XIII. had -witnessed the play in early infancy. In 1614, when -the King and the Court went upon a journey they -lingered upon the road between Paris and Nantes -six weeks, halting to witness the plays then being -given in the cities along their route, and receiving -their favourite actors in their own lodgings. The -King was less than thirteen years old, yet it -is stated in the journal kept by Hérouard, the -King's physician, that the child was regaled with -theatrical plays throughout his journey. At Tours -he was taken to the Abbey of Saint Julian to witness -the French comedy given by de Courtenvaut, -who lodged at the abbey. At Paris the little -King went to the palace with the Queen to see a -play given by the pupils of the Jesuit Brothers. -At Loudun the King ordered a play, and it was -given in his own house; at La Flèche he -attended three theatrical entertainments in one -day. To quote from the doctor's (Hérouard's) -journal:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The King attended mass and from mass he went to the -Jesuits' college, where he saw the collegians play and recite -a pastoral. After dinner he returned to the college of the -Jesuits, where in the great hall, the tragedy of <cite>Godefroy -de Bouillon</cite> was represented; then in the grand alley of the -park, at four o'clock, the comedy of <cite>Clorínde</cite> was played before -the Queen.</p></blockquote> - -<p>When Gaston d'Orléans took his young wife to -Chantilly immediately after his marriage, he sent -for a troupe of comedians, who went to the château<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[155]</a></span> -with their band and with violins,—"thus," reports -a contemporary, "rendering the little journey very -diverting." On the occasion already mentioned, -when the same Prince conducted his daughter to -Tours so that he might present Louison Roger to -her, he did not permit the little Princess to languish -for the theatre. "Monsieur sent for the comedians," -wrote Mademoiselle, "and we had the -comedy nearly every day."<a name="FNanchor_60_60" id="FNanchor_60_60"></a><a href="#Footnote_60_60" class="fnanchor">[60]</a> When Monsieur returned -to his château in Blois his troupe followed -him. When Mademoiselle returned to the Tuileries -(November, 1637) she found a private theatre in -every house to which she was invited.</p> - -<p>Actors worked without respite; they had no -vacations; they played in the French, in the -Spanish, and in the Italian languages; and English -comedy also, played by English actors, was seen in -Paris. Richelieu's theatre in the Hôtel de Richelieu<a name="FNanchor_61_61" id="FNanchor_61_61"></a><a href="#Footnote_61_61" class="fnanchor">[61]</a> -"was provided with two audience halls,—one -large, the other small. Both were luxuriously -mounted. The decorations and the costumes of -the actors displayed such magnificence that the -audience murmured with delight."</p> - -<p>The <cite>Gazette de France</cite>, which bestowed nothing -but an occasional casual notice upon the royal -theatre of the King's palace, dilated admiringly -upon the Théâtre de Richelieu and the marvels -with which the Cardinal regaled his guests. The -<cite>Gazette</cite> reported the occasion of the presentation<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[157]</a></span> -of "the excellent comedy written by Sieur Baro," -and the ballet which followed it.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The ballet was interlaced by a double collation. One part -of the collation was composed of the rarest and most delicious -of fruits; the other part was composed of confitures in -little baskets, which eighteen dancing pages presented to the -guests. The baskets were all trimmed with English ribands -and with golden and silvern tissue. The pages presented the -baskets to the lords and then the lords distributed them -among the ladies.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Mademoiselle was one of the company, and she -received her basket with profound satisfaction. -Three days after the first comedy of Baro was played -the Court again visited the Cardinal's theatre to -witness a second play by the same author. Baro -was a well-known literary hack. He had been -d'Urfé's secretary and had continued <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> when -d'Urfé laid down his pen. The success of the -second representation was phenomenal.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The ornamentation of the theatre [commented the <cite>Gazette</cite>], -the pretty, ingenious tricks invented by the author, the excellences -of the verse ... the ravishing concert of the -lutes, the harpsichords, and the other instruments, the elocution, -the gestures, and the costumes of the actors compromised -the honour of all the plays that have been seen either in past -centuries or in our own century.</p></blockquote> - -<p>We consider Baro's plays insipid, but they were -very successful in their day.</p> - -<p>February 19th was a gala day at the Théâtre de -Richelieu. A fête was given in honour of the Duke -of Parma. First of all they gave a very fine<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[158]</a></span> -comedy, with complete change of play, with interludes; -lutes, spinnets, viols, and violins were -played.</p> - -<p>The <cite>Gazette de France</cite> tells us that there was a -ballet, and then a supper, at which the guests saw -"the fine buffet, all of white silver," which the -Cardinal gave to the King some years later. -Though the theatre was the chief amusement in -1636, the theatrical representations and ballets, -"interlaced by collations" and by interludes, were -considered a good deal of dancing and a good deal -of play-acting for a priest, even when disseminated -over a period of three weeks.</p> - -<p>The conclusion of the report in the <cite>Gazette</cite> -proved that Richelieu was conscious of his acts, -and that he did not disdain to justify himself. -"Without flattering his Eminence," said the -<i>Gazette</i>, "it may be said that all which takes place -by his orders is always in conformity with reason -and with right, and that the duties which he renders -to the State never conflict with those that -all Christians owe—and which he, in particular, -owes—to the Church." Mademoiselle attended -all the fêtes, and she was less than ten years old. -She, herself, gave a ball and a comedy in honour of -the Queen in the palace of the Tuileries.</p> - -<p>In that day children in their nurses' arms were -taken to see the play. A contemporary engraving -depicts the royal family at the theatre in -Richelieu's palace. The "hall" is in the form of an -immense salon much longer than it is broad; at<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[159]</a></span> -one end is the stage, raised by five steps; along -the walls are two ranks of galleries for the invited -guests. The women sit in the lower gallery, the -men sit above them; seats have been brought into -the centre of the hall, and on them sit Louis XIII. -and his family. In the picture Monsieur is sitting -on the King's left hand. On Anne of Austria's -right hand, in a little arm-chair made for a child, -sits the Dauphin, who must have been three, or -possibly four, years old at that time. On the right -hand of the Queen, beyond the Dauphin, stands a -woman holding a great doll-like infant, the brother -of the Dauphin.</p> - -<p>The playgoing infantine assiduity, the custom of -carrying children in swaddling bands to the theatre -to witness comedies of every species, good or bad, -assured the theatre of a position in public education; -the children of the aristocracy drank in the -drama with eye and ear—if I dare express myself -thus—and at an age when reason was not present -to correct the effect of impressions. The repertory -of the theatre was one of the most dramatically -romantic and sentimental ever known to France and -the one of all others best fitted to turn a generation -from sound reality to false and fantastic visions.</p> - -<p>The general movement of that day may be classed -as an aberration due to the fact that the drama -was a new pleasure; the inconveniences attendant -upon its influences had not been recognised, but it -is probable that some of the condemnations uttered -by the moralists and by the preachers of the seventeenth<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[160]</a></span> -century in the name of religion and of decency -were called forth by the presence of children -at the play; the men who were most bitter in denunciations -which amaze us by the excess of their -hostility spoke from experience and had reason for -their bitterness. The Prince de Conti, the brother -of the great Condé, might have furnished unique -commentaries on the criticisms of the day, had he -cared to recall a treatise which he wrote (<cite>The -Plays of the Theatre, and Spectacles</cite>) when he was -emerging from a youth far from edifying.</p> - -<p>The treatise was written for the benefit of light-minded -people, who saw no harm in playgoing. -In the beginning of his work the Prince said: -"I hope to prove that comedy in its present condition -is not the innocent amusement that it is considered; -I hope to prove that a true Christian must -regard it as an evil." As his treatise progressed it -became explicit; his arraignment was animated by -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>; he declared that a play free from the -sentimentality and the passions of love and from -the thoughts and the actions of lovers was not -acceptable to the public. Love forms the foundation -of the play, and therefore it must be discussed -freely from its first principles. Now a play, however -fine its dramatic composition may be, can -have no other effect than to disgust refined minds -and to ruin the reputations of its actors, unless the -love on which it is based is represented delicately, -and in a tenderly impassioned manner. And as -few actors are capable of producing a perfect<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[161]</a></span> -representation of the most subtle and many-sided of -passions, the general effect of our comedy is deteriorating. -As its basis and its structure depend -upon one single subject, it can have but one subject -of interest. Our comedies are considered commendable -according to their manners of discussing -love; the divers beauties of our dramas consist in -their various exposures of the intimate effects of -love. Love is the theme, and the mind must -either accept it and work upon it or rest unemployed; -there is no choice; no other theme is -given. When love is not the chief agent, it serves -as an irritant to draw out some other passion and -to make sensuous display not only possible but -cogent, if not imperatively necessary; be the play -what it may, love is represented as the "passion -ruling the heart." Conti opposed to the popular -"corruption of the drama" the grave lessons offered -by the great tragedies. Segrais treated the subject -in the same way; he said: "During more than forty -years nearly all of the subjects of our plays have been -drawn from <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>, and, generally speaking, the dramatists -have been satisfied with their work if they -have changed to verse the phrases which d'Urfé -put in the mouths of his characters in plain prose."</p> - -<p>Segrais exaggerated. <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> did not furnish -"nearly all" of the subjects of the plays; but the -extraordinary importance of stage love and of stage -lovers was drawn from <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>, and, despite the temporary -reaction due to Corneille, <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> persuaded -the great body of French society that there was<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162">[162]</a></span> -nothing pathetic in the world but love, and neither -our dramatists nor our moralists have been able to -break away from an error which singularly circumscribes -their art. Love is now the subject of the -romance and of the play, as it was in the early -days of La Grande Mademoiselle.</p> - -<p>Invitations to the Louvre or to the homes of -the great were not too easy to procure, and there -were many people who never entered the private -theatres; but there were two "paying theatres," or -theatres to which the public were admitted on paying -a fixed price; one of the two houses was the -Hôtel de Bourgogne, which stood in the rue Mauconseil, -between the rue Montmartre and the rue -Saint Denis; the other was the Théâtre du Marais, -in the Veille rue du Temple. The Marais was -then an out-of-the-way quarter, very dangerous -after nightfall. I have not spoken of this place -until now, because it was almost impossible for any -one in the polite society of which I have written to -visit it. No woman dared to enter the Marais unless -she lived there. The woman of quality could not -even think of entering it except on gala days, when -the Court of France went in a body to visit the play-actors -in their own quarter. At ordinary times the -Hôtel de Bourgogne "was neither a good place -nor a safe place." In form and arrangement the -audience hall was like the hall of the Théâtre de -Richelieu; two galleries, one above the other, ran -the whole length of the walls, and in certain places -the walls were connected with the gallery to form<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[163]</a></span> -stalls or boxes. The parterre was a vast space in -which people watched the play standing. In that -part of the theatre there were no seats. An hour, -or perhaps two hours, before the play began the -great unclean space was filled with the most boisterous -and ungovernable representatives of the -dregs of Paris and with all the active members -of the lesser classes<a name="FNanchor_62_62" id="FNanchor_62_62"></a><a href="#Footnote_62_62" class="fnanchor">[62]</a>: students, pages, lackeys, artisans, -drunkards, the scum of the canaille, and professional -thieves; and there, on the floor of the -parterre, they gambled, lunched, drank, and fought -each other with stones, with swords, or with any -weapon which came to hand; and as they gratified -their appetites or abused their neighbours, all strove -in the way best known to them to protect their -purses and to keep the thieves from carrying off -their cloaks. The air resounded with shouts, -shrieks, songs, and obscene apostrophes. Contemporary -writers regarded everything as fit for the record, -and therefore in all our researches we come -upon heartrending evidences of inenarrable depravity. -The charivari of the assistants of the pit -continued throughout the performance, ending only -when the vociferous throngs were turned into the -streets so that the theatre might be locked for the -night. At their quietest the spectators of the parterre -were noisy and obstreperous. To quote one -of their chroniclers<a name="FNanchor_63_63" id="FNanchor_63_63"></a><a href="#Footnote_63_63" class="fnanchor">[63]</a>:</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[164]</a></span></p> - -<p>"In their most perfect repose they continued to -talk, to whistle, and to scream without ceasing; -they did not care at all to hear what the comedians -were saying." We differ from the chroniclers as -to this last opinion; it is probable that they cared -only too much; it was to please the rabble that -abominably gross farces were played in the paying -theatres. Tragedy was relished only by the higher -classes.</p> - -<p>An eye-witness, the Abbé d'Aubignac,<a name="FNanchor_64_64" id="FNanchor_64_64"></a><a href="#Footnote_64_64" class="fnanchor">[64]</a> wrote: -"We see that tragedies are liked better than comedies -at the Court of France; while among the lesser -people comedies, and even farces and unclean -buffooneries are considered more amusing than -tragedies." The same d'Aubignac wrote in or -about the year 1666: "Fifty years ago an honest -woman dared not go to the theatre."<a name="FNanchor_65_65" id="FNanchor_65_65"></a><a href="#Footnote_65_65" class="fnanchor">[65]</a> Between -the universally ardent desire to enjoy the fashionable -form of pleasure and the efforts to make the -stage less licentious the purification of the drama -was accomplished.</p> - -<p>The increasing delicacy of the public taste demanded -a reform, and in deference to it the moral -atmosphere of both of the popular theatres was renewed -at the same time; a new and decent repertory -was adopted, and the foul programme of the -past was cast away. Popular feeling acclaimed -the change and hastened the accomplishment of the -reformation.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[165]</a></span></p> - -<p>At the time when the <em>Cid</em><a name="FNanchor_66_66" id="FNanchor_66_66"></a><a href="#Footnote_66_66" class="fnanchor">[66]</a> was played the lower -classes had ceased to rule the paying theatres; the -masses went out of Paris for their pleasure; to the -fairs of Saint Laurent and Saint Germain, and to -the entertainments on the Pont-Neuf or the Place -Dauphine; they crowded around the trestled -planks, they hung about the stands of the charlatans, -the buffoons, and the trick players. The paying -theatres were filled by the upper middle classes. -Women who had not dared to go to the play in -1620 attended the theatre of the Hôtel de Bourgogne -as freely as they would have attended or as -they did attend the Luxembourg.<a name="FNanchor_67_67" id="FNanchor_67_67"></a><a href="#Footnote_67_67" class="fnanchor">[67]</a> The fine world -of the quality had found its way to the theatre of -the Marais; the <em>Cid</em> was in course of representation -when the stage of the Marais and the courtiers -thronged to the obscure quarter to witness its -marvels. The <em>Cid</em> was played in the private theatres -as well as in the Hôtel de Bourgogne. M. -Lanson tells us that the comedians were summoned -to the Louvre three times and twice to the -Hôtel de Richelieu, but the great were too impatient -to wait for the play to come to them, they ran to -meet it; every one longed to see it not at a future -time but on the instant, and therefore they flocked -to the Veille rue du Temple.</p> - -<p>In 1637 (18th January) Mondory, the actor, who -played the part of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Rodrigue</i>, wrote to Balzac:</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[166]</a></span></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Last night they who are usually seen in the Gold Room and -on seats bearing the fleur-de-lys, were visible upon our benches -not singly but in groups. At our doors the crowd was so -great, and our place was so small, that the nooks which ordinarily -serve as recesses for the pages, were reserved for the -Knights of the Saint Esprit; and the whole scene was bedight -with Chevaliers of the Order.</p></blockquote> - -<p>All women could attend the play at will; and -they all ardently wished to attend it, not once but -always. They who saw it at Court, or at the -houses of the great, were none the less anxious to -frequent the paying theatres, where, though the -scene had been purged of many of its abuses, the -spectacle differed essentially from that presented to -the great. Many distinct peculiarities of the old -plays had been retained; added to that was the -novelty of the place, and the lack of courtly ceremony, -and the diversion afforded two different spectacles: -the play and the audience. Like the children -of the great, the wives and the daughters of the inferior -classes abused their privilege and visited the -theatre incessantly and the rich and the poor suffered -from the influences of the superficial amusement. -The play tended to deceive the mind, and -to give a false impression of the aims and the needs -of life. The majority of women were ignorant; -they had never learned anything. If they could -read they read works of fiction, and their literature -was calculated to foster illusions. Exaltedly idealistic -as <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i> had been, the writings of La Calprenède, -de Gomberville, and others of their school -were still more sentimentally romantic; compared<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[167]</a></span> -with his successors, Honoré d'Urfé was a realist. -The influence of the theatre was shown in the intellectual -development of woman, the imagination -of all classes was encouraged, the more useful mental -agents were neglected, and the minds of the -people were visibly weak and ill-balanced; the general -impulse was to seek adventures on any road and -at any price. The thirst for unknown sensations -was a fully developed desire in their day, so we cannot -with justice class it as a "curiosity" emanating -from the inventive imaginations of the decadents.</p> - -<p>The writer, Pierre Costar, wilfully lingered three -weeks in a tertian fever so that he might enjoy -the sickly dreams which accompanied the recurrent -paroxysms of the disease. In our day Pierre Costar -would be an opium-eater, or a morphinomaniac.</p> - - -<p class="p3">II</p> - -<p>La Grande Mademoiselle owed much of her -turn of mind to the dramatic plays that she had -watched from infancy. I doubt if she was given -any lessons in history, or that she had any lessons -of the kind before she reached her twenty-fifth -year, when she acquired a taste for reading. All -that she knew of history had been gleaned by -her from the tragedies that she had seen at the -theatre, and as she was refractory to the sentiment -of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>, it cannot be inferred that she had -learned much from d'Urfé; so it may be said that -Corneille was her teacher in all branches of learning, -that no one of that time was in deeper debt -to the influence that he exerted over minds, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[168]</a></span> -that no one so plainly manifested his influence. -From the education afforded by Corneille came -good and evil mingled. As we follow the course -of Mademoiselle's life we are forced to admit that -however high and noble were the ideas sown -broadcast by Corneille, they were not always devoid -of inconveniences when they fell among people -whose experimental knowledge and practicality -were inferior to their susceptibility to impressions.</p> - -<p>In the years which followed the advent of the -<em>Cid</em> Corneille was the literary head of France; he -had discovered the French scene through the influence -of d'Urfé, but his power was his own, and it was -an inherent power; he was the creator of a tendency.</p> - -<p>The unclean farce, which delighted the lockpickers -and the gamblers of the Paris of those -days, has no place here, because it has no place in -literature. When "good company" invaded the -paying theatres the farce followed the canaille -and took its place upon the trestled stages of the -Pont-Neuf. The farce played a part of its own, -in a world unknown to Mademoiselle; but the -pastoral demands our attention, not only because -it was in high favour in Mademoiselle's society, but -because Corneille exerted his influence against it.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_168.jpg" alt="FROM AN ENGRAVING OF THE PAINTING BY LEBRUN" title="CORNEILLE" /> -<div class="caption"><p>CORNEILLE</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM AN ENGRAVING OF THE PAINTING BY LEBRUN</p></div> -</div> - -<p>In the pastoral, love took possession of the -stage, as it had been announced to do, in the play -which opened the way for its successors, Tasso's -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Aminta</i>.<a name="FNanchor_68_68" id="FNanchor_68_68"></a><a href="#Footnote_68_68" class="fnanchor">[68]</a> In the prologue the son of Venus appeared<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169">[169]</a></span> -disguised as a shepherd, and declaimed, for -the benefit of the other shepherds, a discourse -which, little by little, became the programme of all -imaginative literature:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>To-day these forests shall he heard speaking of love in a -new way.... I will inspire gross hearts with noble -sentiments; I will subdue their language and make soft their -voices; for, wherever I may be, I still am Love; in shepherds -as in heroes. I establish, if so it please me, equality in all -conditions, no matter how unequal; and my supreme glory, -and the miracle of all my power, is to change the rustic -musettes into sounding lyres.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Modern poets and novelists do not insist that -all men are equal in passion as they are equal -in suffering and in death; but the people of the -nineteenth century fully believed in such equality. -George Sand expresses her real feelings in <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">La -Petite Fadette</i>; and Pouvillon meant all that he -said in <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Les Antibel</i>. The contemporaries of -Louis XIII. looked askance upon such theories; -in their opinion the love, like the suffering, of the -inferior was below the conception of the quality, a -thing as hard for the noble mind to grasp as the -invisible movement of life in an atom; to be ignorant -of the needs, the hopes, the anguish of inferiors -was one of the first proofs of exalted nobility. -But the nobles knew that the shepherds of the dramatic -stage were gentlemen travestied, and, therefore, -they bestowed the interest formerly accorded -to the heroes of the heroic drama upon the woes -of the mimic Celadons of the comedy. Love<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170">[170]</a></span> -would have become the dramatic pivot had it -not been for Corneille's plays; d'Urfé's characters -were "sighing like a furnace" when Corneille took -command and gave the posts of honour to "the -manly passions"; but not even Corneille could -reach such a point at a bound; he attained it by -strenuous effort. He began his literary career by -writing comedies in verse. Before he produced -the <em>Cid</em>, between the years 1629 and 1636, he -wrote six plays; an inferior serio-comedy, <cite>Clitandre; -or, Innocence Delivered</cite>, and a tragedy, -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Médée</i>. To quote M. Lemaître:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>We now enter a world which is superficial, because its -people have but one object in living: their only occupation, -their only pleasure, their only interest is love; all else, all the -interests of social life are eliminated.... To love.... -To be loved, ... this is the only earthly object, -according to the teachings of the drama, and truly, in the -long run it becomes tiresome! Such a world must be impossible, -because it is artificial; in it hearts are the subjects of -all the quarrels; men fight for them, lose them, find them; -they are stolen, they are restored to their owners, they are -tossed like shuttlecocks through five acts of a play. As they -"chassay" to and fro before the reader he loses all sense of -their identity, and takes one for the other; in the end the -mind is wearied. Excessive handling exhausts the vitality of -the subject, and leaves an impression as of something vapid -and unsavoury. But Corneille was Cornélien even when he -wrote rhymed comedy—he could not have been anything -else—and he never would have fallen into rhyme had he not -wished to make concessions to the prevailing fashion.<a name="FNanchor_69_69" id="FNanchor_69_69"></a><a href="#Footnote_69_69" class="fnanchor">[69]</a></p></blockquote> - -<p>Even when engaged in the most absorbing of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171">[171]</a></span> -intrigues his lovers pretend that they are their -own masters, and that they feel only such sentiments -as they have elected to feel. At that early -day—when <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Médée</i> and <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Clitandre</i> were written—the -culte of the will had germinated; and time -proved that it was predestined to become the chief -director of Corneille's work. In <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">La Place Royale</i> -Alidor says of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Clitandre</i><a name="FNanchor_70_70" id="FNanchor_70_70"></a><a href="#Footnote_70_70" class="fnanchor">[70]</a>:</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">Je veux la liberté dans le milieu des fers,</div> - <div class="i0">Il ne faut pas servir d'objet, qui nous possède.</div> - <div class="i0">Il ne faut point nouirrir d'amour qui ne nous cède,</div> - <div class="i0">Je le hais s'il me force, et, quand j'aime, je veux</div> - <div class="i0">Que de ma volonté dépendent tous mes voeux,</div> - <div class="i0">Que mon feu m'obéisse au lieu de me contraindre,</div> - <div class="i0">Que je puisse, à mon gré, l'enflammer ou l'éteindre,</div> - <div class="i0">Et toujours en état de disposer de moi,</div> - <div class="i0">Donner quand il me plaît et retirer ma foi.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>In Corneille's plays young girls are raised to believe -that they can love, or cease to love, at will; -and their pride is interested. Ambition demands -that they remain in command of their affections. -When old Pleirante perceives that his daughter -Célidée is fond of Lysandre he lets her know that -he has divined her secret and that he approves of -her choice, but Célidée answers proudly:</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">"Monsieur, il est tout, vrai, Son légitime ardor</div> - <div class="i0">A tant gagné sur moi que j'en fais de l'estime . . .</div> - <div class="i0">J'aime son entretien, je cheris sa présence;</div> - <div class="i0">Mais cela n'est enfin qu'un peu de complaisance,</div> - <div class="i0">Qu'un mouvement léger qui passe en moins d'un jour,</div> - <div class="i0">'Vos seuls commandements produiront mon amour.'"</div> - <div class="i12">—<i>Galerie du Palace.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172">[172]</a></span></p> - -<p>Another ingenuous daughter answers, in an offended -tone, when her mother intimates that she -seems to be in love with Alcidon, that she</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"<em>Knows that appearances are against her!</em> But," she -adds, "my heart has gone only as far as I willed that it -should go. It is always free; and it holds in reserve a -sincere regard for everything that my mother prescribes -for me.... My wish is yours, do with me what -you will."—<cite>La Veuve.</cite></p></blockquote> - -<p>The public approved this language. It commended -people who married their daughters without -consulting their hearts. And who shall say -that this way was not the one best fitted for their -times? Faith added to necessity engenders miracles, -and miracles are what morality demands.</p> - -<p>In the great world, the world of the great and -the noble, love was mentioned only as Corneille -regarded it in his plays. Every one was in love,—or -feigned to be in love; on all hands were heard -twitterings as of birds in the springtime; but the -pretty music ceased when marriage was suggested, -for no one had thought of founding a domestic -hearth on a sentiment as personal and as ephemeral -as love. It was understood that the collective body -came first, that the youth—man or maid—belonged -to the family, not to self. Contrary to our way of -looking at things, it was considered meet and right -for the individual to subject himself to a species of -public discipline in everything relating to the essential -actions of private life; the demand for the -public discipline of individuals was based upon the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173">[173]</a></span> -interests of the community. This law—or social -tyranny, if you will—covered marriage, and upon -occasion Parliament did police duty and enforced -it. Parliament forbade the aged Mme. de Pibrac -to marry a seventh time—although her six marriages -had all been accomplished under normal -conditions—because it was supposed that a seventh -marriage might entail ridicule. The reason given -by Parliament when it forbade Mme. de Limoges to -permit her daughter to marry a very honourable -man of whom she was fond, and who was supposed -to be fond of her, was this: that her guardian and -tutor "did not approve of the marriage." The -history of this subject of marriage shows us that -our great grandmothers did not bear malice against -destiny; they were truly Cornéliennes in their conviction -that a decorous control of the will constrained -the sentiments of an high-born soul, and -they married their daughters without scruple, and -without anxiety, as freely and as carelessly as they -had married themselves. Religion was always -close at hand, waiting to staunch the wounds which -social exigencies and family selfishness made in the -hearts of the unfortunate lovers.</p> - -<p>The understanding between Corneille and his -readers was perfect; all that he did pleased the -playgoers, and when, as he was searching for -what we should call "the realistic," he came upon -the idea that he might tempt the public taste by -presenting a play with a Spanish setting, his critics -were well pleased. He wrote the <em>Cid</em> and it was<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174">[174]</a></span> -an unqualified success; but its exotic sentiments -and the generous breadth of its morals excited -vigorous protestations; the piece was met by resistance -like that which greeted the appearance of -Ibsen's <cite>Doll's House</cite>.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>It is known [said Jules Lemaître] that despite the fact -that the popular enthusiasm was prodigious the critics were -implacable. Perhaps the criticisms were not all inspired by -base envy of the author. I believe in the good faith of -the Academy, and to my mind, it seems possible that the -criticisms of the Academy were not considered either partial -or unjust by every one in France; it may be that there were -many thinkers who shared the opinions of Cardinal de Richelieu -and the majority of the Academy.</p></blockquote> - -<p>These lines are truth itself; the <em>Cid</em> was an immoral -play because it was the apotheosis of passionate -love, whose rights it proclaimed at the -expense of the most imperious duties. There was -enough in the <em>Cid</em> to shock any social body holding -firmly fixed opinions adverse to the public -exhibition of intimate personal feelings; there were -such bodies—the Academy was one of them—they -made their own conditions, and the license of the -prevailing morals was insignificant to them. The -national idea of the superior rights of the family -was well-grounded, and when the Academy reproached -Chimène because she was "too sensible -of the feelings of the lover—too conscious of her -love ... too unnatural a daughter"—it did no -more than echo a large number of voices.</p> - -<p>Until he wrote the <em>Cid</em> Corneille was more exigeant<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175">[175]</a></span> -than the Academy. The only thing required -of lovers by the Academy was that they, the lovers, -should govern their feelings and love, or not -love, according to the commands of their families -or their notaries. The Academy asked nothing of -them but to control their actions regardless of -their hearts; surely that was indulgence; beyond -that there remained but one thing more,—to suppress -the mind.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>We do not consider it essential [said <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Sentiments Sur le -Cid</i>] to condemn Chimène because she loved her father's murderer; -her engagement to Rodrigue had preceded the murder, -and it is not within the power of a person to cease loving at -will. We blame her because, while she was pursuing Rodrigue, -ostensibly to his disadvantage, she was making vows -and besieging Heaven in his favour; this was a too evident -betrayal of her natural obligations in favour of her passion; it -was too openly searching for a cloak to cover her wishes, and -making less of the daughter than of the daughter's power to -love her lover; in other words, it was cheapening the natural -character of the daughter to the advantage of the lover.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The example was especially pernicious, because -the genius of the author had rendered it seductive, -and because the part which Chimène played assured -her of the sympathy of the audience. Corneille -was very sensitive to the criticisms of the -Academy, and after the <em>Cid</em> appeared something -more serious than synthetic form was placed under -the knives of the literary doctors; either because -the denunciations of his friends bore fruit, or because, -in the depths of his heart, he harboured the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176">[176]</a></span> -feelings which the unbridled ardour of the <em>Cid</em> had -aroused in the Academy and in the other honest -people "who upbraided him, he retreated from the -field of sentimental romanticism, and turned his -talents in another direction.... Nature's triumph -over a social convention was never given another -occasion to display its graces or to celebrate its -truths under his auspices and the love passion -was not heard of again until it came forth in -<cite>Horace</cite> (Camille), to be very severely dealt with."</p> - -<p>We are led to believe that had Corneille -met the subject of the <em>Cid</em> fifteen years later, he -would never have granted Chimène and Rodrigue -a marriage license.<a name="FNanchor_71_71" id="FNanchor_71_71"></a><a href="#Footnote_71_71" class="fnanchor">[71]</a> Nor is this all. Having reformed, -he was as fanatical as the rest of the reformers; -having become Catholic, he was more -Catholic than the Pope. He disclaimed love, and -would have none of it; he affirmed that it was unworthy -of a place in tragedy. In his own words, -written some time later:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The dignity of tragedy demands for its subject some great -interest of the State, ... or some passion more manly -than love; as, for instance, ambition or vengeance. If fear is -permitted to enter such a work it should be a fear less puerile -than that inspired by the loss of a mistress. It is proper to -mingle a little love with the more important elements, because -love is always very pleasing, and it may serve as a foundation -for the other interests and passions that I have named. But -if love is permitted to enter tragedy it must be content to -take the second rank in the poem, and to leave the first places -to the capital passions.</p></blockquote> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177">[177]</a></span></p> - -<p>Having chosen his bone in this high-handed -fashion, Corneille gnawed at it continually; he -could never get enough of it. Love had triumphed -in the <em>Cid</em>, but that day was past; in <cite>Horace</cite> -it struggled for existence; in <cite>Polyeucte</cite> it was -vanquished, though not before it had opposed -sturdy resistance. It was weak enough in <cite>Cinna</cite>. -After the arrival of <cite>Pompée</cite> it gave up the struggle, -though it was heard piteously murmuring at intervals. -When <cite>Pompée</cite> appeared the ladies disappeared -from the drama as if by magic; hardly a -woman worthy of the name could be found in literature: -a few beings there were draped with the -time-worn title, but they were as virile as wild -Indians.</p> - -<p class="center"><em>A little hardness sets so well upon great souls!</em></p> - -<p>Nothing could be seen but ambition, blood, thirst -for power, and Fury, cup-bearer to the God of -Vengeance. There was no more love-passion, the -manly passions ramped upon the stage like lions, -and, with few exceptions, all, male and female, were -monsters of the Will.</p> - -<p>Long years passed before anything but the Will -was heard of. After a long reign the "monsters" -disappeared. But they have reappeared in the literature -of our century. The worship of the Will, -which originated with Corneille, was recently revived -by Nietzsche, whose famous "Sur-homme" -bears a very strong family resemblance to the Cornélien -heroes. "Life," said Nietzsche, "is that<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178">[178]</a></span> -which ought always to surpass and to exceed itself." -Corneille's personages kept all the springs -of their will well in hand. They intended to succeed, -to surpass, and to get ahead of themselves if -the thing was to be done; and when they were convinced -that to surpass themselves was impossible -their future looked very dark, and they sold their -lives at cut prices,—or threw them in for nothing—letting -them go to any one who would carry them -away. In the fifth act of the play Horace became -very anxious to die because, as he expressed it, he -feared that, after what he had done, he should be -unable to "surpass himself."</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">"Votre Majesté, Sire, à vu mes trois combats;</div> - <div class="i0">Il est bien malaisé qu'un pareil les seconde,</div> - <div class="i0">Qu'une autre occasion à celle-ci réponde,</div> - <div class="i0">Et que tout mon courage, après de si grands coups,</div> - <div class="i0">Parvienne à des succès qui n'aillent au dessous;</div> - <div class="i0">Si bien que pour laisser une illustre mémoire,</div> - <div class="i0">La mort seule aujourd'hui peut conserver ma gloire."</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>The analogy between the "Sur-homme" and the -Cornélien heroes does not end here; logic would -not permit that; nothing weakens and enslaves -the firm and exalted will as effectually as the sentiment -of pity, and both Corneille and Nietzsche -enfranchised their ideal humanity. Corneille makes -some one assure Horace that there is no great -merit in exposing himself to death, but that concession -to weakness is of an early period; the -advanced man—the man out of the common order—is -easily recognised by the fact that he does not<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179">[179]</a></span> -hesitate to bring the greatest sufferings upon the -beings who are dearest to him.</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">Combattre un ennemi pour le salut de tous,</div> - <div class="i0">Et contre un inconnu s'exposer seul aux coups,</div> - <div class="i0">D'une simple vertu c'est l'effet ordinaire ...</div> - <div class="i0">Mais vouloir au public immoler ce qu' on aime,</div> - <div class="i0">S'attacher au combat contre un autre soi-même ...</div> - <div class="i0">Une telle vertu n'appartenait qu' à nous.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>The lines which follow were written by Nietzsche, -and they seem a paraphrase of the discourse of -Horace:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>To know how to suffer is nothing; feeble women, even -slaves, may be past masters in this art. But to stand firm -against the assaults of the pain of doubt, to withstand the -weakness of remorse when we inflict torment,—this is to be -a hero; this is the height of courage; in this lies the first -condition of all grandeur.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Corneille's contempt for pity was shared by his -contemporaries, and so were his views of marriage -as expressed in his first comedies. The seigniors -whom he met at the Hôtel de Rambouillet would -have blushed to feel compassion. They left the -womanish weakness of pity to the inferior beings -of the lower orders. The great had always been -convinced that elevation in rank raised man above -the consciousness of the sufferings of beings of -an inferior order; and in the day of Corneille -they were fully persuaded that noblemen ought -to find higher reasons for justice and for generosity -than the involuntary emotions which we of -this later day have learned to recognise as symptoms -of "nervous disturbance."</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180">[180]</a></span></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I am very little sensible of pity [wrote La Rochefoucauld], -and I would prefer not to feel it at all. Nevertheless there is -nothing that I would not do for the afflicted, and I believe -that I ought to do what I can for them—even to expressing -compassion for their woes, for the wretches are so stupid -that it does them the greatest good in the world to receive -sympathy; but I believe that we ought to confine ourselves to -expressing pity; we ought to take great care not to feel it; -pity is a passion which is good for nothing in a well-made -soul; when entertained it weakens the heart, and therefore -we ought to relegate it to beings who need passions to incite -them to do things because they are incapable of acting by -reason.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The manly characters in Corneille's heroic comedies -never lower themselves to the plane of the -common people, nor to a plane where they can -think as the people think. Corneille was "of the -Court" by all his feelings and by all his prejudices, -and he shared Mademoiselle's belief that there is -a natural difference between the man of quality -and the man below the quality, because generous -virtues are mingled with the blood which runs in -noble veins, while the blood of the man of lower -birth is mingled with lower passions. Being a -true courtier, Corneille believed that above the -two varieties of the human kind—the quality -and the lesser people—Providence set the order -of Princes who are of an essence apart, elect, -and quasi-divine.</p> - -<p>In <cite>Don Sancho d'Aragon</cite> Carlos did his best to -prove that he was the son of a fisherman. His -natural splendour gave the lie to his pretence.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181">[181]</a></span> -"Impossible that he could have sprung from blood -formed by Heaven of nothing but clay."</p> - -<p>Don Lope affirms that it cannot be true.</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">Non, le fils d'un pêcheur ne parle point ainsi ...</div> - <div class="i0">Je le soutien, Carlos, vous n'êtes point son fils,</div> - <div class="i0">La justice du ciel ne peut l'avoir permis,</div> - <div class="i0">Les tendresses du sang vous font une imposture,</div> - <div class="i0">Et je démens pour vous la voix de la nature.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>He discovers that Carlos is the son of a King -of Aragon. His extraordinary merit is explained -and consistency is satisfied. On the whole Corneille -did nothing but develop the maxims and -idealise the models offered to his observation on -all sides; as much may be said of the plots of his -great plays. His subjects were suggested by the -events of the day. Had there been no Mme. de -Chevreuse and no conspiracies against Richelieu -there could have been no <em>Cinna</em>. And it is possible -that there might not have been such a work as -<cite>Polyeucte</cite> had there been no Jansenism.<a name="FNanchor_72_72" id="FNanchor_72_72"></a><a href="#Footnote_72_72" class="fnanchor">[72]</a></p> - -<p>Corneille did not understand actuality as we understand -it. His tragedy is never a report of real -occurrences, that is evident. But he was besieged, -encompassed, possessed, by the life around him, -and it left impressions in his mind which worked -out and mingled with every subject upon which -he entered. He was guided by his impressions,—though -he did not know it,—and by their influence -he was enabled to find a powerful tragedy in a few<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182">[182]</a></span> -indifferent lines dropped by a mediocre historian, -or by an inferior narrator of insignificant events. -His surroundings furnished him with precise representations, -made real to his mind by the vague -abstractions of history. In the forms and conditions -of the present he saw and felt all the past.<a name="FNanchor_73_73" id="FNanchor_73_73"></a><a href="#Footnote_73_73" class="fnanchor">[73]</a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_182.jpg" alt="FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING" title="RACINE" /> -<div class="caption"><p>RACINE</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING</p></div> -</div> - -<p>His constant contact with the world of his times -favoured the action of his mind upon the minds of -his auditors. He exhibited to them their passions, -their thoughts, their feelings, their different ways -of looking upon social duty, upon politics, and -upon the part played, or to be played, by the aristocracy -in the general movement. The people of -Paris loved the play because it exhibited openly, in -different, but always favourable lights, everything -in which they had any interest. In it they saw -their own life, their aims, their needs, their longing -to be great and admirable in all things.<a name="FNanchor_74_74" id="FNanchor_74_74"></a><a href="#Footnote_74_74" class="fnanchor">[74]</a> They -saw depicted all that they had dreamed of being, -all that they had wished to be; and something -more vital than love of literature animated their -transports and lighted the fond glances fixed on -the magic mirror reflecting the ideals they so -ardently caressed. The people listened to Corneille's -plays and trembled as they now tremble at -the sound of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">La Marseillaise</i>. It has been said -that they did not understand Racine; if they did -not, their lack of comprehension was natural. -Racine was of another generation, and he was -not in sympathy with his forerunner. Mme. de<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183">[183]</a></span> -Sévigné was accused of false judgment in her criticism -of <em>Bejazet</em>,<a name="FNanchor_75_75" id="FNanchor_75_75"></a><a href="#Footnote_75_75" class="fnanchor">[75]</a> but she also was of another school. -She had little sympathy for Racine's heroes. She -understood Corneille's heroes, and could not listen -to his verses without the tremor of the heart which -we all feel when something recalls the generous -fancies of our youth. The general impression was -that Corneille was inspired by the image of Mlle. -de Montpensier when he wrote <cite>Pulcherie</cite> (1672), -an heroic comedy in which an empress stifles the -cries of her heart that she may listen to the voice -of glory.</p> - -<p class="center"><em>The throne lifts the soul above all tenderness.</em></p> - -<p>It is not impossible that Corneille had some such -thought in his mind. Certainly Mademoiselle was -a model close at hand. One day when her bold -poltroon of a father told her, in the course of a -sharp reproof, that she was compromising her -house for the pleasure of "playing the heroine," -she answered haughtily and truthfully:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"I do not know what it is to be anything <i>but</i> a heroine! I -am of birth so high that no matter what I might do, I never -could be anything but great and noble. And they may call -it what they like, <em>I</em> call it following my inclination and taking -my own road. I was born to take no other!"</p></blockquote> - -<p>Given such inclinations, and living in the Louvre, -where Corneille's plays were constantly enacted by<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_184" id="Page_184">[184]</a></span> -Queen Anne's order, Mademoiselle was accustomed -to regard certain actions as the reverse of common -and ignoble, and to consider certain other actions -"illustrious."</p> - -<p>The justice of super-exalted sentiments was proclaimed -by nobility, and they who were disposed -to closely imitate the examples set by the literary -leader of the day ran the risk of losing all sense of -proportions and of substance. Mademoiselle did -lose that sense, nor was she the only one to do so -among all the children of quality who were permitted -to abuse their right to see the play. Through -the imprudent fashion of taking young children to -the theatre, the honest Corneille, who taught the -heroism of duty, the poetry of sacrifice, the value of -strong will and self-control, was not absolutely innocent -of the errors in judgment and in moral sense -by which the wars of the Fronde were made possible. -When he attempted to lift the soul of France -above its being, he vitiated a principle in the unformed -national brain.</p> - - -<p class="p3">III</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle had grown tall. She had lost her -awkward ways; she was considered pretty—although -the Bourbon type might, at any moment, -become too pronounced. She had remained simple -and insignificantly innocent and childish, in a -world where even the children discussed politics -and expressed opinions on the latest uprising. Side -by side with all her infantine pleasures were two<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185">[185]</a></span> -serious cares which had accompanied her from her -cradle, one: her marriage; the other, the honour -of her house. The two cares were one, as the two -objects were one, because in that day a princess -knew her exalted duty and accepted her different -forms of servitude without a frown, and certainly -the most painful of all those forms was the marriage -in which the wife was less than nothing; a being -helpless in her inferiority, so situated that she was -unable to claim any share of the general domestic -happiness. The noble princesses had consented -to drink their cup to the dregs because it was part -of their caste to do so, and many were they who -went to the altar as Racine's "Iphigénie" went to -the sacrifice. The idea that woman is a creature -possessing a claim upon herself, with the right to -love, to be happy, and to seat herself upon the -steps of the throne, or even upon the throne, is a -purely modern conception. The day when that -mediocre thought first germinated in the brain of -the noblewoman marked a date in the history of -royalty, and it may be that no surer sign was given -to warn the nations of contemporary Europe of the -decay of the monarchical idea.</p> - -<p>La Grande Mademoiselle had faith in the old -traditions. She had always been used to the idea -that life would be full enough when she had accomplished -her high destiny and perpetuated the -noble name borne by her ancestors and she was -fully satisfied with the idea that her husband should -see in her nothing but the "granddaughter of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_186" id="Page_186">[186]</a></span> -France," and accept her and her princely estates as -he would accept any of the other gifts directly bestowed -on noblemen by Divine Providence. Her -husband had been ordained her husband from all -time; and she was prepared to yield her all to -him without a murmur. What though he should -be ugly, gouty, doddering—or a babe in arms, -"brutal," or an "honest man"? Such details -were for the lower orders, they were puerile; unworthy -of the attention of a great Princess. He -would be the <em>husband of Mlle. de Montpensier, niece -of Louis XIII.</em>, and that would be enough. But in -spite of herself she felt a lurking curiosity as to -who he should be. What was to be his name.... -His Majesty, was he to be a king, "<em>His Highness</em>," -or simply "<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Monseigneur</i>?" there lay the root of -the whole matter.</p> - -<p>Of what rank were the wives whose right it was to -remain seated in the King's presence, ... and -on what did they sit, arm-chairs or armless seats?</p> - -<p><i>That was the question</i>, the only consideration of -any importance.</p> - -<p>We should prefer to think that Mademoiselle -mourned because she was reduced by her condition -to forget that however princely a marriage may be -it must entail a husband, but we are the slaves of -truth, we must take our history as we find it, and -be the fact pleasing or painful,—here it is: Mademoiselle -knew that she should marry the first -princely aspirant to her hand, and she was well -content to let it be so.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_187" id="Page_187">[187]</a></span></p> - -<p>The first to arouse her imagination was one of -her mother's ancient lovers, Comte de Soissons, a -brilliant soldier, but a man of very ordinary intellect. -"M. le Comte" had not only aspired to the -favour of Anne-Marie's mother, but he had also -addressed her cousin Marie, Duchesse de Montpensier, -and so lively had been the wooing that -there had been some talk of an abduction. Then -Gaston had entered the field and carried off the -Duchess, and, gnawed by spite and jealous fury, -Soissons had quarrelled with him.</p> - -<p>Less than a year later the unexpected death of -Madame brought about a reconciliation between -the rivals. Monsieur, wifeless, charged with an -infant daughter, who was the sole heiress to almost -incalculable wealth, clasped hands with Soissons, -under circumstances favourable to the brightest -dreams. Madame's timely death had restored intact -a flattering prospect. M. le Comte again and -for the third time announced pretensions to the hand -of a Montpensier, and Gaston smiled approval. He -considered it all very natural; given a like occasion, -he would have followed a like course.</p> - -<p>So, as far back as her youthful memory could -travel, Mlle. Anne-Marie-Louise d'Orléans found -along her route traces of the assiduous attentions -of the even-then ripe cousin, who had regaled -her with sugared almonds through the medium -of a gentleman named Campion, accredited and -charged with the mission of rendering his master -pleasing to Mademoiselle, the infant Princess of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_188" id="Page_188">[188]</a></span> -the Tuileries. M. le Comte sent Campion to Court -with sugared almonds, because he, the Comte de -Soissons, rarely set foot in Paris at any time, and -at the time which we are now considering a private -matter of business (an assassination which he and -Gaston had planned together), had definitely retired -him from Court.</p> - -<p>All this happened about the year 1636. Gaston -was living in an obscure way, not to say in hiding; -for it would have been difficult to hide so notable -a personage,—nor would there have been any logic -in hiding him, after all that had passed,—but he -was living a sheltered, and, so to speak, a harmless -life. He was supposed to be in Blois, but -he was constantly seen gliding about the Louvre, -tolerated by the King, who practised his dancing -steps with him, and treated by Richelieu -with all the contempt due to his character. The -Cardinal made free with Gaston's rights; he -changed and dismissed his servants without consulting -their master; and more than one of the -fine friends of Monsieur learned the way to the -Bastille.</p> - -<p>At times Richelieu gave Gaston presents, hoping -to tempt the light-minded Prince to reflect upon -the advantages attending friendly relations with -the Court. Richelieu had tried in vain to force -Gaston to consent to the dissolution of his marriage -with Marguerite de Lorraine. He had never permitted -Gaston to present his wife at Court, but -Gaston had always hoped to obtain the permission<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_189" id="Page_189">[189]</a></span> -and the anxious lady had remained just outside of -France awaiting the signal to enter. She was -generally supposed to be within call of her -husband.</p> - -<p>The time has come when justice of a new kind -must be done to Monsieur, and probably it is the -only time when a creditable fact will be recorded -in his history. He stood firm in his determination -to maintain his marriage. Try as the Cardinal -might, and by all the means familiar to him from -habitual use, he could not force Monsieur to relax -his fidelity to his consort. D'Orléans was virtuous -on this one point, but his manner of virtue was the -manner of Gaston; there are different ways of -sustaining the marriage vows, and Monsieur's way -was not praiseworthy. His experience had passed -as a veil blown away by the wind. His passion for -intrigue still held sway, he always had at least one -plot in process of infusion, and his results were -fatal to his assistants. In the heat of his desire to -rid himself of the Cardinal, he simulated change of -heart so well that the Cardinal was deceived. Suspicious -at first of the sincerity of Gaston's professions, -after long and close observation he became -convinced that the Prince was, in truth, repentant. -It was at that epoch, when free exercise of an -undisciplined will was made possible by Richelieu's -conviction of his own security, that Monsieur laid -his plan of assassination with de Soissons; at that -time there was but opinion in France—de Richelieu -was a tyrant, there could be no hope of pleasure<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_190" id="Page_190">[190]</a></span> -while he lived. Let him die, let France hear that -he was dead, and all the world could be happy and -free to act, not according to the dogmas of an -egotist by the grace of God, but by the rule of the -greatest good to the greatest number.</p> - -<p>The conspirators had found a time and a place -favourable to their enterprise. It was during the -siege of Corbie. The King was there attended by -his Minister. Monsieur and the Count were there; -so were the men whom they had engaged to kill -the Cardinal. Culpable as the two scoundrels had -always been, when the whole country was in arms -it was impossible to find a reasonable excuse for -refusing them commands, so they were at the front -with all the representative men of the country, and -they had good reason for supposing that one murder—a -movement calculated to relieve the nation—might -pass unnoticed in the general noise and -motion of the siege. The time was ripe; Monsieur -and Soissons had put their heads together and -decided that the moment had come to strike the -blow and rid the country of the Cardinal.</p> - -<p>Their plans were well laid. A council of war -had been called. De Richelieu was to pass a certain -staircase on his way to it; de Soissons was to -accompany Richelieu and distract his attention; -Gaston was to be waiting at the foot of the stairs -to give the signal to the assassins. But Monsieur -had not changed since the days of Chalais, and he -could not control his nerves. He was a slave to -ungovernable panics. According to his plans the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_191" id="Page_191">[191]</a></span> -part which he had to play was easy. He had -nothing to do but to give the signal; all the accomplices -were ready; the assassins were awaiting the -word; he himself was at his post; but when the -Cardinal passed, haughty and calm, to take his -place in his carriage, terror seized Monsieur and he -turned and sprang up the stairway. As he fled -one of his accomplices, thinking to hold him back, -seized him by his cloak, and Gaston, rushing forward, -dragged him after him.</p> - -<p>The affrighted Prince and his astonished follower -reached the first landing with the speed of lightning; -and then, carried away by emotion, Monsieur, -still dragging his companion, fled into an inner -room, where he stopped, dazed; he did not know -where he was, nor what he was doing, and when he -tried to speak he babbled incoherent words which -died in his throat. De Soissons was waiting in the -courtyard; he had spoken so calmly that Richelieu -had passed on unconscious of the unusual excitement -among the courtiers.</p> - -<p>Though the plot had failed, there had been no -exposure; but the fact that the accomplices held -the secret and that they had much to gain from -the Cardinal by a denunciation of their principals -made it unsafe for the conspirators to remain in -Paris; before the Cardinal's policemen were warned -they fled, Monsieur to Blois and de Soissons to Sedan. -Not long after their flight the story was in -the mouths of the gossips, and Mademoiselle knew -that she could not hope for the Cardinal's assistance<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_192" id="Page_192">[192]</a></span> -in the accomplishment of her marriage; so -the child of the Tuileries advanced to maidenhood -while her ambitious cousin (Soissons) turned grey -at Sedan. When Anne-Marie-Louise reached her -fourteenth year the Comte thought that the time -had come to bring matters to a crisis. He was -not a coward, and as there was no reason for hypocrisy -or secrecy, he boldly joined the enemies of -his country and invaded France with the armies of -de Bouillon and de Guise. Arrived in France, he -charged one of his former mistresses, Mme. de -Montbazon, to finish the work begun by Campion. -Mme. de Montbazon lent her best energies to -the work, and right heartily.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I took great interest in M. le Comte de Soissons, [wrote -Mademoiselle]; his health was failing. The King went to -Champagne to make war upon him; and while he was on the -journey, Mme. de Montbazon—who loved the Count dearly -and who was dearly loved by him—used to come to see me -every day, and she spoke of him with much affection; she told -me that she should feel extreme joy if I would marry him, -that they would never be lonely or bored at the Hôtel de Soissons -were I there; that they would not think of anything but -to amuse me, that they would give balls in my honour, that we -should take fine walks, and that the Count would have unparalleled -tenderness and respect for me. She told me everything -that would be done to render my condition happy, and -of all that could be done to make things pleasant for a personage -of my age. I listened to her with pleasure and I felt -no aversion for the person of M. le Comte.... Aside -from the difference between my age and his my marriage with -him would have been feasible. He was a very honest man, -endowed with grand qualities; and although he was the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_193" id="Page_193">[193]</a></span> -youngest of his house he had been accorded<a name="FNanchor_76_76" id="FNanchor_76_76"></a><a href="#Footnote_76_76" class="fnanchor">[76]</a> with the Queen -of England.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Having been unable to acquire the mother, -de Soissons turned his attention to the daughter. -Mademoiselle recorded:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>M. le Comte sent M. le Comte de Fiesque to Monsieur -to remind him of the promise that he had made concerning -me, and to remind him that affairs were then in such a -condition that they might be terminated. M. le Comte de -Fiesque very humbly begged Monsieur to find it good that -de Soissons should abduct me, because in that way only could -the marriage be accomplished. Monsieur would not consent -to that expedient at all, and so the answer that M. le Comte de -Fiesque carried back touched M. le Comte very deeply.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Not long after this episode the Comte de Soissons -was killed at Marfée (6th July, 1641), and Mademoiselle's -eyes were opened to the fact that she and -M. le Comte "had not been created for each -other." She wrote of his death as follows:</p> - -<p>"I could not keep from weeping when he died, -and when I went to see Madame his mother at Bagnolet, -M. and Mlle. de Longueville and the whole -household did nothing but manifest their grief by -their continual cries."</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle had desired with earnest sincerity -to become the Comtesse de Soissons; it is difficult<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_194" id="Page_194">[194]</a></span> -to imagine why,—unless, perhaps, because at her age -girls build air-castles with all sorts of materials.</p> - -<p>M. le Comte had been wept over and buried -and sentiment had nothing more to do with Mademoiselle's -dreams of establishment. Her fancy -hovered over Europe and swooped down upon the -princes who were bachelors or widowers, and upon -the married nobles who were in a fair way to become -widowers; more than once she was seen -closely following the current reports when some -princess was taken by sickness; and she abandoned -or developed her projects, according to the -turn taken by the diseases of the unfortunate ladies. -The greater number of the hypothetical postulants -upon whom she successively fixed her mind were -strangers whom she had never seen, and among -them were several who had never thought of her, -and who never did think of her at any time; but -she pursued her way with unflagging zeal, permitting -indiscreet advances when she did not encourage -them; she considered herself more or less the -Queen or the Empress of France, of Spain, or of -Hungary, as the prospect of the speedy bereavement -of the incumbents of the different thrones brightened. -La Grande Mademoiselle had not entered -the world as the daughter of a degenerate with impunity; -there were subjects upon which she was -incapable of reasoning; in the ardour of her faith -in the mystical virtues of the Blood she surpassed -Corneille. She believed that the designs of princes -ranked with the designs of God, and that they<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_195" id="Page_195">[195]</a></span> -should be regarded as the devout regard the -mysteries of religion. To quote her own words: -"The intuitions of the great are like the mysteries -of the Faith; it is not for men to fathom them! -they ought to revere them; they ought to know -that the thoughts of the great are given to their -possessors for the well-being and for the salvation -of the country."</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle surpassed the Corneille of Tragedy -in her disdainful rejection of love; Corneille was -content to station love in the rear rank, and he -placed it far below the manly passions in his classification -of "the humanities." It will be remembered -that by his listings the "manly passions" -were Ambition, Vengeance, Pride of Blood, and -"Glory." Mademoiselle believed that love could -not exist between married people of rank; she -considered it one of the passions of the inferior -classes.</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">Le trône met une âme au dessus des tendresses.</div> - <div class="i0"><span style="margin-left: 16em;"><cite>Pulcherie.</cite></span></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>When we examine the subject we see that it was -not remarkable that Mademoiselle recognised illegitimate -love, although her own virtue was unquestionable. -She liked lovers, and accepted the -idea of love in the abstract; she repudiated the -idea of love legalised because she was logical; she -thought that married love proclaimed false ideas -and gave a bad example. If married people loved -each other and were happy together because of -their common love, young noble girls would long to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_196" id="Page_196">[196]</a></span> -marry for love and to be happy in marriage because -of love, and the time would come when there would -be no true quality, because the nobles would have -followed their desires or their weaker sentiments -and formed haphazard unions brought about by -natural selection. Man or maid would "silence -the voice of glory in order to listen to the voice of -love," should the dignity of hierarchical customs be -brought down to the level of the lower passions. -So Mademoiselle reasoned, and from her mental -point of view her reasoning was sound. She was -strong-minded; she realised the danger of permitting -the heart to interfere in the marriage of the -Elect.</p> - -<p>The year 1641 was not ended when Mademoiselle -appeared in spiritual mourning for a suitor who -seems to us to have been nothing but a vision, the -first vision of a series. Anne of Austria had never -forgotten the Cardinal's cruel rebuke when he -found Mademoiselle playing at man and wife with -a child in long clothes. She had tried to console the -little girl, and her manner had always been motherly -and gentle. "It is true," she had said, "the Cardinal -told the truth; my son is too small; you shall -marry my brother!" When she had spoken thus -she had referred to the Cardinal Infant,<a name="FNanchor_77_77" id="FNanchor_77_77"></a><a href="#Footnote_77_77" class="fnanchor">[77]</a> who was in -Flanders acting as Captain-General of the country -and commanding the armies of the King of Spain.</p> - -<p>The Prince was Archbishop of Toledo. He had -not received Holy Orders. In that day it was not<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_197" id="Page_197">[197]</a></span> -considered necessary to take orders before entering -the Episcopate. "They taxed revenues, they delegated -vicars-general for judicial action, and when -the power of the Church was needed they delegated -bishops. There were many prelates who were not -priests." Henri de Lorraine II., Duc de Guise -(born in 1614), was only fifteen years old when he -received the Archbishopric of Rheims; he never -received Holy Orders. In priestly vestments he -presented every appearance of the most pronounced -type of the ecclesiastical hybrid; he was an excellent -Catholic, and a gallant and dashing pontiff-cavalier. -His life as layman was far from -religious. When he was twenty-seven years old -he met a handsome widow, Mme. de Bossut. He -married her on the spot without drum or cannon; -and then, because some formality had been omitted, -the marriage was confirmed by the Archbishop of -Malines. The Church saw no obstacle to the marriage. -Nicolas-François de Lorraine, Bishop of -Toul, and Cardinal, was another example; "without -being engaged in orders" he became "Duc de Lorraine" -(1634) by the abdication of his brother -Charles. He had political reasons for marrying -his cousin "Claude" without delay, but he was -stopped by an obstacle which did not emanate from -his bishopric. Claude was his own cousin, and the -prohibitions of the Church made it necessary for -him to get a dispensation from Rome.</p> - -<p>François visited his cousin and made his proposals. -As a layman he needed a publication of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_198" id="Page_198">[198]</a></span> -his bans, and as a Catholic, in order to marry his -cousin, he needed a dispensation from the Pope. -Therefore he re-assumed the character of Bishop -and issued a dispensation eliminating his bans, -then, in the name of the Pope, he issued a dispensation -making it spiritually lawful for him to marry -his cousin to himself; that accomplished, he cast -off the character of Bishop and was married by a -regularly ordained priest like an ordinary mortal. -In those days there was no abyss between the -Church and the world. At most there was only a -narrow ditch which the great lords crossed and recrossed -at will, as caprice or interest moved them. -In their portraits this species of oscillation, which -was one of their distinguishing movements, is distinctly -recorded and made evident even to the -people of this century.</p> - -<p>In the gallery of the Louvre we see a picture -due to the brush of the Le Nain brothers, entitled, -<cite>Procession in a Church</cite>. That part of the procession -which is directly in front of the spectator -is composed of members of the clergy, vested with -all their churchly ornaments. The superb costumes -are superbly worn by men of proud and knightly -bearing. The portraits betray the true characters -of their originals. These men are courtiers, utterly -devoid of the collected and meditative tranquillity -found in the legions of the Church. In the -Le Nain brothers' picture the most notable figures -are two warlike priests, who stand, like Norse kings, -at the head of the procession, transfixing us with<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_199" id="Page_199">[199]</a></span> -their look of bold assurance. No priests in ordinary, -these, but natural soldiers, ready to die for a -word or an idea! Their curled moustachios are -light as foam; their beards are trimmed to a point, -and under the embroidered dalmatica the gallant -mien of the worldling frets as visibly as a lion in -its cage. It is impossible to doubt it: these are -soldiers; cavaliers who have but assumed the habit; -who will take back the doublet and the sword, -and with them the customs and the thoughts of -men of war. Whatever their rank in the Church, -hazard and birth alone have placed them there; -and thus are they working out the sentence imposed -by the ambition of their families; giving the -lie to a calling for which they have neither taste -nor capacity. The will of a strong man can defeat -even pre-natal influences, and, knowing it, they -make no hypocritical attempt to hide their character. -They were not meant for priests, and every -look and every action shows it.</p> - -<p>The Cardinal-Infant, Archbishop of Toledo, was -only a deacon, so there was nothing extraordinary -in the thought that he might marry. I cannot say -that he ever thought of marrying Mademoiselle; -I have never found any proof that he entertained -such a thought; the only thing absolutely certain -in the whole affair is that Mademoiselle never -doubted that he intended, or had intended, to -marry her. Here is her own account of it, somewhat -abridged and notably incoherent:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The Cardinal-Infant died of a tertian fever (9th November<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_200" id="Page_200">[200]</a></span> -1641), which had not hindered his remaining in the army all -through the campaign.... His malady had not appeared -very dangerous; nevertheless he died a few days after -he came back from Brussels; which made them say that the -Spaniards had poisoned him because they were afraid that by -forming an alliance with France he would render himself -master of Flanders,<a name="FNanchor_78_78" id="FNanchor_78_78"></a><a href="#Footnote_78_78" class="fnanchor">[78]</a> and, in fact, that was his design. The -Queen told me that after the King died she found in his -strong-box memoranda showing that my marriage with that -Prince had been decided upon. She told me nothing but -that ... when this loss came upon them the King said -to the Queen ... and he said it very rudely—"Your -brother is dead." That news, so coarsely announced, added -to her grief ... and for my own part, when I reflected -upon my interests I was very deeply grieved; because that -would have been the most agreeable establishment in the -world for me, because of the beauty of the country, lying as -it does so near this country, and because of the way in which -they live there. As for the qualities of his person, though I -esteemed him much, that was the least that I thought of.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The disappearance of the Cardinal-Infant was -followed by events so tragic and so closely connected -with Mademoiselle's life that her mind was -distracted from her hunt for a husband. Despite -her extreme youth, the affair Cinq-Mars constrained -her to judge her father, and to the child -to whom nothing was as dear as honour the revelation -of his treachery was crushing.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_201" id="Page_201">[201]</a></span></p> - - -<p class="p3">IV</p> - -<p>The death of Cinq-Mars was the dénouement -of a great and tragic passion. Henry d'Effiat, -Marquis de Cinq-Mars, was described as a handsome -youth with soft, caressing eyes, marvellously -graceful in all his movements.<a name="FNanchor_79_79" id="FNanchor_79_79"></a><a href="#Footnote_79_79" class="fnanchor">[79]</a></p> - -<p>His mother was ambitious; she knew that men had -risen to power by the friendship of kings. Richelieu's -schemes required a thousand complicated accessories. -So it was decided by the Cardinal and by -Cinq-Mars's mother to present the child to the King -and to place him in the royal presence to minister to -the King's pleasure for an hour, as a beautiful flower -is given to be cherished for a time, then cast away. -The King was capricious and childish and, as Richelieu -said, "he must always have his toy"; but elderly -children, like very young children, soon tire of -their toys and when they tire of them they destroy -them; Louis XIII. had broken everything that he -had played with, and his admiration inspired terror. -Cinq-Mars was determined that he would not be a -victim. Though very young, he knew the ways of -the world and he had formed plans for his future. -He was fond of the world and fond of pleasure. -He was a natural lover, always sighing at the feet -of women. He was brave and he had counted -upon a military career. The thought of imprisonment -in the Château of Saint Germain with a grumbling<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_202" id="Page_202">[202]</a></span> -invalid whose ennui no one could vanquish -was appalling; but after two years of resistance -he yielded and entered the royal apartment as -officer nearest to the King. It has been said -that he lacked energy, but as he resisted two -whole years before he gave up the struggle, and -as the will which he opposed was the will of -Richelieu, it is difficult to believe that he was not -energetic.</p> - -<p>History tells us that he was very nervous and -that, although his will was feeble, he was subject to -fits of anger. In 1638 he was in the King's household -as Master of the Robes. He was eighteen -years old. It was his business to select and order -the King's garments, and the King was wont to reject -whatever the boy selected because it was "too -elegant." When Cinq-Mars was first seen in the -King's apartment he was silent and very sad; the -King's displeasure cowed him; the beautiful and -gentle face and the appealing glance of the soft -eyes irritated the sickly fancies of the monarch and -he never noticed or addressed Cinq-Mars when he -could avoid it. Cinq-Mars hated Saint Germain, -and, truth to tell, even to an older and graver person, -the lugubrious château would have seemed a -prison. Sick at heart, weak in mind, tortured by -fleshly ills, Louis XIII., sinking deeper into insignificance -as the resplendent star of his Prime Minister -rose, was but sorry company for any one.</p> - -<p>Richelieu was the real ruler of France. Ranke, -who used his relations with ambassadors as a means<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_203" id="Page_203">[203]</a></span> -for increasing his store of personal and political -data, said:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Dating our observations from the year 1629, we see a crowd -of soldiers and other attentive people thronging Richelieu's -house and even standing in the doors of his apartments. -When he passes in his litter he is saluted respectfully; one -kneels, another presents a petition, a third tries to kiss his -vestments; all are happy who succeed in obtaining a glance -from him. It is as if all the business of the country were already -in his hands; he has assumed the highest responsibilities -ever borne by a subject....</p></blockquote> - -<p>As time went on his success augmented his -power. He lived in absolute seclusion at Rueil. -He was difficult of approach, and if an ambassador -succeeded in gaining admission to his presence it -was because he had been able to prove that he had -something to communicate to Richelieu which it -was of essential interest to the State, or to the -Cardinal personally, to know. All the national -business was in his hands. He was the centre of -all State interests, the King frequently attended his -councils. If Richelieu visited the King he was surrounded -by a guard; he hired his guard himself, -selecting his men with great care and paying them -out of his own pocket, so that he might feel that -he was safe from his enemies even in the King's -presence.</p> - -<p>The officers of his personal service were numerous, -young and very exalted nobles. His stables -were in keeping with his importance; and his house -was more magnificent and his table better served<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_204" id="Page_204">[204]</a></span> -than the King's. When in Paris he lived in the -Palais Cardinal (now the Palais Royal) surrounded -by princely objects, all treasures in themselves; his -train was the train of an emperor. The Louvre, -the King's residence, was a simple palace, but the -Cardinal's palace, called in Court language the -"Hôtel de Richelieu," was the symbol of the luxury -and the art of France, toward which the eyes of the -people of France and of all other lands were turned. -In the Hôtel de Richelieu there were cabinets where -the high officials sat in secret discussion, boudoirs for -the fair ladies, ball-rooms, treasure galleries where -works of art were lavishly displayed, a chapel, and -two theatres. The basis of the Cardinal's library -was the public library of Rochelle, which had been -seized after the siege. The chapel was one of the -chief sights of Paris. Everything used in the ceremonial -of worship was of solid gold, ornamented -with great diamonds. Among the precious objects -in use were two church chandeliers,<a name="FNanchor_80_80" id="FNanchor_80_80"></a><a href="#Footnote_80_80" class="fnanchor">[80]</a> all of -massive gold, enamelled and enriched with two -thousand five hundred and sixteen diamonds. The -vases used in the service of the Mass were of fine, -richly enamelled gold, and in them were set two -hundred and sixty-two diamonds. The cross, -which was between twenty and twenty-one inches -high, bore a figure of Christ of massive gold and -the crown of thorns and the loin-cloth were studded -with diamonds.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_205" id="Page_205">[205]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_204.jpg" alt="FROM A CONTEMPORARY PRINT" title="THE HOTEL DE RICHELIEU IN THE 17TH CENTURY" /> -<div class="caption"><p>THE HOTEL DE RICHELIEU IN THE 17TH CENTURY</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM A CONTEMPORARY PRINT</p></div> -</div> - -<p>The Book of Prayer used by the Cardinal was -bound in fine morocco leather; each side of the cover -was enwreathed with sprigs of gold. On one side -of the cover was a golden medallion, on which the -Cardinal was depicted, like an emperor, holding -the globe of the world in his hand; from the four -corners of the cover angels were descending to -crown his head with flowers. Beneath the device -ran the Latin inscription, "<i xml:lang="la" lang="la">Cadat</i>." The ceiling of -the grand gallery of the palace (destroyed under -Louis XIV.) bore one of Philip de Champagne's -masterpieces—a picture representing the glorious -exploits of the Cardinal. One of the picture -galleries called the "Gallery of Illustrious Men" -contained twenty-five full-length portraits of the -great men of France, chosen according to the -Cardinal's estimate of greatness. At the foot of -each portrait was a little "key," or historical representation -of the principal acts of the original of the -portrait, arranged as Fra Angelico and Giotto -arranged the portraits of Saint Dominick and -Saint François d'Assisi. Richelieu, who was not -afflicted with false modesty, had placed his own -portrait among the portraits in his gallery of the -great men of France. Although he had amassed -so many monuments of pride, he had passed a -large portion of his life in relative poverty. He -had travelled from the humble Episcopate to the -steps of the throne of France on an income of -25,000 livres. When he died his income was -nearly three millions of livres per annum,—the -civil list of a powerful monarch. He was not an<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_206" id="Page_206">[206]</a></span> -expert hoarder of riches, like Mazarin; he scattered -money with full hands, while his master, the -King, netted game-bags in a corner, cooked, or did -other useful work, or gave himself up to his frugal -pleasures.</p> - -<p>According to Mme. de Motteville:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The King found himself reduced to the most miserable of -earthly lives, without a suite, without a Court, without power, -and consequently without pleasure and without honour. Thus -a part of his life passed at Saint Germain, where he lived like -a private individual; and while his enemies captured cities -and won battles, he amused himself by catching birds. That -Prince was unhappy in all manners, for he had not even the -comfort of domestic life; he did not love the Queen at -all.... He was jealous of the grandeur of his Minister -... whom he began to hate as soon as he perceived -the extreme authority which the Cardinal wielded in the -kingdom ... and as he was no happier without him -than he was with him, he could not be happy at all.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Cinq-Mars entered the King's service under the -auspices of the Cardinal. When the King saw the -new face in his apartment he retired into his darkest -humour.</p> - -<p>Cinq-Mars was very patient; he was attentive and -modest, but the sound of his voice and the sight of -his face irritated the sickly monarch. Days passed -before the King addressed his new Master of the -Robes. One day he caught the long appealing -look of the gentle eyes; he answered it with a -stare,—frowned, and looked again. That night he -could not sleep; he longed for the morning. When -Cinq-Mars entered the bed-chamber the King drew<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_207" id="Page_207">[207]</a></span> -him to his side "and suddenly he loved him violently -and fatally, as in former times he loved -young Baradas."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The courtiers were accustomed to the King's -fancies, but his passion for Cinq-Mars astonished -them; it surpassed all that had preceded it.</p> - -<p>It was an appalling and jealous love; exacting, -suspicious, bitter, stormy, and fruitful in tears and -quarrels. Louis XIII. overwhelmed his favourite -with tokens of his tenderness; had it been possible -he would have chained the boy to his side. When -Cinq-Mars was away from him he was miserable.</p> - -<p>Cinq-Mars was obliged to assist him in his new -trade (he was learning to be a carpenter), to stand -at the bench holding tools and taking measurements; -and to listen to long harangues on dogs -and on bird-training. The King and his new -favourite were seen together constantly, driving the -foxes to their holes and running in the snowy -fields catching blackbirds in the King's sweep-net; -they hunted with a dozen sportsmen who were said -to be "low people and very bad company."</p> - -<p>When they returned to the palace the King -supped; when he had finished his supper he went -to bed, and then Cinq-Mars, "fatigued to exasperation -by the puerile duties of the day, cared for -nothing but to escape from his gloomy prison, and -to forget the long, yellow face and the interminable -torrent of hunting stories." Stealing from the -château, he mounted his horse and hurried to Paris.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_208" id="Page_208">[208]</a></span> -He passed the night as he pleased and returned to -the château early in the morning, worn out, haggard, -and with nerves unstrung. Although he left -the château after the King retired to his bed, and -returned from Paris early in the morning, before -the King awoke, Louis XIII. knew where he had -been and what he had been doing. Louis employed -spies who watched and listened. He -was particularly jealous of Cinq-Mars's young -friends; he "made scenes" and reproached Cinq-Mars -and the tormented boy answered him hotly; -then with cries, weeping bitterly, they quarrelled, -and the King went to Richelieu to complain of -"M. le Grand." Richelieu was State Confidant, -and to him the King entrusted the reconciliations. -In 1639 (27th November) Louis wrote to the Cardinal:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>You will see by the certificate that I send you, in what condition -is the reconciliation that you effected yesterday. When -you put your hand to an affair it cannot but go well. I give -you good-day.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The certificate read as follows:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>We, the undersigned, certify to all to whom these presents -may come, that we are very glad and well-satisfied with one -another, and that we have never been in such perfect unison -as at present. In faith of which we have signed the present -certificate.</p> - -<p>(signed) <span class="smcap">Louis</span>; and by my order:<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 6em;">(signed)</span> <span class="smcap">Effiat de Cinq-Mars</span>.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The laboured reconciliations were not durable;<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_209" id="Page_209">[209]</a></span> -the months which followed the signing of the certificate -were one long tempest. The objects of the -King's bitterest jealousy were young men who -formed a society called <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Les messieurs du Marais</i> because -they met every evening at Mme. de Rohan's -in the Palais Royal (the King then lived at the -Louvre). Louis could not be silent; he exposed -his spite on all occasions. January 5, 1640, he -wrote to the Cardinal:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I am sorry to have to tell you again of the ill-humour of M. -le Grand. On his return from Rueil he gave me the packet -which you sent to me. I opened it and read it. Then I said -to him:</p> - -<p>"Monsieur, the Cardinal informs me that you have manifested -great desire to please me in all things; nevertheless -you evince no wish to please me in regard to that which I -begged the Cardinal to speak of: namely, your laziness." He -answered that you did speak to him of it, but that he could -not change his character, and that in that respect he should -not do any better than he had been in the habit of doing. -That discourse angered me. I said to him that a man of his -condition ought to take some steps toward rendering himself -worthy to command armies (since he had told me that it was -his intention to lead armies). I told him that laziness was -contrary to military action. He answered me brusquely that -he had never had such an intention and that he had never -pretended to have it. I answered, "<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Que si!</i> <i>You have!</i>" I did -not wish to go any deeper into the discourse (you know well -what I mean). I then took up the discourse on laziness. I -told him that vice renders a man incapable of doing anything -good, and that he is good for nothing but the society of the -people of the Marais where he was nourished,—people who -have given themselves up to pleasure! I told him that if he -wishes to continue the life that he is now living among his old<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_210" id="Page_210">[210]</a></span> -friends, he may return to the place whence he came. He -answered arrogantly that he should be quite ready to do so!</p> - -<p>I answered him: "If I were not wiser than you I know what -I should answer to that!" ... After that I said to him -that he ought not to speak to me in such fashion. He -answered after the manner of his usual discourse that at -present his only duty appeared to be to do good to me and -to be agreeable to me and that as to such business he could -get along very well without it! He said that he would as willingly -be Cinq-Mars as to be M. le Grand; and that as to -changing his ways and his manner of life, he could not do it! ... And -so it went! he pecking at me and I pecking at -him until we reached the courtyard; when I said to him that -as he was in such a humour he would do me pleasure if he -would refrain from showing himself before me any more. He -bore witness that he would do that same right willingly! I -have not seen him since then.</p> - -<p>Precisely as I have told you all that passed, in the presence -of Gordes.</p> - -<p class="center"><span class="smcap">Louis.</span></p> - -<p>Post-Scriptum:</p> - -<p>I have shown Gordes this memorandum before sending it, -and he has told me that there is nothing in it but the truth, -exactly as he heard it and saw it pass.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Cinq-Mars sulked and the King sulked, and as -the quarrel promised to endure indefinitely, Richelieu -bestirred himself, left his quiet home in Rueil -and travelled to the house of the King to make -peace between the ill-assorted pair.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_211" id="Page_211">[211]</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_210.jpg" alt="FROM AN ENGRAVING BY SÉBASTIEN LECLERC" title="A GAME OF CHANCE IN THE 17TH CENTURY" /> -<div class="caption"><p>A GAME OF CHANCE IN THE 17TH CENTURY</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM AN ENGRAVING BY SÉBASTIEN LECLERC</p></div> -</div> - -<p>Peace restored, Louis became joyful; he could -not refuse his favourite anything. Cinq-Mars made -the most of his opportunity. But he could not -go far; the Cardinal barred his way. Cinq-Mars -aspired to the peerage; he aimed to be a duke, to -marry a princess, and to sit among the King's -counsellors. Richelieu checked him, gave him -rude orders, scolded him as he scolded his valet, -called him an "insolent little fellow," and threatened -to put him in a place "still lower" than the place -from which he had raised him.<a name="FNanchor_81_81" id="FNanchor_81_81"></a><a href="#Footnote_81_81" class="fnanchor">[81]</a> One day, when -Richelieu was berating the favourite, he told him -that he had appointed him to his office in the -King's house so that he (Richelieu) might have a -reliable spy, and that as he had been appointed -for no other purpose, it would be advisable for him -to begin to do the work that he was expected -to do.</p> - -<p>The revelation was a cruel blow to the proud -and sensitive boy, and in the first moment of his -anguish he conceived a ferocious hatred. It is -probable that the knowledge that the Cardinal had -placed him near the King's person against his will -and in spite of his long and determined resistance -solely to the end that he might be degraded to -an ignoble office was the first cause of the Cinq-Mars -conspiracy.</p> - -<p>De Richelieu's ministry had never appeared -more impregnable than it appeared at that time. -Far and near its policy had been triumphant. -Speaking of the position France had taken in -Europe through the guidance of Richelieu, an -impartial foreigner said:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>What a difference between the French Government as it -was when Richelieu received it from the kingdom and the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_212" id="Page_212">[212]</a></span> -state to which his efforts raised it! Before his day the Spaniards -were in progress on all the frontiers; no longer advancing -by impetuous attacks, but entering calmly and steadily by -systematic invasion. Richelieu changed all that, and, led -by him, France forced the Spaniards beyond the frontier.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Until the Cardinal assumed command the united -forces of the Empire, the Catholic League and the -Spanish armies, held not only the left bank of the -Rhine but all the land divided by that great central -artery of European life. By Richelieu's wise -policy France regained dominion in Alsace and in -the greater part of the Rhenish country, the armies -of France took possession of central Germany, the -Italian passes, which had been closed to the men -of France, were opened to them, and large territories -in upper Italy were seized and placed under -French control; and the changes were wrought, -not by a temporary invasion, but by orderly and -skilfully planned campaigns.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The Cardinal's power had been made manifest -everywhere. His rule had been to the glory of -France. Among other important results were the -triumphs of the French navies; the fleets, having -proved their strength in the Ligurian Sea, had -menaced the ports of Spain. The Ligurian Peninsula -had been rent asunder by the revolt of two -large provinces, one of which had arisen proclaiming -its independent rights as a kingdom. There -was, there had been, no end to Richelieu's diplomatic -improvements; his victories had carried ruin<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_213" id="Page_213">[213]</a></span> -to the enemy; the skirmishers of France had advanced -to a point within two leagues of Madrid. -The Croquemitaine of France, who held in terror -both the Court and the canaille, had assured the -Bourbons of an important place among the empires -of the world. The day of Spain was past; the -day of France was come.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_212.jpg" alt="" title="MARQUIS DE CINQ MARS" /> -<div class="caption"><p>MARQUIS DE CINQ MARS</p></div> -</div> - -<p class="smaller">A great fête marked this period of power and -glory.</p> - -<p>Richelieu was a man of many ambitions, and -he aspired to the admiration of all of the population; -he had extended his protecting arms over -literature and the lettered; he had founded the -French Academy; but he was not content; he -was a man of too much independence and of -too enterprising a mind to leave all the literary -honours to the doctors of the law or to his mediums, -Corneille and Rotrou, whose lines of work -he fixed to follow a plan outlined to suit his own -ideas. Usually, Richelieu's intellectual ambitions -were quiescent, but at times the pedant, dormant -in his hard nature, awoke and impelled him to add -a few personal touches to the work of his agents. -When under the influence of his afflatus he collaborated -with Desmarets, the author of a dramatic -poem entitled <em>Clovis</em>, and by the united efforts of -the unique literary team the tragedy <em>Mirame</em> was -delivered to the world. Its first appearance was a -Parisian event. None of the King's armies had -been mounted with such solicitude and prodigality, -The grand audience-room of the Palais Cardinal<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_214" id="Page_214">[214]</a></span> -was built for <em>Mirame</em>; it was spaced to hold three -thousand spectators; the stage material had been -ordered from Italy by "Sieur Mazarini," ex-Papal -Nuncio at Paris. Richelieu himself had chosen -the costumes and the decorations; and he in person -directed the rehearsals, and, as he supposed, -superintended the listing of all the invitations. -The play was ready for representation early in the -year (1641).</p> - -<p>First of all there was a general rehearsal for the -critics, who were represented by the men of letters -and the comedians. The rehearsal took place before -the Court and the social world of all Paris. -The invited guests were seated by the Bishop of -Chartres and by a president of the Parliament of -France. Though too new and too fresh in its -magnificence, the Audience Hall pleased the people -exceedingly; when the curtain rose they could -hardly repress cries of admiration. The stage was -lined on both sides by splendid palaces and in the -open space between the abodes of luxury were most -delicious gardens adorned with grottoes, statues, -fountains, and grand parterres of flowers descending -terrace upon terrace to the sea, which lifted its -waves with an agitation as natural as the movements -of the real tide of a real ocean; on the broad -waters passed two great fleets; one of them appeared -as if two leagues away. Both fleets moved -calmly on, passing like living things before the -spectators.</p> - -<p>The same decorations and scenery served the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_215" id="Page_215">[215]</a></span> -five acts of the play; but the sky was changed in -each act, when the light faded, when the sun set -or rose, and when the moon and the stars appeared -to mark the flight of the hours. The play -was composed according to the accepted formulas -of the day, and it was neither better nor worse -than its fellows. In its course the actors fought, -poisoned each other, died, came to life, and quarrelled -over a handsome princess; and while the -scene-shifters manipulated the somewhat crude inventions -of the stage scenery, and while the actors -did their utmost to develop the plot to the best advantage, -the master of the palace acted as chief of -the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Claque</i> and tried by every means in his power -to arouse the enthusiasm of the audience. He -stood in the front of his box and, leaning forward -into space, manifested his pleasure by his looks; at -times he called the attention of the people and imposed -silence so that the finer passages might be -heard.<a name="FNanchor_82_82" id="FNanchor_82_82"></a><a href="#Footnote_82_82" class="fnanchor">[82]</a></p> - -<p>At the end of the play a curtain representing -clouds fell upon the scene, and a golden bridge -rolled like a tide to the feet of Anne of Austria. -The Queen arose, crossed the bridge, and found -herself in a magnificent ball-room; then, with the -Prince and the Princess, she danced an impetuously -ardent and swinging figure, and when that dance -was over, the Bishop of Chartres, in Court dress, -and baton in hand, like a <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">maître d'hôtel</i>, led the -way to a fine collation. Later in the year the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_216" id="Page_216">[216]</a></span> -serviceable Bishop was made Archbishop of Rheims.</p> - -<p>Politics interfered with <em>Mirame</em>. The play was -assailed by difficulties similar to those which met -Napoleon's <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Vie de César</i> under the Second Empire. -The Opposition eagerly seized the occasion -to annoy "Croquemitaine"; open protestations were -circulated to the effect that the play was not worth -playing. Some, rising above the question of literary -merit, said that the piece was morally objectionable -because it contained allusions to Anne of -Austria's episode with Buckingham. Richelieu became -the scapegoat of the hour; even the King had -something to say regarding his Minister's literary -venture. Louis was not gifted with critical discrimination; -he knew it, and his timid pride and -his prudence restrained him from launching into -observations upon subjects with which he was not -fitted to cope; but guided by the cherub detailed -to protect the mentally incompetent, he struck with -instinctive subtlety at the one vulnerable point in -the Cardinal's armour and declared that he had -nothing to say regarding the preciosity of the play, -but that he had been "shocked by the questionable -composition of the audience." It relieved the -King's consciousness of his own inferiority to "pinch -the Cardinal." He told Monsieur that he had been -"shocked" when he realised "what species of society" -he had been invited to meet. Monsieur, -seizing the occasion to strike his enemy, answered -that, to speak "frankly," he also had "been -shocked" when he perceived "little Saint Amour<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_217" id="Page_217">[217]</a></span> -among the Cardinal's guests." The royal brothers -turned the subject in every light, and the more they -studied it the darker grew its aspect. They agreed -in thinking that the King's delicacy had been -grossly outraged; they worked upon the fact until -it assumed the proportions of a personal insult. -Richelieu, visited by the indignant pair, was galvanised -by the double current of their wrath. He -knew that Saint Amour had not been in any -earthly locality by his will; tact, if not religious -prejudice, would have forbidden the admission of a -personage of the doubtful savour of Saint Amour to -the presence of the King. But Monsieur and the -King had seen with their own eyes, and as no one -would have dared to enter the Palais Cardinal uninvited, -it was an undisputable fact that some one had -tampered with the invitations. Richelieu's detectives -were put upon the scent and they discovered -that an Abbé who "could not refuse a woman anything" -had been entrusted with the invitations-list.</p> - -<p>Richelieu could not punish the amiable lady who -had unconsciously sealed the Abbé's doom; but -justice was wrought, and absolute ignorance of -facts permits us to hope that it fell short of the -justice meted out to Puylaurens. It was said that -the Abbé had been sent back to his village. -Wherever he was "sent," Louis XIII. refused to -be comforted, and to the end of his days he told -the people who surrounded him that the Cardinal -had invited him to his palace to meet Saint Amour.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_218" id="Page_218">[218]</a></span></p> - -<p>Richelieu's life was embittered by the incident, -and to the last he was tormented by a confused -impression of the fête which he had believed was -to be the coming glory of his career. But an -isolated detail could not alter facts, and it was universally -known that his importance was "of all the -colours." <em>Mirame</em> had given the people an idea of -the versatility of Richelieu's grandeur and of the -composite quality of his power, and M. le Grand -knew what he might expect should he anger the -Cardinal. Cinq-Mars was always at the King's -heels, and he knew the extent of Louis's docility.</p> - -<p>The Cinq-Mars Conspiracy took shape in the -months which immediately followed the presentation -of <em>Mirame</em>. As the details of the conspiracy -may be found in any history, I shall say only this: -When an enterprise is based upon sentiments like -the King's passion for his Grand Equerry<a name="FNanchor_83_83" id="FNanchor_83_83"></a><a href="#Footnote_83_83" class="fnanchor">[83]</a> and the -general hatred of Richelieu, it is not necessary to -search for reasonable causes.</p> - -<p>When the first steps in the conspiracy were -taken Louis XIII., in his tenderness for Cinq-Mars -and his bitter jealousy of Richelieu, unconsciously -played the part of instigator.</p> - -<p>It soothed the wounded pride of the monarch to -hear his tyrant ridiculed, and he incited his "dear -friend," the Marquis d'Effiat, to scoff at the Cardinal. -Cinq-Mars and all the others were taken red-handed; -doubt was impossible. In the words of -Mme. de Motteville: "It was one of the most formidable,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_219" id="Page_219">[219]</a></span> -and at the same time one of the most extraordinary -plots found in history; for the King -was, tacitly, the chief of the conspirators." Monsieur -enthusiastically entered into the plot; he ran -to the Queen with the whole story; he told her the -names of the conspirators, and urged her to take -part in the movement.</p> - -<p>"It must be innocent," he insisted; "if it were -not the King would not be engaged in it."<a name="FNanchor_84_84" id="FNanchor_84_84"></a><a href="#Footnote_84_84" class="fnanchor">[84]</a></p> - -<p>Richelieu's peaceful days were over. He was -restless and suspicious. Suddenly, in June, 1642, -when Louis XIII. was sick in Narbonne (and -when Richelieu was sick in Tarascon) M. le Grand -was arrested and delivered to the Cardinal for the -crime of high treason. He deserved his fate. -He had led Monsieur to treat with Spain; but the -real cause of his death—if not of his disgrace—lay -in the fact that he had lost his hold upon the -King's love.</p> - -<p>"The King had ceased to love him," said a contemporary. -The end came suddenly and without -a note of warning. The King, awaking as from a -dream, remembered all the services that Richelieu -had rendered unto France. He was so grateful -that he hastened to Tarascon and begged Richelieu's -pardon for having wished "to lose him," in -other words, for having wished to accomplish his -fall. The King was ashamed, and despite his -sickness he ordered his bearers to carry him into -Richelieu's bed-chamber where the two gentlemen<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_220" id="Page_220">[220]</a></span> -passed several hours together, each in his own bed, -effecting a reconciliation.</p> - -<p>But their hearts were not in their words; wrongs -like those in question between the Cardinal and the -King cannot be forgotten.<a name="FNanchor_85_85" id="FNanchor_85_85"></a><a href="#Footnote_85_85" class="fnanchor">[85]</a> The King had abetted -a conspiracy against the Cardinal's life, and -had the Cardinal been inclined to forget it, the -King's weak self-reproach would have kept it in -the mind of his contemplated victim. Louis could -not refrain from harking back to his sin; he humiliated -himself, he begged the Cardinal to forgive -him; he gave up everything, including the amiable -young criminal who, in Scriptural language, had -lain in his bosom and been to him as a daughter. -The judgment of the moralist is disarmed by the -fact that Louis was, and always had been, a physical -wreck, morally handicapped by the essence -of his being. He had loved Cinq-Mars with unreasoning -passion; he was forced by circumstances -to sacrifice him; but we need not pity him; there -was much of the monster in him, and before the -head of Cinq-Mars fell, all the King's love for his -victim had passed away.</p> - -<p>Louis XIII. was of all the sovereigns of France -the one most notably devoted to the public interest; -in crises his self-sacrifice resembled the -heroism of the martyr; but the defects of his qualities -were of such a character that he would have -been incomprehensible had he not been sick in -body and in mind.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_221" id="Page_221">[221]</a></span></p> - -<p>During the crisis which followed the exposure of -Cinq-Mars's conspiracy Monsieur surpassed himself; -he was alternately trembler, liar, sniveller, and informer; -his behaviour was so abject that the echoes -of his shame reverberated throughout France and, -penetrating the walls of the Tuileries, reached the -ears of his daughter. Monsieur shocked Mademoiselle's -theological conception of Princes of the -Blood; she could not understand how a creature -partaking of the nature of the Deity could be so -essentially contemptible; she was crushed by the -enigma presented by her father.</p> - -<p>The close of the reign resembled the dramatic -tragedies in which the chief characters die in the -fifth act; all the principal personages departed this -life within a period of a few months. Marie de -Médicis was the first to go. She died at Cologne -3d July, 1642, not, as was reported, in a garret, -or in a hovel, but in a house in which Rubens -had lived. If we may judge by the names -of her legatees, she died surrounded by at least -eighty servants. It is true that she owed debts to -the tradesmen who furnished her household with -the necessaries of life, and it is true that her people -had advanced money when their living expenses -required such advances; but the two facts prove no -more than that royal households in which there is -no order closely resemble the disorderly households -of the ordinary classes. People of respectability in -our own midst are now living regardless of system, -devoid of economy, and indebted to their tradesmen,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_222" id="Page_222">[222]</a></span> -as the household of Marie de Médicis lived in the -seventeenth century. To the day of her death the -aged Queen retained possession of silver dishes of all -kinds, and had her situation justified the rumours of -extreme poverty which have been circulated since -then she would have pawned them or sold them. -We may be permitted to trust that Marie de Médicis -did not end her days tormented by material necessities. -She died just at the time when she had -begun to resort to expedients. The old and corpulent -sovereign had lived an agitated life; her -chief foes were of her own temperament. She was -the victim of paroxysmal wrath and it was generally -known that she had made at least one determined -though unfruitful attempt to whip her husband, the -heroic Henry IV., Conqueror of Paris. Her life -had not been of a character to inspire the love of -the French people, and when she died no one regretted -her. Had not the Court been forced by the -prevailing etiquette to assume mourning according -to the barbarous and complicated rites of the ancient -monarchy, her death would have passed unperceived. -The customs of the old regimen obliged Mademoiselle -to remain in a darkened room, surrounded by -such draperies as were considered essential to the -manifestation of royal grief. The world mourned -for the handsome boy who had been forced to enter -the King's house, and to act as the King's favourite -against his will, to die upon the scaffold. Monsieur -was despised for his part in Cinq-Mars's death. -Mademoiselle was shunned because she was her<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_223" id="Page_223">[223]</a></span> -father's daughter and her obligatory mourning was -a convenient veil. Her own record of the death -of the Queen is a frankly sorrowful statement of -her appreciation of the facts in the case, and of her -knowledge of her father's guilt:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I observed the retreat which my mourning imposed upon -me with all possible regularity and rigour. If any one had -come to see me it would not have been difficult for me to -refuse to receive them; however, my case was the case -of all who are undergoing misfortune; no one called for -me.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Three months after the conspiracy against de -Richelieu was exposed, Cinq-Mars was beheaded -(12th September), and the Lyonnais, who had assembled -in the golden mists of the season of the -vintage to see him die, cried out against his death -and said that it was "a sin against the earth to take -the light from his gentle eyes." De Thou, Cinq-Mars's -friend, was beheaded also. The victims faced -death like tried soldiers; their attitude as they halted -upon the confines of eternity elicited the commendation -of the people. The fact that the people -called their manner of leaving the world "beautiful -and admirable" proves that simplicity in man's conduct, -as in literature and in horticultural architecture, -was out of date.</p> - -<p>When the condemned were passing out of the -tribunal they met the judges who had but just pronounced -their sentence. Both Cinq-Mars and de -Thou "embraced the judges and offered them fine -compliments."</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_224" id="Page_224">[224]</a></span></p> - -<p>The people of Lyons—civilians and soldiers—were -massed around the Court House and in the -neighbourhood. Cinq-Mars and de Thou bowed -low to them all, then mounted into the tumbrel, -with faces illumined by spiritual exaltation. In -the tumbrel they joyfully embraced and crying "<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Au -revoir</i>," promised to meet in Paradise. They saluted -the multitude like conquerors. De Thou -clapped his hands when he saw the scaffold; Cinq-Mars -ascended first; he turned, took one step forward, -and stopped short; his eyes rested fondly -upon the people; then with a bright smile he saluted -them; after they covered his head he stood -for an instant poised as if to spring from earth to -heaven, one foot advanced, his hand upon his side. -His wide, pathetic glance embraced the multitude, -then calmly and without fear, again firmly pacing -the scaffold, he went forward to the block.</p> - -<p>At the present time it is the fashion to die with -less ostentation, but revolutions in taste ought -not to prevent our doing justice to the victims of -the Cinq-Mars Conspiracy. They were heroically -brave to the last, and the people could not forget -them. Mademoiselle's grief was fostered by the -general sympathy for the unfortunate boy who had -paid so dearly for his familiarity with the King. -As all her feelings were recorded by her own hand, -we are in possession of her opinions on the subjects -which were of interest in her day. Of the -matter of Cinq-Mars and de Thou she said:</p><blockquote> - -<p>I regretted it deeply, because of my consideration for them,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_225" id="Page_225">[225]</a></span> -and because, unfortunately, Monsieur was involved in the -affair through which they perished. He was so involved that -it was even believed that the single deposition made by him -was the thing which weighed most heavily upon them and -caused their death. The memory of it renews my grief so -that I cannot say any more.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Mademoiselle was artless enough to believe that -her father would be sorrowful and embarrassed -when he returned.</p> - -<p>She did not know him.</p> - -<p>In the winter after Cinq-Mars died, Gaston returned -to the Luxembourg radiant with roguish -smiles; he was delighted to be in Paris.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>He came to my house, [reported Mademoiselle,] he supped -at my house, where there were twenty-four violins. He -was as gay as if Messieurs Cinq-Mars and de Thou had not -been left by the roadside. I avow that I could not see him -without thinking of them, and that through all my joy of seeing -him again I felt that his joy gave me grief.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Not long after she thus recorded her impressions -she found, to her cost, how little reliance she could -place upon her father, and all her filial illusions -vanished.</p> - -<p>Richelieu was the next to disappear from the -scene. He had long been sick; his body was paralysed -and putrid with abscesses and with ulcers. -Master and Man, Richelieu and Louis were intently -watching to see which should be the first -to die. Each one of them was forming projects -for a time when, freed from the arbitration of the -other, he should be in a position to act his independent -will and to turn the remnant of his fleeting<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_226" id="Page_226">[226]</a></span> -life to pleasurable profit. In that, his final state, -the Cardinal offered the people of France a last -and supreme spectacle, and of all the dramas that -he had shown them, it was the most original and -the most impressive. The day after the execution -of Cinq-Mars, Richelieu, who had remained to the -last hour in Lyons, entered his portable room and -set out for Paris. His journey covered a period of -six weeks, and the people who ran to the highway -from all directions to see him pass were well regaled. -In those last days when the Cardinal travelled -he was carried in procession. First of all -were heavy wains hauling the material of an inclined -plane; at a short distance behind the wains -followed a small army corps escorting the Cardinal's -travelling room; the room was always transported -by twenty-four men of the Cardinal's body-guard, -who marched through sun and rain with heads uncovered. -In the portable room were three pieces -of furniture, a chair, a table, and a splendid bed—and -on the bed lay a sick man!—better still for the -sightseers, a sick Cardinal! The crowds pressed -close to the roadside. They who were masters of -the art of death looked on disease with curiosity; -they knew that they could lop off the heads of the -fine lords whose grandeur embittered the lives of -the peasants and the workmen as easily as they -could beat down nuts from trees; yet there lay the -real King of France in his doll's house, and he -could neither live nor die,—that was droll!</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_227" id="Page_227">[227]</a></span></p> - -<p>The chair in the little room stood ready for the -visitors who paid their respects to the sick man -when the travellers halted.</p> - -<p>The table was carried for the convenience of the -secretary, who wrote upon it, sorted his papers, -dusted his ink with scented gold-powder, and -pasted great wafers over the silken floss and the -English ribands which tied his private correspondence.</p> - -<p>Richelieu, as he travelled, dictated army orders -and diplomatic despatches. When the little procession -arrived at a halting-place, everything was -ready for its reception; the house in which the -Cardinal was to lodge had been prepared, the entire -floor to be occupied by him had been gutted -so that no inner partitions could interfere with his -progress. The wains stopped, the inclined plane -was set in position against the side of the house, -and the heavy machine bearing the sick-room was -rolled slowly into the breach and engulfed without -a tremor.</p> - -<p>When it was possible the room was drawn -aboard a boat and the Cardinal was transported by -water; in that case when he reached home he was -disembarked opposite his palace near the Port au -Foin, and borne through the crowd of people, who -struggled and crushed each other so that they -might know how a Cardinal-Minister looked, -lying in his bed and entering Paris, dying, yet -triumphant, after he had vanquished all his -enemies.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_228" id="Page_228">[228]</a></span></p> - -<p>Richelieu saw all that passed; his perceptions -were as keen and his judgment was as just as in the -days of his vigorous manhood. Entering Paris in -his bed on his return from Lyons, he saw among -the prostrate courtiers of his own party a man who -had been compromised by the conspiracy, and then -and there he summoned him from his knees and -ordered him to present himself at the palace and -give an account of his actions. Richelieu's word -was law; no one questioned it. The weeks which -followed the return from Lyons were tedious. -After the exposure of the conspiracy the Cardinal -suspected every one, the King included. His tired -eyes searched the corners of the King's bed-chamber -for assassins. He strove to force the King to -dismiss some of the officers of his guard, but at -that Louis revolted.</p> - -<p>After violent discussions and long recriminative -dialogues the Cardinal resorted to heroic means. -He shut himself up in his palace, refused to receive -the King's ambassadors, and threatened to send in -his resignation. Then the King yielded, and peace -was made.</p> - -<p>The two moribunds were together when the precautions -for the national safety were taken against -Gaston d'Orléans. In his declaration Louis told -the deputies that he had forgiven his brother five -separate and distinct times, and that he should forgive -him once more and once only. The declaration -made it plain that the King was firm in his -determination to protect himself against his brother.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_229" id="Page_229">[229]</a></span> -Gaston was to be stripped of all power and to be -deprived of the government of Auvergne; his -gendarmerie and his light cavalry were to be -suppressed. The King made the declaration to -Mathieu Molé, December 1, 1642. That same -day the Cardinal passed a desperate crisis, and it -was known that he must die.</p> - -<p>He prepared for death with the firmness befitting -a man of his calibre. When his confessor -asked him if he had forgiven his enemies, he answered -that he had "no enemies save the enemies -of the state."<a name="FNanchor_86_86" id="FNanchor_86_86"></a><a href="#Footnote_86_86" class="fnanchor">[86]</a> There was some truth in the answer, -and in that truth lay his title to glory. At -home or abroad, in France or in foreign lands, -Richelieu received the first force of every blow -aimed at France. He was the Obstacle, and all -hostility used him as a mark. He was the shield -as well as the sword of the State. His policy was -governed by two immutable ideas: 1. His own will -by the will of the King; 2. France. His object was -to subject all individual wills to the supreme royal -will, and to develop French influence throughout -Europe. We have seen the position which France -had taken under his direction; he had accomplished -work fully as important in the State. "The idea -of monarchical power was akin to a religious dogma," -said Ranke, "and he who rejected the idea expected -to be pursued with the same rigour, and with -nearly the same formalities, with which national justice -pursued the heretic. The time for an absolute<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_230" id="Page_230">[230]</a></span> -monarchy was ripe. Louis XIV. might come; he -would find his bed ready.</p> - -<p>Richelieu gave up the ghost December 4, 1642. -The news was immediately carried to the King, -who received it with the comment, "A great politician -is dead."</p> - -<p>In France the feeling of relief was general. No -one doubted that the Cardinal's death would change -everything. The exiles expected to be recalled; -the prisoners expected to be set free; the Opposition -looked forward to taking the reins of State, -and the great, who in spite of their greatness were -probably more or less badly fed, dreamed of an -Abbey of Thélème. The mass of Frenchmen loved -change for the sake of novelty.</p> - -<p>The Parisians had hoped for the spectacle of a -fine funeral, and they were not disappointed. Richelieu's -body lay in state in its Cardinal's robes, and -so many people visited him that the procession consumed -one whole day and night passing his bier. -The parade lasted nearly a week. The burial took -place the thirteenth day of December. It was a -public triumph. The funeral car, drawn by six -horses, was considered remarkable. But the changes -hoped for did not arrive. La Grande Mademoiselle -was the first to recognise the fact that Louis XIII. -had given the kingdom false hopes. It had been -supposed that the Cardinal's demise would give -the King power to make the people happy. The -Cardinal was dead, and there had been no change. -Despite all that Gaston had done, Mademoiselle<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_231" id="Page_231">[231]</a></span> -loved him; she could not separate him from her -idea of the glory of her house. She noted in her -memoirs the visit made to the Louvre in his behalf:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>As soon as I knew that Richelieu was dead I went to the -King to beg him to show some kindness to Monsieur. I -thought that I had taken a very favourable occasion for moving -him to pity, but he refused to do what I asked him, and -the next day he went to the palace to register the declaration -against Monsieur (as the subject of it is known I need not -mention it or explain it here). When he entered Parliament I -wished to throw myself at his feet; I wished to beg of him -not to go to that extremity against Monsieur; but some one -had warned him of my intention and he sent word to me forbidding -me to appear. Nothing could make him swerve from -his injurious designs.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The 4th December, after Mademoiselle made -her unsuccessful visit, Louis XIII. summoned Mazarin -to finish the work that Richelieu had begun.</p> - -<p>The 5th December Louis sent out a circular -letter announcing the death of Richelieu; he cut -short the rumours of a political crisis by stating -that he was resolved to maintain all the establishments -by him decreed in Council with the late -Prime Minister, and he further stated that to advance -the foreign affairs of France and also to -advance the internal interests of the State,—as he -had always advanced them,—he should maintain the -existent national policy.</p> - -<p>The riches amassed by the Cardinal passed into -the hands of his heirs, and the King supplemented -the legacies by the distribution of a few official -appointments. Richelieu was gone from earth, but<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_232" id="Page_232">[232]</a></span> -his spirit still governed France. "All the Cardinal's -evils are right here!" cried Mademoiselle; -"when he went, they remained."</p> - -<p>Montglat said that they "found it difficult to announce -the Cardinal's death. No one was willing -to take the first step. They spoke in whispers. It -was as if they were afraid that his soul would come -back to punish them for saying that he could die." -It was said that "even the King had so respected -the Cardinal when he was alive, that he feared him -when he was dead."</p> - -<p>Under such conditions it was difficult to make -a change of any kind; nevertheless, after weeks -had passed—when the King had accustomed himself -to independent action—a few changes came -about gradually and stealthily, one by one.</p> - -<p>The thirteenth day of January, 1643, Monsieur -was given permission to call at Saint Germain -and pay his respects to the King. The 19th, Bassompierre -and two other lords emerged from the -Bastille.</p> - -<p>In February the Vendômes returned from exile. -Old Mme. de Guise also took the road to Paris, -and when she arrived her granddaughter, La -Grande Mademoiselle, received her with open -arms, and gave her a ball and a comedy, and collations -composed of confitures, and fruits trimmed -with English ribands; and when the ball was over -and the guests were departing in the grey fog of -early morning, old Madame and young Mademoiselle -laid their light heads upon the same pillow<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_233" id="Page_233">[233]</a></span> -and dreamed that Cardinals were always dying and -exiles joyfully returning to their own.</p> - -<p>As time went on the King's clemency increased -and he issued pardons freely. The reason was too -plain to every one; the end was at hand. Paris had -acquired a taste for her kindly sovereign. Louis -knew that he was nearing the tideless sea,—he -spoke constantly of his past; he exhibited his -skeleton limbs covered with great white scars to -his family and his familiar friends; he told the -story of his wrongs. He told how he had been -brought to the state that he was in by his "executioners -of doctors" and by "the tyranny of the -Cardinal." He said that the Cardinal had never -permitted him to do things as he had wished to do -them, and that he had compelled him to do things -which had been repugnant to him, so that at last -<em>even he</em> "whom Heaven had endowed with all the -endurances," had succumbed under the load that -had been heaped upon him. His friends listened -and were silent.</p> - -<p>To the last Louis XIII. was faithful to the sacraments -and to France. He performed all his -secular duties. When he lay upon his death-bed he -summoned his deputies so that they might hear -him read the declaration bestowing the title of -Regent upon Anne of Austria and delivering the -actual power of the Crown into the hands of a -prospective Council duly nominated.</p> - -<p>Louis XIII. had put his house in order: he had -nothing more to do on earth. His sickness was<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_234" id="Page_234">[234]</a></span> -long and tedious, and attended by all that makes -death desirable; by cruel pains, by distressful -nausea, and by all the torments of a death by inches. -The unhappy man was long in dying; now rallying, -now sinking, with fluctuations which deranged the -intrigues of the Court and agitated Saint Germain.</p> - -<p>The King lay in the new château (the one built -by his father); nothing remains of it but the "Pavillon -Henri IV". Anne of Austria lived with the -Court in the old château (the one familiar to all -Parisians of the present day).</p> - -<p>On "good days" the arrangement afforded the -sufferer relative repose; but on "bad days," when -he approached a crisis, the etiquette of the Court -was torment. The courtiers hurried over to the -new château to witness the death-agony. They -crowded the sick-room and whispered with the -celebrities who travelled daily from Paris to Saint -Germain to visit the dying King. In the courtyard -of the château the travellers' horses neighed -and pawed the ground. Confused sounds and -tormenting light entered by the windows; the air -of the room was stifling and Louis begged his -guests, in the name of mercy, to withdraw from his -bed and let him breathe.</p> - -<p>The crowds assembled in the courtyard hissed -or applauded as the politicians entered or drove -away. On the highway before the château the idle -people stood waiting to receive the last sigh of the -King, to be in at the death, or to make merry at -the expense of celebrated men.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_235" id="Page_235">[235]</a></span></p> - -<p>While the masters visited the dying King the -coachmen, footmen, on-hangers, and other tributaries -sat upon the carriage boxes, declared their -politics, and issued their manifestos, and their voices -rose above the neighing of the horses and ascended -to the sick-room. When the tantalising periodically -recurrent crises which kept the Court and -country on foot were past, the celebrities and men of -Parliament, with many of the courtiers, fled to Paris, -where they forgot the sights and the sounds of the -sick-room in the perfumed air of the Parisian salons.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle wrote of that time: "There never -were as many balls as there were that year; and I -went to them all."</p> - -<p>The final crisis came the thirteenth day of May. -Immediately after the King gave up the ghost, the -Queen and all the Court retired from the death-chamber -and made ready to depart from Saint -Germain early in the morning. The moving was -like breaking camp. At daybreak long files of -baggage wagons laden with furniture and with -luggage began to descend the hill of Saint Germain, -and soon afterward crowded chariots, drawn -by six horses, and groups of cavaliers, joined the -lumbering wains. The suppressed droning of -many voices accompanied the procession. At -eleven o'clock silence fell upon the long, writhing -line, and an army corps surrounding the royal -mourners passed, escorted by the Marshals of -France, dukes and peers, and the gentlemen of the -Court,—all mounted.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_236" id="Page_236">[236]</a></span></p> - -<p>The last of the battalions filed by the van of the -procession, and the chariots and the wains moved -on, mingling with the servitors and men of all -trades, who in that day followed in the train of all -the great.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Saint Germain was vacant. The last errand -boy vanished, the murmur of the moving throng -died in the distance; the shroud of silence wrapped -the new château, and the curtain fell upon the -fifth act of the reign of Louis XIII. There remained -upon the stage only a corpse, light as a -plume, watched by a lieutenant and his guard.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_237" id="Page_237">[237]</a></span></p> - - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IV" id="CHAPTER_IV"></a>CHAPTER IV</h2> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="p4a">I. The Regency—The Romance of Anne of Austria and Mazarin—Gaston's -Second Wife.—II. Mademoiselle's New Marriage Projects.—III. -Mademoiselle Would Be a Carmelite Nun—The Catholic Renaissance -under Louis XIII. and the Regency.—IV. Women Enter -Politics. The Rivalry of the Two Junior Branches of the House of -France—Continuation of the Royal Romance.</p></blockquote> - - -<p class="p3">I</p> - -<p><span class="drop-cap">T</span><span class="smcap">he</span> day after the death of Louis XIII. Paris -was in a tumult. The people were on duty, -awaiting their young King, Louis XIV., a boy less -than five years old.</p> - -<p>The country had been notified that the King -would enter Paris by the Chemin du Roule and -the Faubourg Saint Honoré. Some of the people -had massed in the streets through which the procession -was to pass; the others were hurrying forward -toward the bridge of Neuilly. "Never did so many -coaches and so many people come out of Paris," -said Olivier d'Ormesson, who, with his family, spent -the day at a window in the Faubourg Saint Honoré, -watching to see who would follow and who would -not follow in the train of Anne of Austria.</p> - -<p>Ormesson and his friends were close observers, -who drew conclusions from the general behaviour; -they believed that they could read the fate of the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_238" id="Page_238">[238]</a></span> -country in the faces of the courtiers. France -hoped that the Queen would give the nation the -change of government which had been vainly -looked for when Richelieu died.</p> - -<p>Anne of Austria was a determined, self-contained -woman, an enigma to the world. No one could -read her thoughts, but the courtiers were sure of -one thing: she would have no prime minister. -She had suffered too deeply from the tyranny of -Richelieu. She would keep her hands free! There -was enough in that thought to assure to the Queen -the sympathy of the people, and to arouse all the -ambitious hopes of the nobility.</p> - -<p>The Parisian flood met the royal cortège at -Nanterre and, turning, accompanied it and hindered -its progress. "From Nanterre to the gates -of the city the country was full of wains and -chariots," wrote Mme. de Motteville, "and nothing -was heard but plaudits and benedictions." When -the royal mourners surrounded by the multitude -entered the Chemin du Roule the first official address -was delivered by the Provost of the Merchants. -The Regent answered briefly that she -should instruct her son "in the benevolence which he -ought to show to his subjects."<a name="FNanchor_87_87" id="FNanchor_87_87"></a><a href="#Footnote_87_87" class="fnanchor">[87]</a> The applause was -deafening. The cortège advanced so slowly that it -was six o'clock in the evening when Anne of Austria -ascended the staircase of the Louvre, saying that -she could endure no more, and that she must defer -the reception of condolences until the following day.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_239" id="Page_239">[239]</a></span></p> - -<p>Saturday, the 16th, was devoted to hearing addresses -and to receiving manifestations of reverence. -The following Monday the Queen led her -son to Parliament, where, contrary to the intention -expressed in the last will and testament of Louis -XIII., she, Anne of Austria, was declared Regent -"with full, entire, and absolute authority."</p> - -<p>The evening of that memorable day a radiant -throng filled the stifling apartments of the Louvre. -The great considered themselves masters of France. -Some of the courtiers were gossiping in a corner; -all were happy. Suddenly a rumour, first whispered, -then spoken aloud, ran through the rooms, -<em>Mazarin had been made Chief of Council! The -Queen had appointed him immediately after she -returned to her palace from Parliament!</em></p> - -<p>The courtiers exchanged significant glances. -Some were astounded, others found it difficult to -repress their smiles. The great had helped Anne -of Austria to seize authority because they had supposed -that she would be incapable of using it. Now -that it was too late for them to protect themselves -she had come forth with the energy and the initiative -of a strong woman. In reality, though possessed -of reticence, she was a weak woman, acting under -a strong influence, but that fact was not evident.</p> - -<p>The Queen-mother was forty-one years old. -Her hair was beautiful; her eyes were beautiful; -she had beautiful hands, a majestic mien, and natural -wit. Her education had been as summary as -Mademoiselle's; she knew how to read and how to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_240" id="Page_240">[240]</a></span> -write. She had never opened a book; when she -first appeared in Council she was a miracle of ignorance. -She had always been conversant with the -politics of France because her natural love of intrigue -had taught her many things concerning -many people. She had learned the lessons of life -and the world from the plays presented at the -theatre, and from the witty and erudite frequenters -of the salons. She was enamoured of intellect, she -delighted in eloquence, she was a serious woman -and a devoted mother. While Louis XIII. lived -she was considered amiable and indulgent to the -failings of "low people," because her indifference -made her appear complaisant. As soon as she assumed -the Regency her manner changed and her -real nature came to the surface. She astonished -her deputies by the breathless resistance which she -opposed to any hint of a suggestion adverse to her -mandates. After the royal scream first startled -Parliament there was hardly a man of the French -State who did not shrink at sight of the Regent's -fair flushed face and the determined glitter of her -eye. Anne of Austria was acting under guidance; -the delicate hand of the woman lay under the firm -hand of a master, and her lover's will, not the judgment -of the deputies, was her law.</p> - -<p>The people had received false impressions of the -character of the Queen; some had judged her too -favourably (Mme. de Motteville considered her -beautiful); others—Retz among them—failed to -do her justice.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_241" id="Page_241">[241]</a></span></p> - -<p>Anne of Austria was neither a stupid woman -nor a great Queen, although she was called both -"great" and "foolish." She was born a Spaniard, -and in thought and in feeling she was a Spaniard to -the end of her life. Like all her race, she was -imaginative; she indulged in dreams and erected -altars to her ideals. Her life had betrayed her -illusions, therefore she longed for vengeance; and -as she was romantic, her vengeance took a sentimental -form. A study of her nature, as furnished -by the histories of her early years, makes her after-life -and her administration of the Regency comprehensible. -Despite the latitude of her morals she -exhibited piety so detailed and so persistent that -the Parisians were displeased; one of her friends -commented upon it sharply. "She partakes of the -communion too often, she reveres the relics of the -saints, she is devoted to the Virgin, and she offers -the presents and the novenas which the devout consider -effectual when they are trying to obtain -favours from Heaven." This from a Parisian was -critical judgment.</p> - -<p>As the Queen was born to rule, she could not -comprehend any form of government but absolute -monarchy. Her Parliament was shocked when -she interrupted its Councils by shrill screams of -"<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Taisez-vous!</i>" But her behaviour was consistent; -she believed that she expressed the authority of -her son's kingship when she raised her high falsetto -and shouted to her deputies to hold their tongues.</p> - -<p>The new Minister, Mazarin, was of Sicilian origin,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_242" id="Page_242">[242]</a></span> -and forty years of age. In Paris, where he had -officiated two years (1634-1636), as Papal Nuncio, -he was known by his original Italian name, Mazarini. -When he was first seen at Court he entered -without ceremony and installed himself with -the natural ease of an habitué returned after a -forced absence. No one knew by what right he -made himself at home. Richelieu profited by his -versatility and made use of him in various ways. -Mazarin was gifted with artistic taste, and he -wielded a fluent pen. His appointment as representative -of the Holy See had proved his capacity -and blameless character. Paris knew that Richelieu -had written to him from his death-bed: "I give my -book into your hands with the approbation of our -good Master, so that you may conduct it to perfection."</p> - -<p>Almost immediately after de Richelieu breathed -his last the King called Mazarin to the palace, -where he remained hard at work as long as the -King lived. He had no special duties, but he -lived close to the royal invalid, did everything that -de Richelieu had done, and made himself in every -way indispensable. To the wounds of the tired -spirit whose peace the scorching splendour of the -great Cardinal had withered the calm presence of -the lesser Cardinal was balm. Mazarin employed -his leisure as he saw fit; how he employed it the -world knew later. He was seldom seen either in -the palace or out of it. When Louis XIII. died -and the people, little and great, thronged the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_243" id="Page_243">[243]</a></span> -streets and the highways and flocked to Parliament -to witness the establishment of the Regent, Mazarin -was not in evidence. When the Provost's address -and the other addresses were read, and when -the people welcomed their young King, Mazarin -was not seen, and as he was not at the funeral of -the King, and as no one had heard from him since -the King's death, it was believed that he had returned -to his own country.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_242.jpg" alt="" title="ANNE OF AUSTRIA" /> -<div class="caption"><p>ANNE OF AUSTRIA</p></div> -</div> - -<p>Prominent Parisians who knew everything and -every one had formed no opinion of Mazarin's -character or of his personal appearance. He had -been Nuncio; that was all that they knew of him. -Olivier d'Ormesson, who went everywhere, knew -every one of any importance in Paris, yet when -Mazarin had been Prime Minister six months, d'Ormesson -spoke of him as if he had seen him but -once. In d'Ormesson's <cite>Journal</cite> we read:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Saturday morning, 4 November (1643). M. le Cardinal, -Mazarin, came to the Council to-day. He was late. The -Chancellor had been waiting for him half an hour. Cardinal -Mazarin took his place as Chief of Council and was the first -to sign the resolutions; he wrote: Cardinal <em>Massarini</em>. At -first, as he knew neither the order of the Court nor the names -of the members, he was somewhat confused. Judging by -appearances he knows nothing of financial affairs. He is -tall, he carries himself well, he is handsome. His eyes are -clear and spiritual, the colour of his hair is chestnut brown; -the expression of his face is very gentle and sweet. Monsieur -the Chancellor instructed him in the Parliamentary procedure -and then every one addressed him directly and before they -addressed any one else....</p></blockquote> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_244" id="Page_244">[244]</a></span></p> - -<p>The new Chief of Council was as modest as the -unobtrusive Cardinal who assumed the duties of -the great de Richelieu. Mazarin found better employment -for his talents than the exhibition of his -pomp. His design was to render his position impregnable, -and we know what means he selected -for its achievement. In his pocket diary (which -the National Library preserves) he employed three -languages, French, Spanish, and Italian. Whenever -the Queen is mentioned the language is Spanish. -The ingenuous frankness with which the -writer of the strange notes recorded his intentions -enables us to follow him step by step through all -the labyrinths of his relations with royalty. His -reflections make it clear that his aim was the -Queen's heart: in the record dated August, 1634, -we read: "If I could believe what they tell me—that -her Majesty is making use of me because she -needs my services, and that she has no inclination -for me,—I would not stay here three days."</p> - -<p>Apropos of his enemies he wrote: "Well, they -are laying their heads together and planning a -thousand intrigues to lessen my chances with her -Majesty."</p> - -<p>(The Queen's friends had warned her that her -Minister would compromise her.)</p> - -<p>"The Abbess of the Carmelites has been talking -to her Majesty. When she talked the Queen -wept. She told the Abbess that in case the subject -should be mentioned again she would not visit -the convent."</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_245" id="Page_245">[245]</a></span></p> - -<p>Mazarin's diary conveys the impression that the -man who edited it so carefully feared that he might -forget something that he wished to say to the -Queen. He made a note of everything that he -meant to advise her to do, and of all the appeals -and all the observations that he intended to make.</p> - -<p>Following is a very simple reminder of words to -be used when next he should see the Queen alone.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>They tell me that her Majesty is forced to make excuses -for her manifestations of regard for me.... This is such -a delicate subject that her Majesty ought to pity me ... -ought to take compassion on me, even if I speak of it often ... -I have no right to doubt, since, in the excess of her -kindness, her Majesty has assured me that nothing can ever -lower me from the place in her favour which she has deigned -to give me ... but in spite of everything because Fear -is the inseparable attendant of Love ... etc.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The "memorandum" which follows this last note -gave proof of the speed of his wooing, and of his -progress: "The jaundice caused by an excessive -love...."</p> - -<p>That Mazarin felt that he was strong was shown -by the fact that he made suggestions to the Queen -and offered her advice of a peculiarly intimate -character. The note which follows covers the -ground of one of the lines of argument used by him -for the subjection of his royal lady and mistress:</p> - -<p>"Her Majesty ought to apply herself to the -winning over of all hearts to my cause; she should -do so by making me the agent from whose hand -they receive all the favours that she grants them."</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_246" id="Page_246">[246]</a></span></p> - -<p>After Anne of Austria qualified the Cardinal by -the exequatur of her love, Mazarin dictated the -language of the State. In his diary we find, verbatim, -the diplomatic addresses and suggestions -which were to be delivered by the Queen.</p> - -<p>While the Queen's lover was engaged in maintaining -his position against determined efforts to -displace him, France enjoyed a few delightful -moments. The long-continued anxiety had passed, -the tension of the nation's nerves had yielded to -the beneficent treatment of the conscientious -counsellors, and the peaceful quiet of a temporary -calm gave hope to the light-minded and strength -and courage to the far-sighted, who foresaw the -coming storm. To the majority of the people the -resplendent victory of Rocroy (19th May, 1643), -which immediately followed the death of Louis -XIII., seemed a proof that God had laid His protecting -hand upon the infant King and upon his -mother.</p> - -<p>This belief was daily strengthened. War had -been carried to a foreign country, and the testimony -of French supremacy had come back from -many a battle-field. In the eyes of the world we -occupied a brilliant position. Success had followed -success in our triumphant march from Rocroy -to the Westphalian treaties. Our diplomacy had -equalled our military strategy and the strength of -our arms; and a part of our glory had been the result -of the efforts of the Prime Minister who ruled -our armies and the nation. In the opinion of our<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_247" id="Page_247">[247]</a></span> -foreign enemies Mazarin had fully justified Richelieu's -confidence and the choice of Anne of Austria.</p> - -<p>His selection of agents had shown that he was -in possession of all his senses; he had divined the -value of the Duc d'Enghien and appointed him -General-in-chief, though the boy was but twenty-two -years old; he had sounded the character of -Turenne; he had judiciously listed the names of -the men to be appointed for the diplomatic missions, -and he had proved that he knew the strength -of France by ordering the ministers to hold their -ground, to "stand firm," and not to concern themselves -either with the objections or the resistance -of other nations. The majority of the French -people failed to recognise Cardinal Mazarin's services -until the proper time for their recognition had -passed, but Retz distinctly stated that Mazarin was -popular in Paris during the first months of his -ministry:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>France saw a gentle and benignant Being sitting on the steps -of the throne where the harsh and redoubtable Richelieu had -blasted, rather than governed men. The harassed country rejoiced -in its new leader,<a name="FNanchor_88_88" id="FNanchor_88_88"></a><a href="#Footnote_88_88" class="fnanchor">[88]</a> who had no personal wishes and -whose only regret was that the dignity of his episcopal office -forbade him to humiliate himself before the world as he would -have been glad to do. He passed through the streets with -little lackeys perched behind his carriage; his audiences were -unceremonious, access to his presence was absolutely free, and -people dined with him as if he had been a private person.</p></blockquote> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_248" id="Page_248">[248]</a></span></p> - -<p>The arrest of the Duc de Beaufort and the dispersion -of the Importants astonished the people, -but did not affright them. Hope was the anchor of -the National Soul. They who had formed the party -of Marie de Médicis and the party of Anne of Austria -hoped to bring about the success of their former -projects, and to enforce peace everywhere; they -hoped to substitute a Spanish alliance for the Protestant -alliance. The great families hoped to regain -their authority at the expense of the authority of -the King. Parliament hoped to play a great political -part. The people hoped for peace; they had -been told that the Queen had taken a Minister solely -for the purpose of making peace. The entire Court -from the first Prince of the Blood to the last of the -lackeys lived in hope of some grace or some favour, -and as to that they were rarely disappointed, for the -Administration "refused nothing." Honours, dignities, -positions, and money were freely dispensed, -not only to those who needed them, but to those -who were already provided with them. La Feuillade -said that there were but four words in the -French language: "<em>The Queen is good!</em>"</p> - -<p>So many cases of private and individual happiness -gave the impression of public and general -happiness. Paris expressed its satisfaction by entering -heart and soul into its amusements. It -played by day and it played by night, exhibiting -the extraordinary appetite for pleasure which has -always distinguished it.</p> - -<p>"All, both the little and the great, are happy,"<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_249" id="Page_249">[249]</a></span> -said Saint Evremond; "the very air they breathe -is charged with amusement and with love." Mademoiselle -preserved a grateful memory of that -period of joyous intoxication. "The first months -of the Regency," she said in her memoirs, "were -the most beautiful that one could have wished. It -was nothing but perpetual rejoicing everywhere. -Hardly a day passed that there were not serenades -at the Tuileries or in the place Royale."</p> - -<p>The mourning for the late King hindered no -one, not even the King's widow, who passed her -evenings in Renard's garden,<a name="FNanchor_89_89" id="FNanchor_89_89"></a><a href="#Footnote_89_89" class="fnanchor">[89]</a> where she frequently -supped with her friends. Though the return of -winter drove the people from the public walks, the -universal amusements went on. "They danced -everywhere," said Mademoiselle, "and especially -at my house, although it was not at all according -to decorum to hear violins in a room draped with -mourning." We note here that at the time Mademoiselle -wrote thus she was regarded as a victim. -It was rumoured in Paris that her liberty and her -pleasures were restricted, and the indignation of -the people seethed at thought of it. Mademoiselle -had lost her indulgent friend and governess, Mme. -de Saint Georges. Her new governess, Mme. de -Fiésque, a woman of firm will who looked with -disfavour upon her pupil's untrammelled ways, -made attempts to discipline her. When Mme. de -Fiésque exerted her authority the canaille formed -groups and threatened the palace of the Tuileries.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_250" id="Page_250">[250]</a></span> -Mademoiselle was sixteen years old and the whole -world knew it. The people thought, as she thought, -that she was too old to be imprisoned like a child. -She was quick to avenge her outraged dignity; the -governess was headstrong. Slap answered slap -and, after the combat, Mademoiselle was under -lock and key six days.</p> - -<p>But all that was forgotten.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle had in mind something more -important than her childish punishment. The -death of Louis XIII. had enabled Gaston to send -for his wife. The Regency made but one condition,—the -married pair were to be remarried in -France. The Princess Gaston was on the way, -travelling openly, entering France with the reputation -of a heroine of romance. Mademoiselle -revelled in the thought of a step-mother as young -and as beautiful as an houri. They would dance -together; they would run about like sisters!</p> - -<p>Twelve years previous to the death of Louis -XIII., when Marguerite de Lorraine committed -the so-called "crime" which Richelieu's jurisconsults -qualified by a name for which we shall substitute -the less discouraging term "abduction," events -separated the wedded pair at the church door. -The sacrament of marriage had just been administered.</p> - -<p>Madame fled before the minions of the law -reached Nancy and found her way cut off by the -French army. She donned the wig and garments -of a man, besmirched her face with suet, crossed<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_251" id="Page_251">[251]</a></span> -the French line in a cardinal's coach, covered -twenty leagues on horseback, and joined Monsieur -in Flanders. The world called her courageous, -and when she exercised her impeccancy during a -nine years' separation from her husband, conjugal -fidelity rare enough at any time, and especially -rare at that time, definitely ranged her among -spectacular examples of virtue.</p> - -<p>Handsome, brave, free from restraint, and virtuous! -Paris was curious to see her.</p> - -<p>At Meudon (27th May, 1643) the people made -haste to reach the spot before she alighted from -her carriage. They were eager to witness her -meeting with the light-minded husband with whom -France was at last to permit her to cast her lot -and from whom she had been separated so long. -Mademoiselle wrote:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I ran on ahead of them all so that I might be at Gonesse -when she arrived. From Gonesse she proceeded to Meudon -without passing through Paris. She did not wish to stop in -Paris because she was not in a condition to salute their -Majesties. In fact, she could not salute them, because she -was not dressed in mourning. We arrived at Meudon late, -where Monsieur—having gone there to be on the spot when -she arrived—found her waiting in the courtyard. Their -first meeting took place in the presence of all who had accompanied -them. Every one was astonished to see the coldness -with which they met. It seemed strange! Monsieur -had endured so much persecution from the King, and from -Richelieu, solely on account of his marriage; and all his suffering -had only seemed to confirm his constancy to Madame, -therefore coldness seemed unexpected.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Both Monsieur and Madame were much embarrassed;<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_252" id="Page_252">[252]</a></span> -it was a trying thing to meet after a separation -of nine years.</p> - -<p>Monsieur had not materially changed, although -he had acquired a habit of the gout which hindered -him when he attempted to pirouette. Madame -appeared faded and ill-attired, but that was but a -natural consequence of the separation; it was to -be expected.</p> - -<p>When their marriage had been duly regulated -and recorded in the Parish Register, the couple -established themselves in Gaston's palace, and the -Court found that it had acquired an hypochondriac. -The romantic type of constancy habitually hung -upon the gate of Death. Mme. de Motteville said:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>She rarely left her home; she affirmed that the least excitement -brought on a swoon. Several times I saw Monsieur -mock her; he told the Queen that Madame would receive the -sacrament in bed rather than to go into her chapel, although the -chapel was close by,—and all that "though she had no ailment -of any importance."</p></blockquote> - -<p>When Madame visited the Queen, as she did -once in twenty-four months, she was carried in a -sedan chair, as other ladies of her quality were -carried, but her movements were attended by such -distress and by so much bustle that her arrival conveyed -the impression of a miracle. Frequently, -when she had started upon a journey, or to pay a -visit to the Queen, before she had gone three yards -she declared that she had been suddenly seized by -faintness, or by some other ill; then her bearers -were forced to make haste to return her to the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_253" id="Page_253">[253]</a></span> -house. She lived in Gaston's palace in the Luxembourg. -Mademoiselle's palace was in the Tuileries, -and the royal family lived either in the -palace of the Louvre, in the Palais Royal, or in the -Château of Saint Germain.</p> - -<p>Madame declared that her life had been one -continuous agony. She announced her evils not -singly but in clusters, and although none of them -were evident to the disinterested observer, her -diagnoses displayed so thorough a knowledge of -their essential character that to harbour a doubt of -their reality would be to confess a consciousness -of uncertainty akin to the skepticism of the -ignorant.</p> - -<p>At the advent of Madame the spiritual atmosphere -of the Luxembourg changed. The Princess -was a moralist, and either because of her nervous -anxiety for his welfare, or for some other reason, -she harangued her husband day and night. The -irresponsible Gaston was a signal example of marital -patience; he carried his burden bravely, listened -attentively to his wife's rebukes, sang and laughed, -whistled and cut capers, pulled his elf-locks in mock -despair, and, clumsily whirling upon his gouty heels, -"made faces" behind Madame's drooping shoulders; -but he bore her plaintive polemics without a -murmur, and although he freely ridiculed her, he -never left her side. "Madame loved Monsieur -ardently," and Monsieur returned Madame's love -in the disorderly manner in which he did everything. -"One may say that he loved her, but that<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_254" id="Page_254">[254]</a></span> -he did not love her often," wrote Mme. de Motteville. -The public soon lost its interest in the spectacular -household; Madame was less heroic than -her reputation. Mademoiselle despaired when -Madame urged Monsieur to be prudent; to her -mind her father's prudence had invariably exceeded -the proportions of virtue. Generally speaking, -Madame's first relations with her step-daughter -were cordial, but they were limited to a purely conventional -exchange of civilities. Speaking of that -epoch, Mademoiselle said: "I did all that I possibly -could to preserve her good graces, which I should -not have lost had she not given me reason to neglect -them." Mademoiselle could not have loved -her step-mother, nor could she have been loved by -her; Madame and Mademoiselle were of different -and distinct orders.</p> - - -<p class="p3">II</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_254.jpg" width="560" height="335" alt="FROM AN OLD PRINT" title="VIEW OF THE LOUVRE FROM THE SEINE IN THE 17TH CENTURY" /> -<div class="caption"><p>VIEW OF THE LOUVRE FROM THE SEINE IN THE 17TH CENTURY</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM AN OLD PRINT</p> - </div> -</div> - -<p>The routine requirements of Mademoiselle's -periods of mourning diverted her mind from her -marriage projects, but she soon resumed her efforts. -She had no adviser, and no one cared for -her establishment; Gaston was too well employed -in spending her money to concern himself -with her future, and, as the duties of daily -life fatigued Madame, Mademoiselle could not hope -for assistance from her step-mother; the Queen -was her only hope, and the Queen's executor was -jealously guarding her fine principalities and keeping -close watch over her person. In 1644 the King<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_255" id="Page_255">[255]</a></span> -of Spain, Philippe IV., the brother of Anne of -Austria, became a widower. He was the enemy of -France, and it would have been folly to give him a -right to any portion of French territory; but Mademoiselle -did not consider that fact; her political -intuitions were not keen. All that she could see -was that the King had a crown, and that it was -such a crown as would adorn the title of her own -nobility. For some occult reason which, as no one -has ever located it, will probably remain enigmatical, -Mademoiselle imagined that Philippe IV. desired -to espouse her; and she passed her time forming -plans and waiting for the Spanish envoy who was -to come to France to ask her father for her hand. -As it is difficult to believe that she ever could have -dreamed the story that she tells in her memoirs, -we must suppose that there was some foundation for -her hopes. Possibly the expectations upon which -she artlessly dilated sprang from the intriguing designs -of her subalterns.<a name="FNanchor_90_90" id="FNanchor_90_90"></a><a href="#Footnote_90_90" class="fnanchor">[90]</a></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The Queen bore witness to me that she passionately wished -for the marriage, and Cardinal Mazarin spoke of it in the same -way; more than that, he told me that he had received news -from Spain which had shown him that the affair was desired -in that country. Both the Queen and the Cardinal spoke of -it repeatedly, not only to me but to Monsieur. By feigned -earnestness they impressed us with the idea that they wished -for the marriage. They lured us with that honour, though -they had no intention of obliging us; and our good faith was -such that we did not perceive their lack of sincerity. As we -had full belief in them, it was easy for them to elude the obligations<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_256" id="Page_256">[256]</a></span> -incurred by them when they aroused our expectations, -and, in fact, that was just what they did; having talked freely -of it to us during a certain period, they suddenly ceased to -speak of it, and everything thereafter was as it would have -been had there been no question of the marriage.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Mademoiselle's anxieties and hopes were fed -alternately. To add to her distress, a Spaniard -was caught on French soil and cast into the Bastille. -Mademoiselle grieved bitterly over his fate; she -supposed that the prisoner had been sent by the -Spanish King to negotiate the marriage; it was her -belief that Mazarin's spies had warned him (Mazarin) -of the arrival of the envoy, and that the -Cardinal had ordered the arrest to prevent the -envoy from delivering his despatches; the interpretation -was chimerical. Our knowledge is confined -to the fact that nothing more was said of -Mademoiselle's marriage, and that when the King -was ready to marry he married an Austrian.</p> - -<p>The troubles of England provided Mademoiselle -with a more serious suitor. Queen Henriette, the -daughter of Henry of Navarre, had fled to France, -and France, in the person of the Regent, had installed -her in the Louvre. Before that time Anne -of Austria had moved from the Louvre to the -Palais Royal, which was a more commodious residence, -well fitted to the prevailing taste. Queen -Henriette was ambitious, and she began to form -projects for an alliance with France before she -recovered from the fatigue of her journey.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle was a spirited Princess, very handsome,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_257" id="Page_257">[257]</a></span> -witty, and an ardent partisan. Such a wife -would be a credit to any king, and the Montpensier -estates were needed by the throne of England. -Queen Henriette was sanguine; she ignored the -fact that her son's future was dark and threatening. -She made proposals to Mademoiselle and -Mademoiselle received them coldly. Her ideas -of propriety were shocked by the thought of -such an alliance. The Queen of England was a -refugee, dependent upon the bounty of France. -There could be no honour or profit in marriage -to her son!</p> - -<p>Queen Henriette was the first of a series of exiled -monarchs to whom France gave hospitality, and it -must be said that her manner of opening a series -was not a happy one. The sovereigns of former -times were not familiar with revolutions, and their -ignorance made them fearless; they despised precautions; -they were improvident, they saved nothing -for a rainy day; they scorned foreign stocks; they -avoided business, and looked with contempt upon -foreign bankers. If they lost their thrones they -fled to foreign countries and sought refuge in the -kingdoms of their friends, and there their comfort -and their respectability were matters of chance; -their friends might be in easy circumstances, and -they might be on the verge of bankruptcy; a king's -crown was not always accompanied by a full -purse.</p> - -<p>When Queen Henriette arrived in Paris she -was received with honours and with promises.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_258" id="Page_258">[258]</a></span> -The courtiers donned their festive robes "broidered -with gold and with silver,"<a name="FNanchor_91_91" id="FNanchor_91_91"></a><a href="#Footnote_91_91" class="fnanchor">[91]</a> and went to -Montrouge to meet her and escort her into Paris. -Anne of Austria received her affectionately and -seated her at her right hand at banquets. Mazarin -announced that she was to draw a salary of twelve -hundred francs per diem; in short, everything was -done to flatter the English guest. The credulous -Henriette accepted the flattery and the promises -literally and she was dazed, when, awaking to the -truth, she found that she was a beggar. Recording -the history of that epoch, Mademoiselle said:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"The Queen of England had appeared everywhere in Paris -attended like a Queen, and with a Queen's equipage. With -her we had always seen her many ladies of quality, chariots, -guards, and footmen. Little by little all that disappeared and -the time came when nothing was more lacking to her dignity -than her retinue and all the pomps to which she had been -accustomed."</p></blockquote> - -<p>Queen Henriette was obliged to sell her jewels -and her silver dishes; debts followed debts, and -the penniless sovereign had no way to meet them. -The little court of the Louvre owed the baker and -could not pay its domestic servants. Mme. de -Motteville visited the Louvre and found Queen -Henriette practically alone. She was sitting, dejectedly -meditating, in one of the great empty -salles; her unpaid servitors had abandoned her -and her suite had gone where they could find -nourishment.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_258.jpg" alt="FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING" title="HENRIETTA, DUCHESSE D ORLEANS" /> -<div class="caption"><p>HENRIETTA, DUCHESSE D'ORLÉANS</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_259" id="Page_259">[259]</a></span></p> - -<p>In her account of her visit Mme. de Motteville -said:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>She showed us a little golden cup, from which she habitually -drank, and she swore to us that that was all the gold of any -kind that had been left in her possession. She said that, more -than that, all her servants had demanded their wages and said -that they would leave her service if she refused to satisfy their -demands; and she said she had not been able to pay them.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The spectacle of royal poverty and the tragical -turn taken by English affairs gave Mademoiselle -cause for serious thought. She saw that whatever -the Prince might be in the future, he was not -a desirable suitor at the epoch existent; and she -spoke freely:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Were I to marry that boy I should have to sell everything -that I might possess and go to war! I should not be able to -help it. I could not rest until I had staked my all on the -chance of reconquering his kingdom! But as I had always -lived in luxury, and as I had been free from care, the thought -of such an uncertain condition troubled me.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Had the Prince of Wales been a hero of the type -of the <em>Cid</em>, Mademoiselle would have thrown prudence -to the winds. Personal attraction, the magnetism -of love, the arguments used by Lauzun would -have called her from her dreams of the pomp becoming -her rank, and she would have confronted -poverty gaily; her whole career proved that she -was not of a calculating mind. The Prince of -Wales was by three years her junior; he was awkward -and bashful, and so ignorant that he had no<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_260" id="Page_260">[260]</a></span> -conception of his own affairs. He lounged distractedly -through the vast, empty Louvre, absorbed in -purposeless thought, and, goaded by his mother, he -frequented the Tuileries and besieged the heart of -his cousin, whom he amazed by the sluggish obstinacy -of his attentions. He paid his court with the -inconsequent air of a trained parrot; the details of -his love-making were ordered by his mother, and -when, tormented by personal anxieties, the Queen -of England forgot to dictate his discourse, he sat -before Mademoiselle with lips closed. He talked -so little that it was said he "opened his teeth only -to devour fat meat." At one of the banquets of -the Queen of France he refused to touch the ortolans, -and falling upon an enormous piece of beef -and upon a shoulder of mutton he "ate as if there -had been nothing else in the world, and as if he had -never eaten before."</p> - -<p>"His taste," mused Mademoiselle, "appeared to -me to be somewhat indelicate; I was ashamed because -he was not as good in other respects as he -bore witness that he was in his feeling for me."</p> - -<p>After the banquet at which the Prince refused -the ortolans, the cousins were left alone, and, commenting -upon the fact later, Anne-Marie-Louise -said: "It pleases me to believe that on that occasion -his silence resulted from an excess of respect -for me rather than from lack of tenderness; but -I will avow the truth; I would have been better -pleased had he shown less stolidity and less deficiency -in the transports of the love-passion." It<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_261" id="Page_261">[261]</a></span> -is but fair to say in behalf of the timid suitor that, -according to his feeble light, he acquitted himself -conscientiously; he gazed steadfastly in his cousin's -pretty face, he held the candle when her hair-dresser -coiffed her hair; but as he was only a great boy, -just at the age of dumb stupidity, he had few -thoughts which were not personal, and few words -to express even those. He was neither <em>Chérubin</em>, -<em>Fortunio</em>, nor <em>Rodrigue</em>. "He had not an iota of -sweetness," declared Mademoiselle. Worse than -that, he had none of the exalted sentiments by -means of which the heroes of Corneille manifested -their identity, and to Mademoiselle that was a serious -matter. As the awkward suitor became more -insistent Mademoiselle was seized by a determination -to be rid of him. Her records fix the date of -her adverse inspiration. "In 1647 toward the end -of winter<a name="FNanchor_92_92" id="FNanchor_92_92"></a><a href="#Footnote_92_92" class="fnanchor">[92]</a> a play followed by a ball was given at -the Palais Royal [the trago-comedy, <cite>Orpheus</cite>, in -music and Italian verse]." Anne of Austria, who -had no confidence in her niece's taste, insisted that -the young lady should be coiffed and dressed under -her own eye. Mademoiselle said:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>They were engaged three whole days arranging my coiffure; -my robe was all trimmed with diamonds and with white and -black carnation tufts. I had upon me all the stones of the -Crown, and all the jewels owned by the Queen of England [at -that time she still possessed a few]. No one could have been -more magnificently bedight than I was for that occasion, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_262" id="Page_262">[262]</a></span> -I did not fail to find many people to tell me of my splendour -and to talk about my pretty figure, my graceful and agreeable -bearing, my whiteness, and the sheen of my blonde hair, which -they said adorned me more than all the riches which glittered -upon my person.</p></blockquote> - -<p>After the play a ball was given on a great, well-lighted -stage. At the end of the stage was a -throne raised three steps high and covered by a -dais; according to Mademoiselle's account:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Neither the King nor the Prince of Wales would sit upon the -throne, and as I, alone, remained upon it, I saw the two Princes -and all the Princesses of the Court at my feet. I did not -feel awkward or ill at ease, and no one of all those who saw -me failed to tell me that I had never seemed less constrained -than then, that I was of a race to occupy the throne, and that -I should occupy my own throne still more freely and more -naturally when the time came for me to remain upon it.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Seen from the height of the throne, the Prince of -Wales seemed less of a man than he had ever -seemed before, and from that day Mademoiselle -spoke of him as "that poor fellow." She said: "I -pitied him. My heart as well as my eyes looked -down upon him, and the thought entered my mind -that I should marry an emperor." The thought of -an emperor entered her mind the previous year -when Ferdinand III. became a widower. Monsieur's -favourite, the Abbé Rivière,—with a view -to his own interests, and possibly with some hope -of adding to his income,—announced the welcome -tidings of the Empress's death as soon as he received -them; and Mademoiselle said:</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_263" id="Page_263">[263]</a></span></p> - -<p>"M. de la Rivière told me that I must marry -either the Emperor or his brother. I told him -that I should prefer the Emperor."</p> - -<p>Paris heard of the project that same evening. -Mademoiselle did not receive proposals from the -Emperor at that time or at any other time, but the -idea that she was to be an Empress haunted her -mind, and as she was very frank, she told her hopes -freely. La Rivière and others like him, taking advantage -of her public position and of her accessibility, -told her flattering tales and suggested alliances; -she was informed that the Court of Vienna, the -Court of Germany, and in fact all the Courts, desired -alliance with her, and she believed all that was said. -The evening of the ball, Anne of Austria declared, -by Mademoiselle's own account, that she "wished -passionately that the marriage with the Emperor -might be arranged, and that she should do all that -lay in her power to bring it about." Mademoiselle -did not believe in the Regent's promises, but she -listened to them and shaped her course by them. -Gaston told her (in one of the rare moments when -he remembered that she was his daughter) that the -Emperor was "too old," and that she would not -be happy in his country. Mademoiselle answered -that she cared more for her establishment than for -the person of her suitor. Gaston reflected upon -the statement and promised to do everything possible -for the furtherance of her schemes. Mademoiselle -recorded his promise with the comment: -"So after that I thought of the marriage continually<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_264" id="Page_264">[264]</a></span> -and my dream of the Empire so filled my mind that -I considered the Prince of Wales only as an object -of pity." This folly, while it gave free play to -other and similar follies, clung to her mind with -strange tenacity, and long after the Emperor married -the Austrian Mademoiselle said archly: "The -Empress is <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">enceinte</i>; she will die when she is delivered, -and then—." The Empress did die, either -at the moment of her deliverance or at some other -moment, and Mademoiselle took the field, determined -to march on to victory. One of her gentlemen -(of the name of Saujon) whom she fancied -"because he was half crazy," secretly placed in her -hand a regularly organised correspondence treating -of her marriage. Mademoiselle received all the -letters, read them, approved of them, and appointed -Saujon chargé of her affairs. By her order -Saujon travelled to Germany to bring about the -marriage. No one had ever heard of a royal or a -quasi-royal alliance negotiated by a private individual, -but Saujon boldly entered upon his mission. -Incidentally he revised Mademoiselle's despatches; -adding and eliminating sentences according to his -own idea of the exigencies of the case. One of his -letters was intercepted and he was arrested and cast -into prison. It was rumoured that he had made -an attempt to abduct the Princess so that she might -marry the Archduke Leopold.</p> - -<p>At first Mademoiselle laughed at the rumours. -She declared that people knew her too well to -think that she could do anything so ridiculous.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_265" id="Page_265">[265]</a></span></p> - -<p>Mazarin cross-questioned Saujon,—and no one -knew better than he how to conduct an inquest,—but -turn his victim as he might the Cardinal could -not wring from Saujon anything but the truth. -Saujon insisted that Mademoiselle had not known -anything concerning the intercepted letter.</p> - -<p>Anne of Austria, seconded by Monsieur, feigned -to take the affair seriously, and a violent scene -ensued.</p> - -<p>One evening (May 6, 1648, according to d'Ormesson) -the Abbé de la Rivière met Mademoiselle -in the corridor of the Palais Royal, and casually informed -her that the Queen and Monsieur were -angry. Almost at the same instant Monsieur -issued from the room adjoining the corridor and -ordered his daughter to enter the Queen's room.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Then [said Mademoiselle] I went into the Queen's gallery. -Mlle. de Guise, who was with me, would have followed me, -but Monsieur furiously shut the door in her face. Had not -my mind been free from all remorse I should have been -frightened, but I knew that I was innocent, and I advanced -toward the Queen, who greeted me angrily. She said to the -Cardinal: "We must wait until her father comes; he must -hear it!" I went to the window, which was higher than the -rest of the gallery, and I listened with all the pride possible -to one who feels that her cause is just. When Monsieur arrived -the Queen said to me sharply: "Your father and I -know all about your dealings with Saujon. We know all your -plans!" I answered that I did not know to what plans she -had reference, and that I was somewhat curious to know what -her Majesty meant.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Anne of Austria was angry, and her shrill falsetto<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_266" id="Page_266">[266]</a></span> -conveyed an impression of vulgarity. Mademoiselle, -calmly contemptuous, on foot and very erect, -stood in the embrasure of the long window; -Monsieur, who dreaded his daughter's anger, had -drawn close to the Queen; directly behind Monsieur -was Mazarin, visibly amused.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle listened to her accusers, and answered -with a sneer that she had nothing to do with -it, that she was not interested in it, that such a -scheme was worthy of low people.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"This concerns my honour," she said coldly; "it is not a -question of the head of Cinq-Mars, nor of Chalais, whom -Monsieur delivered to death. No; nor is it an affair to be -classed with the examinations to which Richelieu subjected -your Majesty!"</p> - -<p>"It is a fine thing," screamed Anne of Austria, "to recompense -a man for his attachment to your service by putting -his head upon the block!"</p> - -<p>"It would not be the first head that had visited the block, -but it would be the first one that I had put there," retorted -Mademoiselle.</p> - -<p>"Will you answer what you are asked?" demanded the -Queen. I obeyed [said Mademoiselle]. I told her that -as I had never been questioned, I should be embarrassed to -answer. Cardinal Mazarin listened to all that I said, and -he laughed.... The discussion seemed long to me. -Repetitions which are not agreeable always produce that -effect. The conversation had lasted an hour and a half. It -bored me, and as I saw that it would never end if I did not -go away, I said to the Queen: "I believe that your Majesty -has nothing more to say to me." She replied that she had -not. I curtsied and went out from the combat, victorious, -but very angry. As I abandoned the field, the Abbé de la -Rivière tried to address me. I halted, and discharged my<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_267" id="Page_267">[267]</a></span> -anger at him; then I went to my room, where I was seized by -fever.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Before she "abandoned the field" Mademoiselle -rated Monsieur, who had imprudently attempted to -interpose a word in favour of the Queen. Mme. -de Motteville, to whom Anne of Austria told the -story, reported that Mademoiselle reproached her -father bitterly because he had not married her to -the Emperor, when he "might easily have done -so." She told him that it was shameful for a man -not to defend his daughter "when her glory appeared -to be attacked." The courtiers assembled -in the adjoining room, though unable to distinguish -the words of the discussion, had listened with -curiosity. Mme. de Motteville said:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>We could not hear what they were saying, but we heard the -noise of the accusations and we heard Mademoiselle's calm -defence. The Queen's Minister avoided showing that he was -interested in it in any way. Although there were but three -voices there was so great a clamour that we were anxious to -know the result and the meaning of the quarrel. Mademoiselle -came out of the gallery looking more haughty than -ashamed, and her eyes shone with anger rather than with repentance. -That evening the Queen did me the honour to tell -me that had she been possessed of a daughter who had treated -her as Mademoiselle had treated Monsieur, she would have -banished her and never permitted her to return,—and that -she should have shut her up in a convent.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The day after the discussion guards were -mounted at the door of Mademoiselle's apartments. -The Abbé de la Rivière visited Mademoiselle -to tell her that her father forbade her to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_268" id="Page_268">[268]</a></span> -receive any one—<em>no matter whom</em>—until she -was ready to confess what she knew of the intercepted -letter. Mademoiselle remained firm in her -denial of any knowledge of it.</p> - -<p>Though sick from grief, she held her ground ten -days. Murmurs were heard among the canaille, -and little groups approached the palace, looked -threateningly into the courtyard, and gazed at -Mademoiselle's closed windows. It was known -that Mademoiselle was in prison and the people -resented it. How long could she hold out? How -would it end? "It was known," wrote Olivier -d'Ormesson, "that the Queen had called her 'an -insolent girl' in the presence of her own father, -and it was known that she had indignantly repudiated -all knowledge of the intercepted letter; it was -known that she had defended herself bravely." -As the hours passed the people's murmurs increased, -the aspect of the canaille became so menacing that -the terrified Gaston sought counsel of Mazarin. -Mazarin favoured clemency; he believed that -Mademoiselle had been disciplined enough. By -the advice of the angry Queen, Monsieur waited -one day longer; then word was sent to Mademoiselle -that she was free and that she might receive -visits, and in an hour all the people of the under-world -of Paris were hurrying to the palace, laughing, -shouting, crying to each other in broken voices. -They surged past the sentinel and entered the -courtyard; men wept, women, holding their children -above their heads, pointed to the open window<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_269" id="Page_269">[269]</a></span> -where Mademoiselle, emaciated by her ten days' -trial, but still haughty and determined, looking -down into the upturned faces, smiled a welcome. -Public sympathy and the sympathy of both the -Court and the city endorsed Mademoiselle's conduct -and condemned the conduct of Monsieur. -According to contemporary judgment Monsieur had -betrayed his own flesh and blood: he had been -given an opportunity to prove himself a man and -he had refused it. Innocent or culpable, the custom -of the day commanded the father to defend his -child.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I said to the Queen [said the worthy Motteville] that -Mademoiselle was justified in refusing to avow it. I said that, -whether it were true or untrue, Monsieur had not the right to -forsake her. A girl is not to blame for thinking of her establishment, -but it is not right to let it be known that she is thinking -of it, nor is it proper to confess that she is working to -accomplish it.</p></blockquote> - -<p>All Monsieur's motives were known and they -increased the contempt of the people. When -Mademoiselle attained her majority she expressed -a wish to take possession of her inheritance. She -asked her father for an accounting and her father -accused her of indelicacy and undutiful conduct. -He continued to administer her fortune and to give -her such sums as he considered suitable for the -maintenance of her home. In justification of his -conduct he alleged that he had no money of his -own, and that it was impossible to turn her property -into funds. "Several times," said Mme. de<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_270" id="Page_270">[270]</a></span> -Motteville, "I have heard him say that he had not -a sou that his daughter did not give him. 'My -daughter possesses great wealth,' he used to ejaculate; -'were it not for that I should not know where -to go for bread.'" People remembered that he -had received a million of revenue when he married<a name="FNanchor_93_93" id="FNanchor_93_93"></a><a href="#Footnote_93_93" class="fnanchor">[93]</a> -and they judged his conduct severely, but -they were not astonished. "No one can hope -much from the conduct of Monsieur," wrote Olivier -d'Ormesson.</p> - -<p>After the quarrel the first meeting between father -and daughter took place in the gallery of the Luxembourg. -Monsieur hung his head.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>He changed colour [wrote Mademoiselle]; he appeared -abashed; he tried to reprimand me; he began as people begin -such things, but he knew that he ought to apologise to me -rather than to blame me; and in truth that was what he did; -he apologised,—though he did not seem to know that he was -doing it.</p></blockquote> - -<p>As they talked Monsieur's eyes filled with tears -and Mademoiselle wept freely. To all appearances -they were on the best of terms when they parted.</p> - -<p>Having appeased her father, Mademoiselle went -to the Palais Royal hoping to pacify the Queen. -Anne of Austria greeted her with icy reserve and -Mademoiselle never could forget it. She had -looked upon Anne of Austria as children look upon -an elder sister. Thenceforth, feeling that she had -no hope of support from her own family, she bent<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_271" id="Page_271">[271]</a></span> -every effort to the difficult task of finding a suitable -husband and of establishing her life on a firm and -independent basis. Mazarin's unswerving determination -to prevent Mademoiselle's marriage was -classed among the most important of the causes -which contributed to the Fronde. The dangers attendant -upon his conduct were real and serious; -practically he was Mademoiselle's only guardian, -and Mademoiselle was not only the favorite of the -people but the Princess of the reigning house. As -the director of a powerful nation Mazarin had -duties which no State's minister is justified in ignoring. -There were times when many of his other -errors were so represented as to appear pardonable, -but there never was a time when he was not -blamed for the humiliation of the haughty Princess -who, by no fault of her own, had been left upon -the shores of life, isolated, hopeless of establishment, -an object of ridicule to the unobservant who -failed to see the pathetic loneliness of her position. -The Parisians, high and low, thought that -the Queen's Minister had done Mademoiselle an -irreparable wrong, and it was thought that she -knew that he had done her a wrong. It was believed -that she would be a dangerous adversary in -the day when the French people called him to -account.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle knew her power and talked openly -of what she could do. "I am," she said, "a very -bad enemy; hot-tempered, strong in anger; and -that, added to my birth, may well make my enemies<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_272" id="Page_272">[272]</a></span> -tremble." She could say it without boasting: she -was a Free Lance and the great French People -was her clan.</p> - - -<p class="p3">III</p> - -<p>Two years<a name="FNanchor_94_94" id="FNanchor_94_94"></a><a href="#Footnote_94_94" class="fnanchor">[94]</a> previous to the serio-comic scene in -the Palais Royal, Emperor Ferdinand III. had -barely escaped causing a catastrophe. Had the -catastrophe been effected the victim would have -been the Princess of a reigning house. This is a -very roundabout way of saying that Mademoiselle's -anxiety to marry the Emperor led her to prepare -for the alliance by practising religion; and that -once engaged in the practice, she was seized by the -desire to become a nun.</p> - -<p>The turbulent Princess who so ardently aspired -to the throne of Ferdinand III. was as free in spirit -as she was independent in action, and being hampered -by no religion but the religion of culture, she -followed her fancies and adopted a line of conduct -in singular opposition to her natural behaviour and -inclinations. Lured by ambitious policy to affect -the attitude of religious devotion, she fell into her -own net and was so deceived by her feelings that -she supposed that she wished to take the veil. The -fact that at heart her wishes tended in a diametrically -opposite direction furnished the most striking -proof of the power of hypnotic auto-suggestion. I -am speaking now of a time previous to Saujon's -mission to Germany. In her own words:</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_273" id="Page_273">[273]</a></span></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The desire to be an empress followed me wherever I -journeyed, and the effects of my wishes seemed to be so close -at hand that I was led to believe that it would be well for me -to form habits best suited to the habits and to the humour of -the Emperor. I had heard it said that he was very devout, -and by following his example I became so worshipful that after -I had feigned the appearance of devotion a while I longed -to be a nun. I never breathed a word of it to any one; but -during the whole of eight days I was inspired by a desire to -become a Carmelite. I was so engrossed by this feeling that -I could neither eat nor sleep. And I was so beset by that -anxiety added to my natural anxiety, that they feared lest I -should fall ill. Every time that the Queen went into the convents—which -happened often—I remained in the church -alone; and thinking of all the persons who loved me and who -would regret my retreat from the world, I wept. So that -which appeared to be a struggle with my religious desire to -break away from my worldly self was in reality a struggle -progressing in my heart between my wish to enter the convent -and my horror of leaving all whom I loved, and breaking -away from all my tenderness for them. I can say only this: -during these eight days the Empire was nothing to me. But -I must avow that I felt a certain amount of vanity because I -was to leave the world under such important circumstances.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Mademoiselle had hung out the sign-board of religion—if -I may use such a term—and she multiplied -all the symptoms of religious conversion. To -quote her own words:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I did not appear at Court. I did not wear my patches, I -did not powder my hair,—in fact, I neglected my hair until it -was so long and so dusty that it completely disguised me. I -used to wear three kerchiefs around my neck,—one over the -other,—and they muffled me so that in warm weather I nearly -smothered. As I wished to look like a woman forty years old,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_274" id="Page_274">[274]</a></span> -I never wore any coloured riband. As for pleasure, I took -pleasure in nothing but in reading and re-reading the life of -Saint Theresa.</p></blockquote> - -<p>No one was astonished by religious demonstrations -of that kind. Custom did not oppose the -admission of the public to the spectacle of intimate -mental or spiritual crises which it is now considered -proper to conceal. The only thing astonishing -was that Mademoiselle had harboured the idea of -forsaking the world. Her friends ridiculed her, -and, stung by their raillery, she recanted. Speaking -of it later, she said: "I wondered at my ideas; -I scoffed at my infatuation. I made excuses because -I had ever dreamed of such a project."</p> - -<p>Monsieur was more surprised than his neighbours, -and his surprise assumed a more virulent form; -when his daughter begged to be permitted to enter -a convent, when she declared that she would "better -love to serve God than to wear the royal -crowns of all the world," he gave way to a violent -outburst of fury. Mademoiselle did not repeat her -petition; she begged him to let the subject drop; -and thus ended the comedy.</p> - -<p>In any other quarter curiosity regarding details -would have been the only sentiment aroused by -such a project. The daughters of many noble families -and the daughters of families beyond the -pale of the nobility entered convents. In the -spiritual slough in which France floundered toward -the close of the sixteenth and the beginning of the -seventeenth century, the nun's veil and the monk's<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_275" id="Page_275">[275]</a></span> -habit were the only suitable coverings for mental -distress, and in many cases the convent and the -monastery were the sole places of refuge in a -world so lamentable that Bérulle<a name="FNanchor_95_95" id="FNanchor_95_95"></a><a href="#Footnote_95_95" class="fnanchor">[95]</a> and Vincent de -Paul contemplated it with anguish. The convent -was the only safe shelter for souls in which the -germs of religious life had resisted the inroads of -spiritual disease. In certain parts of the country, -the annihilation of the Christian principle had -resulted in the degradation of the Sacred Office -and in the increase of the number of skeptics in -the higher classes.</p> - -<p>Saving a few exceptions, who were types of the -Temple of the Holy Ghost, the Church set the example -of every form and every degree of contempt -for its corporate body, for its individual members, -and for its consecrated accessories. I have -already spoken of the elegant cavaliers, who, in -their leisure moments, played the part of priests. -In their eyes a bishopric was a sinecure like another -sinecure. The office of the priesthood entailed -no special conduct, nor any special duty. In -general, priests were shepherds who passed their -lives at a distance from their flocks, revelling in -luxury and in pleasure. "Turning abruptly," said -an ecclesiastical writer, "from the pleasures of the -Court to the austere duties of the priesthood, without -any preparation save the royal ordinance,—an -ordinance, peradventure, due to secret and unavowable -solicitations,—men assumed the office and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_276" id="Page_276">[276]</a></span> -became bishops before they had received Holy Orders. -Naturally, such haphazard bishops brought -to the Episcopate minds far from ecclesiastical." -In that day cardinals and bishops were seen distributing -the benefits of their dioceses among their -lower domestic tributaries. Thus valets, cooks, -barbers, and lackeys were covered with the sacred -vestments, and called to serve the altar.<a name="FNanchor_96_96" id="FNanchor_96_96"></a><a href="#Footnote_96_96" class="fnanchor">[96]</a> Being -abandoned to their own devices, the lesser clergy—heirs -to all the failings and all the weaknesses -of the lower classes of the people—grovelled in -ignorance and in disorder. The continually augmenting -evil was aggravated by the way in which -the Church recruited the rank and file of her -legions. As a rule, the cure, or living of the curé, -was in the gift of the abbot. No one but the -abbot had a right to appoint a curé. The abbot's -power descended to his successor. That would -have been well enough, had the abbot's virtues -and good judgment—if such there had been—descended -to the man immediately following him in -office, but the abbot thus empowered to appoint -the curé was seldom capable of making a good -choice or even a decent choice.</p> - -<p>The Court bestowed the abbeys on infants in -the cradle, and the titulars were generally the -illegitimate children of the princes, younger sons -of great seigniors, notably gallant soldiers, and -notoriously "gallant" women. The abbots were -laical protégés of every origin, of every profession,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_277" id="Page_277">[277]</a></span> -and of every character. Henry IV. bestowed -abbeys indiscriminately. Among other notables -who received the office of abbot at his hands were -a certain number of Protestants and an equally -certain number of women. Sully possessed four -abbeys: "the fair Corisande" possessed an abbey -(the Abbey of Chatillon-sur-Seine, where Saint -Bernard had been raised). The fantastic abbots -did not exert themselves to find suitable curés, and -even had they been disposed to do so, where could -they have gone to look for them? There were no -clerical nursery-gardens in which to sow choice -seed and to root cuttings for the parterres of the -Church, and this was the chief cause of the prevailing -evil. As there were no seminaries, and as the -presbyterial schools were in decay, there were no -places where men could make serious preparation -for the Episcopate. As soon as the youth destined -for Orders had learned so much Latin that he -could explain the gospels used in the service of -the Mass, and translate his breviary well enough -to say his Office, he was considered fit for the -priesthood. It is not difficult to imagine what became -of the sacraments of the Church when they -fell into such hands. There were priests who -eliminated all pretence of unction from Baptism. -Others, though they had received no sacerdotal -authority, joined men and women in marriage, and -sent them away rejoicing at their escape from a -more binding formality. Some of the priests were -ignorant of the formula of Absolution, and in their<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_278" id="Page_278">[278]</a></span> -ignorance they changed, abridged, and transposed -to suit their own taste the august words of the -most redoubtable of mysteries. Dumb as cattle, -the ignoble priests deserted the pulpit, so there -were no more sermons; there was no catechism, -and the people, deprived of all instruction, were -more benighted than their pastors. In some parishes -there were men and women who were ignorant -of the existence of God.<a name="FNanchor_97_97" id="FNanchor_97_97"></a><a href="#Footnote_97_97" class="fnanchor">[97]</a></p> - -<p>The people had no teachers, and their manners -were as neglected as their spiritual education. With -rare exceptions, the provincial priest went to the -wine-shops with his parishioners; if he saw fit, he -went without taking off his surplice,—nor was -that the worst; in every respect, and everywhere, -and always, he set lamentable examples for his -people. "One may say with truth and with horror," -cried the austere Bourdoise, the friend of -Père Bérulle, "that of all the evil done in the -world, the part done by the ecclesiastics is the -worst." Père Amelotte expressed his opinion with -still more energy: "The name of priest," he -cried, "has become the synonym of ignorance and -debauchery!"</p> - -<p>After the religious wars there were neither -churches nor presbyteries, and therefore there -were thousands of villages where there were no -priests, but it is to be doubted whether such villages -were more pitiable than those in which by -their daily conduct the priests constantly provoked<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_279" id="Page_279">[279]</a></span> -the people to despise the earthly representative of -God. The abandoned villages were not plunged -in thicker moral and religious darkness, or in -grosser or more abominable superstition, than that -into which the ignoble pastors led their flocks. In -one half of the total number of the provinces of -France, the work that the first missionaries to the -Gauls had accomplished had all to be begun again.</p> - -<p>In the world of the aristocracy the condition of -Catholicism was little better. When Vincent de -Paul—by a mischance which was not to be the -only one in his career—was appointed Almoner -to Queen Marguerite, first wife of Henry IV., he -was overwhelmed by what he saw and heard. The -Court was two thirds pagan.<a name="FNanchor_98_98" id="FNanchor_98_98"></a><a href="#Footnote_98_98" class="fnanchor">[98]</a> A loose and reckless -line of thought, a moral libertinage, was considered -a mark of elegance, and that opinion obtained -until the seventeenth century. The <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">jeunesse dorée</i>, -the "gilded youths" of the day, imitated the -atheists and gloried in manifesting their contempt -for the "superstitions of religion." They repeated -after Vanini that "man ought to obey the natural -law," that "vice and virtue should be classed as products -of climate, of temperament, and of alimentation," -that "children born with feeble intellects are -best fitted to develop into good Christians." Among -the higher classes, piety was not entirely extinct; -that was proven in the days of the triumphant -Renaissance, when the Catholicism of Bossuet -and of Bourdaloue flamed with all the strength<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_280" id="Page_280">[280]</a></span> -of a newly kindled fire from the dying embers of -the old religion. But the belief in God and in the -things of God was not to be avowed among people -of intellect. In a certain elegant, frivolous, -and corrupt world, impiety and wit marched hand -in hand. A man was not absolutely perfect in -tone and manners unless he seasoned his conversation -with a grain of atheism.<a name="FNanchor_99_99" id="FNanchor_99_99"></a><a href="#Footnote_99_99" class="fnanchor">[99]</a> Under Louis XIII. -in the immediate neighbourhood of royalty the -tone changed, because the King's bigotry kept -close watch over the appearance of religion. Men -knew that they could not air their smart affectation -of skepticism with impunity when their chief -not only openly professed and practised religion, -but frowned upon those who did not. All felt -that the only way to be popular at Court was to -follow the example of the King, and all slipped -their atheism up their sleeves and bowed the knee -with grace and dexterity, pulling on long faces and -praying as visibly as Louis himself. But many -years passed before the practice of religion expressed -the feelings of the heart. Richelieu<a name="FNanchor_100_100" id="FNanchor_100_100"></a><a href="#Footnote_100_100" class="fnanchor">[100]</a> had -several intimate friends who were openly confessed -infidels, and proud of their infidelity. While they -were intellectual and witty and devoted to the -Cardinal's interests, they were permitted to think -as they pleased.</p> - -<p>Long after the day of Richelieu,—in the reign -of Louis XIV.,—the great Condé and Princess<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_281" id="Page_281">[281]</a></span> -Anne de Gonzague made vows to the "marvellous -victories of grace,"<a name="FNanchor_101_101" id="FNanchor_101_101"></a><a href="#Footnote_101_101" class="fnanchor">[101]</a> but while they were "waiting -for the miracle," the more miscreant of the Court -amused themselves by throwing a piece of the wood -of the true cross into the fire "to see whether it -would burn."</p> - -<p>The current of moral libertinage, though it appeared -sluggish after the Fronde, had not run -dry, and it was seen in the last third of the seventeenth -century and in the following century shallow, -but flowing freely.<a name="FNanchor_102_102" id="FNanchor_102_102"></a><a href="#Footnote_102_102" class="fnanchor">[102]</a></p> - -<p>Whatever the general condition, the city was -always better fortified against spiritual libertinage -than the Court, because it contained stronger elements, -and because it lacked the frivolity of the -social bodies devoted to pleasure. In the city -mingled with the higher bourgeoisie and the middle -bourgeoisie were nobles of excellent stock who did -not visit the Louvre or the Palais Royal because, -as they had no title or position at Court, they -could not claim the rank to which their quality -gave them right; to cite an instance: Mme. de -Sévigné was not of the Court; she was always of -the city.</p> - -<p>Taken altogether, the Parliamentary world, which -had one foot at Court and the other foot in the -city, had preserved a great deal of religion and -morality. Olivier d'Ormesson's journal shows us -the homes of the serious and intellectual people of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_282" id="Page_282">[282]</a></span> -the great metropolitan centres to whom piety and -gravity had descended from their fathers.</p> - -<p>The Parliamentary world of the provinces was -notable for its moral attitude and for its love of religion. -Taken all in all the French bourgeoisie -had not felt the inroads of free thought, although -there had been a few cases of visible infiltration. -In the country districts the people practised religion -more or less fervently.</p> - -<p>Despite the few exceptions serving as luminous -points in the universal darkness, in the reign of -Louis XIII. the situation was well fitted to inspire -creatures of ardent faith and exalted mysticism -with horror. There were many such people in -Paris then, as there have been always. Discouraged, -hopeless of finding anything better in a world -abandoned to blasphemy and vice, the naturally -pious fled to the cloisters and too often they found -within the walls of their refuges the same scandals -that had driven them from their homes. The -larger number of the monasteries were given over -to depravity<a name="FNanchor_103_103" id="FNanchor_103_103"></a><a href="#Footnote_103_103" class="fnanchor">[103]</a> and the monks were like the people -of the world. As we have seen, a few prelates of -rare faith and devotion furnished the exceptions to -the rule, but set, as they were, wide distances apart -in the swarming mass of vociferous immorality, -they excited a pity which swallowed up all appreciation -of their importance.</p> - -<p>Divers questions which were not connected either -with belief as a whole or with the principle of belief<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_283" id="Page_283">[283]</a></span> -combined to make the Protestant minority by -far more moral than the Catholic majority. Perhaps -the social disadvantage attached to Protestantism -was the strongest reason for its superiority. -When a practically powerless minority is surrounded -and kept under surveillance by a powerful -majority, unless pride and vanity have blinded -its prudence the minority keeps careful watch of its -actions. By a natural process minorities of agitators -cast cowardly and selfish members out of their -ranks; in other words, they weed out the useless, -the feeble, the derogatory elements, and the elements -which, being dependent upon the favour of -the public, or susceptible to public criticism, flinch -if subjected to unfavourable judgment. The Protestant -minority eliminated all who, fearing the ridicule -or the animosity of the Court, shrank from standing -shoulder to shoulder with the men in the fighting -ranks of Protestantism. Impelled by personal -interest, the converts to the reform movement went -back to the Catholic majority. There were so -many advantages attendant upon the profession of -Catholicism that with few exceptions the great -lords declared their faith in the religion powerful -to endow them with military commands and with -governmental and other lucrative positions. The -Protestant ranks were thinned, but the few who -stood their ground were the picked men of the reform -movement. The ranks of the Catholics were -swelled by the hypocrites and the turncoats who -had deserted from the army of the Protestants.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_284" id="Page_284">[284]</a></span> -The Protestants gained morally by the defection -of their converts, and the Catholics lost; the few -who sustained Protestantism were sincere; the fact -of their profession proved it.</p> - -<p>The Protestant pastor had no selfish reason for -his profession; he had nothing to hope for; he was -lured by no promise of an abbey, nor could he expect -to be rewarded for his open revolt against the -King's church. Looking at it in its most illusive -light, his was a bad business; there was nothing in -it to tempt the favourites of the great; not even a -lackey could find advantage in appointment to the -Protestant ministry, and no man entered upon the -painful life of the Protestant pastor unless forced -by an all-mastering vocation. The cause of the -Reformation was safe because it was in the hands of -men who boasted of "a judge that no king could -corrupt," and who believed that they had armed -themselves with "the panoply of God." The pastors -laboured with unfailing zeal, first to kindle the -spark of a faith separated from all earthly interests; -next to nourish sincere belief in God as the -vital principle of religious life. Under their influence -the Protestants of the upper middle classes -and the Protestants of the lower classes—there -were still fewer of the latter than of the former—not -only practised, but lived their religion, giving -an example of good conduct and of intelligent appreciation -of the name and the meaning of their -profession. Their adversaries were forced to render -them the homage due to their efforts and their<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_285" id="Page_285">[285]</a></span> -sincerity. They, the Protestants, were charitable -in the true sense of the term; they loved the brethren; -they cared for the bodies as well as for the -souls of the poor; they proved their love for their -fellows by guarding the public welfare; they kept -the laws and, whenever it was possible, enforced -them. The pastors knew that they must practise -what they preached, and, profiting by the examples -of the ignoble priests, they set a guard upon their -words and movements, lest their disciples should -question their sincerity. They were austere, energetic, -and devoted to their people and to their -cause. They were convinced that they were warders -of the inheritance of the saints, and they patrolled -their circuit, and went about in the name of -Christ proclaiming the mercy of God and warning -men of Eternity and of The Judgment.</p> - -<p>Let us be loyal to our convictions and give to -those early pastors the credit due to their candour -and to their efforts; they surpassed us in many -ways. They were learned; they were versed in -science, kind to strangers, strict in morality, brotherly -to the poor.</p> - -<p>François de Sales said of them: "The Protestants -were Christians; Catholicism was not Christian."<a name="FNanchor_104_104" id="FNanchor_104_104"></a><a href="#Footnote_104_104" class="fnanchor">[104]</a></p> - -<p>So matters stood—the churches ruined and -abandoned, Religion mocked and the priests despised<a name="FNanchor_105_105" id="FNanchor_105_105"></a><a href="#Footnote_105_105" class="fnanchor">[105]</a>—when -a little phalanx of devoted men<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_286" id="Page_286">[286]</a></span> -arose to rescue the wrecked body of the French -Clergy. They organised systematically, but their -plan of action was independent. François de Sales -was among the first who broke ground for the difficult -work. He was a calm, cool man, indifferent to -abuse, firm in the conviction that his power was -from God. There were many representatives of -the Church, but few like him. One of his chroniclers -dwelt upon his "exalted indifference to insult" -another, speaking of his "supernatural patience," -said:</p> - -<p>"A Du Perron could not have stopped short in an -argument with a heretic, but, on the other hand, a -Du Perron would not have converted the heretic by -the ardour of his forbearing kindness." Strowski -said of de Sales that he "saw as the wise see, and -lived among men not as a nominal Christian but as -a man of God, gifted with omniscience." By living -in the world de Sales had learned that a germ of -religion was still alive in many of the abandoned -souls; he knew that there were a few who were -truly Catholic; he knew that those few were -cherishing their faith, but he saw that they lived -isolated lives, away from the world, and he believed -that the limitations of their spiritual hermitage -hindered their usefulness. De Sales believed in a -community of religion and Christian love. The -few who cherished their religion were a class by -themselves. They knew and respected each other, -they theorised abstractly upon the prevailing -evils, but they had no thought of bettering man's<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_287" id="Page_287">[287]</a></span> -condition. Their sorrows had turned their thoughts -to woeful contemplation of their helplessness, and -all their hopes were straining forward toward the -peaceful cloister and the silent intimacy of monachism. -For them the uses of life were as a tale -that is told. They had no thought of public -service, they were timid, they abhorred sin and -shrank from sinners, their isolation had developed -their tendency to mysticism, and the best efforts -of their minds were concentrated upon hypotheses.</p> - -<p>Père François believed that they and all who -loved God could do good work in the world. He -did not believe in controversy, he did not believe -in silencing skeptics with overwhelming arguments. -He used his own means in his own way; but his -task was hard and his progress slow, and months -passed before he was able to form a working plan. -His idea was to revive religious feeling and spiritual -zeal, to increase the piety of life in community, -to exemplify the love which teaches man to live at -peace with his brother, to fulfil his mission as the -son of man made in the likeness of God, and to act -his part as an intelligent member of an orderly solidarity. -De Sales's first work was difficult, but not -long after his mission-house was established he saw -that his success was sure, and he then appointed -deputies and began his individual labour for the -revival of religious thought. He knew that the -people loved to reason, and he had resolved to develop -their intelligence and to open their minds to -Truth: the strong principle of all reform. His<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_288" id="Page_288">[288]</a></span> -doubt of the utility of controversy had been confirmed -by the spectacle of the recluses of the -Church. Study had convinced him that theologians -had taken the wrong road and exaggerated the -spiritual influence of the "power of piety." He -believed in the practical piety of Charity, and he -accepted as his appointed task the awakening of -Christian love. His impelling force was not the -bigotry which</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i2">proves religion orthodox</div> - <div class="i0">By apostolic blows and knocks,</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>nor was it the contemplative faith which, by living -in convents, deprives the world of the example of -its fervour; it was that practical manifestation of -the grace of God "which fits the citizen for civil -life and forms him for the world."</p> - -<p>In the end Père François's religion became -purely practical and he had but one aim: the awakening -of the soul.</p> - -<p>His critics talked of his "dreams," his "visions," -and his "religio-sentimental revival." His piety -was expressed in the saying: "Religious life is not -an attitude, nor can the practice of religion save a -man; the true life of the Christian springs from a -change of heart, from the intimate and profound -transformation of his personality." We know with -what ardour Père François went forward to his goal, -manifesting his ideals by his acts. By his words -and by his writings he worked a revolution in men's -souls. His success equalled the success of Honoré<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_289" id="Page_289">[289]</a></span> -d'Urfé; few books have reached the number of the -editions of the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Introduction à la vie dévote</i>.<a name="FNanchor_106_106" id="FNanchor_106_106"></a><a href="#Footnote_106_106" class="fnanchor">[106]</a></p> - -<p>In Paris de Sales had often visited a young priest -named Pierre de Bérulle, who also was deeply grieved -by the condition of Catholicism, and who was ambitious -to work a change in the clergy and in the -Church. Père Bérulle had discussed the subject -with Vincent de Paul, de Sales, Bourdoise, and -other pious friends, and after serious reflection, he -had determined to undertake the stupendous work -of reforming the clergy. In 1611 he founded a -mission-house called the Oratoire. "The chief -object of the mission was to put an end to the -uselessness of so many ecclesiastics." The missionaries -began their work cautiously and humbly, but -their progress was rapid. Less than fifteen months -after the first Mass was offered upon the altar of -the new house, the Oratoire was represented by -fifty branch missions. The brothers of the company -were seen among all classes; their aim, like -the individual aim of Père François, was to make -the love of God familiar to men by habituating -man to the love of his brother. They turned aside -from their path to help wherever they saw need; -they nursed the sick, they worked among the common -people, they lent their strength to the worn-out -labourer.</p> - -<p>They were as true, as simple, and as earnest as -the men who walked with the Son of Mary by the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_290" id="Page_290">[290]</a></span> -Lake of Galilee. Bound by no tie but Christian -Charity, free to act their will, they manifested -their faith by their piety, and it was impossible to -deny the beneficence of their example. From the -mother-house they set out for all parts of France, -exhorting, imploring the dissolute to forsake their -sin, and proclaiming the love of Christ. Protestants -were making a strong point of the wrath -of God; the Oratorians talked of God's mercy. -They passed from province to province, they -searched the streets and the lanes of the cities, they -laboured with the labourers, they feasted with the -bourgeois. Dispensing brotherly sympathy, they -entered the homes of the poor as familiar friends, -confessing the adults, catechising the children, and -restoring religion to those who had lost it or forgotten -it. They demanded hospitality in the provincial -presbyteries, aroused the slothful priests to -repentant action, and, raising the standard of the -Faith before all eyes, they pointed men to Eternal -Life and lifted the fallen brethren from the mire.</p> - -<p>Shoulder to shoulder with the three chevaliers of -the Faith, de Sales, de Bérulle, and Père Vincent, -was the stern Saint Cyran (Jean Duvergier de -Hauranne) who lent to the assistance of the Oratorians -the powerful influence of his magnetic -fervour. The impassioned eloquence of the author -of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Lettres Chrétiennes et Spirituelles</i> was awe-inspiring. -The members of the famous convent -(Port Royal des Champs) were equally devoted; -their fervour was gentler, but always grave and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_291" id="Page_291">[291]</a></span> -salutary. Saint Cyran's characteristics were well -defined in Joubert's <cite>Pensée</cite>.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The Jansenists carried into their religious life more depth -of thought and more reflection; they were more firmly bound -by religion's sacred liens; there was an austerity in their -ideas and in their minds, and that austerity incessantly circumscribed -their will by the limitations of duty.</p></blockquote> - -<p>They were pervaded, even to their mental habit, -by their uncompromising conception of divine justice; -their inclinations were antipathetic to the lusts -of the flesh. The companions of the community of -Port Royal were as pure in heart as the Oratorians, -but they were childlike in their simplicity; they delighted -in the beauties of nature and in the society -of their friends; they indulged their humanity -whenever such indulgence accorded with their vocation; -they permitted "the fêtes of Christian love," -to which we of the present look back in fancy as to -visions of the first days of the early Church. Jules -Lemaître said in his address at Port Royal:<a name="FNanchor_107_107" id="FNanchor_107_107"></a><a href="#Footnote_107_107" class="fnanchor">[107]</a></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Port Royal is one of the most august of all the awe-inspiring -refuges of the spiritual life of France. It is holy -ground; for in this vale was nourished the most ardent inner -life of the nation's Church. Here prayed and meditated -the most profound of thinkers, the souls most self-contained, -most self-dependent, most absorbed by the mystery of man's -eternal destiny. None caught in the whirlpool of earthly life -ever seemed more convinced of the powerlessness of human -liberty to arrest the evolution of the inexorable Plan, and yet -none ever manifested firmer will to battle and to endure than -those first heralds of the resurrection of Catholicism.</p></blockquote> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_292" id="Page_292">[292]</a></span></p> - -<p>François de Sales loved the convent of Port Royal; -he called it his "place of dear delight"! In its -shaded cloisters de Bérulle, Père Vincent, and Saint -Cyran laboured together to purify the Church, until -the time came when the closest friends were separated -by dogmatic differences; and even then the -tempest that wrecked Port Royal could not sweep -away the memory of the peaceful days when the four -friends lent their united efforts to the work which gave -the decisive impulsion to the Catholic Renaissance.</p> - -<p>Whenever the Church established religious communities, -men were called to direct them from all -the branches of de Bérulle's Oratoire, because it -was generally known that the Oratorians inspired -the labourers of the Faith with religious ardour, and -in time the theological knowledge gained in the -Oratoire and in its branches was considered essential -to the true spiritual establishment of the priest. -Men about to enter the service of the Church went -to the Oratoire to learn how to dispense the sacramental -lessons with proper understanding of their -meaning; new faces were continually appearing, -then vanishing aglow with celestial fire. Once -when an Oratorian complained that too many of -their body were leaving Paris, de Bérulle answered: -"I thank God for it! This congregation was established -for nothing else; its mission is to furnish -worthy ministers and workmen fitted for the service -of the Church."</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_292.jpg" alt="" title="ST VINCENT DE PAUL" /> -<div class="caption"><p>ST. VINCENT DE PAUL</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING</p></div> -</div> - -<p>De Bérulle knew that, were he to give all the -members of his community, their number would be<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_293" id="Page_293">[293]</a></span> -too feeble to regenerate the vast and vitiated body -of the French clergy. He could not hope to reap -the harvest, but he counted it as glory to be permitted -to sow the seed.</p> - -<p>Vincent de Paul was the third collaborator of the -company. It was said of him that he was "created -to fill men's minds with love of spiritual things and -with love for the Creator." Père Vincent was a -simple countryman. In appearance he resembled -the disciples of Christ, as represented in ancient -pictures. His rugged features rose above a faded -and patched soutane, but his face expressed such -kindness and such sympathy that, like his heavenly -Ensample, he drew men after him. Bernard of -Cluny deplored the evil days; but the time of Louis -XIII. was worse than the time of Bernard. The -mercy proclaimed by the Gospel had been effaced -from the minds of men, and the Charity of God had -been dishonoured even by the guides sent to make -it manifest. Mercy and Charity incarnate entered -France with Père Vincent, and childlike fondness -and gentle patience crept back into human relations—not -rapidly—the influences against them were -too strong—but steadily and surely. Père Vincent -was amusing; it was said of him that he was "like -no one else"; the courtiers first watched and ridiculed, -then imitated him. When they saw him lift -the fallen and attach importance to the sufferings -of the common people, and when they heard him -insist that criminals were men and that they had a -right to demand the treatment due to men, they<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_294" id="Page_294">[294]</a></span> -shrugged their shoulders, but they knew that -through the influence of the simple peasant-priest -something unknown and very sweet had entered -France.</p> - -<p>Vincent de Paul was a worker. He founded -the Order of the Sisters of Charity, the Convicts' -Mission-Refuge, a refuge for the unfortunate, the -Foundling Hospital, and a great general hospital -and asylum where twenty thousand men and women -were lodged and nourished. To the people -of France Père Vincent was a man apart from all -others, the impersonation of human love and the -manifestation of God's mercy. By the force of his -example pity penetrated and pervaded a society in -which pity had been unknown, or if known, despised. -The people whose past life had prepared -them for anything but good works sprang with ardour -upon the road opened by the gentle saint who -had taught France the way of mercy. Even the -great essayed to be like Père Vincent; every one, -high and low, each in his own way and to the extent -of his power, followed the unique example. -Saint Vincent became the national standard; the -nobles pressed forward in his footsteps, concerning -themselves with the sick and the poor and trying -to do the work of priests. They laboured earnestly -lavishing their money and their time, and, fired by -the strength of their purpose, they came to love -their duty better than they had loved their pleasure. -They imitated the Oratorians as closely as -they had imitated the shepherds of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>, and "the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_295" id="Page_295">[295]</a></span> -monsters of the will," Indifference, Infidelity, and -Licence, hid their heads for a time, and Charity became -the fashion of the day.</p> - -<p>Père Vincent's religious zeal equalled his brotherly -tenderness; he was de Bérulle's best ally. A -special community, under his direction, assisted in -the labours of the Oratoire. The chief purpose of -the mother-house and its branches was the purification -of the priesthood and the increase of religion. -When a young priest was ready to be ordained -he was sent to Père Vincent's mission, where, by -means of systematic retreats, he received the deep -impression of the spiritual devotion and the charity -peculiar to the Oratorians.</p> - -<p>Bossuet remembered with profound gratitude the -retreats that he made in Père Vincent's Oratoire. -But there was one at Court to whom the piety of -Père Vincent was a thorn in the flesh. We have -seen that de Bérulle's work was the purification of -the clergy, and that Père Vincent was de Bérulle's -chief ally. Mazarin was the Queen's guardian, and -the Queen held the list of ecclesiastical appointments. -A Council called the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Conseil de Conscience</i> had been -instituted to guide the Regent in her "Collation of -Benefices." The nominees were subject to the approbation -of the Council. When their names were -read the points in their favour and against them -were discussed. In this <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Conseil de Conscience</i> Père -Vincent confronted Mazarin ten years. Before -Père Vincent appeared men were appointed abbots -regardless of their characters. Chantelauze says<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_296" id="Page_296">[296]</a></span> -in <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Saint Vincent de Paul et les Gondis</i> that "Mazarin -raised Simony to honour." The Cardinal gave -the benefices to people whom he was sure of: people -who were willing to devote themselves, body -and soul, to his purposes. Père Vincent had -awakened the minds of many influential prelates, -and a few men and women prominent at Court -had been aroused to a sense of the condition of the -Church. These few priests and laymen were called -the "Saints' Party."</p> - -<p>They sat in the Council convened for the -avowed purpose of purifying the Church. When -Mazarin made an ignoble appointment, Père Vincent -objected, and the influential prelates and -the others of their party echoed his objections. -Through the energy of the "Saints," as they were -flippantly called by the courtiers, many scandalous -appointments were prevented, and gradually the -church positions were filled by sincere and devoted -men. The determined and earnest objections of -so many undeniably disinterested, well-known, and -unimpeachable people aroused the superstitious -scruples of the Queen, and when her scruples were -aroused, she was obstinate. Mazarin knew this. -He knew that Anne of Austria was a peculiar woman, -he knew that she had been a Queen before he -had had any hold upon her, and he knew that he -had not been her first favourite. He was quick, -keen-sighted, flexible. He was cautious. He had -no intention of changing the sustained coo of his -turtle-dove for the shrill "<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Tais-toi!</i>" of the Regent<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_297" id="Page_297">[297]</a></span> -of France. But he was not comfortable. His -little diaries contain many allusions to the distress -caused by his inability to digest the interference of -the "Saints." He looked forward to the time -when he should be so strong that it would be safe -for him to take steps to free himself from the -obsessions of the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Conseil de Conscience</i>. He was -amiable and indulgent in his intercourse with all -the cabals and with all the conflicting agitations; -he studied motives and forestalled results; he -brought down his own larks with the mirrors of -his enemies. He had a thousand different ways of -working out the same aims. He did nothing to -actively offend, but there was a persistence in his -gentle tenacity which exasperated men like Condé -and disheartened the frank soldiers of the Faith of -the mission of Port Royal and the Oratoire. He -foresaw a time when he could dispose of benefices -and of all else. A few years later the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Conseil de -Conscience</i> was abolished, and Père Vincent was -ignominiously vanquished. Père Vincent lacked -the requisites of the courtier; he was artless, and -straightforward, and intriguers found it easy to -make him appear ridiculous in the eyes of the -Queen.<a name="FNanchor_108_108" id="FNanchor_108_108"></a><a href="#Footnote_108_108" class="fnanchor">[108]</a> Mazarin watched his moment, and when -he was sure that Anne of Austria could not refuse -him anything, he drew the table of benefices from -her hand. From that time "pick and choose" was -the order of the day. "Monsieur le Cardinal" -visited the appointments secretly, and secured the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_298" id="Page_298">[298]</a></span> -lion's share for himself. When he had made his -choice, the men who offered him the highest bids -received what he had rejected. In later years -Mazarin was, by his own appointment, Archbishop -of Metz and the possessor of thirty fat benefices. -His revenues were considerable.</p> - -<p>Nowhere did the Oratorians meet as determined -opposition as at Court. The courtiers had gone -to Mass because they lost the King's favour if they -did not go to Mass, but to be inclined to skepticism -was generally regarded as a token of elegance. -Men thought that they were evincing superior culture -when they braved God, the Devil, and the -King, at one and the same time, by committing a -thousand blasphemies. Despite the pressure of -the new ideas, the "Saints' Party" had been difficult -to organise. It was a short-lived party because -Mazarin was not a man to tolerate rivals who -were liable to develop power enough to counteract -his influence over Anne of Austria concerning -subjects even more vital than the distribution of -the benefices. The petty annoyances to which the -Prime Minister subjected the "Saints' Party" convinced -people that when a man was of the Court, -if he felt the indubitable touch of the finger of -Grace, the only way open to him was the road to -the cloister. It was known that wasps sting, and -that they are not meet adversaries for the sons of -God, and the wasps were there in swarms. François -de Sales called the constantly recurring annoyances, -"that mass of wasps." As there was no<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_299" id="Page_299">[299]</a></span> -hope of relief in sight, it was generally supposed -that the most prudent and the wisest course for -labourers in the vineyard of the Lord was to enter -the hive and take their places in the cells, among -the manufacturers of honey. So when La Grande -Mademoiselle looked upon the convent as her -natural destination, she was carrying out the prevalent -idea that retreat from the world was the natural -result of conversion to true religion. It was -well for her and for the convent which she had -decided to honour with her presence that just at -the moment when she laid her plans her father had -one of his rare attacks of common sense—yes, -well for her and well for the convent!</p> - - -<p class="p3">IV</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle's crisis covered a period of six -months; when she reappeared patches adorned -her face and powder glistened in her hair. She -said of her awakening: "I recovered my taste for -diversions, and I attended the play and other amusements -with pleasure, but my worldly life did not -obliterate the memory of my longings; the excessive -austerity to which I had reduced myself was -modified, but I could not forget the aspirations -which I had supposed would lead me to the Carmelites!" -Not long after she emerged from her -religious retreat politics called her from her frivolity. -Political life was the arena at that hour, and -it is not probable that the most radical of the feministic -codes of the future will restore the power<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_300" id="Page_300">[300]</a></span> -which women then possessed by force of their determined -gallantry, their courage, their vivacity, -their beauty, and their coquetry. The women of -the future will lack such power because their rights -will be conferred by laws; legal rights are of small -importance compared to rights conferred and confirmed -by custom. The women of Mademoiselle's -day ordered the march of war, led armies, dictated -the terms of peace, curbed the will of statesmen, -and signed treaties with kings, not because they -had a right to do so, but because they possessed -invincible force. Richelieu, who had a species of -force of his own, and at times wielded it to their -temporary detriment, planned his moves with deference -to their tactics, and openly deplored their -importance. Mazarin, who dreaded women, wrote -to Don Luis del Haro: "We have three such -amazons right here in France, and they are fully -competent to rule three great kingdoms; they are -the Duchesse de Longueville, the Princesse Palatine, -and the Duchesse de Chevreuse." The Duchesse -de Chevreuse, having been born in the early -century, was the veteran of the trio. "She had a -strong mind," said Richelieu,<a name="FNanchor_109_109" id="FNanchor_109_109"></a><a href="#Footnote_109_109" class="fnanchor">[109]</a> "and powerful beauty, -which, as she knew well how to use it, she never -lowered by any disgraceful concessions. Her -mind was always well balanced."</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_300.jpg" alt="" title="DUCHESSE DE CHEVREUSE" /> -<div class="caption"><p>DUCHESSE DE CHEVREUSE</p></div> -</div> - -<p>Retz completed the portrait: "She loved without -any choice of objects for the simple reason that it -was necessary for her to love some one; and when<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_301" id="Page_301">[301]</a></span> -once the plan was laid it was not difficult to give -her a lover. But from the moment when she began -to love her lover, she loved him faithfully,—and -she loved no one else." She was witty, spirited, -and of a very vigorous mind. Some of her ideas -were so brilliant that they were like flashes of -lightning; and some of them were so wise and so -profound that the wisest men known to history -might have been proud to claim them. Rare -genius and keen wits which she had trained to intrigue -from early youth had made her one of the -most dangerous politicians in France. She had -been an intimate friend of Anne of Austria, and -the chief architect of the Chalais conspiracy. After -the exposure of the conspiracy, Richelieu sentenced -her to banishment for a term of twenty-five years, -and no old political war-horse could have taken revenge -sterner than hers. She did not rest on her -wrongs; her entrance upon foreign territory was -marked by the awakening of all the foreign animosities. -Alone and single-handed, the unique -Duchess formed a league against France, and when -events reached a crisis she had attained such importance -in the minds of the allies that England, -though vanquished and suing for peace, made it a -condition of her surrender that the Duchesse de -Chevreuse, "a woman for whom the King of England -entertained a particular esteem," should be -recalled to France. Richelieu yielded the point -instantly; he was too wise to invest it with the importance -of a parley; he recalled the woman who<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_302" id="Page_302">[302]</a></span> -had convened a foreign league against her own -people, and eliminated the banishment of powerful -women from his list of penalties. He had learned -an important political lesson; thereafter the presence -of the Duchesse de Chevreuse was considered -in high diplomatic circles the one thing needful for -the even balance of the State of France. After -the Spanish intrigue, which ended in Val de Grâce, -the Cardinal, fearing another "league," made -efforts to keep the versatile Duchess under his -hand, but she slipped through his fingers and was -seen all over France actively pursuing her own -peculiar business. (1637.)</p> - -<p>The Duchesse de Chevreuse once traversed -France on horseback, disguised as a man, and she -used to say that nothing had ever amused her as -well as that journey. She must have been a judge -of amusements, as she had tried them all. When -she ran away disguised as a man, her husband and -Richelieu both ran after her, to implore her to remain -in France, and, in her efforts to escape her -pursuers, she was forced to hide in many strange -places, and to resort to stratagems of all kinds. In -one place where she passed the night, her hostess, -considering her a handsome boy, made her a declaration -of love. Her guides, deceived by her appearance -gave her a fair idea of the manners worn by -a certain class of men when they think that they -are among men and free from the constraint of -woman's presence. On her journeys through Europe, -she slept one night or more in a barn, on a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_303" id="Page_303">[303]</a></span> -pile of straw, the next night in a field, under a -hedge, or in one of the vast beds in which our fathers -bedded a dozen persons at once without regard -to their circumstances. Alone, or in close quarters, -the Duchesse de Chevreuse maintained her identity. -Hers was a resolute spirit; she kept her own -counsel, and she feared neither man nor devil. -Thus, in boys' clothes, in company with cavaliers -who lisped the language of the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i>, or with -troopers from whose mouths rushed the fat oaths -of the Cossacks, sleeping now on straw and now -with a dozen strangers, drunk and sober, she -crossed the Pyrenees and reached Madrid, where -she turned the head of the King of Spain and -passed on to London, where she was fêted as a -powerful ally, and where, incidentally, she became -the chief official agent of the enemies of Richelieu.</p> - -<p>When Louis XIII. was dying he rallied long -enough to enjoin the Duchesse de Chevreuse from -entering France.<a name="FNanchor_110_110" id="FNanchor_110_110"></a><a href="#Footnote_110_110" class="fnanchor">[110]</a> Standing upon the brink of -Eternity, he remembered the traitress whom he had -not seen in ten years. The Duchesse de Chevreuse -was informed of his commands, and, knowing -him to be in the agonies of death, she placed her -political schemes in the hands of agents and hurried -back to France to condole with the widow and to -assume the control of the French nation as the deputy -of Anne of Austria. She entered the Louvre -June 14, 1643, thinking that the ten years which had -passed since she had last seen her old confidante<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_304" id="Page_304">[304]</a></span> -had made as little change in the Queen as in her -own bright eyes. She found two children at play -together,—young Louis XIV. and little Monsieur, -a tall proud girl with ash-blonde hair: La Grande -Mademoiselle, and a mature and matronly Regent -who blushed when she saluted her. One month to -a day had passed since Louis XIII. had yielded up -the ghost.</p> - -<p>The Duchesse de Chevreuse installed herself -in Paris in her old quarters and bent her energies -to the task of dethroning Mazarin.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The Palatine Princess, Anne de Gonzague, was -a ravishingly beautiful woman endowed with great -executive ability. "I do not think," said Retz, "that -Elizabeth of England had more capacity for conducting -a State." Anne de Gonzague did not begin -her career by politics. When, as a young girl, she -appeared in the world of the Court, she astonished -France by the number and by the piquancy of her -adventures. She was another of the exalted dames -who ran upon the highways disguised as cavaliers or -as monks. No one was surprised no matter when -or where he saw Anne de Gonzague, though she -was often met far beyond the limits of polite society. -Fancy alone—and their own sweet will—ruled -the fair ladies of those heroic days. During -five whole years Anne de Gonzague<a name="FNanchor_111_111" id="FNanchor_111_111"></a><a href="#Footnote_111_111" class="fnanchor">[111]</a> gave the -world to understand that she was "Mme. de Guise, -wife of Henri de Guise, Archbishop of Rheims"<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_305" id="Page_305">[305]</a></span> -(the same Henri de Guise who afterward married -Mme. de Bossut).</p> - -<p>Having passed for "Mme. de Guise" sixty -months, the Lady Anne appeared at Court under -her own name "as if nothing had happened," reported -Mademoiselle. Whatever may have here -"happened," Anne de Gonzague reappeared at -Court as alluring as in the flower of her first youth; -and, as the <cite>Chronicle</cite> expressed it: "had the talent -to marry herself—between two affairs of womanly -gallantry—to the Prince Palatine,<a name="FNanchor_112_112" id="FNanchor_112_112"></a><a href="#Footnote_112_112" class="fnanchor">[112]</a> one of the most -rabidly jealous of gentlemen," because, as the pious -and truthful Bossuet justly remarked, "everything -gave way before the secret charm of her conversation." -When nearly thirty years of age she -obeyed the instincts of her genius and engaged in -politics, with other politically inclined ladies, including -Mme. de Longueville, whose only talent lay in -her blonde hair and charming eyes.</p> - -<p>Despite the poverty of her mental resources, -Mme. de Longueville was a natural director of men, -and she was but one of a very brilliant coterie. -The prominent and fiery amazons of the politics of -that epoch are too historically known to require -detailed mention. They were: the haughty, dazzlingly -superb, but too vicious and too practical in -vice, Montbazon; the Duchesse de Chatillon (the -imperious beauty who had her hand painted upon -a painted lion whose face was the face of the great<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_306" id="Page_306">[306]</a></span> -Condé), and many others who to the measure of -their ability played with the honour and the lives of -men, with Universal Suffrage, and with the stability -of France, and who, like La Grande Mademoiselle, -were called from their revelries by the dangers which -threatened them.</p> - -<p>The daughter of Gaston d'Orléans had grown up -firmly convinced that the younger branch of the -House of Paris (her own branch) could do anything. -That had been the lesson taught for more than a -century of history. From Charles VIII. to Louis -XIII. the throne had been transmitted from father -to son but three times; in all other cases it had -passed to brothers or to cousins. The collaterals -of the royal family had become accustomed to -think of themselves as very near the throne, and -at times that habit of thought had been detrimental -to the country. Before the birth of Louis XIV. -Gaston d'Orléans had touched the crown with the -tips of his fingers, and he had made use of his title -as heir-presumptive to work out some very unsavoury -ends. After the birth of his nephews he had lived -in a dream of possible results; he had waited to see -what "his star" would bring him, and his hopes had -blazed among their ashes at the first hint of the -possibility of a change. When Louis XIV. was -nine years old he was very sick and his doctors -expected him to die; he had the smallpox. Monsieur -was jubilant: he exhibited his joy publicly, -and the courtiers drank to the health of "Gaston -I." Olivier d'Ormesson stated that the courtiers<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_307" id="Page_307">[307]</a></span> -distributed all the offices in the King's gift and -planned to dispose of the King's brother. Anne -of Austria, agonising in prayer for the life of the -King, was horrified to learn that a plot was on foot -to abduct little Monsieur. She was warned that -the child was to be stolen some time in the night -between Saturday and Sunday. Maréchal de -Schomberg passed that night on his horse, accompanied -by armed men who watched all the windows -and doors of the palace. When the King -recovered Monsieur apologised for his conduct, and -the sponge of the royal forgiveness was passed -over that episode as it had been over many others. -Under the Regency of Anne of Austria the Court -was called upon to resist the second junior branch, -whose inferiority of pretensions was more than balanced -by its intelligence and audacity.</p> - -<p>The pretensions of the Condés had been the -cause of one of Mazarin's first anxieties. They -were vast pretensions, they were unquestionably -just, and they were ably sustained by the father of -the great Condé, "Monsieur le Prince," a superior -personage whose appearance belied his character. -People of his own age remembered him as a handsome -man; but debauchery, avarice, and self-neglect -had changed the distinguished courtier and -made him a repulsive old man, "dirty and ugly."<a name="FNanchor_113_113" id="FNanchor_113_113"></a><a href="#Footnote_113_113" class="fnanchor">[113]</a> -He was stoop-shouldered and wrinkled, with great, -red eyes, and long, greasy hair, which he wore -passed around his ears in "love-locks." His aspect<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_308" id="Page_308">[308]</a></span> -was formidable. Richelieu was obliged to warn -him that he must make a serious attempt to cleanse -his person, and that he must change his shoes before -paying his visits to the King.<a name="FNanchor_114_114" id="FNanchor_114_114"></a><a href="#Footnote_114_114" class="fnanchor">[114]</a> His spirit was -as sordid as his body. "Monsieur le Prince" was -of very doubtful humour; he was dogged, snappish, -peevish, coarse, contrary, and thoroughly rapacious. -He had begun life with ten thousand livres -of income, and he had acquired a million, not counting -his appointments or his revenues from the government.<a name="FNanchor_115_115" id="FNanchor_115_115"></a><a href="#Footnote_115_115" class="fnanchor">[115]</a> -His friends clutched their pockets when -they saw him coming; but their precautions were -futile; he had a way of getting all that he desired. -Everything went into his purse and nothing came -out of it; but where his purse was not concerned -Monsieur le Prince was a different man; there he -"loved justice and followed that which was good."<a name="FNanchor_116_116" id="FNanchor_116_116"></a><a href="#Footnote_116_116" class="fnanchor">[116]</a> -He was a rigorous statesman; he defended the -national Treasury against the world. His keen -sense of equity made him a precious counsellor and -he was an eminent and upright judge. His knowledge -of the institutions of the kingdom made him -valuable as State's reference; he knew the origins, -the systems, and the supposititious issues of the -secret aims of all the parties.</p> - -<p>The laws of France were as chaotic as the situation -of the parties, and no one but a finished statesman -could find his way among them; but to Monsieur le -Prince they were familiar ground. Considerable as<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_309" id="Page_309">[309]</a></span> -were his attainments, his children were his equals. -Mme. de Longueville, though shallow, was as keen -a diplomat as her father, and by far more dangerous; -the Duc d'Enghien was an astute and accomplished -politician. The world considered the Condés as -important as the d'Orléans', and fully able to meet -the d'Orléans' on the super-sacred footing of etiquette. -We shall see to what the equality of the -two families conducted them. Struggles between -them were always imminent; their quarrels arose -from the exigencies of symbolical details: the -manner of the laying of a carpet, the bearing of -the train of a State robe, et cetera. Such details -seem insignificant to us, but that they do so is -because we have lost the habit of monarchical traditions. -When things are done according to hierarchical -custom, details are very important. At every -session of the King's Council "peckotings" passed -between Gaston d'Orléans and Monsieur le Prince -and an attentive gallery looked on and listened. -But something of sterner stuff than "peckotings" -was the order of the day when the Court met for -a ceremonious function; material battles marked -the meetings between Mlle. de Montpensier and -Mme. la Princesse de Condé; Mme. de Longueville -was brave, and La Grande Mademoiselle was -not only brave, but fully determined to justify her -title and defend her honour as the Granddaughter -of France. The two princely ladies entered the -lists with the same ardour, and they were as heroic -as they were burlesque. The 5th December the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_310" id="Page_310">[310]</a></span> -Court was scheduled to attend a solemn Mass at -Notre Dame, and by the law of precedence Mademoiselle -was to be followed by Mme. la Princesse de Condé. -The latter summoned her physician -who bled her in order to enable her to be physically -incapable of taking her place behind Mademoiselle. -Gossips told Anne-Marie-Louise of her -cousin's stratagem, and Mademoiselle resorted to -an equally efficient, though entirely different, means -of medical art calculated to make bodily motion -temporarily undesirable, if not impossible. Mademoiselle -was determined that she would not humiliate -her quality by appearing at Mass without her -attendant satellite (Saint Simon would have applauded -the sufferings of both of the heroic ladies, -for like them he had been gifted by nature with a -subtle appreciation of the duties and the privileges -of rank), but the incident was not closed. By a -strange fatality, at that instant Church came in conflict -with State. Cardinal Mazarin, representing -the Church, inspired Queen Anne to resent her -niece's indisposition. The Queen became very -angry at Mademoiselle, and impelled by her anger, -Monsieur commanded his daughter to set out immediately -for Notre Dame; he told her rudely -that if she was too sick to walk, she had plenty of -people to carry her. "You will either go or be -carried!" he cried violently, and Mademoiselle, -much the worse for her stratagem, was forced to -yield. She deplored her fate, and wept because -she had lost her father's sympathy.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_311" id="Page_311">[311]</a></span></p> - -<p>The reciprocal acidity of the junior branches -was constantly manifested by fatalities like the -event just noted, and by episodes like the affair of -"the fallen letters" (August, 1643). Although all -the writers of that day believed that the reaction -of that puerile matter was felt in the Fronde, the -quarrel, like all the other quarrels, was of so senseless -a character that it awakened the shame of -the nation. The story is soon told: Mme. de -Montbazon picked up—no one knew where—some -love letters in which, as she said, she recognised -the writing of Mme. de Longueville. Her -story was false, and Anne of Austria, who frowned -upon the gossip and the jealousies of the Court, -condemned Mme. Montbazon to go to the Hôtel -de Condé and make apologies for the wrong that -she had done the Princess. All the friends of the -House of Condé were expected to be present to -hear and to witness the vindication of Mme. la -Princesse.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Monsieur was there [wrote Mademoiselle], and for my -part I could not stay away. I had no friendship for Mme. -la Princesse, or for any of her friends, but on that occasion I -could not have taken a part contrary to hers with decorum; -to be present there was one of the duties of relationship which -one cannot neglect.</p></blockquote> - -<p>On that occasion the relatives of the family were -all in the Hôtel de Condé, but their hearts were -not in their protestations, and the Condés were -not deceived. The petty scandal of the letters fed -the flame of enmity, which Mazarin watched and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_312" id="Page_312">[312]</a></span> -nourished because he knew that it was to his interest -and to the interest of the State to foment the quarrel -between the rival cousins. An anonymous collection -of "memoirs" says:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Seeing that he was pressed from all sides, the Cardinal -thought that the safety of his position required him to keep -the House of Orleans separate from the House of Bourbon, -so that by balancing one by the other he could remain -firmly poised between the two and make himself equally necessary -to both. It was as if Heaven itself had dropped the -affair of the fallen letters into his hands, and he turned his -celestial windfall to such account that the Luxembourg and the -Hôtel de Bourbon found it difficult to maintain a decent composure; -at heart they were at daggers' points. The Duc -d'Orléans and the Duc d'Enghien were regarded as the chiefs -of the two hostile parties, and the courtiers rallied to the side -of either as their interests or their inclinations led them!<a name="FNanchor_117_117" id="FNanchor_117_117"></a><a href="#Footnote_117_117" class="fnanchor">[117]</a></p></blockquote> - -<p>Apparently Mazarin's position was impregnable. -The world would have been blind had it failed to -see that the arguments used by the Prime Minister -when he conferred with his sovereign were of a -character essentially differing from the arguments -generally used by politicians, but it was believed -that the Cardinal's method was well fitted to his -purpose, and that to any woman—and particularly -to a woman who had passed maturity—it would -be, by force of nature, more acceptable and more -weighty than the abstract method of a purely political -economist, and more convincing than the reasons -given by statesmen,—or, in fact, any reason.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_313" id="Page_313">[313]</a></span></p> - -<p>Anne of Austria had not been a widow four -months when Olivier d'Ormesson noted, in his journal, -that the Cardinal "was recognised as the All-Powerful." -For his sake the Queen committed -the imprudences of a love-sick schoolgirl. She -began by receiving his visits in the evening. The -doors were left open, and the Queen said that the -Cardinal visited her for the purpose of giving her -instructions regarding the business of the State. -As time went on the Cardinal's visits lengthened; -after a certain time the doors were closed, and, to -the scandal of the Court, they remained closed. At -Rueil the Queen tried to make Mazarin sit with -her in her little garden carriage. Mazarin "had -the wisdom to resist her wish, but he had the folly -to accompany her with his hat upon his head." As -no one ever approached the Queen with head -covered, the spectacle of the behatted minister astonished -the public. (September, 1644.) A few -weeks later every one in Paris knew that an -apartment or suite of rooms in the Palais Royal, -was being repaired, and that it was to be connected -with the Queen's apartments by a secret passage. -The public learned gradually, detail by detail, that -Mazarin was to occupy the repaired apartment, -and that the secret passage had been prepared so -that the Prime Minister might "proceed commodiously" -to the royal apartments to hold political -conferences with the Queen. When everything -was ready, the <cite>Gazette</cite> (19th November) published -the following announcement:</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_314" id="Page_314">[314]</a></span></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>The Queen in full Council made it plain that, considering -the indisposition of Cardinal Mazarin, and considering that -he is forced, with great difficulty, to cross the whole length of -the great garden of the Palais Royal,<a name="FNanchor_118_118" id="FNanchor_118_118"></a><a href="#Footnote_118_118" class="fnanchor">[118]</a> and considering that -some new business is constantly presenting itself to him, and -demanding to be communicated to the Queen, the Queen -deems it appropriate to give the Cardinal an apartment in the -Palais Royal, so that she may confer with him more conveniently -concerning her business. Her Majesty's intention has -been approved by Messieurs, her ministers, and with applause, -so that next Monday (21st November), his Eminence will -take possession of his new residence.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The Queen's indiscretion won the heart of the -favourite, and he longed for her presence. Twice, -once at Rueil and once at Fontainebleau, he displaced -La Grande Mademoiselle and installed himself -in her room at the Queen's house. The first -time that Mazarin supplanted Mademoiselle, the -haughty Princess swallowed the affront and found -a lodging in the village, but the second time she -lost her patience. "It is rumoured in Paris," wrote -d'Ormesson, "that Mademoiselle spoke to the -Queen boldly, because the Cardinal wished to take -her room in order to be near her Majesty." (September, -1645.)</p> - -<p>Some historians have inferred that the Queen -had been secretly married to her Minister. We -have no proof of any such thing, unless we accept -as proof the very ambiguous letter which the Cardinal -wrote to the Queen when he was in exile. -In that letter he spoke of people who tried to injure<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_315" id="Page_315">[315]</a></span> -him in the Queen's mind. "They will gain -nothing by it," wrote Mazarin; "<em>the heart of the -Queen and the heart of Mazarin are joined</em><a name="FNanchor_119_119" id="FNanchor_119_119"></a><a href="#Footnote_119_119" class="fnanchor">[119]</a> by -liens which cannot be broken either by time or by -any effort,—as you yourself have agreed with me -more than once." In the same letter he implores -the Queen to pity him: "for I deserve pity! it is -so strange for this child to be married, then, at -the same time, separated from ... and always -pursued by them to whom I am indebted for the -obstacles to my marriage." (27th October, 1651.) -These words are of obscure meaning, and they -may as easily be interpreted figuratively as literally. -They who believed that the Queen had -married Mazarin secretly must have drawn their -conclusions from the intimate fondness of her manner. -Anne of Austria was infatuated, and her -infatuation made it impossible for her to guard her -conduct; her behaviour betrayed the irregularity -of the situation, and it is probable that her friends -were loth to believe that anything less than marriage -could induce such familiarity. However that -may have been, Mazarin's letters give no proof -of marriage, nor has it ever been proved that he -claimed that he had married the Queen.</p> - -<p>When judgment is rendered according to evidence -deduced from personal manners, changes in -time and in the differences of localities should be<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_316" id="Page_316">[316]</a></span> -considered. Our consideration of the Queen's romance -dates from the period of the legitimate, or -illegitimate, honeymoon. (August, 1643, or within -six weeks of that time.)</p> - -<p>The public watched the royal romance with irritation. -Having greeted the Mazarin ministry with -a good grace, they (the people) were unanimously -seized by a feeling of shame and hatred for the -handsome Italian who made use of woman's favour -to attain success. The friends of the Queen redoubled -their warnings, and retired from the royal -presence in disgrace. One of her oldest servitors, -who had given unquestionable proof of his devotion,<a name="FNanchor_120_120" id="FNanchor_120_120"></a><a href="#Footnote_120_120" class="fnanchor">[120]</a> -dared to tell her to her face that "all the -world was talking about her and about his Eminence, -and in a way which ought to make her reflect -upon her position." ... "She asked me," said -La Porte, 'Who said that?' I answered, 'Everybody! -it is so common that no one talks of anything -else.' She reddened and became angry."<a name="FNanchor_121_121" id="FNanchor_121_121"></a><a href="#Footnote_121_121" class="fnanchor">[121]</a> -Mme. de Brienne, wife of the Secretary of State, -who had spoken to the Queen on the same subject, -told her friends that "More than once the -Queen had blushed to the whites of her eyes."<a name="FNanchor_122_122" id="FNanchor_122_122"></a><a href="#Footnote_122_122" class="fnanchor">[122]</a> -Every one wrote to the Queen; she found anonymous -letters even in her bed. When she went -through the streets she heard people humming -songs whose meaning she knew only too well. -Her piety and her maternity had endeared her -to the common people, and they, the people, had<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_317" id="Page_317">[317]</a></span> -looked indulgently upon her passing weaknesses; -but now things had come to a crisis. One day, -when the Regent was attending a service in Notre -Dame, she was surprised by a band of women of -the people, who surrounded her and fell at her feet -crying that she was dissipating the fortune of her -ward. "<em>Queen</em>," they cried, "<em>you have a man in -your house who is taking everything!</em>"<a name="FNanchor_123_123" id="FNanchor_123_123"></a><a href="#Footnote_123_123" class="fnanchor">[123]</a></p> - -<p>The fact that the young King was being despoiled -was a greater grief to the people than the abasement -of the Queen. It must be avowed that Mazarin -was the most shameless thief who ever devoured -a kingdom in the name of official duty and under -the eyes and by the favour of a sovereign. His -cry was the cry of the daughters of the horseleech. -It was understood that Mazarin would not grant a -service, or a demand of any kind, until his price -had been put down, and in some cases the commission -was demanded and paid twice. Bussy-Rabutin -received a letter commanding him to "pay over -and without delay" the sum of seven hundred -livres. The letter is still in existence. Condé -wrote it and despatched it, but it bears his personal -endorsement to the effect that he had been -"ordered" to write it. Montglat states that Anne -of Austria asked for a fat office for one of her creatures, -that the office was immediately granted, and -that the appointee was taxed one hundred thousand -écus. Anne of Austria was piqued: she had<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_318" id="Page_318">[318]</a></span> -supposed that her position exempted her from the -requirements of the ministerial tariff; she expostulated, -but the Cardinal-Minister was firm; he made it -clear, even to the dim perceptions of his royal lady, -that the duties of the director of the French nation -ranked the tender impulses of the lover. Patriotic -duty nerved his hand, and the Queen, recognising -the futility of resistance, trembling with excitement, -and watering her fevered persuasions with -her tears, opened her purse and paid Mazarin his -commission. By a closely calculated policy the -State's coffers were subjected to systematic drainage, -the national expenses were cut, and millions, -diverted from their regular channels, found their -way into the strong box of the favourite. The -soldiers of France were dying of starvation on the -frontiers, the State's creditors were clamouring for -their money, the Court was in need of the comforts -of life<a name="FNanchor_124_124" id="FNanchor_124_124"></a><a href="#Footnote_124_124" class="fnanchor">[124]</a>; the country had been ravaged by -passing armies, pillaged by thieving politicians, harrowed -by abuses of all kinds. The taxes were -wrung from the beggared people by armed men; -yet "poor Monsieur, the Cardinal," as the Queen -always called him, gave insolently luxurious fêtes -and expended millions upon his extravagant fancies. -No one cared for his foreign policy. Would -political triumphs bring back the dead, feed the -starving, rehabilitate the dishonoured wives and -daughters of the peasants, restore verdure to the -ruined farms?</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_319" id="Page_319">[319]</a></span></p> - -<p>The Queen's anxiety to create an affection strong -enough to blind the eyes of her courtiers to her -intimacy with Mazarin had inspired her with a -desire to lavish gifts. "The Queen gives everything" -had become a proverb; the courtiers knew -the value of their complaisancy, and they flocked -to the Palais Royal with petitions; offices, benefices, -privileges, monopolies either to exploit, to concede, -or to sell were freely bestowed upon all who demanded -them. Each courtier had some new and -unheard-of fancy to gratify, either for his own -pleasure or for the pleasure of his friends; anything -that could be made visible, anything that -could be so represented as to appear visible to the -imagination, was scheduled in the minds of the -courtiers as dutiable and some one drew revenues -from it. One of the ladies of the Court obtained -from the Queen the right to tax all the Masses -said in Paris.<a name="FNanchor_125_125" id="FNanchor_125_125"></a><a href="#Footnote_125_125" class="fnanchor">[125]</a> "The 13th January, 1644, the Council -of the King employed part of its session in -refusing 'a quantity of gifts' which the Queen had -accorded, and which were all of a character to -excite laughter." The royal horn had ceased to -pour; the Queen's strong-box was empty. The -courtiers knew that there was nothing more to -gain; one and all they raised their voices, and the -threatening growl of the people of Paris echoed -them. The day of reckoning was at hand; had -Anne of Austria possessed all that she had given -to buy the indulgence of her world, and had she<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_320" id="Page_320">[320]</a></span> -willed to give it all again, she could not have stilled -the tumult; to quote Mme. de Motteville's record: -"The people's love for the Queen had diminished; -the absolute power which the Queen had -placed in the hand of Mazarin had destroyed her -own influence, and from too fondly desiring that -the Parisians should love her lover she had made -them hate him." In the beginning of the Regency -Mazarin had been popular; after a time the people -had lost confidence in him, and the hatred which -followed their distrust was mingled with contempt.</p> - -<p>Mazarin had emptied the treasury of France. -No better statement of his conduct was ever given -than Fénelon gave his pupil, the Duc de Bourgogne, -in his <cite>Dialogues des Morts</cite>. Mazarin and -Richelieu are the persons speaking. Each makes -known the value of his own work; each criticises -the work of the other. Mazarin reproaches Richelieu -for his cruelty and thirst for blood; Richelieu -answers:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"You did worse to the French than to spill their blood. You -corrupted the deep sources of their manners and their life. -You made probity a mask. I laid my hand upon the great -to repress their insolence; you beat them down and trampled -upon their courage. You degraded nobility. You confounded -conditions. You rendered all graces venal. You were afraid -of the influence of merit. You permitted no man to approach -you unless he could give you proof of a low, supple nature,—a -nature complaisant to the solicitations of mischievous intrigue. -You never received a true impression. You never had any -real knowledge of men. You never believed anything but -evil. You saw the worst in a man and drew your profit from it. -To your base mind honour and virtue were fables. You<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_321" id="Page_321">[321]</a></span> -needed knaves who could deceive the dupes whom you entrapped -in business; you needed traffickers to consummate -your schemes. So your name shall be reviled and odious."</p></blockquote> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_320.jpg" alt="" title="CARDINAL MAZARIN" /> -<div class="caption"><p>CARDINAL MAZARIN</p></div> -</div> - - -<p>This is a fair portrayal, as far as it goes; but it -shows only one side (the worst side) of Mazarin's -character. The portrait is peculiarly interesting -from the fact that it was especially depicted and -set forth for the instruction of the great-grandson -of the woman who loved Mazarin.</p> - -<p>It is probable that stern appreciation of the -duty of the representative of Divine Justice primed -the virulence of the pious Fénelon, when he seated -himself to point out an historical moral for the -descendant of the weak Queen who sacrificed the -prosperity of France on the altar of an insensate -passion.</p> - -<p>La Grande Mademoiselle was one of Mazarin's -most hostile enemies, and her memoirs evince unbending -severity. The weakness of her criticism -detracts from the importance of a work otherwise -valuable as a contemporary chronicle. She regarded -Mazarin's "lack of intelligence" as his worst -fault. She was convinced that he possessed neither -capacity nor judgment "because he acted from the -belief that he could reject the talents of a Gaston -d'Orléans with impunity. His conduct to Princes -of the Blood proved that he lacked wisdom; he -stinted the junior branches of their legitimate influence; -he would not yield to the pillars of the -throne the power that belonged to them by right; -he thrust aside the heirs-presumptive, when he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_322" id="Page_322">[322]</a></span> -might have leaned upon them! Manifestly he was -witless, stupid, unworthy the consideration of a -prince."</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle asserted that Mazarin deserved -the worst of fates and the scorn of the people. She -believed that many evils could have been averted -had Monsieur been consulted in regard to the government -of the kingdom. She affirmed that it was -her conviction that all good servants of the Crown -owed it to their patriotism to arm and drive the -Cardinal across the frontier of France. That was -her conception of duty, and it smiled upon her -from all points of the compass.</p> - -<p>Not long before the beginning of the Fronde, -the fine world of Paris, stirred to action by the -spectacle of the royal infatuation and by the -subjection of the national welfare to the suppositive -exigencies of "the foreigner," embraced the -theory of Opposition, and to be of the Opposition -was the fashion of the hour. All who aspired to -elegance wore their rebellion as a badge, unless -they had private reasons for appearing as the -friends of Mazarin. The women who were entering -politics found it to their interest to join the -opposing body.</p> - -<p>Politics had become the favourite pastime of the -highways and the little streets. Men and women, -not only in Paris, but in the châteaux and homes -of the provinces, and children—boys and girls—began -to express political opinions in early youth.</p> - -<p>"Come, then, Grandmamma," said little Montausier<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_323" id="Page_323">[323]</a></span> -to Mme. de Rambouillet, "now that I am -five years old, let us talk about affairs of State." -Her grandmother could not have reproved with a -good grace, because her own "Blue Room" had -been one of the chief agents responsible for the -new diversion just before the Fronde. A mocking -but virile force arose in the Opposition to check -the ultra-refinements of the high art, the high -intellectual ability, and the other superfine characteristics -of the school of Arthénice. The mockery -of the Opposition was as keen and its irony was as -effective as the mental sword-play of the literary -extremists. Wit was its chief weapon and its barbed -words, and merry yet sarcastic thrusts had power -to overthrow a ministry. The country knew it and -gloried in it. The people of France would have -entered upon revolution before they would have -renounced their "spirituality." In the polemics of -the new party the turn of a sentence meant a dozen -things at once; a syllable stung like a dagger. -Frenchmen are the natural artists of conversation, -and they never found field more favourable to -their art than the broad plains of the Opposition. -Avowed animosity to the pretensions of the pedants -and light mockery of the preciosity of the -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses</i> offered a varied choice of subjects and an -equally varied choice of accessories for their work. -The daring cavaliers of the Opposition passed like -wild huntsmen over the exhausted ground, with -eyes bent upon the trail, and found delicate and -amusing shades of meaning in phrases scorned and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_324" id="Page_324">[324]</a></span> -stigmatised as "common" by the hyper-spiritual -enthusiasts of the Salons.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_324.jpg" alt="FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING" title="MADEMOISELLE DE MONTPENSIER" /> -<div class="caption"><p>MADEMOISELLE DE MONTPENSIER</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING</p></div> -</div> - -<p>In the exercise of free wit, the women of the new -political school found an influence which before -their day had been monopolised by the polemists -of the State's Councils. They—the women of the -Opposition—swept forward and seized positions -previously held by men, and since then, either from -deep purpose or from pure conviction, they have -held their ground and exercised their right to share, -or to attempt to share, in the creation and in the destruction -of governments. Mademoiselle followed -the fashion of the day when she frequented the -society of people who were in disgrace at Court. -She ridiculed the King's Minister, and as she was -influential and popular, outspoken and eager to -declare her principles, she was called an agitator, -though in the words of Mme. de Motteville, -"she was not quite sure what she was trying -to do." Mazarin, whom Mademoiselle considered -"stupid," had entangled the wires of the cabals -and confused the minds of the pretenders with such -consummate art that the keenest intriguers gazed in -bewilderment upon their own interests, and doubted -their truest friends. For instance, Monsieur, who -had mind and wit "to burn," could not explain, -even to himself, why he repudiated Mademoiselle -when she quarrelled with the second junior branch. -He knew that he was jealous of his rights and of -all that belonged to him; he knew that the power -of the Condés was a menace, that his daughter<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_325" id="Page_325">[325]</a></span> -was a powerful ally for any party, that her championship -was, and always had been, his strongest -arm against an unappreciative world, and after one -of the senseless exhibitions of anger against Mademoiselle -to which Anne of Austria, impelled by -Mazarin, frequently incited him, he asked himself -why he maltreated his daughter when she resisted -the usurpations of his hated cousins, the Condés.</p> - -<p>"Why," he queried piteously, "should I plunge -the knife into my own breast?"</p> - -<p>Why he did so, and why many another as astute -as he moved heaven and earth to effect his own -downfall was the secret of Mazarin.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle wept bitter tears for the loss of -her father's friendship; then she arose in her pride, -resolved to tread the path of life alone, according -to her independent will. She was twenty years -old and in the fulness of her beauty. She described -her appearance with complaisancy<a name="FNanchor_126_126" id="FNanchor_126_126"></a><a href="#Footnote_126_126" class="fnanchor">[126]</a>:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I am tall; I am neither fat nor lean; I have a graceful -and freely moving figure, and my bearing is natural and easy. -My bust is well formed. My hands and feet are not beautiful, -but there is great beauty in their flesh, and the flesh of my -throat is also very pretty. My leg is straight, and my foot is -well formed. My hair is a beautiful ash-blonde. My face is -long, and its contour is fine. The nose is large and aquiline. -The mouth neither large nor little, but distinctly outlined and -of a very agreeable form. The lips are the colour of vermilion. -My teeth are not handsome, but neither are they horrible. My -eyes are blue, neither large nor small, but brilliant, gentle, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_326" id="Page_326">[326]</a></span> -proud, like my mien. I have a haughty, but not self-glorified -air; I am polite and familiar, but of a manner to excite respect -rather than to attract the lack of it. I am indeed very -indifferent about my dress, but my negligence does not go as -far as untidiness. I hate that! I am neat, and whether I am -laced or loosely robed, everything that I wear looks well. This -is not because I do not look incomparably better with tightly -fitting garments, but it is because negligence and loose garments -sit less ill upon me than upon another, for I may say, -without boasting, that I become whatever I put on better than -anything that I put on becomes me.... God ... -has given me unparalleled health and strength. Nothing -breaks me down; nothing fatigues me; and it is difficult to -judge of the events and the changes in my fortunes by my -face, for my face rarely shows any change. I had forgotten -to say that I have a healthy complexion, which is in accord -with what I have just said. My tint is not delicate, but it is -fair, and very bright and clear.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Before the lessons of experience and evil fortune -changed Mademoiselle's handsome face, she was -thus vivaciously described by an anonymous contemporary:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>This Princess of the blood of kings and of princes is haughty, -daring, and of a courage much more like the courage of a -man than is commonly found in woman. It may be said with -truth that she is an amazon, and that she is better fitted to -carry a lance than to hold a distaff. She is proud, enterprising, -adventurous, quick, and free of speech. She cannot bear -to hear anything contrary to her own opinion. As she has -never loved either the King's ministers or her father's ministers, -she has avoided them; because had she received them in -her home, or frequented their society, civility would have -constrained her to show them deference. Her humour is impatient, -her mind is active, and her heart is ardently set upon<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_327" id="Page_327">[327]</a></span> -whatever she undertakes. As to dissimulation, she does not -know the meaning of the term. She tells what she thinks, -careless of the opinion of the world.</p></blockquote> - -<p>She was described in divers ways, according to -the impressions of her associates. One said that -her manner gave evidence of serious reflection; -another called her too vivacious. It was supposed -that she had been the first to assert that the soul -ought not to be susceptible to love, and therefore -her admirers sang to her of the aversion felt by -Pallas for the allurements of Venus. Mademoiselle -had said:</p> - -<p class="center">"<cite>Je n'ai point l'âme tendre.</cite>"</p> - -<p>and she had meant what she said, and been glad -to have it known that she was heart-free.</p> - -<p>She was blamed for her rude manners and for -her outbursts of anger. When she declared that -she longed to go to war with the soldiers her critics -laughed at her pretensions. It was generally believed -that her faults were numerous, and that she -had few of the qualities considered desirable in -woman; but no one ever called her petty, cowardly, -or false. La Grande Mademoiselle was never a -liar; she never betrayed friend or foe. She was -brave and generous; and it was not her fault if -when nature placed her soul in the form of a -woman it gave her the mien and the inclinations -of a man.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_328" id="Page_328">[328]</a></span></p> - - - - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_V" id="CHAPTER_V"></a>CHAPTER V</h2> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I. The Beginning of Trouble—Paris and the Parisians in 1648—II. The -Parliamentary Fronde—Mademoiselle Would Be Queen of France—III. -The Fronde of the Princes and the Union of the Frondes—Projects -for an Alliance with Condé—IV. La Grande Mademoiselle's -Heroic Period—The Capture of Orleans—The Combat in the Faubourg -Saint Antoine—The End of the Fronde.</p></blockquote> - - -<p class="p3">I</p> - -<p><span class="drop-cap">F</span><span class="smcap">ew</span> political crises have left, either upon participants -or upon witnesses, impressions as -diverse as the impressions left by the Fronde. As -examples of this fact take Retz (whose <cite>Mémoires</cite> -are the epopee of revolutionary Paris), Omer -Talon, the Queen's friend, M. de Motteville, -La Rochefoucauld, duke and peer, Gaston d'Orléans, -de Beaufort, Anne de Gonzague, Mme. de -Chevreuse, and all the messieurs and mesdames -whose ways of thinking we know. They furnished -the divers views of the Fronde from which we gain -our knowledge of that event, and as they deduced -their impressions from the effect which the Fronde -had upon their personal interests or sympathies, -and from their mental conditions, it is difficult to -form an independent or a just idea. Versatile and -brilliant imaginations have left kaleidoscopic visions -of a limited number of very plain realities, and as<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_329" id="Page_329">[329]</a></span> -the only means of giving uniformity and sequency -to a narrative which, though it covers various -periods, is circumscribed by certain limits, is to -make a selection from the many means of study -furnished by a voluminous mass of documents, I -have detached from history nothing but the facts -which were connected with the life of the person -around whom I have woven this narrative.</p> - -<p>By relating everything concerning La Grande -Mademoiselle and by showing her actively engaged -in her daily pursuits when the Fronde took shape -and during the war, I have hoped to make visible -to the reader at least one figure of the most confused -of all the harassed epochs of our modern -history.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle's point of view may not have been -one of the best, but it had at least one merit: it -was not the point of view of an ordinary observer. -The Fronde was La Grande Mademoiselle's heroic -period, and her reasons for embracing the cause -were fit for the fabric of a romance. She intended -to marry, and a marriage appropriate to her high -station required the veiling smoke of the battle-field -and the booming music of great guns. She entered -the army and played her part with such spirit that, -according to her own story, she wondered to the -end of her days how she could have committed so -many follies. These pages are written to explain -the mental condition which evolved not only La -Grande Mademoiselle's follies but the follies of -many of her countrymen.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_330" id="Page_330">[330]</a></span></p> - -<p>It is evident from the memoirs on record that -Mademoiselle did not expect a revolution, but in -that respect she was as clear-sighted as her contemporaries; -no one looked for any change. Four -years had passed since the people raised the barricades, -and all that time Paris had growled its discontent. -Neither the Regent nor the courtiers -had cared to ask what the canaille were thinking. -The curés had been driven from the devastated -country parishes to beg bread and shelter in the -monasteries, and the industrious French people -who had always been neat and merry lay in rags -on their sordid beds, dying of famine because the -usurers of the State—the national note-holders—had -seized their tools and confiscated all means of -paying the labourer.</p> - -<p>In 1644 the people invaded the Palais de Justice -and noisily protested against the new tax. They -ordered Parliament to take their threats to the -Queen. The Queen refused to remit the tax, and -the city immediately assumed the aspect which it -habitually wore on the eve of revolution. Groups -of men and women stood about the streets, the -people were eager and excited,—they knew not -why. Business was suspended. The shopkeepers -stood on their doorsteps. The third night after -the Queen refused to listen to the appeal of the -people, the milk-soup boiled over! Bands of men -armed with clubs descended from the faubourgs, -crowded the streets of Paris, and, to quote an eye-witness, -"they gave fright enough to the city<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_331" id="Page_331">[331]</a></span> -where fear and like emotions were unknown." -After a few hours the crowd dispersed and the city -became calm. But the road was clear, the canaille -had found the way; they knew that it was possible -to arm with clubs, or with anything that they could -handle, and surge into the streets against the -Crown. From that hour forerunners of the approaching -storm multiplied. Parliament openly -sustained the demands of the people. In Parliament -there were natural orators whose denunciations -of the causes of the prevailing misery were -brilliant and terrible. The people's envoys accused -the Regency of permitting the abuses, the -injustice, and the oppression which had wrecked -the peace of France. They persisted in their protestations, -and the Majesty of the Throne could -not silence them. At the solemn sessions of the -beds of justice and in the Queen's own chambers -they presented their arguments, and with voices -hoarse with indignation, and with hands raised -threateningly toward heaven they cried their -philippics in the Queen's ears. Seated beside his -mother the child-king looked on and listened. He -could not understand the meaning of all the vehement -words, but he never pardoned the voices -which uttered them. The Court listened, astonished.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle weighed the words of the people, -she paid close attention, but her memoirs do not -speak of the revolts of public opinion. She was as -unconscious of their meaning as the Queen,—and to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_332" id="Page_332">[332]</a></span> -say that is to tell the whole story. Only sixty years -before that time the barricades of the League had -closed the streets of Paris, and only ten years before -the theatre lovers had witnessed a comedy called -<cite>Alizon</cite>, in which one of the ancient leaguers had -fixed such eyes upon the King as our Communardes -fixed upon the Versaillais. No one had forgotten -anything! The Parisians had kept their old arms -bright; they were looking forward to a time when -arms would be needed; yet the Regent thought -that when she had issued an order commanding -the people not to talk politics she had provided -against everything.</p> - -<p>The nation's depths, as represented by the middle -classes, had found a new apostle in the person of -a member of the Parliament, "President Barillon." -Barillon had been a pillar of the Government, but -his feelings had changed. Mme. de Motteville, -who was in warm sympathy with the Regent, wrote -bitterly of his new opinions. She said:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>That man has a little of the shade of feeling which colours -the actions of some of the men of our century who always -hate the happy and the powerful. Such men think that they -prove their greatness of heart by loving only the unfortunate, -and that idea incessantly involves them in parties, and makes -them do things adverse to the Queen.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The Court was as blind as the Queen's friend; it -could not see that the day was coming when the -determination to abolish abuses would sweep away -the ancient social forms before their eyes. In the -opinion of the Queen the criticisms and the ideas<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_333" id="Page_333">[333]</a></span> -of the King's subjects constituted felony, and it -was Barillon's fate to go down. Barillon had been -the Queen's devoted friend and champion. After -the King died he had worked hard to seat the -royal widow on the throne. He believed—no one -knew what excuse he had for believing such a -thing—that the Queen shared his ideas of the -rights of the poor and the humble, and that she -believed as he believed: that kings owed certain -duties to their subjects. Barillon was not forced -to wait long for his enlightenment. Anne of Austria -was a woman of short patience, and advice -irritated her. As soon as the President's eyes were -opened to the truth he rushed headlong into the -arms of the Opposition. Anne of Austria scorned -"his treachery to the Crown." His impassioned -thoughts of divine justice were enigmatical to the -sovereign understanding. She was enraged by -the obstinacy of her old friend, and by her orders -he was cast into the prison of Saint Piguerol, where -he died, as the just Motteville said, "regretted by -every one." Barillon was the precursor of the -"Idealogues" of the eighteenth century and of the -Socialists of our own day.</p> - -<p>The Queen was one of the people who seem to -have received eyes because they could not be blind -without eyes. The King's porringer was empty -because the King had no money. The Queen, his -mother, had pawned the jewels of the crown to appease -her creditors, yet she was indignant when -the bourgeois said that France was bankrupt. She<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_334" id="Page_334">[334]</a></span> -did not attach any importance to "that canaille,"—as -she called the Parliament,—but she regarded -criticism or disapproval as an attempt upon the -authority of her son. As she expressed her exotic -ideas freely, the bourgeois knew what she thought -of them, and her abusive epithets were scored to -the credit of the Opposition. As much from -interest as from sympathy the Opposition invariably -sustained the claims of the people. "The -bourgeois were all infected with love for the public -welfare," said the gentle Motteville bitterly. So -the Court knew that in case of difficulty it could -not count upon "that canaille."</p> - -<p>Neither could Parliament count upon itself. -There were too many counter-currents in its -channels, too many individual interests, too many -ambitions, too many selfish intrigues, to say -nothing of the instinct of self-preservation which -had turned the thoughts of the nobles toward a -last desperate attempt to prevent the establishment -of the absolute monarchy. They had resolved -to make the attempt, and by it they hoped -to save the remnant of their ancient privileges. -They would have been justified in saving anything -that they could lay their hands on, for no man is -morally bound to commit suicide. In point of fact -the only thing which they were morally bound to -do was to remember that duty to country precedes -all other duties, but in that day people had a very -dim idea of duty to country. La Grande Mademoiselle -believed that the King's right was divine,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_335" id="Page_335">[335]</a></span> -but she did not hesitate to act against the Court -when her personal interests or the interests of her -house demanded such action. After the "Affair -Saujon,<a name="FNanchor_127_127" id="FNanchor_127_127"></a><a href="#Footnote_127_127" class="fnanchor">[127]</a>" she practically retired from Court. Alluding -to that fact, she said: "I did not think that -the presence of a person whom the Queen had so -maltreated could be agreeable to her Majesty."</p> - -<p>She made long visits at her château of Bois-le-Vicomte, -near Meaux. Her little court knew her -prejudices and respected her feelings. She regarded -the success of the French arms as a personal -misfortune, because a French victory conferred more -glory upon Monsieur le Prince. The death of the -elder Condé had not lessened the insolent pretensions -of the second junior branch, and the honours -claimed by the hawk-eyed general afflicted the -haughty Princess d'Orléans, who had no valiant -soldier to add glory to her name.</p> - -<p>Referring to the battle of Lens Mademoiselle -said:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>No one dared to tell me of it; the paper containing the account -of it was sent to me from Paris, and they placed it on -my table, where I saw it as soon as I arose. I read it with astonishment -and grief. On that occasion I was less of a good -Frenchman than an enemy.</p></blockquote> - -<p>This avowal is worthy of note because it furnishes -a key to the approaching national crisis. -Mademoiselle's treason was the crime of architects -of the Fronde; of the Nobility first, afterward of -all France. Mademoiselle wept over the battle of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_336" id="Page_336">[336]</a></span> -Lens, and when her father commanded her to -return to Paris to appear with the Queen and to -join in the public rejoicings her grief knew no -bounds. The scene in the Palais Royal had destroyed -her confidence and her sympathy, and she -could not have "rejoiced with the Queen" on any -occasion; but her father's commands were formal, -and she was forced to assist with the Court (August -26th) at Notre Dame, when the <em>Te Deum</em> was -chanted in thanksgiving for the victory of France.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>On that occasion [said Mademoiselle] I placed myself beside -Cardinal Mazarin, and as he was in a good humour I -spoke to him of liberating Saujon. He promised me to do all -in his power. He said that he should try to influence the -Queen. I left them all at the Palais Royal and went away to -get my dinner, and when I arrived I was informed of the -clamour in the city; the bourgeois had taken arms.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The bourgeois had taken arms because of the -unexpected arrest of two members of Parliament. -"Old Broussel" was one of the two, and to the -people he personified the democratic and humanitarian -doctrines of President Barillon, who had -died in his prison because he had angered the -Queen by pleading the people's cause. The news -of his arrest fell like a thunderbolt, and the people -sprang to arms. The general excitement dispelled -Mademoiselle's grief; she was not sorry for the -uprising. She could not see anything to regret in -the disturbance of the monarchy. Monsieur and -the Queen had shown her that her interests were -not theirs, they had tormented and humiliated her,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_337" id="Page_337">[337]</a></span> -and it pleased her wounded pride to think that her -enemies were to be punished. The Tuileries were -admirably situated for the occasion. Should there -be a revolution it could not fail to take place under -her windows, and even were she to be imprisoned—as -she had been before—she could still amuse -herself and witness the uprising at her ease. At -that time there were no boulevards; the Seine was -the centre of the capital. It was the great street -and the great open hall in which the Parisians gave -their fêtes. Entering Paris either from Rouen or -from Dijon, travellers knew by the animation on -the water when they were near the city. From the -Cours la Reine to the little isle Saint Louis the -river was edged with open-air shops and markets. -On the river were barges laden with merchandise, -with rafts, with water-coaches (which looked like -floating houses), and with all the objects that man -sets in the public view to tempt his fellows and to -offer means of conveyance either to business or to -pleasure. At various points the bargees and other -river-men held jousts. All through the city there -were exhibitions of fireworks and "water serenades," -and along the shore, or moving swiftly -among the delicate shallops and the heavy barges -were gilded pleasure galleys with pennants flying -in the wind.</p> - -<p>The light, mirrored by the water, danced upon -the damp walls of the streets which opened upon -the quays.</p> - -<p>The Seine was the light and the joy of Paris,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_338" id="Page_338">[338]</a></span> -the pride of the public life. Its arms enveloped -Notre Dame, the mass of buildings called "the -Palais," the Houses of the Parliament and the -Bourse, an immense bazar whose galleried shops -were the meeting-place of strollers and of gossips. -A little below the Palais stretched the Pont-Neuf, -with its swarms of street peddlers, jugglers, charlatans, -and idlers who passed their days watching -the parade of the people of Paris. "The disinherited," -unfortunate speculators in the public -bounty, sat apart from the stream of travellers, -preparing for their business by slipping glass eyes -into their heads, or by drawing out their teeth -the better to amuse the public and to solicit alms.</p> - -<p>All the emotions of the people were manifested -first upon the river. The Seine was a queen; we -have made it a sewer.</p> - -<p>Even then Paris was a great cosmopolitan city, -capable of receiving the people of the world; it -was the only place in Europe where a palace could -be made ready for guests in less than two hours. -In less than one hour the hosts of the inns prepared -dinner for one hundred guests at twenty -écus a cover.</p> - -<p>Yet in many respects the powerful city was in -a barbarous condition; it was neither lighted nor -swept, and as its citizens threw everything out of -their windows, the streets were paved with black -and infected mud. There was little or nothing like -a police system, and the city was sown with "places -of refuge" (a survival of the Middle Ages), which<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_339" id="Page_339">[339]</a></span> -served as hiding-places for highwaymen and other -malefactors, who enshrined themselves among the -shadows and lay in wait for the weak or the -unwary.</p> - -<p>At that time the Duc d'Angoulême, the illegitimate -son of Charles IX., used to send his -servants into the streets to collect their wages -from the passers-by. Having collected their money, -the clever fellows returned to the ducal palace. -The Duc d'Angoulême possessed the right of -shelter, and his palace was vested with all the -power of the horns of the altar: once within his -gates, the criminal was in safety and "inviolable."</p> - -<p>The Duc de Beaufort used to send his servants -out into the streets to rob travellers for his personal -benefit. When the robbers were arrested -their proprietor demanded their release and made -great talk of an indemnification.</p> - -<p>The excessively mobile Parisian character has -changed many times since the day of the Duc -de Beaufort; but the people of the present are -counterparts of the people of the times<a name="FNanchor_128_128" id="FNanchor_128_128"></a><a href="#Footnote_128_128" class="fnanchor">[128]</a> of Louis -XIII. and the Regency. One of Mademoiselle's -contemporaries said: "The true Parisians love to -work; they love the novelty of things; they love -changes in their habits; they even love changes in -their business. They are very pious, and very—credulous. -They are not in the least drunkards; -they are polite to strangers."</p> - -<p>Subtract the piety and add absinthe, the mother<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_340" id="Page_340">[340]</a></span> -of Folly, and we have the Parisians of our own day. -They too are industrious; they are always changing -something; they are changeable in themselves; -they are credulous; they call religion "superstition," -but they believe in "systems," in "panaceas," -in high-sounding words, and in "great men"—men -truly great, or spuriously great; they still -cherish a belief in revolutions. They are as ready -now as they were centuries ago to die for an idea, -for a Broussel, and for much less than a Broussel. -Just such Parisians as we meet in our daily walks -raised the barricades in 1648. Broussel's windows -looked out upon the river; the boatmen and the -people of the water were the first to hear of his -arrest, and they rushed crying into the streets; -the people of the <em>Halles</em> joined them; and the -"good bourgeoisie" followed the people's lead. -The tradesmen closed their shops, the chains were -drawn across the streets; and in the twinkling of -an eye Paris bristled with antiquated firearms like -an historical procession.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle, who heard the noise, ordered her -carriage, and went out to pass the barricades. -She had never seen the mob as she saw it then. -The people swayed forward to meet the insolent -noble who dared to defy them; but when they -recognised their Princess, their hoarse cries turned -to shouts of welcome, and eager hands raised the -chains. Then, haughtily ignoring their fond smiles, -Mademoiselle passed and the chains fell behind -her.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_341" id="Page_341">[341]</a></span></p> - -<p>So, with the canaille hailing her, she reached -the Luxembourg, turned and recrossed the river, -firm in her power as the Princess of the people. -She had seen the barricades, and the sight was to -influence her life.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>She returned to the Tuileries in a glow not of -triumph,—she had never doubted the people,—but -she had passed the barriers raised by the -people against her enemies, and the people had -confirmed her right to rule, while the Regent -trembled!</p> - -<p>The Granddaughter of France was the real head -of the people, and as the faëries had been present -at her baptism, obstacles and monsters vanished at -her approach.</p> - -<p>With tender pride the people watched her progress; -their favour was never based upon reason; -they did not ask why they loved the haughty -Princess who called them "Knaves" and considered -them fit for the scaffold or the fagots. -She was their goddess, and whenever she appeared -they fell at her feet and worshipped her.</p> - -<p>The Court did not approve of Mademoiselle's -democratic popularity. When she arrived at the -Tuileries she was imprisoned in her room; but as -the whole Court was imprisoned, and as no one -dared to cross his threshold, she was not inclined -to murmur. Upon the whole the situation pleased -her. She watched the pale, frightened faces of -the courtiers with secret joy. Until then the Court<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_342" id="Page_342">[342]</a></span> -had taken the people's threats for jests, but the -barricades had opened their eyes to the danger of -their position; the mob was at the palace gates, -and no one knew how soon it would be in the -palace! Mademoiselle was in high spirits. Standing -at her open window, she watched the people; -they were massed upon the quays eating and -drinking by the light of little bonfires; many of -them stretched out upon the ground where they -could watch her and slept there until morning.</p> - -<p>The night was calm, but Mademoiselle said of -the day which followed it:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Early in the morning I was awakened by the Long Roll; -the troops were starting to take back the Tour-de-Nesle, -which some of the wretches had captured. I sprang from -my bed and looked out of my window; it was not long -before they came back; some of them were wounded, and -I was seized with great fear and pity.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The canaille crowded the rue des Tuileries; the -men carried swords, and they did it so awkwardly -that Mademoiselle laughed at them.</p> - -<p>The courtiers were prisoners; all the streets were -barricaded with wine-butts filled with earth and with -manure. Given time, skilled workmen could not -have raised a more effective obstacle; it was good -work, well done, and as a symbol of the strength -and the intention of the people it was redoubtable.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_342.jpg" alt="FROM A CONTEMPORARY PRINT" title="THE TOWER OF NESLE" /> -<div class="caption"><p>THE TOWER OF NESLE</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM A CONTEMPORARY PRINT</p></div> -</div> - -<p>The barricades of the Fronde, floating the old -banners of the League, had evoked the past and -touched the revolutionary current in the abandoned -souls of the Parisians. Retz claimed that<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_343" id="Page_343">[343]</a></span> -his hand fired the powder, and to do him justice, -though his Memoirs make a great deal of the -part that he played in the Fronde, they tell less -than the truth. He might have said without -boasting that he held Paris in the hollow of his -hand. He had worked hard to acquire the power -by which he bent the people to his will. Vincent -de Paul had been his tutor, and Retz had been an -unworthy pupil; he had remembered but one of -Père Vincent's many lessons of brotherly love. His -mind had seized the warning: "Know that the -people is a Being, to be considered; not an inanimate -object to be ignored," and from that -simple precept he had deduced utilitarian conclusions -fitted for his personal service, and drawn -from them a plan for his own conduct. The principle -of man's humanity had given him his idea. -He had based his system on the susceptibility of -men to the influence of intelligent suggestion, -and by the judicious warmth of his sympathy he -had surrounded himself with just such elements -as his plan required.</p> - -<p>This young Abbé Retz was the coadjutor of his -uncle, the Archbishop of Paris. He was of an -excellent family. He was astute, and, having decided -to turn the people to account, he applied his -mind to the task of learning the opinions of the -lockpickers and ruffians of the city. His office -gave him the right to go everywhere and to be -seen in all company. He frequented the cellars -and the garrets, he fraternised with the cut-throats,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_344" id="Page_344">[344]</a></span> -he distributed alms, and as equivalent for what he -gave received instruction in the magic vocabulary -of the men who shut the streets of a city as easily -as a warder shuts a door; he studied the ways of -the canaille seven years, living hand-in-glove and -cheek-by-jole with the men of the dens; he studied -his world as he studied the policy of the ministry -and the face of the Queen; and when he felt that -the footing of the Court was insecure he broke -away from Royalty and put into action the science -of the cut-throats. To act the part of Marius or -Coriolanus before the people was to satisfy an -ambition which had haunted him since he had first -read Plutarch. Retz was the type of the hero of -romance at a time when Corneille met his models -in the public streets.</p> - -<p>He cared more to excite the admiration of the -masses than to acquire position or money; he was -influenced more by passionate love of brilliant and -extraordinary exploits than by ambition, because -he knew that his exploits made the people admire -him. In his opinion an out-and-out adventure was -worth more than all else, and no condition seemed -to him as desirable as the life of a conspirator. -He was called <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">le petit Catilina</i>, and the title pleased -him better than any other. His "popolo," collectively -and individually, gloried in him, understood -him, trusted him, and sympathised with him -in all his longings. He was at home and at ease -and as safe as in the archiepiscopal palace in the -most dangerous of their dens.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_344.jpg" alt="" title="CARDINAL DE RETZ" /> -<div class="caption"><p>CARDINAL DE RETZ</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_345" id="Page_345">[345]</a></span></p> - -<p>He was the subject of all species of critical judgments; -La Rochefoucauld and Saint Simon spoke -admiringly of his "prodigious genius." Anne of -Austria called him a "factionist." Mazarin, who as -he loved neither virtue nor vice, could not judge -justly of one of Plutarch's heroes, did not like -Retz; but he feared him. Mademoiselle said in -her memoirs: "The Cardinal tells me that he -believes that Retz has a black soul." People who -knew no better laughed at the Archbishop's nephew, -and Retz involuntarily fostered their delusion. His -swarthy face, crooked legs, and near-sighted awkwardness -were well fitted to call forth the gayety -of light-minded courtiers. To add to his questionable -appearance, he robed himself in the costumes -of a cavalier; his doublets and other garments -were of gaudy stuffs, belaced and bedecked with -baubles which were in all respects, and without any -qualifying reservation, beneath the notice of a -serious or an appreciative gentleman. His personal -carriage (a prancing and tiptoeing swagger) -impressed strangers with the idea that he was an -unfortunate ballet-master whose troubles had dethroned -his reason. But there are men upon the -earth who are so constituted that they can support -all the ridicule that can be heaped upon them; -Retz was one of them; the fact that he was -pleasing to women proves it.</p> - -<p>While this enterprising episcopal agitator was -engaged in earnest contemplation of the first effects -of the mischief that he had made in his own quarter<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_346" id="Page_346">[346]</a></span> -(the quarter of Notre Dame) the Parisians were -preparing for battle; the fathers were polishing -their muskets, the children were sharpening their -pocket-knives. But Paris was calm, the rioters had -gone back to the faubourgs. The streets were -clear between the Tuileries and the Palais Royal, -and Mademoiselle paid a visit to the Queen. She -was in the Queen's salon when the Parliamentary -deputation arrived, acting under stern orders from -"the nation's depths," to demand the release of -Broussel. Anne of Austria was angry; she refused -the demand and the deputies went back to the -bourgeoisie. They were not gone long; Mademoiselle -was still with the Queen when they returned -with the people's ultimatum: <em>The people will have -Monsieur Broussel!</em> Anne of Austria was not dull -and every possible contingency had been covered by -her astute mentor. She ordered Broussel's release -and the deputies departed, calm but triumphant.</p> - -<p>Mathieu Molé negotiated the release, and while -he talked to the Queen a member of Parliament, accompanying -him, explained the political situation to -Mademoiselle. The deputy's discourse was a clear -statement of ugly facts and their consequences; it -gave Mademoiselle an insight into the reasons and -the secret views of the magistrates. The canaille -spoke so loud that all the world could hear; the -people's messengers held their heads as high as the -nobles. As Mademoiselle watched "the long robes" -file out of the royal presence she realised that all -the riots and all the menaces had been but the beginning;<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_347" id="Page_347">[347]</a></span> -she knew that the time was coming when, -married or not married, every woman in France -would be given her chance to do her duty.</p> - -<p>When Broussel returned to the people the barricades -disappeared; but the canaille was still nervous; -a practical joker cried out that the Queen -was preparing another Massacre of Saint Bartholomew, -and the old muskets followed by the pocket-knives -rushed into the streets. Another joker said -that the Queen of Sweden with her army was at -the gates of Saint Denis, and a prolonged roar was -heard and the mob filled the streets and began to -pillage. So, amidst alarms and alternations of hope -and fear, the days passed for a time. The people -of Paris rioted, then returned to their wretched -homes. Whatever the day had been, the night -brought vigilance. All slept dressed, ready for -action. Mademoiselle, who was everywhere at -once, was not afraid. When the canaille growled -the loudest she went her way. She was happy; -she revelled in sound and in movement and in the -fears of the Court. At a ball in the rue Saint Antoine -she heard shots fired all night and "danced -to the music of the guns."</p> - -<p>The Queen was anxious to be far from Paris; -Mazarin too craved rest; but the royal habit of -carrying about all the furniture of the household -made secret escape difficult. The people were -watching the Palais Royal; they were determined -that the Queen should not leave them. Nevertheless -the Court decided to make the attempt.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_348" id="Page_348">[348]</a></span></p> - -<p>Apparently there had been no change at the -royal palace; the roast-hasteners and the soup-skimmers -were in their places, and all the mouth-servants -were watching with ears pricked to hear -the first whisper of an order, ready to hand water -or to run at the beck and call of the myrmidons of -the myrmidons. In the streets around the palace -lounged the people, silent and sullen, giving vent -to angry criticisms or watching for "tall Mademoiselle." -Mademoiselle appeared frequently at -her windows, and the people greeted her with -friendly cries. Paris was calm; the silent river, -bearing its gilded galleys, its charlatans, jugglers, -serenaders, and shouting and singing river-men, ran -by under its bridges as it had always run; the -Parisians laughed at their own suspicions; one -group left its post, then another, and thus, gradually -relaxing their vigilance, the King's warders -returned to their homes. The 12th September, -before daylight, a few wains loaded with furniture -crept away from the Palais Royal and took the -road to Rueil. At daybreak the more suspicious -of the Parisians approached the palace and watched -and listened. Evidently the royal life was still -progressing in regular order. The following morning -before Paris was awake the young King was -drawn from his bed, dressed, carried out into the -courtyard, hidden in a coach, and set upon the -road taken by the furniture. Mazarin accompanied -him. Anne of Austria, "as the most valiant" (to -quote the words of Mme. de Motteville) remained<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_349" id="Page_349">[349]</a></span> -in the palace to cover the retreat of her Minister. -In the course of the morning she was seen in various -parts of Paris; that evening she vanished as -the King and the Cardinal had done before her.</p> - - -<p class="p3">II</p> - -<p>The royal flight deflected Paris. The members of -Parliament reproached themselves for their excess -of severity. They made overtures to the Queen.</p> - -<p>It was believed that Anne of Austria, assured of -the safety of her little brood, would reopen some -of her old foreign correspondence and attempt to -avenge her wrongs. Broussel had been released -against her will—the city had raised the barricades—the -Minister was an Italian and the Queen was -anything but French! Paris prepared for the -worst. Whence would the trouble come, from -Spain or from England?</p> - -<p>Parliament continued to send deputies to Saint -Germain, but the Queen was obdurate. All business -was suspended; people slept in their clothes; -the bourgeois hid their money. The courtiers, who -had remained in their palaces, hurried away followed -by their furniture; and the evil faces which -appear in Paris on the eve of a revolution were -seen all over the city. The wains carrying the -courtiers' furniture were pillaged, and the pillagers -sacked the bakeries. Parliament had seized the -reins of State, but the Parliamentary sessions -resembled the stormy meetings of the existing<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_350" id="Page_350">[350]</a></span> -Chamber. Personal interests and the interests of -the coteries had entered politics. After a deplorable -day in Parliament Olivier d'Ormesson noted sadly -in his journal: "The public welfare is now used -only as a pretext for avenging private wrongs."</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle's feelings in regard to the events -of the day were varied; they could not be wholly -pleasant, for there was nothing in the revolt of the -people to tempt the imagination of a personage -fully convinced that the King was the deputy of -God. The first Fronde was an outburst of despair -provoked by an excess of public anguish. Yet -Mademoiselle considered it the adventure of a party -of agitators. The preceding century France had -been an exceedingly rich country. Under Richelieu -Monsieur had depicted it in a state of famine, -and in the early days of the Regency, and later, -when foreign nations were lauding Mazarin's diplomacy, -the people of Paris were perishing from -every form of squalid misery. The State paid out -its moneys without counting them, lent at usurious -interest, and gave the notes of its creditors to its -note-holders, the bankers; the note-holders fell -upon the debtors like brigands; the taxes were collected -by armed men. Wherever the tax-gatherer -had passed the land was bare, cattle, tools, carts, -household furniture, and all the personal property -of the victims of the State had been seized; the -farmers had nothing to eat, nothing to sleep on, no -shelter; they were homeless and hopeless; they had -but one alternative: to go out upon the highways,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_351" id="Page_351">[351]</a></span> -and, in their turn, force a living from the passers-by -at the point of the knife. Through the brigandage -of the note-holders every year added a strip of -abandoned ground to the waste lands of France.</p> - -<p>The nation had turned honest men into thieves -and pariahs.</p> - -<p>Barillon raised his voice and the grave opened to -receive him. Broussel was saved, but his salvation -precipitated the catastrophe. The Queen had -fled, abducting the King. The national Treasury -was empty; affairs were desperate, and Parliament, -its honour menaced, decided upon a measure -which, had it been successfully effected, would have -changed the course of French history.</p> - -<p>England had inaugurated a successful political -method by giving the nation a Constitution, and -by introducing in France the orderly system with -which the House of Commons had endowed England. -With that end in view the magistrates and -all the officials, who had paid for their offices, tried -to seize the legislative and financial power of the -State. They thought that by that means they -could bring the royal authority to terms, and make -the national Government an honest executive and -guardian of the people's rights,—in the words of -the reformers, "make it what it should be, to reign -as it ought to reign."<a name="FNanchor_129_129" id="FNanchor_129_129"></a><a href="#Footnote_129_129" class="fnanchor">[129]</a></p> - -<p>The nation, individually, approved the Parliamentary -initiative. Each citizen, courtier, or man<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_352" id="Page_352">[352]</a></span> -of the lower order urged on the scheme. Some -applauded because they wished for the good of -France. Others looked forward to "fishing in -troubled waters." All knew that a great deal of -business could be done under cover of the excitement -attendant upon national disturbances. They -who had no need of money and no thought of -financial speculation hoped that their personal -schemes might be advanced by a national crisis. -Mademoiselle was of the latter class. She had -decided to unite her acres and her millions with -the fortunes of the King of France. Louis XIV. -was ten years old. Anne-Marie-Louise was one -and twenty, and she looked her age; her beauty -was of the robust type which, mildly speaking, is -not of a character to make a woman look younger -than her years. Her manners were easy and assured. -To the child who had so recently been -dandled upon her knee the tall cousin was neither -more nor less than the dreaded though respectable -daughter of his uncle; the young King shrank -from her. Mademoiselle suspected that he feared -rather than loved her, and although her flatterers -had told her that age was not an obstacle among -people of her rank,<a name="FNanchor_130_130" id="FNanchor_130_130"></a><a href="#Footnote_130_130" class="fnanchor">[130]</a> she was troubled by a presentiment -that she should not be able to capture that -particular husband unless she could carry him off -by force; the thought unhinged all her political -convictions; but the enterprises of Parliament gave -promise of utility. Her memoirs show that she<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_353" id="Page_353">[353]</a></span> -studied the situation from every point of view, and -that a conflict raged within her breast. At times -she believed that a public disturbance would be -favourable to her interests; at other times she was -worried by the thought of the inconveniences attendant -upon war. One day she approved the designs -of Parliament; the next day she indignantly -denounced the subjects who had attempted to circumscribe -the authority of the King. She adapted -to the royal situation all the maxims derived from -the "Divine Right," yet she rejoiced at all the -errors of the Court.</p> - -<p>She had errors in plenty to sustain her courage; -the situation was so false that anything but error -would have been impossible. Married or not -married, Anne of Austria allowed herself a dangerous -latitude; Mazarin did not protect her, she -protected and defended him; to her mind all that -he did was charming; she glanced knowingly at -her courtiers if he opened his mouth or if he -moved his hand. Her eyes beamed upon him -with familiar meaning, and while he talked her -arch smiles asked the Court if her Chief of Council -was not a prince among men and the flower of -ministers. She would have been happy in a hovel -had she been able to fix him stably among his -precious ancient draperies and the thousands of -rare objects with which he had surrounded his -handsome form. Mazarin had feathered his nest -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">à l'Italien</i>, and the style was by far too superfine -for the times and for the taste of France. The<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_354" id="Page_354">[354]</a></span> -gossips of the royal domestic offices had circulated -the intimate details of the royal life. The public -knew all about the favourite; they knew what he -wore, what he ate, and what he did; and they thought -of him as always at play with small, strangely rare -animals, as graceful, as handsome, and as highly perfumed -as their master. In imagination they saw -Mazarin steeped in sloth, battening on the public -funds, and nourishing his soft beauty by the aid of -secrets of the toilet of his own invention. Anne of -Austria did not care what the people thought. She -delighted in Mazarin. She was happy because she -had been able to lay the nation at his feet. The -people said that she had laid them under his feet, -and they declared with curses that it should not be.</p> - -<p>Mazarin had rendered France incalculable services, -but no one thanked him or did him justice. No -one understood the work that he had accomplished. -Paris knew nothing of foreign affairs. The people's -minds were engrossed by the local misery, and so -little interest was taken in politics that when the -Peace of Westphalia was signed no one in France -noticed it although the world classed it among -great historical events.<a name="FNanchor_131_131" id="FNanchor_131_131"></a><a href="#Footnote_131_131" class="fnanchor">[131]</a></p> - -<p>Paris knew more of the King's scullions than of -Mazarin's diplomacy. The King's cousin: Mademoiselle -la Princesse Anne-Marie-Louise d'Orléans,—fit -bride for any king! must remain upon the -stocks to pleasure "the Queen's thief."</p> - -<p>The King, also, was the victim of the foreigner.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_355" id="Page_355">[355]</a></span></p> - -<p>There was little in the royal larder, and that little -was not equally distributed; the cohorts of the -kitchen had made more than one strong personal -drive in the King's interest. The wilful head -with its floating veil of curls, the pouting mouth -and tear-dimmed eyes were the oriflamme of the -cooks' pantries. "Monsieur le Cardinal had forty -little fishes<a name="FNanchor_132_132" id="FNanchor_132_132"></a><a href="#Footnote_132_132" class="fnanchor">[132]</a> on his platter! I only had two on -mine!" wailed the young monarch, and the cooks' -corps rose in a body to defend the "Divine Right."</p> - -<p>"<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Ma foi!</i>" growled the bourgeois, "but he has -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">toupet</i>, that one! he makes himself master of the -King's mother, takes the food out of the King's -mouth, and sets up his pomade-pots in the King's -house!" The people knew that, if they knew -nothing of Westphalia; the handsome fop had -eclipsed the diplomatist.</p> - -<p>The people called Mazarin "the pomade inventor" -and "moustache of the paste-pots" (not to -cite their grosser expressions). When the mob -cried: <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Vive le Roi!</i> Retz heard echo answer: <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Mais -point de Mazarin!</i> The Queen was like all women -deep in love; she wondered why people blamed her.</p> - -<p>Her anger embittered the situation, but after -making many futile attempts Parliament persuaded -her to resume her duties and (the last day of October) -the King, the Queen, the Court, and the -retinue, followed by loaded vans, passed through -the suburbs homeward bound. Before they -reached the city they saw that public feeling had<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_356" id="Page_356">[356]</a></span> -changed. The people had lost their respect for -the Court. No one cared either for the Queen or -for her Minister. The canaille hummed significant -songs and cast bold glances at the mature lovers; -the courtiers' eyes furtively lingered upon the walls -where coarsely worded posters accused the Queen -of her delinquencies. Anne of Austria was brave. -She entered Paris with cheeks aflame but with head -high. She would change all that! Parliament -had urged her to return....</p> - -<p>Time passed and the general attitude retained its -flippancy. At Court all were counting the cost and -planning how they could best turn the coming misfortunes -of the Crown to their own profit; écus, -dignities, offices, benefits of all kinds, would be -within the gift of the new administration. The -great were prepared for the emergency. Retz had -driven his curés over to the opposition. La -Rochefoucauld had urged Mme. de Longueville -after the clerical sheep and Conti after her. Anne -of Austria's patience was at an end; she had no -one to advise her; after she had assured herself -that the Condés would sustain her, she set out to -the Luxembourg. Monsieur was in the agonies of -one of the diplomatic attacks to which he was -subject; no one knew whether his pains were -real or feigned. He was in bed. He had not -changed since the days of Richelieu; he was the -same light-hearted, nervous, and bold poltroon, but -his intellect was keen, he charmed strangers, he -was pleasing even to those who knew him best.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_357" id="Page_357">[357]</a></span> -Though the Queen was used to his arts, she was -dazed by the flood of words with which he welcomed -her. From tender anxiety for her well-being -he passed to the real anxiety of well-defined -personal terror. Then, without stopping to take -breath, he gave vent to such sentimental emotions -that when Anne of Austria told her errand he had -neither the face nor the force to refuse her prayer. -She begged him to conduct the King out of Paris -secretly, and—"<em>By the faith of Monsieur!</em>" he -swore that he would do it.</p> - -<p>This second flight was fixed for the night between -the 5th-6th January. It was agreed that they -should retire to Saint Germain, although there was -no furniture in the château. Nothing could be -sent out this time—the palace was full of spies—the -people were on the watch! Let the furniture -follow! Fatality must see to that! Mazarin bought -two small camp-beds and sent them to Saint Germain; -he left to Providence the task of providing -for the rest.</p> - -<p>The night of the 5th January Anne of Austria -went to bed at her habitual hour for retiring. -When she was assured that all the people of the -palace were asleep she arose and confided her -secret to her <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">femme-de-chambre</i> who awakened -the servants, whom she could not do without. -At three o'clock they took the King and little -Monsieur from their beds and dressed them in their -warmest garments. The Queen then led the -children down an abandoned flight of steps which<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_358" id="Page_358">[358]</a></span> -opened on the garden. It was moonlight and the -cold was stinging. The royal family, followed by -one <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">femme-de-chambre</i> and a few officers, passed out -of the garden by the small door opening into the rue -Richelieu. In the street they found two coaches -waiting for them. They reached the Cours la Reine, -which had been chosen for the general meeting-place, -without difficulty; no one had arrived, and -they waited. Mazarin had passed the evening at a -soirée; at the appointed hour he entered his carriage -and drove straight to the Cours la Reine. Monsieur -and Condé had been with Mazarin all the evening, -but instead of going directly to the Cours they -hurried to their homes to prepare their unconscious -families. Mme. de Longueville refused to leave -her bed; she declared that she would never abandon -Paris. Monsieur awakened his wife; she -believed that she was dying, and her cries aroused -the children; Monsieur had three infant daughters,<a name="FNanchor_133_133" id="FNanchor_133_133"></a><a href="#Footnote_133_133" class="fnanchor">[133]</a> -the eldest was two years and six months old; the -youngest had attained the age of two months and -fifteen days. The young Lorraines were vociferous, -and mother and babes wept together; Gaston sang -and whistled, laughed and grimaced. Finally when -all the buckles had been adjusted, when the last -limp arm had been introduced into its warm sleeve, -the four helpless beings, struggling against the -efforts of their natural leader, moved painfully -through the dark passages of the Luxembourg<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_359" id="Page_359">[359]</a></span> -into the little streets, and across the river. As the -murmuring band passed the Tuileries a light struck -in Mademoiselle's apartment illumined all the -windows. Mademoiselle was rising at her own -time! No need of haste for her, no need of -secrecy! Her will was the people's law. At sight -of the lighted windows the tears of the feeble wife -flowed afresh.</p> - -<p>Beyond the Tuileries all was confusion. At the -last moment the Queen had despatched messengers -to summon the courtiers and the courtiers had -sent messengers to warn their relatives that the -Court was on the march; all had hurried from their -homes, and lord and lady were pressing forward -toward the Cours la Reine, the gentlemen fastening -their garments askew, or wrong side out as they -went; the ladies, still in their nightcaps, moving -wearily, soothing or upbraiding their weeping -children. All wondered what it meant, all asked -what the Canaille had done to force the Court to -flee.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle was the last to reach the Cours. To -quote her own words, she had been "all troubled -with joy" when ordered to prepare for flight, -because she had believed that her enemies were -about to take a step which would force them to -look upon the effects of their folly; but the misery -of the sudden flitting, the indecent haste, the broken -rest, the consciousness of bodily weakness had -swallowed up her glee, and she arrived at the Cours -in an ugly humour. She ached with cold; she<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_360" id="Page_360">[360]</a></span> -was crowded in the coach; she sought excuses for -intimating that the Queen had brought a useless -flight upon the Court. The children voiced their -woes. Numb with the cold, worn out and querulous, -the ladies chided their husbands and the husbands -rudely answered. The moon went down -upon the wretched exiles; day had not dawned and -black night hid the general woe.</p> - -<p>They fled in the darkness, <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">cahin-caha</i>, the children -sobbing, the women expressing their sufferings -in ways equally tempestuous. The Queen was gay; -she was running away with Mazarin! "Never," -said Mademoiselle, "had I seen a creature as gay -as she was! had she won a battle, taken Paris and -had all who displeased her put to death, she could -not have been happier." They found Saint Germain -bare; they had neither furniture nor clothing; -they were worn out and anxious, and the château -furnished no means of rest or refreshment; the exiles -stood at the gates all day watching the highway -and questioning the passers-by. No one had -seen the luggage or the furniture. Toward night -news arrived from Paris; the wains were not coming; -the people were angry because the Queen -had run away; they had fallen upon the loads; -they had broken the courtiers' furniture. Only -one load was on the road,—Mademoiselle's; the -King's loads had been respected, but they were -not to leave Paris.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle had left the bulk of her commodities -to be sent out at a later day; only one load<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_361" id="Page_361">[361]</a></span> -belonging to her had started to leave Paris; the -people had examined that tenderly and then despatched -it for Saint Germain.</p> - -<p>No need to watch longer for the loaded wains! -The tired courtiers made the best of a bad business; -half a dozen of the highest of the Great -"shared the Cardinal's two camp-beds"; the quilts -on which the children had been bedded on the -way from Paris were spread upon the floor. Those -who had no mattresses lay upon straw or upon -bare boards. The ladies fared worst of all; they -had been used to the tender cares of their <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">femmes-de-chambre</i>.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Mademoiselle's spirits rose; she had always -boasted that she was "a creature superior to -trifles," and the general difficulty had put her on -her mettle. Monsieur's wife wept feebly; she told -the courtiers of the luxury of her early life, and of -her present sufferings. Monsieur's little daughters -were restless and displeased. Mademoiselle noted -this adventure in her memoirs:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I slept in a vast and finely gilded room, but there was very -little fire in it, and it had neither window-panes nor windows, -which, as the month was January, was not agreeable. My -mattress was on the floor, and my sister, who had no mattress, -slept with me. I had to sing to her to put her to sleep; she -greatly troubled my sleep. She turned, and re-turned; then, -feeling me close to her, she cried out that she "saw the -beast," and then I had to sing to her again, and thus the night -passed. I had no underclothing to change, and they washed -my nightdress during the day and my day-chemise during<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_362" id="Page_362">[362]</a></span> -the night. I had not my women to comb my hair and to -dress me, and that was very inconvenient. I ate with Monsieur, -who made very bad cheer.... I lived in that way -ten days, then my equipage arrived, and I was very glad to -have all my commodities.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Louis XIV. and little Monsieur played about -Saint Germain in the wintry weather, and as the -days passed their garments acquired the marks of -use. The King's furniture did not arrive, neither -did his boxes; the Parisians would not permit them -to leave the city. All the gates of Paris were -guarded; no one was passed without papers. It -was so difficult for people of quality to obtain -passports that the ladies ran away in the garb -of monks, or disguised in some other way. The -Marquise d'Huxelles went through the gates in -the uniform of a soldier, with an "iron pot" on -her head.<a name="FNanchor_134_134" id="FNanchor_134_134"></a><a href="#Footnote_134_134" class="fnanchor">[134]</a> Paris had never refused its favourite -anything, and Mademoiselle's chariots went and -came and no one asked what they contained; the -belongings of her friends were transported as freely -as her own if they were in her boxes or in her -wains. In after life she used to call those days -"the time of plenty." "I had everything!" she -wrote exultantly; "they gave me passports for all -that I wished taken out, and not only that, but they -watched over and escorted my chariots! nothing -equalled the civilities that they showed me."</p> - -<p>Time passed; the royal garments were unfit for -wear and the Queen, reduced to extremities, begged<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_363" id="Page_363">[363]</a></span> -Mademoiselle to smuggle for her. Mademoiselle -granted her request with joy. She recorded the -event exultantly: "One has enough of it,—when -one is in condition to render services to such people, -and when one sees that one is of importance!"</p> - -<p>The Parisians had given their favourite a convincing -token of their love, and she regarded it as -a proof that she was the one best fitted to share -the throne of France.</p> - -<p>As the Parisians slept well on the night of the -Queen's second flight, they were not conscious of -their separation from royalty until the morning of -the 6th January. The first emotion felt was consternation. -Parliament made overtures to the -Queen; the Queen rudely repulsed the overtures, -and Parliament issued an edict of expulsion against -Mazarin. Mazarin expelled, Parliament raised -money, and set about recruiting an army. The -Council of the Hôtel de Ville, representing Parisian -commerce, sent a delegation to the King. -Arrived in the royal presence, the deputies fell -at the King's feet. They portrayed the horrors of -civil war, they explained to the child that to be -driven to attack Paris would be abominable. In -the midst of his supplications the chief speaker, -choked by sobs, cut short his plea. His emotion -was more effective than any argument; his tears -proved the solemnity of the hour. The King wept -bitterly, and, in fact, every one wept but the Queen -and Condé, who surveyed the general distress -dry-eyed.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_364" id="Page_364">[364]</a></span></p> - -<p>When calm was restored Anne of Austria refused -to yield. The die was cast; civil war was -inevitable. After long deliberation the Hôtel de -Ville declared for resistance. The masses of the -people were defiant; they accused the royal family -of treason; they demanded vengeance.<a name="FNanchor_135_135" id="FNanchor_135_135"></a><a href="#Footnote_135_135" class="fnanchor">[135]</a></p> - -<p>At that moment, when the nation stood alone, -without a king, when a mob, driven mad by despair, -clamoured for justice from the nobles, Mme. de -Longueville entered the political field. Nature -had not intended Mme. la Duchesse de Longueville -for a business career; she was the impersonation -of the soft graces of elegant leisure; and even -in her grave she charmed men, as she will always -charm them while there exists a portrait of her -pale hair and angelic eyes, or an historian to -recount "the delights of her calm mind illumined -by the reflection of celestial light."<a name="FNanchor_136_136" id="FNanchor_136_136"></a><a href="#Footnote_136_136" class="fnanchor">[136]</a> The fashionable -education of the day had been her ruin; the -little court of the Hôtel de Condé, long sojourns -at Chantilly, where people lived as the heroes and -heroines lived in <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>,<a name="FNanchor_137_137" id="FNanchor_137_137"></a><a href="#Footnote_137_137" class="fnanchor">[137]</a> excessive novel-reading -and frequent and subtle discussions of "love" had -made Mme. de Longueville a finished sentimentalist; -and in her path she had found waiting for her -a man well disposed and well fitted to exploit her -sentimentalism, and bold enough to avow the part -played by him in her career.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_365" id="Page_365">[365]</a></span></p> - -<p>La Rochefoucauld's ambition was to augment -the grandeur of his house, and he could not see -why he should not put France to fire and sword, if -by doing so he could seat his wife on a tabouret -close to the Queen.<a name="FNanchor_138_138" id="FNanchor_138_138"></a><a href="#Footnote_138_138" class="fnanchor">[138]</a> Under his guidance, Mme. -de Longueville cast off her sloth and sacrificing -her indolence to what she was assured was her -"glory," became a political centre and acquired -an influence as romantic as herself. Many of the -lords who, after the flight of the Court, offered -their swords to Parliament "for the service of the -oppressed King" (that was the formula), were -urged to that action by the persuasive Mme. de -Longueville. M. de Longueville was her first -recruit, the Prince de Conti was her second.</p> - -<p>As soon as it was known that France was preparing -for civil war, Mesdames de Longueville and -de Bouillon started for Paris. The day after they -arrived at their destination they presented themselves -at the Hôtel de Ville, saying that they had -come "to live right there, in the Town Hall, under -the eye of the municipality, as hostages for the -fidelity of their husbands."</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Imagine [said Retz] these two ladies seated in the portico -of the Hôtel de Ville, all the more beautiful because they had -arranged themselves as if they had not cared for their appearance, -though, in fact, they had taken great pains with it. -Each held one of her children in her arms; and the children -were as beautiful as their mothers. The Grève was full of -people, even to the roofs. All the men shouted with joy, and -all the women wept their tenderness. Having been gently led<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_366" id="Page_366">[366]</a></span> -into the street by the aldermen, the Duchesses timidly returned -to the portico and seated themselves in their old -places. The city authorities then abandoned a vacant room -to them, and in a few hours, with furniture and with other -articles, they turned the concession into a luxurious salon, -where they received the visits of the Parisians that same -evening. Their salon was full of people of the fine world; -the women were in full evening dress, the men were in war -harness; violins were played in a corner, trumpets sounded -an answer from the street, and people who loved romance -were able to fancy that they were at the home of "Galatée" -in <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>.</p></blockquote> - -<p>So the Parisians were duped in the first days of -the Fronde. "Galatée" reigned, and the reign of -nymphs is expensive. The Court of the nymphs -was daily augmented by general officers who offered -themselves to the cause amidst the artless plaudits -of the people. The generals were as expensive as -the nymphs; they demanded money for themselves -and for their soldiers; they exacted from Parliament -a promise which Parliament agreed to put -into effect whenever it could make terms with the -Regent. M. le Prince de Conti demanded an -important place at Court, money, and favours for -his friends. M. de Beaufort demanded an important -position, the government of a province for -his father, money and pensions for himself, favours -for his friends.</p> - -<p>The Duc de Beaufort was a jolly dog whom the -people loved. He was called "the King of the -Halles," a title which expressed his popularity with -the fish-wives, rabbit-pullers, agents of the abattoirs,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_367" id="Page_367">[367]</a></span> -strong-porters, sellers of mortuary wreaths, cheese -merchants, and all the rest. He lounged through -the markets and the slums tossing his sumptuous -head like a Phœbus-Apollo. He affected the -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">argot</i> of the canaille. His good nature was infectious -and although he was an Harpagon and -a brigand by proxy, he was a very agreeable -courtier.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_366.jpg" width="500" height="544" alt="FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING" title="MADAME DE LA VALLIERE" /> -<div class="caption"><p>MADAME DE LA VALLIÉRE</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING</p></div> -</div> - -<p>The Maréchal de la Motte demanded a colonelcy -for himself and favours for his friends. Every one -wanted something, and all felt that whatever was to -be had must be had at once; the time was coming -when the nation would have nothing to bestow.</p> - -<p>A document now before me contains sixteen -names; the greatest names of France.<a name="FNanchor_139_139" id="FNanchor_139_139"></a><a href="#Footnote_139_139" class="fnanchor">[139]</a> The -owners of those names betrayed the King for the -people because they hoped to gain honours and -benefits by their treason. They would have betrayed -the people for the King had they hoped -to gain more from the King than from the people. -The nobility had taken the position held by certain -modern agitators; they resorted to base means -because they were at an extremity. Like the -farmers of France, the nobles had been ruined by -the egotism of the royal policy.</p> - -<p>They had been taught to think that they could -not stand alone. Richelieu had prepared for an -absolute monarchy by making them dependent<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_368" id="Page_368">[368]</a></span> -upon the King's bounty; he had habituated them -to look for gifts. This fact does not excuse the -sale of their signatures, but it explains it. They -knew that they had lost everything, they knew -that the time was at hand when, should all go, as -they had every reason of believing that it would -go, the Government would have favours to bestow; -they knew that their only means of speculation lay -in their signatures. They were not base hirelings,—their -final struggle was proof of that! they were -the "fools of habit"; Richelieu had taught them to -beg and they begged clamorously with outstretched -hands, and not only begged but trafficked.</p> - -<p>When they demanded honours and favours they -did nothing more than their hierarchical head had -habituated them to do. So much for their sale of -signatures. The fact that they had resolved to -make a supreme fight, not for independence,—they -had no conception of independence,—but against -an absolute monarchy,<a name="FNanchor_140_140" id="FNanchor_140_140"></a><a href="#Footnote_140_140" class="fnanchor">[140]</a> explains the Fronde of -the Princes. At the other end of the social ladder -the mobility, or riff-raff, had taken the upper hand, -dishonoured the people's cause, and made the -Parisians ridiculous.</p> - -<p>Driven to arms by their wrongs, lured by the -magnetic eloquence of the skilled agents of political -egotists, led by a feverish army of men who -held their lives in their hands, and commanded -by women who played with war as they played<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_369" id="Page_369">[369]</a></span> -with love, the soldiers of the Fronde wandered -over the country encamping with gaily attired and -ambitious coquettes, and with ardent cavaliers -whose gallant examples fretted their own enforced -inaction. They were practical philosophers, moved -by the instinct which sends the deer to its sanctuary. -"Country" and "Honour" had come to be -but shibboleths: they, the Frondeurs, were of a -race apart from the stern regulars who blocked the -capital under Condé, and when the time to fight -came they ran, crying their disgust so loud that -the whole country halted to listen. The public -shame was unquestionable, and the national culpability, -like the culpability of the individual, was -well understood; the cry of "treason" aroused a -general sense of guilt. Certain of the men of -France had been faithful to the country from the -beginning; the nation's statesmen, notably the -magistrates, had acted for the public good; but -in the general accusation Parliament, like all the -other factors of the Government, was branded; -its motives were questioned, and the names of -honest men were made a by-word.</p> - -<p>Passing and repassing, in and out of all the -groups and among all the coteries, glided the -Archbishop's coadjutor; now in the costume of a -cavalier, bedizened with glittering tinsel, now in -the lugubrious habit of his office. When dressed -to represent the Church he harangued the people -wherever he chanced to meet them; the night-hawks -saw him disguised and masked running to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_370" id="Page_370">[370]</a></span> -the dens of his conspirators. Whatever else he -was doing, he found time to preach religion, and -he never missed a gathering of pretty women.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Meanwhile the price of bread had tripled; the -Revolution had reached the provinces, and the -generals had signed a treaty of alliance with Spain. -This was paying dear for the violins of the heroines -of the Hôtel de Ville!</p> - -<p>In Parliament the magistrates, the solid men of -France, revolted against the seigniors as they had -revolted against the barricades. They knew what -influences had been brought to bear upon individuals, -they had seen the royal power exercised -to the ruin of the country, they knew the strength -of the mobility, and their own honour had been -called in question; but their action was the result -of an unselfish impulse. National affection, a -natural patriotism, had raised them above fear and -above rancour. They were determined to rescue -the country, and they had lost faith in all intentions -save their own.</p> - -<p>Acting on their own counsel and on their own -responsibility, they hastened to conclude the peace -negotiations of Rueil (11th March, 1649). Their -action irritated the generals. Peace thus arranged -was not in their plan; it brought them no profit: -they argued and bargained.</p> - -<p>To quote Mme. de Motteville, they "demanded -all France" in payment for their part in the treaty. -They made it plain that if they should give their<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_371" id="Page_371">[371]</a></span> -signatures it would be because they had been -paid for them. Shameless haggling marked this -period of the Fronde. After all those who had -influence or signatures to dispose of had plucked -the many-membered monarchy even to its pin-feathers, -and after each of the assistants had taken -a leg or a wing for himself, the generals consented -to lay down their arms, and peace was proclaimed -to the sound of trumpets.</p> - -<p>The day after the proclamation was issued, -Mademoiselle asked her father and the Queen for -permission to return to Paris.</p> - -<p>She wished to see how the Parisians regarded -her and how they would receive her. She set out -from Saint Germain across the devastated country. -The soldiers of both parties had burned the houses, -cut down the trees, and massacred or put to flight -the inhabitants. It was April, the time when all -the orchards are in flower, but the suburbs within -six miles of Paris were bare and black; the ground -was as lifeless as a naked rock.</p> - - -<p class="p3">III</p> - -<p>"Monday, 8th April," noted a contemporary, -"Mlle. d'Orléans arrived at her lodgings in the -Tuileries, amidst the great applause of the Parisians. -Tuesday, the 9th, every one called on Mademoiselle."</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle wrote: "As soon as I was in -my lodgings every one came to see me; all Paris -came, the highest and the lowest of the party.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_372" id="Page_372">[372]</a></span> -During my three days' stay in Paris my house was -never empty." A second visit to the Tuileries -was equally triumphant, and Mademoiselle was confirmed -in her determination to accomplish her -destiny by marrying the King of France. The -project was public property; the capital of the -kingdom approved it, and the people were ready to -barricade the streets in case the King, the Queen, -or the Italian objected to it.</p> - -<p><em>Mademoiselle should sit upon the throne! the -People willed it!</em></p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>At that time a comedy equal to any presented -upon the stages of the theatres was played at Saint -Germain, and the Queen was leading lady. The -chiefs of the Fronde, generals, members of Parliament, -representatives of all the corporate bodies -and of all the classes—even the humblest—visited -the château and assured the Queen of their -allegiance. As Mademoiselle said: "No one -would confess that he had ever harboured an intention -against the King; it was always some one else -whom he or she had opposed." The Queen received -every one. She was as gracious to the shop-keeper -as to the duke and peer. Anne of Austria -appeared to believe all the professions that the -courtiers made; and all alike, high and low, went -away with protestations of joy and love.<a name="FNanchor_141_141" id="FNanchor_141_141"></a><a href="#Footnote_141_141" class="fnanchor">[141]</a> The only -one who lost her cue in this courtly comedy was -Mme. de Longueville. Her position was so false<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_373" id="Page_373">[373]</a></span> -that though she was artful she quailed; she was -embarrassed, she blushed, stammered, and left -the royal presence furiously angry at the Queen, -although, to quote an ingenuous chronicler,<a name="FNanchor_142_142" id="FNanchor_142_142"></a><a href="#Footnote_142_142" class="fnanchor">[142]</a> -"the Queen had done nothing to intimidate -her."</p> - -<p>Saint Germain returned the visits made by the -city, and each courtier was received in a manner -appropriate to his deserts. Condé was saluted with -hoots and hisses. The Parisians had not forgotten -the part that he had played in the suburbs. -The other members of the Court were well received, -and when the Queen, seated in her coach, -appeared, holding the little King by her hand, the -people's enthusiasm resembled an attack of hysteria. -The city had ordered a salute, and the gunners -were hard at work, but the public clamour was -so great that it drowned the booming of the cannon, -and the aldermen fumed because, as they supposed, -their orders to fire the salute had been ignored.<a name="FNanchor_143_143" id="FNanchor_143_143"></a><a href="#Footnote_143_143" class="fnanchor">[143]</a> -Exclamations and plaudits hailed the procession -at every step. The canaille thrust their heads -through the doors of the royal carriage and smiled -upon the King; they voiced their praises with -vehemence. Mazarin was the success of the day; -the women thought him beautiful, and they told -him so; the men clasped his hands. Mazarin -eclipsed Mademoiselle, and Mademoiselle, neglected -by the people, found the time very long.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_374" id="Page_374">[374]</a></span></p> - -<p>Speaking of that hour she said, "Never was I -bored as I was that day!"</p> - -<p>The beauty of the Queen's favourite won the -hearts of the people of the Halles, and the royal -party entered the palace in triumph. When Anne -of Austria first left her palace, after her return -from exile, the women who peddled herrings fell -upon her in a mass and with streaming eyes -begged her to forgive them for opposing her. -Anne of Austria was bewildered by the transports -of their admiration. They approved of her choice -of a lover; they sympathised with her in her love, -and they were determined to make her understand -it. The Queen's delicacy was wounded by the latitude -of their protestations.</p> - -<p>Paris had made the first advances and royalty -had accepted them. As there were no public "journals," -to speak to the country, a ball was given to -proclaim that peace had been made, and the ball -and the fireworks which followed—and which depicted -a few essential ideas upon the sky by means -of symbolical figures—acted as official notices. -The fête took place with great magnificence the -5th September.</p> - -<p>Louis XIV. was much admired, and his tall -cousin almost as much so. "In the first figure the -King led Mademoiselle," said the <cite>Chronicle</cite> "and -he did it so lightly and with such delicacy that he -might have been taken for a cupid dancing with -one of the graces." The guests of the Hôtel de -Ville, the little and the large Bourgeoisie, men,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_375" id="Page_375">[375]</a></span> -wives, and daughters, contemplated the spectacle -from the tribunes; they were not permitted to -mingle with the Court. Anne of Austria watched -them intently; she was unable to conceal her surprise -at their appearance. The wives of the bourgeois -displayed a luxury equal to that of the wives of the -nobles. Apparently their costumes were the work -of a Court dressmaker. Their diamonds were superb. -Anne of Austria had assisted at all the official -fêtes of thirty years, and she had never seen such a -thing.</p> - -<p>The French Bourgeoisie was to be counted; not -ignored. The appearance of the bourgeoises was -a warning, but the quality either could not, or -would not seize it.</p> - -<p>When Paris had wept all the tears of its tenderness -it returned to its former state of discontent. -The whole country was restless; news of revolts -came from the provinces. Condé was hated; he -was imperious and exacting; he was in bad odour -at Court; he had offended the Queen. As Mazarin -was in the way of his plans, he had attempted to -present the Queen with another favourite. Jarzé, -a witless popinjay, was the man chosen by Condé -to supplant the accomplished successor of de Richelieu. -Jarzé was a human starling; he was giddy, -stupid, and in every way ill-fitted to enter the lists -with a rival armed with the gravity, the personal -beauty, and the subtlety of Mazarin. Jarzé had -full confidence in his own powers; he believed that -to win his amorous battles he had only to have his<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_376" id="Page_376">[376]</a></span> -hair frizzed and storm the fort. Anne of Austria -was sedate and modest and she was deep in love. -Jarzé had hardly opened the attack when she ordered -him from her presence. Condé, stunned by -the effect of his diplomacy, wavered an instant upon -the field, but a sharp order from the Queen sent -him after his protégé. Anne of Austria felt the -outrage, and she vowed eternal anger to Condé.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Condé's lack of tact, coupled with his determination -to work miracles, led him into many false -positions. He had no political wit, and nothing -could have been less like the great Condé of the -battle-field than the awkward and insignificant -Condé of civil life. In battle he acted as by inspiration. -He surged before his armies like the -god of war; he was calm, indifferent to danger, -impetuous, and terrible; face to face with death, his -mind developed and he could give a hundred orders -to a hundred persons at once.<a name="FNanchor_144_144" id="FNanchor_144_144"></a><a href="#Footnote_144_144" class="fnanchor">[144]</a> In Parliament, -or with the chiefs of his political party, he was as -nervous as a woman; he stood trembling, with face -paling or reddening, laughing when he ought to -weep, and bursting into fits of anger when the occasion -called for joy. There was nothing fixed, or -stable, in his whole make-up, except his overweening -pride and an "invincible immoderation,"<a name="FNanchor_145_145" id="FNanchor_145_145"></a><a href="#Footnote_145_145" class="fnanchor">[145]</a> which -eventually precipitated him into the abyss. No -one had as much natural wit, yet no one was as<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_377" id="Page_377">[377]</a></span> -fantastic in tastes and in behaviour. He adored -literature: sobbed over <em>Cinna</em> and thought Gomberville's -<em>Polexandre</em> admirable. He swooned when -he parted with Mlle. de Vigean, a few days later -he—as Mademoiselle termed it—"forgot her all -at one blow." He was a great genius but a crackbrain; -a complicated being, full of contrasts and -contradictions, but singularly interesting. He has -been described as a "lank prince, with unkempt, -dusty hair, a face like a bird-of-prey, and a flaming -eye whose look tried men's souls."</p> - -<p>The summer was barely over when Condé forced -the Cardinal to sign a promise not to do any thing -without his (Condé's) permission. Condé's imperious -nature had driven him head long, and at that -moment Monsieur's position depended upon his -own activity. He had it in his power to sell support -to the Crown; the Queen was on Change as a -buyer. One step more and it would be d'Orléans -against Condé with the Throne of France at his -back! Monsieur's wife and Mademoiselle seldom -agreed upon any subject, but they united in urging -Monsieur to seize his opportunity. As usual, the -household spies informed the people of the family -discussions, and the popular balladists celebrated -the aspirations of the ladies d'Orléans by a song -which was sung all over Paris. France was represented -as imploring Monsieur to save her from -Condé, and Gaston was represented as answering:</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">... "I am sleepy! I would pass my life in sleep,</div> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_378" id="Page_378">[378]</a></span> - <div class="i0">Never have I a wish to be awakened:</div> - <div class="i0">My wife, my daughter, you plead in vain,</div> - <div class="i9">I sleep."<a name="FNanchor_146_146" id="FNanchor_146_146"></a><a href="#Footnote_146_146" class="fnanchor">[146]</a></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Monsieur trembled with fear [wrote Retz]; at times it was -impossible to persuade him to go to Parliament; he would not -go even with Condé for an escort; the bare thought of it terrified -him. When a paroxysm of fear seized him it was said -that his Royal Highness was suffering from another attack of -colic.</p></blockquote> - -<p>One day when several of his friends had, by -their united efforts succeeded in getting him as far -as the Saint Chapelle, he turned and ran back to -his palace with the precipitation and the grimaces -of a client of M. Purgon.<a name="FNanchor_147_147" id="FNanchor_147_147"></a><a href="#Footnote_147_147" class="fnanchor">[147]</a></p> - -<p>Nothing could be done with Gaston; his conduct -made Mademoiselle heart-sick. When the -second or new Fronde took shape she had no part -in it. She looked, on as a listless spectator, while -Mazarin spun his web around his enemies and -worked his way toward the old Fronde. Condé -was marching on to a species of dictatorship when -the King's minions brought him to a halt. He was -arrested and cast into prison and the Parisians celebrated -his disgrace by building bonfires (18th January). -A great political party composed of women -from all parts of France arose to champion Condé, -and still the bravest of all women, La Grande<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_379" id="Page_379">[379]</a></span> -Mademoiselle, sat with head bowed, deep in grief; -her father's cowardice had drained life of its joy.</p> - -<p>Having aroused the wrath of France by adventures -which were the scandal of their hour, Mme. de -Longueville had taken refuge in a foreign land and -formed an alliance with Spain. France looked on -bewildered by the turn of events; Mme. de Chevreuse -and the Princess Palatine were in active life -regarded as equals of men of State, consulted, and -obeyed. Mme. de Montbazon had her own sphere -of action; Mme. de Chatillon had hers<a name="FNanchor_148_148" id="FNanchor_148_148"></a><a href="#Footnote_148_148" class="fnanchor">[148]</a>; both ladies -were powerful and dangerous politicians. Others, -by the dozen, and from one end of the kingdom to -the other, were engaged in directing affairs of State.</p> - -<p>Even the insignificant wife of Condé whom no one—not -even her husband—had counted as worthy -of notice, had reached the front rank at a bound -by the upheaval of Bordeaux; yet La Grande Mademoiselle, -who possessed the spirit and the energy -of a man, was peremptorily ordered by her father -and forced to follow Anne of Austria from province -to province suppressing insurrections.</p> - -<p>In the many months which Mademoiselle considered -as unworthy of note in her memoirs, the -only period of time well employed by her was passed -in an attack of smallpox, which she received so -kindly that it embellished her; she said of it: "Before -then my face was all spotted; the smallpox took -that all away."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_380" id="Page_380">[380]</a></span></p> - -<p>Mme. de Longueville's alliance with Spain had -cost France the invasion of the Archduke Leopold -and de Turenne. In 1650 the Court went to the -siege of Bordeaux and Mademoiselle was compelled -to accompany the Queen and to appear as an adherent -of the King's party; but before she set out -upon her distasteful journey she wrote a letter to -the invader (the Archduke Leopold) which she was -not ashamed to record and which contained a frank -statement of her opinion:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Your troops are more capable of causing joy than fear. -The whole Court takes your arrival in good part, and your -enterprises will never be regarded as suspicious. Do all that -it pleases you to do; the victories that you are to win will be -victories of benevolence and affection.<a name="FNanchor_149_149" id="FNanchor_149_149"></a><a href="#Footnote_149_149" class="fnanchor">[149]</a></p></blockquote> - -<p>Let us remember the nature of those victories of -"benevolence and affection" before we form an -opinion. Time has veiled with romance the manœuvres -which the amazons of the Fronde made to -excite the masses to rebellion, but the legend loses -its glamour when we consider the brutal ferocity of -the armies of the seventeenth century and the -abominations practised in the name of glory. The -women who shared the life of the generals of -the Fronde were travesties of heroines, devoid of -the gentler instincts of woman; there was nothing -good in them; their imaginations were perverted, -they incited their followers to cruelty, and playing -with tigerish grace with the love of men, they babbled<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_381" id="Page_381">[381]</a></span> -musically, in artful and well-turned sentences, -of the questions of the day, and mocked and -wreathed their arms above their heads when their -victims were dying.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The Court arrived at Libourne 1st August and -remained there thirty days. The weather was very -warm, and the Queen secluded herself in her apartment -and forced Mademoiselle to sit at her side -working on her tapestry. Mademoiselle fumed; -she was imprisoned like a child while all the ladies -of France were engaged in military service. To -add to her mortification, she felt that the Queen -had taken a false step and that all Paris was laughing -at the Court. Sitting in the Queen's close -rooms, Mademoiselle reflected bitterly on her position. -She had again entered into collusion with -Saujon. The Emperor was for the second time -a widower, and Mademoiselle had re-employed the -services of her old ambassador. She had sent -Saujon to the Emperor to make a second attempt -to arrange a marriage. But she had not renounced -the King of France, and one of her confidential -friends had opened her eyes to the real character -of her enterprise. Until then it had seemed natural -enough that she should make efforts to establish -herself in life; but through the officious indelicacy -of her friend she had learned that she was pursuing -two husbands at once. One of the objects of her -pursuit was a man of ripe age, doubly widowed, the -husband of two dead wives; the other a child of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_382" id="Page_382">[382]</a></span> -tender years,—and neither one nor the other would -consent to marry her. She was glad to be far from -Paris, where every one knew and pitied her. She -burned incense to all her gods and prayed that civil -war might keep the Parisians too busy to remember -her. Her grief and shame were at their height -when the scene changed. Monsieur awoke; Retz -had worked a miracle. By means of his peculiar -method, acting upon the principle of humanity's -susceptibility to intelligent suggestion, Retz had -persuaded Monsieur that he, Monsieur, was the only -man in France fit to mediate between the parties; -after long-continued series of efforts his clerical insinuations -had aroused Gaston from his torpor, -and one evening when the Queen, flushed and irritable, -and Mademoiselle, dejected but defiant, sat at -their needlework Gaston entered the dim salon -and announced his importance. The trickster of -the pulpit and of the slums had managed to infuse -a little of his own spirit into the royal poltroon, -and for the first time in his political career Gaston -displayed some of the characteristics of a man. In -an hour Bordeaux knew that the Prince d'Orléans -had arrived in Libourne as the accredited mediator -of the parties. The politicians fawned at his feet, -and Anne of Austria rose effusively to do honour -to Monsieur le Prince d'Orléans. By order of the -Regent all despatches were submitted to Gaston, -who passed upon them as best he could.</p> - -<p>Mazarin rose to meet the situation; he was not -bewildered by Retz's tactics; he affected to believe<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_383" id="Page_383">[383]</a></span> -that Monsieur must be consulted upon all matters, -and by his orders Monsieur's tables were littered -with documents. Mazarin multiplied occasions for -displaying his allegiance to the royal arbiter. -Mademoiselle met the change in her situation joyfully, -but calmly. It was the long-expected first -smile of fortune; it was the natural consequence -of her birth; things were entering their natural -order; but she was observant and her mémoirs -show us that she valued her incense at its real -worth. While the political world bent the knee -before Monsieur Mazarin fortified his own position. -He sat with the ladies in the Queen's salon, he betrayed -a fatherly solicitude in Mademoiselle's future -and, as he acted his part, his enthusiasm increased. -One day when he was alone with Mademoiselle he -assured her that he had prayed long and earnestly -for her establishment upon one of the thrones of -the world. Sitting at her tapestry, Mademoiselle -listened and averted her head to hide her anger. -Mazarin, supposing that he had aroused her gratitude, -exposed all his anxiety. Mademoiselle did -not answer. At last, astonished by her silence, he -cut short his declamation. Mademoiselle counted -her stitches and snipped her threads; Mazarin -watched her impassive face. After a long silence -she arose, pushed aside her embroidery frame, and -turning to enter her own apartment, she said calmly: -"There is nothing upon earth so base that you -have not thought of it this morning." Mazarin -was alone; he sat with eyes fixed upon the floor,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_384" id="Page_384">[384]</a></span> -smiling indulgently, wrapt in thought; he was -not angry,—he was never visibly excited to anger; -but he did not return to the subject. Mademoiselle -had resented his overtures because she had made -known her projects freely and he had promised her -a king, not an emperor. She reported the Cardinal's -conduct to Lenet: "The Cardinal has promised -me, a hundred times, that he would arrange to -have me marry the King<a name="FNanchor_150_150" id="FNanchor_150_150"></a><a href="#Footnote_150_150" class="fnanchor">[150]</a>—but the Cardinal is a -knave!" The Queen said with truth that Mademoiselle -was becoming a rabid Frondeuse. Mademoiselle -had her own corps of couriers, who carried -her the latest news from Paris; her court was -larger than the Regent's. When Bordeaux was -taken the people saw nothing and talked of nothing -but Monsieur's daughter. Mademoiselle exultantly -recorded her triumph:</p> - -<p>"No one went to the Queen's, and when she -passed in the streets no one cared at all for her. I -do not know that it was very agreeable to her to -hear that my court was large and that no one was -willing to leave my house, when so few cared to go -to her house."</p> - -<p>While the Regent languished in solitude waiting -for visitors who did not arrive her Minister -received the rebuffs of the people of Bordeaux. -The Queen was sick from chagrin, and as soon as -arrangements could be made she returned to Paris. -On the way to Paris the Court stopped at Fontainebleau. -Gaston descended brusquely from his coach<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_385" id="Page_385">[385]</a></span> -and as his foot touched the ground gave way to a -violent outburst of nervous anger. Mazarin was -the object of his fury; in some occult way the -Cardinal had wounded his feelings. He fled to his -room and locked his door, refusing to see either -Mazarin or the Queen. As he stood his ground, and -as no one could approach him, the Queen implored -Mademoiselle to pacify him; and Mademoiselle, -carrying her olive branch with a very bad grace, set -out to play the part of dove in the ark. After many -goings and comings, Monsieur consented to receive -the Queen; but the Queen acidulated rather than -sweetened the royal broth, and Monsieur broke -away from her in a passion of fury. From that -time all that Anne of Austria attempted to do -failed; her evil hour was approaching. Mazarin -had thought of two alternatives: he believed that -he might buy Retz by making him a cardinal; or -that he might win the good-will of Mademoiselle by -marrying her to the King. But could he do either -one thing or the other? Could he mortify his own -soul by doing anything to give Retz pleasure? -Retz was hateful to him.</p> - -<p>Despite his powerful diplomatic capacity, Mazarin -was not a politician, and some of his instincts bore -a curious family resemblance to the characteristic -instincts of the average woman; so although he believed -that it would be possible to buy Retz with a -red hat the thought of giving him the hat distressed -him. So much for one of his alternatives!</p> - -<p>As to marrying Mademoiselle to the King of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_386" id="Page_386">[386]</a></span> -France,—that would be difficult, if not impossible; -the thought of such a marriage was repugnant to -the King. Louis XIV. was wilful and the Queen -was an indulgent mother. She pampered her -children; she excused the King's failings. Mazarin -was patient, but he had often considered Anne of -Austria adverse to reason when the King was in -question. The Cardinal was master of the Queen, -but he was not, he never had been, he never could -be, master of the Queen-mother.</p> - -<p>In his extremity he resorted to his usual means,—intrigue; -but he found that his power had waned. -There were people who might have helped him, -and who would have helped him in former times, -but they had ceased to fear him; they demanded -pay and refused to work without it. Mazarin was -too normally natural a man to act against nature; -he clung to his economies and as his supposititious -agents refused to take their pay in "blessed water," -his plans failed. His attempts were reported to -his intended victims and before the sun set Mademoiselle -of the Court and of the people, and the -Abbé Retz of the Archbishopric and of the slums -had arisen in their might against "the foreigner." -Both of the leaders of the masses were implacable; -each was powerful in his own way; both believed -that they had been duped by the Archbishop's -coadjutor; Retz had expected a hat; Mademoiselle -had expected a husband; both, vowing vengeance to -the death, turned their backs upon Mazarin. Mademoiselle -had acquired the habit of suspicion; politics<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_387" id="Page_387">[387]</a></span> -had given her new ideas; Retz had always been -suspicious and he had prepared for every emergency. -Mazarin, sitting in his perfumed bower, -felt that the end was near. What was he? What -had they always called him? "The stranger." -... The whole world was against him ... -the nobles, the Parliaments ... the old -Fronde, the Fronde of the Princes! ... Retz -with his adjutants of the mobility! To crown his -imprudence and to prove that he was more powerful -as a lover than as a politician, Mazarin took the -field at Rethel (15th December, 1650) and won the -day; Turenne and his foreigners were beaten, and -fear seized the people of France. An intriguer of -that species could do anything! France was not -safe in his presence; he must be driven out! During -the Fronde it was common for women to -dictate the terms of treaties. Anne de Gonzague, -the Palatine Princess, whose only mandate lay in -her eyes, her wit, and her bold spirit, drew up the -treaty which followed Rethel, and the principal -articles were liberty for the princes and exile for -Mazarin.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle approved both articles before the -treaty was signed. The times were full of possibilities -for her; her visions of a marriage with Louis XIV. -had been blurred by a sudden apparition. Condé had -arisen in her dreams with a promise of something -better. Might it not be wiser policy to unite the -junior branches of the House of France? Might it -not be more practical, more fruitful in results, to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_388" id="Page_388">[388]</a></span> -marry M. le Prince de Condé than to wage war -against him? That he was a married man was of -small importance. His wife, the heroine of Bordeaux, -was in delicate health and as liable to die as -any mortal; in the event of her death the dissent -of the Opposition would be the only serious -obstacle. Mademoiselle confided all her perplexities -to her memoirs; she foresaw that the dissent -of the Opposition would be ominous for the royal -authority, and therefore ominous for the public -peace. She reflected; Condé was a strong man; -and who was stronger than the Granddaughter of -France? She decided that they two, she and -Condé, made one by marriage, might defy the -obstacle. Mazarin knew all her thoughts, and he -felt that the earth was crumbling under his feet; to -quote Mademoiselle's own words: "He was quasi-on-his-knees" -before her, offering her the King of -France; but he made one condition: she must prevent -her father's adhesion to the cause of M. le -Prince.<a name="FNanchor_151_151" id="FNanchor_151_151"></a><a href="#Footnote_151_151" class="fnanchor">[151]</a> Anne of Austria, with eyes swimming -in tears, presented herself humbly, imploring -Mademoiselle, in the name of their ancient friendship, -to soften Monsieur's heart to "Monsieur le -Cardinal." The Queen begged Mademoiselle to -make her father understand that she, the Queen, -"could not refuse Monsieur anything should he -render her such service." Mademoiselle was ready -to burst with pride when she repeated the Queen's -promise. A future as bright as the stars lay before<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_389" id="Page_389">[389]</a></span> -her; for the first time and for the last time she had -a reason for her dreams.</p> - -<p>Monsieur was the recognised chief of the coalition -against Mazarin, but he was afraid to act; he -did not like to leave compromising traces; he resisted -when it was necessary to sign his name. -Knowing that the treaty uniting the two Frondes -must be signed and that he must sign it, his political -friends went in a body to the Luxembourg -treaty in hand. Gaston saw them coming and tried -to escape, but they caught him in the opening of -a double door, and closing the two sides of the -door upon his body, squeezing him as in a vise, -they thrust a pen between his fingers; then holding -a hat before him for the treaty to rest on, they compelled -him to sign his name. An eye-witness said -that "he signed it as he would have signed a compact -with the devil had he feared to be interrupted -by his good angel." A few weeks later Parliament -demanded the release of the princes and the exile -of Mazarin. Then Mademoiselle was given a vision -which filled her cup of joy to overflowing.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I had intended [she wrote in her memoirs] to go to bed -very early, because I had arisen very early that morning; but -I did not do it, because just as I was undressing they came to -tell me of a rumour in the city. My curiosity led me out upon -the terrace of the Tuileries. The terrace looked out upon -several sides. It was a very beautiful moonlight night and I -could see to the end of the street.<a name="FNanchor_152_152" id="FNanchor_152_152"></a><a href="#Footnote_152_152" class="fnanchor">[152]</a> On the side toward the -water was a barrier; some cavaliers were guarding the barrier -to favour the departure of M. le Cardinal, who was leaving<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_390" id="Page_390">[390]</a></span> -by way of La Conférence; the boatmen were crying out against -his getting away; there were many valets and my violin -players, who are soldiers, although that is not their profession. -They were all trying to drive away the cavaliers, who were -helping Mazarin to escape. Some pretty hot shots were fired.</p></blockquote> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>At that same hour the Palais Royal was the -scene of a drama. Mazarin was taking leave, and -the Queen thought that she was looking upon him -for the last time. The lovers who shared so many -memories, and who must have had so many things -to say before they parted, dared not, even for a -moment, evade the hundreds of eyes fixed upon -them. Mazarin could not conceal his grief; the -Queen, though calm, was very grave. To the last -moment the unhappy pair were forced to speak in -such a way that the courtiers could not judge of -their sorrow by their looks. At last it was over; -the door closed upon Mazarin, and the wretched -Queen was left among her courtiers. Mazarin -hurried to his rooms, disguised himself as a cavalier, -and went on foot out of the Palais Royal. -Finding that the cavaliers and river-men were fighting -on the quay, he turned into the rue de Richelieu -and went away unmolested. It is known that before -going to Germany he went to the prison of -Havre and set the princes free. Eleven days after -Mazarin took leave of the Queen Paris learned that -Condé was <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">en route</i> and that he was to sup at the -Luxembourg the following day. Mademoiselle -knew that her new projects depended upon her<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_391" id="Page_391">[391]</a></span> -first meeting with M. le Prince. She had sent the -olive branch to his prison, but she did not know -how he had received it. She awaited his coming at -the Luxembourg. She said of that first interview:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Messieurs the Princes came into Madame's salon, where I -was, and after they saluted they came to me and paid me a -thousand compliments. M. le Prince bore witness in particular -that he had been very much pleased when Guiteau assured -him of my repentance for the great repugnance that I had felt -for him. The compliments ended, we avowed the aversion -that we had felt for one another. He confessed that he had -been delighted when I fell sick of the smallpox, that he had -passionately wished that I might be disfigured by it, and that -I might be left with some deformity,—in short, he said that -nothing could have added to the hatred that he felt for me. I -avowed to him that I had never felt such joy as I felt when he -was put in prison, that I had strongly wished that he might be -kept there, and that I had thought of him only to wish him -evil. This reciprocal enlightenment lasted a long time, and it -cheered and amused the company and ended in mutual assurances -of friendship.</p></blockquote> - -<p>During the interview the tumult of a great public -fête was heard. At sight of Condé Paris had been -seized by one of her sudden infatuations.</p> - -<p>At the gates of the Palais Royal the masses -mounted guard night and day to prevent the abduction -of the King. It was generally supposed -that the Queen would try to follow the Cardinal.</p> - -<p>The Frondeurs were masters of Paris; their hour -had come, and they held it in their power to prove -that they had led France into adventures because -they had formed a plan which they considered -better than the old plan. But if there were any<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_392" id="Page_392">[392]</a></span> -among them who were thinking of reform, their -good intentions were not perceptible. The people -of the past resembled the people of our day; they -thought little of the public suffering. Interest in -the actions of the great, or in the actions of the -people whose positions gave them relative greatness, -excluded interest in the general welfare. The -rivalries and the personal efforts of the higher -classes were the public events of France. Parliament -was working along its own lines, hoping to -gain control of the State, to hold a monopoly of -reforms, and to break away from the nobility. The -nobility, jealous of the "long robes," had directly -addressed the nation's depths: the bourgeoisie and -the mobility.</p> - -<p>Retz had supreme hope: to be a Cardinal. Condé -hoped to be Prime Minister. Gaston had staked a -throw on all the games. Mme. de Longueville -dreamed of new adventures; and the Queen, still -guided by her far-off lover, laboured in her own -blind way upon a plan to benefit her little brood. -She looked upon France, upon the people, and upon -the Court as enemies; she had concentrated her -mind upon one object; she meant to deceive them -all and turn events to her own advantage. By the -grace of the general competition of egotism, falsehood, -broken promises, and treason, the autumn of -1651 found the Spaniards in the East, civil war in -the West, the Court in hot pursuit of the rebels, -want and disease stalking the land, and La Grande -Mademoiselle still in suspense. In the spring during<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_393" id="Page_393">[393]</a></span> -a period of thirty-six hours she had supposed -that she was about to marry Condé. Condé's wife -had been grievously sick from erysipelas in the -head; to quote Mademoiselle's words: "The disease -was driven inward, which gave people reason -for saying that were she to die I might marry M. -le Prince."</p> - -<p>At that critical moment Mademoiselle freely unfolded -her hopes and fears; she said:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Madame la Princesse lingered in that extremity three days, -and during all that time the marriage was the subject of my -conversation with Préfontaine. We did not speak of anything -else. We agitated all those questions. What gave me reason -to speak of them was that, to add to all that I heard said, M. -le Prince came to see me every day. But the convalescence -of Madame la Princesse closed the chapter for the time being -and no one thought of it any more.</p></blockquote> - -<p>In the course of the summer the Princess Palatine, -who supposed that she could do anything because -she had effected, or to say the least concluded -the union of the Frondes, offered to marry Mademoiselle -to the King "before the end of September." -Mme. de Choisy, another prominent politician, -exposed the conditions of the bargain to Mademoiselle, -who recorded them in the following lucid -terms:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>Mme. de Choisy said to me: "The Princess Palatine is such a -blatant beggar that you will have to promise her three hundred -écus in case she makes your affair a success." I said -"yes" to everything. "And," pursued Mme. de Choisy, "I wish -my husband to be your Chancellor. We shall pass the time so -agreeably, because la Palatine will be your steward; you will<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_394" id="Page_394">[394]</a></span> -give her a salary of twenty thousand écus; she will sell all the -offices in the gift of your house,—so you may imagine that it -will be to her interest to make your affair succeed. We will -have a play given at the Louvre every day. She will rule the -King." Those were the words she used! One may guess how -charmed I was at the idea of being in such a state of dependence! -Evidently she thought that she was giving me the -greatest pleasure in the world.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Although Mademoiselle did not go as far as to -say "no," she ceased to say "yes" to everything. -Her reason for doing so was baseless. She had acquired -the conviction that the young King, Louis -XIV., loved the tall cousin who seemed so old to -his thirteen-year mind.<a name="FNanchor_153_153" id="FNanchor_153_153"></a><a href="#Footnote_153_153" class="fnanchor">[153]</a> La Grande Mademoiselle -appalled him; her abrupt ways and her explosions -of anger drove back his timid head into its tender -shell; but she had persuaded herself that he wished -to marry her. And she was so sure of her facts -that she dropped the oars provided by Mme. de -Choisy, and sat up proudly in her rudderless bark, -without sail or compass. She believed that the -King loved her, she was thankful to be at rest, and -she left to her supposed lover the care of the royal -betrothal; she sighed ingenuously: "That way of -becoming Queen would have pleased me more than -the other." That is easily understood; however, -nothing came of it. Anne of Austria had sworn -to her niece that she would give her the King; but -when Mademoiselle's back was turned she, the -Queen, said stiffly: "He would not be for her nose -even were he well grown!"<a name="FNanchor_154_154" id="FNanchor_154_154"></a><a href="#Footnote_154_154" class="fnanchor">[154]</a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_395" id="Page_395">[395]</a></span></p> - -<p>Mazarin had done well in supposing that there -would be some advantage in intermarrying the -junior branches as a means of ending the family -quarrels.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I have learned from different sources [he wrote to the -Queen] that Mademoiselle's marriage to the King would arrange -everything. Le Tellier<a name="FNanchor_155_155" id="FNanchor_155_155"></a><a href="#Footnote_155_155" class="fnanchor">[155]</a> came expressly to see me; he -came from Retz and the Princess Palatine and for that very -purpose. And the others also have written to me about it; but -if the King and the Queen have the same feeling in regard to -that matter that they did have, I do not think that it would -be easy to arrange it (7th January, 1652).</p></blockquote> - -<p>Mazarin dared not insist; he felt that he was no -longer in a posture where he could indulge in displeasing -exactions. While Parliament was rendering -decisions against Mazarin, the people close to the -Queen were working to obliterate his image from -her heart, and their efforts were successful.<a name="FNanchor_156_156" id="FNanchor_156_156"></a><a href="#Footnote_156_156" class="fnanchor">[156]</a> They -occupied the Queen's mind with other friends, the -thought of whom filled Mazarin with the torments -of jealousy. He was in retreat in Brühl. May -11th he wrote to the Queen: "I wish that I could -express the hatred that I feel for the mischief-makers -who are unceasingly working to make you -forget me so that we shall never meet again."</p> - -<p>The 6th July Mazarin had heard that Lyonne -had boasted that he pleased the Queen, and he -wrote:</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_396" id="Page_396">[396]</a></span></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>If they could make me believe such a thing either I should -die of grief or I should go away to the end of the world. If -you could see me you would pity me ... there are so many -things to torment me so that I can hardly bear it. For instance, -I know that you have several times asked Lyonne <em>why he does -not take the Cardinal's apartments</em>,<a name="FNanchor_157_157" id="FNanchor_157_157"></a><a href="#Footnote_157_157" class="fnanchor">[157]</a> showing your tenderness for -him because he gets wet passing through the court. I have -endured the horrors of two sleepless nights because of that!</p></blockquote> - -<p>Mazarin spoke passionately of his love; he told -the Queen that he was "dying" for her; that his -only joy was to read and re-read her letters, and -that he "wept tears of blood" when they seemed -cold; although, as he said, he knew that no one on -earth could break the tie that bound them. We -have none of the Queen's answers, but we know -that they called forth Mazarin's despairing declaration -that he should return to Rome. Three weeks -later the Queen caused the King to sign a declaration -which the betrayed lover answered by a pathetic -letter.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>26th September. I have taken my pen ten times to write to -you ... I could not ... I could not ... I am so -wretched ... I am so beside myself at the mortal blow -that you have given me, that I do not know that there will be -any sense in what I say. By an authenticated act the King -and the Queen have declared me a traitor, a public thief, a -being inadequate to his office, an enemy to the repose of -Christianity.... Even now that declaration is sounding -all over Europe, and the most faithful, the most devoted Minister, -is held up before the world as a scoundrel ... an<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_397" id="Page_397">[397]</a></span> -infamous villain. I no longer hope for happiness or for rest. -I ask for nothing but my honour. Give that back to me and -let them take the rest.... Let them strip me, even to -my shirt ... I will renounce all—cardinalates—benefices,—everything! -if I can stand with sustained honour ... as -I was before I dreamed of your love.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Time passed, and Mazarin regained his senses, -"made arrows of all sorts of wood," raised an -army, and entered France. As he drew near Poitiers, -where the Court was staying, the Queen's -heart softened, and when he arrived she had been -at her window an hour watching for him.</p> - - -<p class="p3">IV</p> - -<p>In 1651 Mademoiselle was busy. She attended -all the sessions of Parliament and all the seditious -soirées of the Luxembourg. She urged the Frondeurs -to violence, and as she was a magnetic -speaker, her influence was great. Her leisure was -given to the pleasures which Paris offers even in -time of revolution. She accompanied the King -in his walks and drives; she rode with him to the -hunt; whenever he was in Paris they were together. -Mademoiselle had again refused the hand of Charles -II. of England. Charles was still waiting for his -kingdom, but his interest in his future had been -awakened; his mind had developed, and he had -determined to enter into possession of his States.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle was courted and ardently admired. -The people worshipped her, the popular voice -echoed the spirit of the "Mazarinades" sung by<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_398" id="Page_398">[398]</a></span> -the street singers. Paris was determined to place -her upon the Throne of France. Well employed -though her time had been, she had done nothing -to distinguish herself, nothing to give her a place -among heroines like the Princesse de Condé and -the enticing Mme. de Longueville. But the year -1652 was on its way, and it was to bring her her long-awaited -glory.</p> - -<p>After an unsuccessful attempt to make peace, -Condé had again taken the field and called his -allies, the Spaniards, to his assistance. He had -carried on his parleys as he had carried on his chastisement -of the suburbs, and his exactions had -confirmed hostilities. Maddened by his failure, he -had set out with eyes flaming to break the spirit of -the people and to turn the absolute power instituted -by Richelieu to his own account. Monsieur -sustained him against the King. Retz and a party -of Frondeurs were trying to make an alliance with -the Queen; they were ready to consent to everything, -even to the return of Mazarin. Parliament -was working for France upon its own responsibility; -it opposed Condé as it opposed Mazarin. -Mazarin had bought Turenne and led the army -into the West to fight the rebels. Monsieur's appanage, -the city of Orléans, was menaced by both -parties, and it had called its Prince to its assistance. -The people of Orléans had sent word to -Paris that either Monsieur or Mademoiselle must -go to Orléans at once: "If Monsieur could not go -Mademoiselle must take his place." Mademoiselle -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_399" id="Page_399">[399]</a></span> -heard the news and went to the Luxembourg to -see her father. She reported her visit thus:</p> - -<p>"I found Monsieur very restless. He complained -to me that M. le Prince's friends were -persecuting him by trying to send him to Orléans; -he assured me that to abandon Paris would be to -lose our cause. He declared that he would not go."</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_398.jpg" alt="" title="VICOMTE DE TURENNE" /> -<div class="caption"><p>VICOMTE DE TURENNE</p></div> -</div> - -<p>The evening of the day of the visit thus reported -when Mademoiselle was at supper in her -own palace, an officer approached her and said in a -low voice: "Mademoiselle, we are too happy! it -is you who are coming with us to Orléans."</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle's joy knew no bounds. She passed -the greater part of the night preparing for the journey. -In the morning she implored the blessing of -God upon her enterprise; and that done, went to -the Luxembourg to take leave of her father. She -appeared before Monsieur dressed for the campaign -and followed by her staff. Under the helmets -of her field marshals appeared the bright eyes -of women. Inquisitive people, all eager to see -Mademoiselle depart for war, had assembled in and -around the Luxembourg. Some of Monsieur's -friends applauded; others shrugged their shoulders. -Monsieur was of too alert a mind to be blind -to the ridiculous side of his daughter's chivalry, -and though his affections were sluggish, he realised -that he had set loose a dangerous spirit. He knew -that Mademoiselle was an ardent enemy, that she -was impetuous; that she cared nothing for public -opinion; when once started what could arrest her<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_400" id="Page_400">[400]</a></span> -progress? His paternalism overcame his prudence, -and in a loud, commanding voice he ordered the -astonished generals to obey Mademoiselle <em>as if she -were himself</em>; then, dragging the most serious officers -of his staff into a far corner of the room where -Mademoiselle could not hear him, he commanded -them to hold his daughter in leash and prevent her -from doing anything important "without explicit -orders from her father."</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle was in high spirits; her fair hair -was coiled under her helmet, her cheeks glowed, -and her eyes blazed; the records of the day tell us -that she was "every inch a handsome queen and -soldier," that she was "dressed in grey," and that -her habit was "all covered with military lace of -pure gold." She took leave of her father amidst -the hurrahs of the people, and all through the city -her subjects wished her joy, called upon God to -bless her arms, or blasphemously proclaimed that -such a goddess had no need of the god of the -priests. The day following her departure she was -met by the escort sent forward in advance of her -departure by the generals of the Fronde. She was -received by them as chief of the army, and long -after that time had passed with all its triumphs, she -proudly noted the fact in her memoirs:</p> - -<p>"They were in the field and they all saluted me -as their leader!"</p> - -<p>To prove her authority she arrested the couriers -and seized and read their despatches. At Toury, -where the greater part of the army of the Fronde<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_401" id="Page_401">[401]</a></span> -was encamped, she presided over the council of -war. The council was all that she could have -wished it to be, and her advice was considered admirable. -After the council Mademoiselle gave -orders for the march. In vain the generals repeated -her father's last instructions; in vain they -begged her to "await the consent of his Royal -Highness." She laughed in their faces; she cried -"<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">En avant!</i>" with the strength of her young lungs. -All the trumpets of her army answered her; the -batons of the tambour majors danced before high -Heaven; and, fired by such enthusiasm as French -soldiers never knew again until the Little Corporal -called them to glory, the army of the Fronde took -the road, lords, ladies, gallant gentlemen, and raw -recruits.</p> - -<p>Night saw them gaily marching; the next morning -they thundered at the gates of Orléans (27th -March, 1652).</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle announced her presence, but the -gates did not open. From the parapet of the ramparts -the garrison rendered her military honours; -she threatened, and the Governor of the city sent -her bonbons. The people locked in the city hailed -her with plaudits, but not a hinge turned. The -authorities feared that to let in Mademoiselle -would be to open the city to the entire army. -Tired of awaiting the pleasure of the provost of -the merchants, Mademoiselle, followed by Mesdames -de Fiésque and de Frontenac, her field -marshals, went round the city close to the walls,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_402" id="Page_402">[402]</a></span> -searching for some unguarded or weak spot where -she might enter. All Orleans climbed upon the -walls to watch the progress of the gallant and handsome -cavalier-maiden and her aids. It was an -adventure! Mademoiselle was happy; she looked -up at the people upon the walls and cried merrily, -"I may have to break down the gates, or scale -the walls, but I will enter!"</p> - -<p>Thus, skirting the city close to the walls, the -three ladies reached the banks of the river Loire, -and the river-men ran up from their boats to meet -them, and offered to break in a city gate which -opened upon the quay. Mademoiselle thanked -them, gave them sums of money, told them to -begin their work, and the better to see them -climbed upon a wine-butt. She recorded that feat, -as she recorded all her feats, for the benefit of -posterity: "I climbed the wine-butt like a cat; I -caught my hands on all the thorns, and I leaped -all the hedges." Her gentlemen, who had followed -her closely, surrounded her and implored her to return -to her staff. Their importunities exasperated -her, and she ordered them back to their places -before the principal gates. She animated the river-men -to do their best, and they worked with a will. -The people within the walls had become impatient, -and while the river-men battered at the outside of -the gates they battered at the inside. Gangs of -men, reinforced by women, formed living wedges -to help on the good work. Suddenly a plank -gave way and an opening was made. Mademoiselle<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_403" id="Page_403">[403]</a></span> -descended from her lookout, and the river-men -gently carried her forward and helped her to -enter the city. To quote her own words:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>As there was a great deal of very bad dirt on the ground, a -<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">valet-de-pied</i> lifted me from the ground and urged me through -the opening; and as soon as my head appeared the people -began to beat the drums.... I heard cries ... "<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Vive -le Roi!</i>" "<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Vive les Princes!</i>" ... "<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Point de Mazarin!</i>" -Two men seated me on a wooden chair, and so glad was I -... so beside myself with joy, that I did not know -whether I was in the chair or on the arm of it! Every one -kissed my hands, and I nearly swooned with laughter to find -myself in such a pleasant state!</p></blockquote> - -<p>The people were transported with delight; they -carried her in procession; a company of soldiers, -with drums beating, marched before the procession -to clear the way. Mmes. de Fiésque and de -Frontenac trudged after their leader through the -"quantity of very bad dirt," surrounded by the -people, who did not cease to caress them because, -as is explicitly stated, "they looked upon the two -fairly beautiful ladies as curiosities." The local -contemporary chronicles lead us to suppose that -the people were not the only ones who indulged in -kisses on that occasion; the beautiful Comtesse -de Fiésque is said to have kissed the river-men; -she was in gallant spirits; la Frontenac finished -the last half of her promenade with "one shoe off -and one shoe on," though the legendary dumpling -supposed to attend a parade in "stocking feet" was -lacking.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_404" id="Page_404">[404]</a></span></p> - -<p>After events had resumed their regular course, -the people wrote and sung a song which was -known all over France:</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">Deux jeunes et belles comtesses,</div> - <div class="i1">Ses deux maréchales de camp,</div> - <div class="i0">Suiverent sa royale altesse</div> - <div class="i1">Dont on faisait un grand cancan.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">Fiésque, cette bonne comtesse!</div> - <div class="i1">Allait baisant les bateliers;</div> - <div class="i0">Et Frontenac (quelle detresse!)</div> - <div class="i1">Y perdit un de ses souliers.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>On the way to the Hôtel de Ville the procession -met the city authorities, who stood speechless before -them. Mademoiselle feigned to believe that -they had started to open the gates. She greeted -them blandly, listened to their addresses, returned -their greetings, and closed a very successful day by -sending a triumphant message to her father. One -by one her staff had entered by the broken gate, -and the generals saluted her with heads low; they -were abashed; they had taken no part in the capture -of Orleans.</p> - -<p>The Orleanists were firm in their refusal to let -the army enter the city, and the young general, -accepting the situation, ordered her troops to -encamp where they were, outside of the chief -gates of the city. The following day at seven -o'clock in the morning, Mademoiselle, enthroned -upon the summit of one of the city's towers, looked -down scornfully upon "a quantity of people of the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_405" id="Page_405">[405]</a></span> -Court" who had hurried after her hoping to share -her victory. The people of Orleans were quick to -catch the spirit of their Princess; they climbed upon -the city walls and jeered at the wornout laggards, -and Mademoiselle's cup of joy was full. She looked -with delight upon the discomfiture of the belated -courtiers and upon the envious tears of the travel-stained -ladies.</p> - -<p>That day she made her first appearance as an -orator. Her memoirs tell us that at first she was "as -timid as a girl"; then, regaining her self-possession, -she expounded the theories of the Fronde and told -the people why the nobles had arisen to deliver the -country from the foreigner. When she had said -all that she had to say she returned to her quarters. -In her absence the Duc de Beaufort had sallied out, -attacked a city, and been repulsed. Mademoiselle -was indignant; she had not given de Beaufort orders -to leave the camp. She called a court-martial -to try him for insubordination and breach of -discipline. Court was convened very early in the -morning, in a wine-shop outside of the city. Despite -the long skirts of the field marshals, it was a -stormy meeting. Messieurs de Beaufort and de -Nemours came to words, and from words to blows. -They tore off each other's wigs; they drew their -swords. Mademoiselle's hands were full. She -passed that day and the night which followed it -in strenuous efforts to calm the tumult. All the -people within hearing of the mêlée had hastened -to the field of action, and being on the spot and in<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_406" id="Page_406">[406]</a></span> -fighting trim, every man had seized his occasion -and settled his difficulty with his neighbour, and all, -civil and military, had fought equally well.</p> - -<p>The 30th, letters of congratulation arrived from -Paris. Monsieur wrote: "My daughter, you have -saved my appanage, you have assured the peace of -Paris; this is the cause of public rejoicing. You -are in the mouths of the people. All say that your -act did justice to the Granddaughter of Henry the -Great." This, from her father, was praise. Condé -supplemented it: "It was your work and due to -you alone, and it was a move of the utmost importance."</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle's officers assured her that she had -"the eye of a general," and she accepted as truth -all that they told her and considered it all her due. -About that time she wrote to some one at Court a -letter which she intended for the eyes of the Queen, -and in the letter she said in plain words that she -intended to espouse the King of France, and that -any one—no matter who it might be—would be -unwise to attempt to thwart her wishes, because she, -Mademoiselle, held it in her power to put affairs -in such a state that people would be compelled to -beg favours of her on their knees.<a name="FNanchor_158_158" id="FNanchor_158_158"></a><a href="#Footnote_158_158" class="fnanchor">[158]</a> Anne of Austria -read the letter and scoffed at it.</p> - -<p>Despite her brilliant débuts, Mademoiselle was -tired of life. The authorities of Orleans considered -her a girl, and no one in the city government honoured -her orders. Her account of those days is a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_407" id="Page_407">[407]</a></span> -record of paroxysms: "I was angry!... I -flew into a passion.... I was in a rage.... -I berated them furiously.... I was so angry -that I wept!"</p> - -<p>Yes, Mademoiselle, whose will had been law to the -people of Paris, could not make the people of Orleans -obey her. In answer to her commands the -town authorities sent her sweetmeats, bonbons, -and fair words. When Mademoiselle commanded -them, they answered: "Just what Mademoiselle -pleases we shall do!" and having given their answer, -they acted to please themselves. The general -commanding the army of the Fronde was -ill-at-ease, sick for Paris, tired of Orleans. She -begged to be permitted to leave Orleans, but her -father commanded her to remain. He enjoyed her -absence. She had tried in vain to persuade him to -relieve her of her command; human nature could -endure no more; forgetting her first duty as a soldier, -she disobeyed orders and joined the army of -the Fronde at Étampes (May 2d). The weather -was perfect; she had escaped from Orleans, she -was on her horse, surrounded by her ladies. All -the generals and "a quantity of officers" had gone -on before, and she could see them, as in a vision, -in the golden dust raised by the feet of their horses; -the cannon of the fortified towns thundered, the -drums of her own army rolled; she was in her element; -she was a soldier! Condé once told her, -when speaking of a march which she had ordered, -that Gustavus Adolphus could not have done better.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_408" id="Page_408">[408]</a></span></p> - -<p>The morning after her arrival at Étampes she -went to Mass on foot, preceded by a military -band.<a name="FNanchor_159_159" id="FNanchor_159_159"></a><a href="#Footnote_159_159" class="fnanchor">[159]</a> After Mass she presided at a council of war, -mounted. After the council she rode down the -line and her troops implored her to lead them to -battle.</p> - -<p>The review over, she turned her horse toward -Paris, not knowing that Turenne had planned to -circumvent the army of the Fronde. Turenne -knew that the presence of the Amazons distracted -the young generals, and he considered the moment -favourable to his advance. Near Bourg la Reine -Condé appeared, followed by his staff. Immediately -after his return from the South he had set out -for Étampes to salute the General-in-Chief of the -army of the Fronde.</p> - -<p>The people had missed their Princess. In her -absence they had rehearsed the sorrows of her life, -and she had become doubly dear to them; they had -magnified her trials and idealised her virtues; they -had gloried in her exploits. Relaying one another -along the road beyond the city's gates, they had -waited for her coming. At last, after many days, -the outposts of the canaille descried the upright -grey figure followed by the glittering general staff -and guarded by the staff of Condé.</p> - -<p>The beloved of the people, insulted by the Queen, -despoiled by the Queen's lover of the right of -woman to a husband, imprisoned and forsaken by -her father in her hour of need, had risen above<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_409" id="Page_409">[409]</a></span> -humanity! She had been a heroine, she had forgiven -all her enemies, had captured Orleans, had -assured the safety of her own city,—and now she -had come home! They laid their cheeks to the -flanks of her horse; they clasped the folds of her -habit; and a cry arose from their wasted throats -that scared the wild doves in the blighted woods -along the highway. Mademoiselle had come -home! "<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Vive Anne-Marie-Louise, la petite-fille -de la France!</i>"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Anne-Marie-Louise d'Orléans, Duchesse de -Montpensier, who had taken a stronghold unaided -save by a few boatmen, heard thanksgiving on all -hands, and to crown her joy—for she loved to -dance—the city gave a great fête in her honour. -But there was one bitter drop in her cup: her father -had been made sick by her arrival. He dared not -punish her in the face of the people's joy; but he -retired to his bed and abandoned himself to the -pangs of colic and, when Mademoiselle, flushed -with pride, arrived at the Luxembourg, he refused -to see her; he sent word to her to "Begone!" he -was "too sick to talk of affairs of State."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Monsieur had cares of various species. Condé -and his associates had forced him to take a prominent -position in politics, and his terror of possible -consequences made his life a torment. Condé was -deep in treasonable plots. He had returned from<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_410" id="Page_410">[410]</a></span> -his Southern expedition flaming with anger; he had -goaded the people to the verge of fury, and reduced -Parliament to such a state that it had adjourned -its assemblies without mention of further -sessions. He had made all possible concessions to -the foreigners; he had so terrified Monsieur that -the unhappy Prince saw an invasion in every corner. -But Gaston had still another master; he had -fallen a victim to the machinations of the wily -Retz. For reasons of his own, the Archbishop's -coadjutor had found it expedient to familiarise -Monsieur with the canaille, and he had so impressed -the people with the idea that "d'Orléans" -sympathised with them that they fawned upon -Gaston and dogged his footsteps. An incoming -and outgoing tide of ignoble people thronged the -Luxembourg. Monsieur's visitors were the lowest -of the mobility, and they forced their way even into -his bed-chamber. They sat by him while his <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">coiffeur</i> -dressed his hair, they assisted at his colics, and officiously -dropped sugar in his <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">café-au-lait</i>. Among -his visitors were ex-convicts, half-grown daughters -of the pavement, and street urchins, and they all -offered him advice, sympathised with him, urged -him to take courage, and assured him of their protection, -until Gaston, helpless in his humiliation, -writhed in his bed. When he had been alone and -free from the sharp scrutiny of his natural critic, -his daughter, his lot had been hard, but with -Mademoiselle at hand it was torment. Mademoiselle -was a general of the army; she had taken<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_411" id="Page_411">[411]</a></span> -her father's place; she felt that her exploits had -given her the right to speak freely, and one day -when she visited Madame (she told the story herself), -she "rated her like a dog." Madame was in -her own apartment; she studied her complaints, -sipped her "tisanes," swathed her head in aromatised -linen, and neither saw nor heard the droning -of the throngs who buzzed like flies about her -husband.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_410.jpg" alt="FROM AN OLD PRINT" title="VIEW OF THE LUXEMBOURG LATER CALLED THE PALAIS D ORLEANS IN THE 17TH CENTURY" /> -<div class="caption"><p>VIEW OF THE LUXEMBOURG (LATER CALLED THE PALAIS D'ORLÉANS) IN THE 17TH CENTURY</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM AN OLD PRINT</p></div> -</div> - -<p>It is worthy of note that the princes did not -forecast the future. Reason ought to have shown -them that the revolution would sweep them away -as it swept all else should not Royalty intervene -in their behalf. The Canaille was mistress of the -streets, and her means was always violent. Her -leaders were strong men. In 1651 she had her -Marats and her Héberts, who used their pens to -incite France to massacre; and her Maillards, who -urged her on to pillage the homes of the nobility -and to fell, as an ox is felled in the shambles, all, -however innocent, whom it served their purpose to -call suspicious. Such men did bloody work, and -they did not ask what the nobles thought of it. -Insolent, on fire with hate, lords of a day! they -sprang from the slimy ooze with the first menace -of Revolution to vanish with the Revolution when -the last head rolled in the sawdust; cruel, but -useful instruments, used by immutable Justice to -avenge the wrongs of a tormented people!</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>When Mademoiselle returned from Orleans Paris<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_412" id="Page_412">[412]</a></span> -wore the aspect of the early days of the Terror. -Even the peaceable and naturally thrifty sat in -idleness, muttering prayers for help or for vengeance, -either to God or to the devil. All were -afraid. The people of the Bourgeoisie had set -their faces against the entrance of Condé's troops. -The devastated suburbs were still in evidence; it -was supposed that Condé would bring with him -drunkenness, rapine, fire, and all the other horrors -of a military possession. So matters stood when -the army of the King and the army of the Fronde, -after divers combats for divers issues, fought the -fight which gave Mademoiselle her glory.</p> - -<p>She was then the Queen of Paris. Her palace -was the political centre as well as the social centre -of France. Of those days she said:</p> - -<p>"I was honoured to the last point. I was held -in great consideration." Yes, she was "honoured," -but the honour was in name only; the ceremonial -was all that there was of it and—worst of all for -her proud heart—she knew that it was so. It was -the affair of Orleans over again. In Orleans, -when she had issued orders, the city government -had sent her bonbons, paid her compliments, and -followed their own counsel. They had answered -blandly, "As Mademoiselle pleases"; but, in point -of fact, Mademoiselle was of no practical importance. -To her, flattery and fine words; to others, -confidence and influence. The statesmen thought -that she was neither discreet nor capable of wise -counsel. She was too frank and too upright to be<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_413" id="Page_413">[413]</a></span> -useful as a politician. Monsieur hid his secrets -from her. Condé's manner told her everything, -but he never gave her the assurance which would -have established her on firm ground; and, looking -practically upon that matter, what assurance could -he have given her? What, in honour, was he free -to say?</p> - -<p>The Prince de Condé, who was continually -spoken of as Mademoiselle's possible husband, paid -hypothetical court to Mademoiselle, but when he -had serious subjects to discuss he carried them to -the salon of the beautiful Duchesse de Chatillon, -who was then the rising star of the political world -of Paris. Mesdames de Longueville and de Chevreuse -were setting suns, and very close to the horizon. -Ignoring Mademoiselle, they had made an -independent attempt to reconcile the princes and -restore them to the good graces of the Court; -their attempt had failed. The Duchesse de Montpensier -was the only one at Court who had maintained -friendly relations with the princes.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>One night, in the Cours la Reine, Mademoiselle -found herself close to a marching army. Condé's -troops, pressed by Turenne, were hurrying into -Paris close to the ramparts (which then stood -where we now see the Place de la Concorde and -the great boulevards).</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle was mounted; she was talking -with an officer. She watched the winding line -of the troops thoughtfully, and when the Cours<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_414" id="Page_414">[414]</a></span> -hid it from view she went into Renard's garden, -where she could watch it out of sight. Her heart -ached with forebodings; the army had marched -in disorder at the pace of utter rout and with -flank exposed. She wrote in her memoirs:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>All the troops passed the night beside the moat<a name="FNanchor_160_160" id="FNanchor_160_160"></a><a href="#Footnote_160_160" class="fnanchor">[160]</a>, and as -there were no buildings between them and my lodgings, I -could hear their trumpets distinctly. As I could distinguish -the different calls, I could see the order in which they were -moving. I remained at my window two hours after the bells -rang midnight, hearing them pass,—and with grief enough I -listened! because I was thinking of all that might happen. -But in all my grief I had, I know not what strange presentiment,—I -knew that I should help to draw them out of their -trouble.</p></blockquote> - -<p>Mademoiselle had intended to take a medicine -which she considered necessary, but as she thought -that it might interfere with her usefulness, she -countermanded the doctor's orders. On what a -slender thread hangs glory!</p> - -<p>July 2d, at six o'clock in the morning, some one -knocked at Mademoiselle's door, and Mademoiselle -sprang from her bed but half awake. Condé had -sent to ask for help. He was with his army held -at bay against the closed gates of Paris attacked -by the army of de Turenne. The messenger had -been sent to Monsieur, but Monsieur, declaring -that he was in agony, had refused to see him. On -that answer the messenger sped to the palace of -the Tuileries. Mademoiselle dressed and hurried -to the Luxembourg. As she entered the palace<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_415" id="Page_415">[415]</a></span> -Monsieur came down the stairs, and Mademoiselle -attacked him angrily; she accused him of disloyalty, -and reproached him for his pretence of -sickness. Gaston assured her calmly: "I <em>am</em> sick; -I am not sick enough to be in bed, but I am too -sick to leave this house."</p> - -<p>"Either mount your horse or go to bed!" cried -Mademoiselle. She stormed, she wept, all in a -breath (as she always did when she could not force -her father to do his duty), but Monsieur was a -coward and nature was too strong to be controlled; -she could not move him. Retz had worked upon -Gaston's cowardice as a means of furthering his -own plans; his plans included the death of Condé -and the failure of the Fronde; therefore tortures -would not have drawn Gaston from his house upon -that occasion, even had he favoured intervention in -behalf of Condé.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Long before the messenger of Monsieur le -Prince had knocked at the door of the Tuileries, -the army of the Fronde, at bay against the wall of -the city, had awaited the word required to open the -gates of Paris. Still another hour had passed and -Mademoiselle's endeavour had been vain. Years -after she recorded the fact with sorrow: "I had -begged an hour, and I knew that in that time all -my friends might have been killed—Condé as well -as the others! ... and no one cared; that -seemed to me hard to bear!"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_416" id="Page_416">[416]</a></span></p> - -<p>While Mademoiselle was imploring her father to -help her Condé's friends arrived; they beset Gaston -and commanded him to send help at once to the -Faubourg Saint Antoine. Condé and his men were -fighting for their lives; the people of the Faubourg -had mounted the heights to see the battle.</p> - -<p>Gaston was exasperated, and to rid himself of -the importunities of his party he ordered his daughter -to go to the Hôtel de Ville and tell the authorities -that he commanded them to issue an order -to open the gates. As Mademoiselle ran through -the streets the bourgeois, who had gathered in -groups to give each other countenance, begged her -for passports; they were ready to leave the city.</p> - -<p>A half-starved, ragged mob filled the Place de -Grève; the canaille blocked the adjoining streets. -The palace was like an abandoned barrack. The -sunlight fell upon the polished locks of the old -muskets of the League, and not a head dared approach -the windows. Mademoiselle ran through -the mob and entered the Hôtel de Ville. Let her -tell her errand in her own way:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>They were all there; the provost of the merchants, the -aldermen, the Maréchal de l'Hôpital, the Governor ... -and I cried to them: "Monsieur le Prince is in peril of death -in our faubourgs! What grief, what eternal shame it would be -to us were he to perish for lack of our assistance! You have -it in your power to help him! Do it then, and quickly!"</p></blockquote> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_416.jpg" alt="FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING" title="LA ROCHEFOUCAULD" /> -<div class="caption"><p>LA ROCHEFOUCAULD</p> - -<p class="smaller">FROM A STEEL ENGRAVING</p></div> -</div> - -<p>They went into the council-room. Mademoiselle -fell upon her knees at the open window, and, -in silence, the people watched her; they were on<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_417" id="Page_417">[417]</a></span> -guard, waiting for her orders. In the church of -Saint Gervais priests were offering the Mass; she -could hear them and she tried to pray. Minutes -had passed and nothing had been done. She arose -from her knees and, entering the council-room, -urged the men to act; she implored, she threatened; -then, hurrying back to the window, she fell -upon her knees. Rising for the last time, pale -and resolute, she entered the council-room; she -pointed to the Grève where the people stood with -eyes fixed upon the windows, then, stretching her -arm high above her head, she cried violently: "Sign -that order! or—<em>I swear it by my Exalted Name!</em> -I will call in my people and let them teach you -what to do!"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>They fell upon the paper like wolves upon a -lamb, and an instant later Mademoiselle, grasping -the order, hurried up the rue Saint Antoine to open -the city's gates.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Not far from the Hôtel de Ville a cavalier in a -blood-stained doublet, blinded by blood from a -wound in his forehead, passed her, led like a child -between two soldiers; both of the soldiers were -weeping: it was La Rochefoucauld.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle called his name, but he did not -answer. At the entrance to the rue Saint Antoine -another wounded man appeared, bareheaded, with -blood-stained raiment; a man walking beside him -held him on his horse. Mademoiselle asked him:<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_418" id="Page_418">[418]</a></span> -"Shalt thou die of thy wounds?" he tried to move -his head as he passed on. He was "little Guiteau," -Mademoiselle's friend who had carried the "olive -branch" to Condé's prison. But they were coming -so fast that it was hard to count them—another—then -another! Mademoiselle said: "I found -them in the rue Saint Antoine at every step! and -they were wounded everywhere ... head ... -arms ... legs! ... they were on horse—on foot—on biers—on ladders—on litters! -Some of them were dead."</p> - -<p>An aristocratic procession! The quality of -France, sacrificed in the supreme attempt against -man's symbol of God's omnipotence: the Royalty -of the King!</p> - -<p>By the favour of the leader of the tradesmen the -gates of Paris had opened to let pass the high -nobility. Paris enjoyed the spectacle. The ramparts -swarmed with sightseers; and Louis XIV., -guarded by Mazarin, looked down upon them all -from the heights of Charonne.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The soldiers of the Fronde had had enough! -Crying, "<em>Let the chiefs march!</em>" they broke ranks. -So it came to pass that all who fought that day -were nobles. The faubourg saw battalions formed -of princes and seigniors, and the infantry who -manned the barricades bore the mighty names of -ancient France. Condé was their leader and, culpable -though he had been, that day he purged his<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_419" id="Page_419">[419]</a></span> -crimes against the country by giving France one of -the visions of heroism which exalt the soul.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Condé was everywhere! "A demon!" said the -soldiers of the King; "superhuman" his own men -called him. Like the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">preux chevaliers</i> of the -legends, he plunged into the fray, went down and -rose with cuirass dented and red with blood, to -plunge and to come forth again.</p> - -<p>The friends dearest to his heart fell at his feet, -and still he bore his part. He fought with all-mastering -courage; he inspired his men; and the -stolid bourgeois and the common people upon the -ramparts, moved to great pity, cried out with indignation -that it was a shame to France to leave -such a man to perish. That combat was like a -dream to the survivors. Condé's orders were so -sharp and clear that they rang like the notes of a -trumpet; his action was miraculous, and in after -years, when his officers talked of Roland or of -Rodrigue, they asserted, to the astonishment of -their hearers, that they had known both those redoubtable -warriors and fought in their company on -many a hard won, or a hard lost, field. To their -minds there was neither <em>Rodrigue nor Roland</em>; they -knew but one hero, and he was "Condé."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>That day in the Faubourg Saint Antoine, at the -gates of Paris, bathed with the blood and the sweat -of the combat, when he had all but swooned in his<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_420" id="Page_420">[420]</a></span> -cuirass, he rushed from the field, stripped, and -rolled in the grass as a horse rolls; then slipped -into his war harness and took his place at the head -of his army, as fresh as he had been before the -battle.</p> - -<p>But neither his courage nor his strength could -have saved him, and he, and all his men, would -have perished by the city ditch if Mademoiselle -had not forced Paris to open the gates.</p> - -<p>Some one living in the rue Saint Antoine offered -Mademoiselle shelter, and she retired an instant -from the field. Soon after she entered her refuge -Condé visited her and she thus recorded her impressions -of the day:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>As soon as I entered the house M. le Prince came in to -see me. He was in piteous case. His face was covered with -dust two inches deep; his hair was tangled, and although he -had not been wounded, his collar and shirt were full of blood. -His cuirass was dented; he held his bare sword in his hand; -he had lost the scabbard. He gave his sword to my equerry -and said to me: "You see before you a despairing man! I -have lost all my friends!" ... Then he fell weeping upon -a chair and begged me to forgive him for showing his sorrow,—and -to think that people say that Condé cannot love! I -have always known that he can love, and that when he loves -he is fond and gentle.</p></blockquote> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_420.jpg" alt="" title="PRINCE DE CONDE" /> -<div class="caption"><p>PRINCE DE CONDÉ</p></div> -</div> - -<p>Mademoiselle spoke to Condé of the battle. -They agreed upon a plan for ending it, and -Condé returned to the field to lead the retreat. -Mademoiselle went to the window to watch the -men take out the baggage and make ready for the -march. She could see the guns. The people of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_421" id="Page_421">[421]</a></span> -the faubourgs carried drink to the men in the ranks -and tried to help the wounded; and she who had -been taught to ignore the emotions and the actions -of inferiors wept when she saw the famished people -of the lower orders depriving themselves to comfort -the men who had laid waste the suburbs; -Condé and his troops were well known to them all.</p> - -<p>Disgust for the prevailing disorder had turned -the thoughts of the bourgeois toward Mazarin, -whose earlier rule had given the nation a taste of -peace. Mademoiselle, who knew nothing of the -bourgeois, was aghast at their indifference to the -sufferings of the wounded. The men of peace -looked with curiosity upon the battle; some laughed -aloud; others stood upon the ramparts and fired -upon the retreating Frondeurs. Mademoiselle left -her window but once; then she ran through the -rue Saint Antoine to the Bastille, and, climbing to -the summit of the tower, looked through the glass. -The battle was raging; she saw the order given to -cut off Condé, and, commanding the gunners to -train their guns on the King's army, she returned -to her post, veiled by smoke and choked by powder, -to enjoy her glory; and it was glory enough. Twice -in the same day she had saved M. le Prince. As -one man the retreating army of the Fronde turned -to salute her, and all cried: "<em>You have delivered -us!</em>" Condé was so grateful that his voice failed -him.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>That evening at the Luxembourg, and the evening<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_422" id="Page_422">[422]</a></span> -following, at the Tuileries, after a night robbed -of sleep by thoughts of the dead and the wounded -of her army, Mademoiselle heard praise which called -her back to the demands of life.</p> - -<p>Her father did not address her, and his manner -repelled her advances. Toward evening, when he -supposed that all danger had passed, he went to -congratulate Condé. His bearing was gay and -pleasant and his face was roguish and smiling. In -the evening his expression changed, and Mademoiselle -noted the change and explained it to his -credit; she said: "I attributed that change to his -repentance. He was thinking that he had let me -do what he ought to have done." We know that -Gaston was not given to repentance; all that he regretted -was that he had permitted his daughter to -take an important place among the active agents -of the Fronde; he was envious and spiteful; -but neither envy nor spite could have been -called his ruling failing; his prevailing emotion -was fear.</p> - -<p>The 4th July the bourgeois of Paris met in the -Hôtel de Ville to decide upon future action. The -city was without a government. The princes, Monsieur, -and Condé attended the meeting; they supposed -that the Assembly would appoint them -Directors of Public Affairs. The supposition was -natural enough. However, the Assembly ignored -them and discussed plans for a reconciliation with -the Regency, and they, the princes, retired from -the meeting furiously angry. When they went out<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_423" id="Page_423">[423]</a></span> -the Grève was full of people; in the crowd were -officers of the army, soldiers, and priests.<a name="FNanchor_161_161" id="FNanchor_161_161"></a><a href="#Footnote_161_161" class="fnanchor">[161]</a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/i_422.jpg" alt="" title="DUC D'ORLEANS" /> -<div class="caption"><p>DUC D'ORLÉANS</p></div> -</div> - -<p>Several historians have said that the princes, or -their following, incited the people to punish the -bourgeois for the slight offered by them to their -natural directors. No one knew how it began. As -Monsieur and Condé left the Grève and crossed -the river, shots were fired behind them. They -went their way without looking back. Mademoiselle -was awaiting them at the Luxembourg. Her -account of the night's work follows:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>As it was very warm, Monsieur entered his room to change -his shirt. The rest of the company were talking quietly when -a bourgeois came in all out of breath; he could hardly speak, -he had come so fast and in such fear. He said to us: "The -Hôtel de Ville is burning and they are firing guns; they are -killing each other." Condé went to call Monsieur, and Monsieur, -forgetting the disorder in which he was, came into the -room in his shirt, before all the ladies. Monsieur said to -Condé: "Cousin, do you go over to the Hôtel de Ville." -But Condé refused to go, and when he would not go to quiet -the disturbance people had reason to say that he had planned -the whole affair and paid the assassins.</p></blockquote> - -<p>That was what was unanimously declared. It -was the most barbarous action known since the -beginning of the Monarchy.<a name="FNanchor_162_162" id="FNanchor_162_162"></a><a href="#Footnote_162_162" class="fnanchor">[162]</a> Outraged in his pride -and in his will because the bourgeois had dared to -offer him resistance, the splendid hero of the Faubourg -Saint Antoine, at the fatal moment, fell to -the level of Septembrist; and as Monsieur must<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_424" id="Page_424">[424]</a></span> -have known all about it, and as he did nothing to -prevent it, he was Condé's accomplice.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>As de Beaufort was on excellent terms with the -mob, the princes sent him to the Hôtel de Ville; -he set out upon his mission and Mademoiselle, who -had followed close upon his heels, loitered and listened -to the comments of the people. When she -returned and told her father what she had heard -Gaston was terrified; he ordered her to go back to -the Hôtel de Ville and reconnoitre.</p> - -<p>It was long past midnight, and the streets were -deserted. The Hôtel de Ville was a ruin; the -doors and windows were gone, and the flames -were still licking the charred beams; the interior -had been pillaged. "I picked my way," said -Mademoiselle, "among the planks; they were still -flaming. I had never seen such a desolate place; -we looked everywhere, but we could see no one." -They were about to leave the ruins when the provost -of the merchants emerged from his hiding-place -(probably in the cellar) with the men who -had been with him.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle found them a safe lodging and -went back to her palace. Day had dawned; -people were gathering in the Place de Grève; -some were trying to identify the dead. Among -the dead were priests, members of Parliament, and -between thirty and forty bourgeois. Many had -been wounded.</p> - -<p>The people blessed Mademoiselle, but she turned<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_425" id="Page_425">[425]</a></span> -sorrowfully away. She thought that nothing could -atone for such a murder. She said of the event:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>People spoke of that affair in different ways; but however -they spoke, they all agreed in blaming his Royal Highness -and M. le Prince. I never mentioned it to either of them, -and I am very glad not to know anything about it, because if -they did wrong I should be sorry to know it; and that action -displeased me so that I could not bear to think that any one -so closely connected with me could not only tolerate the -thought of such a thing, but do it. That blow was the blow -with the club; it felled the party.</p></blockquote> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Immediately after the fire, when the city was -panic-stricken, M. le Prince's future promised success; -he had every reason to hope. Many of the -political leaders had left Paris, and taking advantage -of that fact, and of the general fear, Condé -marshalled the débris of the Parliament, and they -nominated a cabinet. Gaston was the nominal -head; Condé was generalissimo. The Hôtel de -Ville had been repaired, the cabinet was installed -there, and Broussel was provost of merchants, but -the knock-down "blow with the club" had made his -power illusory. Generally the public conscience -was callous enough where murders were concerned, -but it rebelled against the murder of 4th July. The -common saying in Paris was that the affair was -a cowardly trap, deliberately set. Public opinion -was firm, and the Condé party fell. Before the -massacre the country had been tired of civil war. -After the massacre it abhorred it. The people saw -the Fronde in its true light. With the exception<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_426" id="Page_426">[426]</a></span> -of a few members of Parliament,—patriots and -would-be humanitarians,—who had thought of -France? The two junior branches, or the nobility? -They had called the Spaniards to an alliance against -Frenchmen, and, to further their selfish interests, -they had led their own brothers into a pitfall.</p> - -<p>Who had cared for the sufferings of the people? -The Fronde had been a deception practised upon -the country; a systematic scheme fostered by men -and women for personal benefit. To the labourer -hunted from his home to die in the woods, to the -bourgeois whose business had been tied up four -years, what mattered it that the wife of La Rochefoucauld -was seated before the Queen? Was it -pleasure to the people dying of famine to know -that M. de Longueville was drawing a salary as -Governor of Pont de l'Arche? A fine consolation, -truly! it clothed and fed the children, it brought -back the dead, to maintain a camp of tinselled -merry-makers, "among whom nothing could be -seen but collations of gallantry to women."</p> - -<p>Those were not new reflections, but they had -acquired a force which acted directly upon the currents -established by Mazarin; and just at the moment -when the people awoke to their meaning, the -Queen's clairvoyant counsellor removed the last -scruple from the public conscience by voluntarily -returning to his exile (19th August).</p> - -<p>Then came the general break-up. Every man of -any importance in Paris raised his voice; deputies -were sent to ask the King to recall Mazarin. Retz,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_427" id="Page_427">[427]</a></span> -whose manners had accommodated themselves to -his hat, was among the first to demand the recall, -and his demand was echoed by his clergy. -Monsieur (and that was a true sign) judged that -the time had come to part company with his associates; -he engaged in private negotiations with -the Court. The soldiers vanished; Condé, feeling -that his cause was lost, essayed to make peace, and -failed, as he always failed, because no one could accept -such terms as he offered. As his situation -was critical, his friends shunned him. Mademoiselle -still clung to him, and she was loved and honoured; -but, as it was known that she lacked judgment, her -fondness for him did not prove anything in his -favour.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle was convinced of her own ability; -she knew that she was a great general. She formed -insensate projects. One of her plans was to raise, -to equip, and to maintain an army at her own expense: -"The Army of Mademoiselle." Such an -army would naturally conquer difficulties. Some -foreign Power would surrender a strong city,—or -even two strong cities; and then the King of France -would recognise his true interests, and capitulate -to the tall cousin who had twice saved Condé and -taken Orleans single-handed,—and at last, after -all her trials, having done her whole duty, she -would drain the last drops of her bitter draught, -and find the closed crown lying at the bottom -of her cup,—unless—. There was a very powerful -alternative. Mademoiselle's mind vacillated<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_428" id="Page_428">[428]</a></span> -between the King of France and the great French -hero: M. le Prince de Condé. An alliance with -Condé was among the possibilities. The physical -condition of Condé's wife permitted a hope,—twice -within a period of two weeks she had been at -death's door. On the last occasion Paris had been -informed of her condition in the evening.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>I was at Renard's Garden [wrote Mademoiselle]. M. le -Prince was with me. We strolled twice through the alleys -without speaking one word. I thought that probably he was -thinking that every one was watching him,—and I believed -that I was thinking of just what he was thinking,—so we were -both very much embarrassed.</p></blockquote> - -<p>That night the courtiers paid court to Mademoiselle,—they -spoke freely of the re-marriage of -M. le Prince,—in short, they did everything but -congratulate her in plain words.</p> - -<p>Though Mademoiselle knew that her fairy tales -were false, she half believed in them. In her heart -she felt that her heroinate—if I may use the term—was -drawing to a close, and she desired to enjoy -all that remained to her to the full. In her ardour -she made a spectacle of herself. She appeared with -her troops before Paris, playing with her army as -a child plays with leaden soldiers. She loved to -listen to the drums and trumpets, and to look upon -the brilliant uniforms. One night M. le Prince invited -her to dine at his headquarters, and she -arrived, followed by her staff. She never forgot -that evening. "The dirtiest man in the world" -had had his hair and his beard trimmed, and put<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_429" id="Page_429">[429]</a></span> -on white linen in her honour,—"which made great -talk." Condé and his staff drank to her health -kneeling, while the trumpets blared and the cannon -thundered. She reviewed the army and pressed forward -as far as the line of the royal pickets. Of -that occasion she said: "I spoke to the royal troops -some time, then I urged my horse forward, for I -had great longing to enter the camp of the enemy. -M. le Prince dashed on ahead of me, seized my -horse's bridle, and turned me back."</p> - -<p>That evening she published the orders of the day, -did anything and everything devolving upon any and -all of the officers on duty, and proved by look and -by word that she was a true soldier. When it was -all over she rode back to Paris in the moonlight, -followed by her staff and escorted by Condé and -his general officers. The evening ended with a gay -supper at the Tuileries.</p> - -<p>That visit went to her head, and a few days later -she besought her father to hang the chiefs of the -Reaction. "Monsieur lacked vigour." That was -the construction which Mademoiselle put upon his -refusal to hang her enemies, and it was well for her -that he did, for the hour of the accounting was at -hand. The 13th October she was intoxicated for -the last time with the sound of clanking arms and -the glitter of uniforms. M. le Prince with all his -army visited her to say "farewell." The Prince -was to lead his army to the East; no one knew to -what fortune. She wrote mournfully:</p> - -<blockquote> -<p>It was so beautiful to see the great alley of the Tuileries full<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_430" id="Page_430">[430]</a></span> -of people all finely dressed! M. le Prince wore a very handsome -habit of the colour of iron, of gold, of silver, and of black -over grey, and a blue scarf, which he wore as the Germans -wear theirs,—under a close-coat, which was not buttoned. I -felt great regret to see them go, and I avow that I wept when -I bade them adieu ... it was so lonely ... it was -so strange ... not to see them any more ... it hurt -me so! And all the rumours gave as reason for thinking that -the King was coming and that we all should be turned out.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The princes left Paris on Sunday. The following -Saturday, in the morning, when Mademoiselle -was in the hands of her hair-dresser, she received a -letter from the King notifying her that, as he should -arrive in Paris to remain permanently, and as he -had no palace but the Tuileries in which to lodge -his brother, he should require her to vacate the -Tuileries before noon on the day following. Mademoiselle -was literally turned out of the house, and -on notice so short that anything like orderly retreat -was impossible. Borne down by the weight of -her chagrin, she sought shelter where best she -could. We are told that she "hid her face at the -house of one of her friends," and it is probable that -to say that she hid her face but feebly expresses the -bitterness of the grief with which she turned from -the only home that she had ever known, in which -she had lived with her princely retinue, and which -she had thought to leave only to enter the King's -palace as Queen of France. She was brave; she -talked proudly of her power to overthrow royalty, -and to carry revolution to the gates of the Palais -Royal, and until the people saw their young King<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_431" id="Page_431">[431]</a></span> -her boasts were not vain; but her better nature triumphed, -and in the end her wrath was drowned -in tears. The day after she received notice to -vacate the palace she was informed that her father -had been exiled. She went to the Luxembourg to -condole with him. On the way she saw the King. -She passed him unseen by him. He had grown -tall; he saluted the people gracefully and with the -air of a king; he was a bright, handsome boy. The -people applauded him with frenzy.</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle found her father bristling with -fury; his staring eyes transfixed her. At sight of -her he cried angrily that he had no account to render -to her; then, to quote Mademoiselle's words, -"Each told the other his truths." Monsieur reminded -her that she had "put herself forward with -unseemly boldness," and that she had compromised -the name of d'Orléans by her anxiety to "play the -heroine." She answered as she thought it just and -in accordance with the rights of her quality to answer. -She demonstrated to her father that there -were "characters" upon earth who refused to give -written orders because they feared to be confronted -by their signatures when personal safety required -a denial of the truth. She explained the principle -of physical timidity and incidentally rehearsed all -the grievances of her life. Gaston answered her. -The quarrel ended, Mademoiselle piteously begged -her father to let her live under his protection. She -recorded his answer word for word, with all the incidents -of the interview:</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_432" id="Page_432">[432]</a></span></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>He answered me: "I have no vacant lodging." I said that -there was no one in that house who was not indebted to me, -and that I thought that no one had a better right to live there -than I had. He answered me tartly: "All who live under my -roof are necessary to me, and they will not be dislodged." I -said to him: "As your Royal Highness will not let me live -with you, I shall go to the Hôtel Condé, which is vacant; no -one is living there at present." He answered: "That I will -not permit!" I asked: "Where, then, do you wish me to go, -sir?" He answered: "Where you please!" and he turned -away.</p></blockquote> - -<p>The day after that interview, at a word from the -King, all the Frondeurs left Paris. The highways -were crowded with great lords in penance and with -heroines "retired." Poor broken idols! the people -of Paris were still chanting their glory! Monsieur -departed, bag and baggage, at break of day,</p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">Avec une extreme vitesse.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">* * * * *</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i0">Mademoiselle son ainée</div> - <div class="i0">Disparut la même journée.<a name="FNanchor_163_163" id="FNanchor_163_163"></a><a href="#Footnote_163_163" class="fnanchor">[163]</a></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>The daughter of the victim of degeneracy had -developed her father's weakness. Although Mademoiselle -was in safety, she trembled. She who had -challenged death in the last combat of the Fronde, -laughing merrily as she trained the guns on the -King of France, thrilled with terror when letter -followed letter warning her to leave Paris, and -giving her the names of people destined for the -Bastille. All the letters, were anonymous, and all -were in different and unknown hands.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_433" id="Page_433">[433]</a></span></p> - -<p>She did not wait to ask who wrote the letters; -she did not listen to her faithful Préfontaine, who -assured her that there was no danger and begged -her to be calm.</p> - -<p>La Grande Mademoiselle, appalled, beside herself, -unmindful of her glory and her dignity, crying -out wild orders to the people who blocked her way, -fled from Paris in a hired coach driven by a common -coachman. She did not breathe freely until -the scene of her triumphs lay far behind her, and -even then, the appearance of a cavalier, however -peaceable, caused her new terror; she prayed, she -trembled; a more piteous retreat was never made!</p> - -<p>But the adventures of the route distracted her -thoughts. She was masked, travelling as "Mme. -Dupré," a woman of an inferior order. She dined -with her fellow-travellers in public rooms, talked -freely with common people, and faced life on an -equality with the canaille. For a royal personage -such experience had savour. One day in the kitchen -of an inn a monk talked to her long and earnestly -of the events of the day and of Mademoiselle, -the niece of Louis XIII., and her high feats. -"Yes!" said the priest, "she is a brave girl; a -brave girl indeed! She is a girl who could carry a -spear as easily as she could wear a mask!"</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle's journey ended at the château of a -friend, who welcomed her and concealed her with -romantic satisfaction; being as sentimental as the -shepherdesses of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>, it pleased the chatelaine -to fancy that her guest was in peril of death and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_434" id="Page_434">[434]</a></span> -that a price was set upon her head. She surrounded -Mademoiselle with impenetrable mystery. -A few tried friends fetched and carried the heroine's -correspondence with Condé. Condé implored her -to join the legion on the frontier; he wrote to her: -"I offer you my places and my army. M. de Lorraine -offers you his quarters and his army, and -Fuensaldagne<a name="FNanchor_164_164" id="FNanchor_164_164"></a><a href="#Footnote_164_164" class="fnanchor">[164]</a> offers you the same."</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle was wise enough to refuse their -offers; but she was homeless; she knew that she -must make some decisive move; she could not -remain in hiding, like the princess of a romance. -Monsieur was at Blois, but he was fully determined -that she should not live with him.</p> - -<p>When Préfontaine begged him not to refuse -his daughter a father's protection, he answered -furiously: "I will not receive her! If she comes -here I will drive her back!"</p> - -<p>Mademoiselle determined to face her destiny. -She was alone; they who loved her had no right -to protect her. She had a château at Saint Fargeau, -and she looked upon it as a refuge.</p> - -<p>Again the heroine took the road, and she had -hardly set foot upon the highway when the King's -messenger halted her and delivered a letter from -his royal master.</p> - -<p>Louis XIV. guaranteed her "all surety and freedom -in any place in which she might elect to live." -Mademoiselle, who had trembled with fear when -the King's messenger appeared, read her letter<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_435" id="Page_435">[435]</a></span> -with vexation; she had revelled in the thought -that the Court was languishing in ignorance of her -whereabouts.</p> - -<p>She had gone fast and far and accomplished -twenty leagues without a halt, when such a fit of -terror seized her that she hid her head. Had she -been in Paris, the courtiers would have called her -seizure "one of the attacks of Monsieur." It was -an ungovernable panic; despite the King's warrant -she thought that the royal army was at her -heels, and that the walls of a dungeon confronted -her. Her attendants could not calm her. The -heroine was dead and a despairing, half-distracted -woman entered the Château of Saint Fargeau. -She said of her arrival:</p> - -<p>"The bridge was broken and the coach could not -cross it, so I was forced to go on foot. It was two -o'clock in the morning. I entered an old house—my -home—without doors or windows; and in the -court the weeds were knee-high.... Fear, -horror, and grief seized me, and I wept."</p> - -<p>Let her weep. It was no more than she deserved -to do as penalty for all the evil that she -had brought about by the Fronde. Four years of -a flagitious war, begun as the effort of conscientious -patriots, under pressure of the general interest, -then turned to a perambulating exhibition of -selfish vanities and a hunt for écus which wrecked -the peace and the prosperity of France!</p> - -<p>In one single diocese (Laon) more than twenty -curés were forced to desert their villages because<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_436" id="Page_436">[436]</a></span> -they had neither parishioners nor means of living. -Throughout the kingdom men had been made servile -by physical and moral suffering and by the -need of rest; borne down by the imperious demands -of worn-out nature, they loathed action. -The heroes of Corneille (of the ideal "superhuman" -type of the heroes of Nietzsche) had -had their day and the hour of the natural man—human, -not superhuman—had come.</p> - -<p>Five years later, when Mademoiselle returned -to Paris, she found a new world, with manners in -sharp contrast with her own. It was her fate to -yield to the influence of the new ideal, when, forgetting -that a certain degree of quality "lifts the -soul above tenderness," she yielded up her soul to -Lauzun in romantic love. Some day, not far distant, -we shall meet her in her new sphere.</p> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_437" id="Page_437">[437]</a></span></p> - -<h2><a name="INDEX" id="INDEX"></a>INDEX</h2> - - -<ul class="index"> -<li class="isub3">A</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Absinthe and Folly, <a href="#Page_339">339</a>, <a href="#Page_340">340</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Absolute monarchy, the, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_230">230</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Absolution, <a href="#Page_277">277</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Académie l' Française (<i>see</i> Conrart and Corneille)</li> - -<li class="indx">"Academy," the, <a href="#Page_38">38</a>, <a href="#Page_39">39</a>, <a href="#Page_41">41</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Adamas (the druid), <a href="#Page_104">104</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Administration, <a href="#Page_248">248</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Adolphus, Gustavus, <a href="#Page_33">33</a>, <a href="#Page_34">34</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Adonis, <a href="#Page_129">129</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Æstheticism, <a href="#Page_107">107</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Alaric, <a href="#Page_141">141</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Alcidon, <a href="#Page_172">172</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Alençon, d', <a href="#Page_6">6</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Alidor, <a href="#Page_171">171</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Alizon</em>, <a href="#Page_332">332</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Alphise</em>, <a href="#Page_137">137</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Amazons, <a href="#Page_31">31</a>, <a href="#Page_408">408</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Amelotte, Père, <a href="#Page_278">278</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Aminta</em>, Tasso's, <a href="#Page_168">168</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ancestors, <a href="#Page_4">4</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Andilly, d', Arnauld, <a href="#Page_31">31</a>, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>, <a href="#Page_37">37</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Andrieux, d', the Chevalier, <a href="#Page_117">117</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Angelieo, Fra, <a href="#Page_205">205</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Angennes, d', Julie (Mme. Moutausier), <a href="#Page_42">42</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Angoulême, d', Duc, <a href="#Page_339">339</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Angoumois, the hermit of, <a href="#Page_144">144</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Anjou, <a href="#Page_116">116</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Anne of Austria, her appearance, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Louis XIII. accuses her of love for Monsieur, <a href="#Page_19">19</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her retort, <a href="#Page_20">20</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her visits to Renard's Garden, her retinue, <a href="#Page_25">25</a>-<a href="#Page_27">27</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her disgrace, and her appeal to La Rochefoucauld, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her kindness to Mademoiselle, <a href="#Page_59">59</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her detestation of de Richelieu and de Richelieu's revenge, <a href="#Page_83">83</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her hopes and rehabilitation, <a href="#Page_86">86</a>, <a href="#Page_87">87</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her lack of jealousy, <a href="#Page_86">86</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her promise to Mademoiselle, <a href="#Page_89">89</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">the attentions of the Duc de Bellegarde, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>, <a href="#Page_97">97</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her patronage of the drama, <a href="#Page_183">183</a>, <a href="#Page_184">184</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her second promise to Mademoiselle, <a href="#Page_196">196</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her widowhood, <a href="#Page_235">235</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">return to Paris, <a href="#Page_238">238</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">appointment to the Regency, <a href="#Page_239">239</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her pretensions and promises to Mademoiselle, <a href="#Page_255">255</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">quarrel with Mademoiselle, <a href="#Page_266">266</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her anger, <a href="#Page_270">270</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her visits to convents (extract), <a href="#Page_273">273</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">condemnation of Barillon, <a href="#Page_333">333</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her poverty and her indifference to public opinion, <a href="#Page_333">333</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">the people's demand for Broussel and her refusal and forced consent, <a href="#Page_346">346</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her flight, <a href="#Page_349">349</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her folly, <a href="#Page_353">353</a>-<a href="#Page_355">355</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">return to Paris, <a href="#Page_356">356</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">second flight, <a href="#Page_357">357</a>, <a href="#Page_358">358</a>, <a href="#Page_360">360</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">reception at Saint Germain, <a href="#Page_372">372</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">return to Paris, indignant rejection of Jarzé, <a href="#Page_373">373</a>-<a href="#Page_376">376</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">at Libourne, <a href="#Page_381">381</a>-<a href="#Page_384">384</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">the evil day, <a href="#Page_388">388</a>-<a href="#Page_390">390</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her letters from Mazarin, <a href="#Page_395">395</a>-<a href="#Page_397">397</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Lyonne, <a href="#Page_396">396</a>, <a href="#Page_397">397</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">renewal of her relations with Mazarin (overtures to Lyonne, <i>see</i> Mazarin's letters), <a href="#Page_396">396</a>, <a href="#Page_397">397</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Aragon (<em>Don Sancho</em>)—a play—<a href="#Page_180">180</a>, <a href="#Page_181">181</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ariosto, <a href="#Page_144">144</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Aristotle, <a href="#Page_39">39</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Arnauld, Mothe, de la (Claude), <a href="#Page_36">36</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Arquien, d', Marie, <a href="#Page_94">94</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Artagnan, d', <a href="#Page_40">40</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Arthénice ("the Fair"), <a href="#Page_123">123</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a>, <a href="#Page_128">128</a>, <a href="#Page_139">139</a>, <a href="#Page_147">147</a>, <a href="#Page_149">149</a>, <a href="#Page_153">153</a>, <a href="#Page_323">323</a><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_438" id="Page_438">[438]</a></span></li> - -<li class="indx">Assisi, d' (or Assise d'), François ("Père François"), <a href="#Page_205">205</a> (<i>see</i> Catholic Renaissance)</li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Astrée</i>, <a href="#Page_92">92</a>, <a href="#Page_99">99</a>-<a href="#Page_101">101</a>, <a href="#Page_103">103</a>-<a href="#Page_106">106</a>, <a href="#Page_108">108</a>-<a href="#Page_111">111</a>, <a href="#Page_147">147</a>, <a href="#Page_157">157</a>, <a href="#Page_160">160</a>, <a href="#Page_161">161</a>, <a href="#Page_166">166</a>, <a href="#Page_167">167</a>, <a href="#Page_294">294</a>, <a href="#Page_364">364</a>, <a href="#Page_366">366</a>, <a href="#Page_433">433</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Aubignac, d' (the Abbé), <a href="#Page_164">164</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Auchy, d', Vicomtesse, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>, <a href="#Page_114">114</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Auvergne, <a href="#Page_229">229</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Avenel, d', Vicomte, <a href="#Page_38">38</a> (note), <a href="#Page_120">120</a>, <a href="#Page_368">368</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Avesnes, <a href="#Page_67">67</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Avranches, <a href="#Page_95">95</a> (<i>see</i> Huet)</li> - - -<li class="isub3">B</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Bagnolet, <a href="#Page_193">193</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Baladins, <a href="#Page_28">28</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Balagny, <a href="#Page_117">117</a>, <a href="#Page_118">118</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Baltic Sea, the, <a href="#Page_33">33</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Balzac, <a href="#Page_124">124</a>, <a href="#Page_142">142</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>, <a href="#Page_165">165</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Baradas, young, <a href="#Page_207">207</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Barillon, <a href="#Page_332">332</a>, <a href="#Page_333">333</a>, <a href="#Page_336">336</a>, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Barine, Arvède, <a href="#Page_134">134</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Baro, Sieur, <a href="#Page_93">93</a>, <a href="#Page_157">157</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Barricades, <a href="#Page_340">340</a>-<a href="#Page_342">342</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Barthélemy, E., <a href="#Page_137">137</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>, <a href="#Page_325">325</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Basserie, I. P., Mlle., <a href="#Page_201">201</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bassompierre, <a href="#Page_38">38</a>, <a href="#Page_232">232</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bastille, the, <a href="#Page_232">232</a>, <a href="#Page_256">256</a>, <a href="#Page_421">421</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Battle, the last, <a href="#Page_415">415</a>-<a href="#Page_421">421</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bazin, <a href="#Page_200">200</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bearnais, the, III. (<i>see</i> Henry IV.)</li> - -<li class="indx">Beaufort, de, Duc, <a href="#Page_248">248</a>, <a href="#Page_328">328</a>, <a href="#Page_339">339</a>, <a href="#Page_366">366</a>, <a href="#Page_367">367</a>, <a href="#Page_405">405</a>, <a href="#Page_424">424</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Beaupré, de, <a href="#Page_118">118</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bélésis, <a href="#Page_24">24</a>, <a href="#Page_25">25</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Belle-au-Bois-dormant</i>, <a href="#Page_57">57</a>, <a href="#Page_58">58</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bellegarde, de, Duc, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>, <a href="#Page_97">97</a>, <a href="#Page_107">107</a>, <a href="#Page_128">128</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Belles Lettres, <a href="#Page_125">125</a>, <a href="#Page_126">126</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Berthod, Père (<cite>see Mémoires</cite>)</li> - -<li class="indx">Bérulle, de, Pierre, <a href="#Page_275">275</a>, <a href="#Page_280">280</a>, <a href="#Page_289">289</a>, <a href="#Page_290">290</a>, <a href="#Page_292">292</a>, <a href="#Page_295">295</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Béziers, <a href="#Page_71">71</a>, <a href="#Page_72">72</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bibliothèque Nationale, <a href="#Page_83">83</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bird House, <a href="#Page_23">23</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Blasphemy and Vice, <a href="#Page_282">282</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Blois, <a href="#Page_7">7</a>, <a href="#Page_74">74</a>, <a href="#Page_76">76</a>, <a href="#Page_156">156</a>, <a href="#Page_188">188</a>, <a href="#Page_191">191</a>, <a href="#Page_434">434</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Blood, Princes of the, <a href="#Page_221">221</a>, <a href="#Page_248">248</a>, <a href="#Page_321">321</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Blue Room, the, <a href="#Page_121">121</a>, <a href="#Page_122">122</a>, <a href="#Page_126">126</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a>, <a href="#Page_130">130</a>, <a href="#Page_133">133</a>, <a href="#Page_137">137</a>, <a href="#Page_142">142</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>, <a href="#Page_145">145</a>, <a href="#Page_323">323</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Boileau, <a href="#Page_126">126</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bois-de-Boulogne, <a href="#Page_25">25</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bois-le-Vicomte, <a href="#Page_335">335</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Books and writings, <a href="#Page_38">38</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Book of <em>Edification</em>, <a href="#Page_115">115</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bordeaux, "the heroine of," wife of Condé, <a href="#Page_379">379</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">siege of, <a href="#Page_380">380</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Monsieur arrives as mediator, <a href="#Page_382">382</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bordeaux, the Archbishop of, <a href="#Page_116">116</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bossuet, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>, <a href="#Page_281">281</a>, <a href="#Page_285">285</a>, <a href="#Page_295">295</a>, <a href="#Page_305">305</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bossut, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_197">197</a>, <a href="#Page_305">305</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bouillon, de, army of, <a href="#Page_192">192</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Godefroy de Bouillon</i>, <a href="#Page_155">155</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Mme., <a href="#Page_365">365</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bourbon, de, Marie (Wife and Madame (1) of Gaston), Duchesse d'Orléans, <a href="#Page_3">3</a>, <a href="#Page_12">12</a>, <a href="#Page_60">60</a>, <a href="#Page_187">187</a></li> - <li class="isub1">(<i>see</i> Marie, Duchesse de Montpensier, cousin of Madame (1),</li> - <li class="isub2">and object of the first of the Bourbonic aspirations of de Soissons);</li> - <li class="isub1">(<i>see</i> de Soissons and Campion, <a href="#Page_187">187</a>)</li> - -<li class="indx">Bourbon, de, Mlle. (Mme. de Longueville), <a href="#Page_143">143</a>, <a href="#Page_149">149</a>-<a href="#Page_151">151</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bourbon, de, House of, <a href="#Page_312">312</a>; Hôtel de, <a href="#Page_312">312</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bourdaloue, <a href="#Page_279">279</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bourdoise, <a href="#Page_278">278</a>, <a href="#Page_289">289</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bourg la Reine, <a href="#Page_408">408</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bourgeois, the wives of the, <a href="#Page_18">18</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">sons of, <a href="#Page_37">37</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">meet to appoint a government, <a href="#Page_422">422</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">(mention of the bourgeois), <a href="#Page_333">333</a>, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>, <a href="#Page_336">336</a>, <a href="#Page_355">355</a>, <a href="#Page_375">375</a>, <a href="#Page_416">416</a>, <a href="#Page_421">421</a>, <a href="#Page_422">422</a>-<a href="#Page_424">424</a>, <a href="#Page_426">426</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bourgeoisie, <a href="#Page_281">281</a>, <a href="#Page_282">282</a>, <a href="#Page_340">340</a>, <a href="#Page_371">371</a>, <a href="#Page_374">374</a>, <a href="#Page_375">375</a>, <a href="#Page_412">412</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bourges, <a href="#Page_39">39</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bourgogne, Hôtel de (<i>see</i> Theatres)</li> - -<li class="indx">Bourse, the, <a href="#Page_338">338</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bouvard (the leech), <a href="#Page_15">15</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Brégis, de, Comte, <a href="#Page_114">114</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Brégy, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_50">50</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Brienne, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_316">316</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">(mention of de Brienne, Jr.), <a href="#Page_316">316</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Brissac, Hôtel de, <a href="#Page_77">77</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Broussel, Monsieur," Provost of Merchants, <a href="#Page_336">336</a>, <a href="#Page_340">340</a>, <a href="#Page_346">346</a>, <a href="#Page_347">347</a>, <a href="#Page_349">349</a>, <a href="#Page_351">351</a>, <a href="#Page_425">425</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Brühl, <a href="#Page_395">395</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Brunetière, F., <a href="#Page_93">93</a>, <a href="#Page_95">95</a>, <a href="#Page_181">181</a>, <a href="#Page_289">289</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Brussels, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>, <a href="#Page_200">200</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Buckingham, <a href="#Page_216">216</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Burgundy, <a href="#Page_116">116</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bussy-Rabutin, <a href="#Page_133">133</a>, <a href="#Page_317">317</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">C</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Cabals, the, <a href="#Page_85">85</a>, <a href="#Page_324">324</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Campion, <a href="#Page_187">187</a>, <a href="#Page_188">188</a>, <a href="#Page_192">192</a><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_439" id="Page_439">[439]</a></span></li> - -<li class="indx">Canaille, the, visit their goddess, <a href="#Page_268">268</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">arm with clubs, <a href="#Page_331">331</a>, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>, <a href="#Page_346">346</a>, <a href="#Page_347">347</a>, <a href="#Page_359">359</a>, <a href="#Page_397">397</a>, <a href="#Page_408">408</a>, <a href="#Page_410">410</a>, <a href="#Page_411">411</a>, <a href="#Page_416">416</a>, <a href="#Page_433">433</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cardinal-Infant, the, <a href="#Page_196">196</a>, <a href="#Page_199">199</a>, <a href="#Page_200">200</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Carignan, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_138">138</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Carlos, <a href="#Page_180">180</a>, <a href="#Page_181">181</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Carmelite, Mademoiselle's desire to be a, <a href="#Page_299">299</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Carrousel</i>, the, <a href="#Page_22">22</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Cas de Conscience</i> (<i>les</i>), <a href="#Page_39">39</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Case, de la, Marquis, <a href="#Page_114">114</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cassandane, Princess, <a href="#Page_79">79</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Castelnaudary, <a href="#Page_71">71</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Catholic League, <a href="#Page_212">212</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Catholic Renaissance, <a href="#Page_283">283</a>, <a href="#Page_299">299</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cavalier, French, <a href="#Page_102">102</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Celadon, <a href="#Page_94">94</a>, <a href="#Page_99">99</a>, <a href="#Page_100">100</a>, <a href="#Page_104">104</a>, <a href="#Page_169">169</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Célidée, <a href="#Page_171">171</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Centennial (Racine's), <a href="#Page_291">291</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chaillot, <a href="#Page_24">24</a>, <a href="#Page_25">25</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chalais, <a href="#Page_5">5</a>, <a href="#Page_8">8</a>, <a href="#Page_73">73</a>, <a href="#Page_190">190</a>, <a href="#Page_266">266</a>, <a href="#Page_301">301</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Champagne, <a href="#Page_192">192</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Champagne, de, Philip, <a href="#Page_205">205</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Champs-Élysées, <a href="#Page_23">23</a>, <a href="#Page_25">25</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chancellor, the, <a href="#Page_243">243</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chantel, de, Mlle., <a href="#Page_54">54</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chantelauze, <a href="#Page_295">295</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chantilly, <a href="#Page_81">81</a>, <a href="#Page_82">82</a>, <a href="#Page_155">155</a>, <a href="#Page_364">364</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chapelain, <a href="#Page_54">54</a>, <a href="#Page_129">129</a>, <a href="#Page_130">130</a>, <a href="#Page_131">131</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Charente, la, <a href="#Page_142">142</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Chargés, grandes</i> (Court chancellors, <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">chevaliers d'honneur</i>, etc.), <a href="#Page_27">27</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Charity (Order of the Sisters of), <a href="#Page_294">294</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Charles I., King of England, <a href="#Page_193">193</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Charles II., <a href="#Page_397">397</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Charles V., <a href="#Page_13">13</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Charles VIII., <a href="#Page_306">306</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Charonne, <a href="#Page_418">418</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chartres, <a href="#Page_7">7</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Bishop of, <a href="#Page_214">214</a>, <a href="#Page_215">215</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chateaumorand, de, Diane, <a href="#Page_94">94</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Châtellerault, <a href="#Page_21">21</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chatillon-sur-Seine, <a href="#Page_277">277</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chatillon, de, Mme. la Duchesse, <a href="#Page_305">305</a>, <a href="#Page_379">379</a>, <a href="#Page_413">413</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chaussée d'Antin (rue de la), <a href="#Page_25">25</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chenonceaux, <a href="#Page_109">109</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Chérubin</i> (Cherubino), <a href="#Page_261">261</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chevaliers of the Order, <a href="#Page_62">62</a>, <a href="#Page_166">166</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chevreuse, de, Mme. la Duchesse, her hotel, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>, <a href="#Page_181">181</a>, <a href="#Page_300">300</a>-<a href="#Page_304">304</a>, <a href="#Page_328">328</a>, <a href="#Page_379">379</a>, <a href="#Page_413">413</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chief of Council (<i>see</i> Mazarin)</li> - -<li class="indx">Chief General of the Armies of France (<i>see</i> Enghien, d', Louis, duc)</li> - -<li class="indx">Chimène, <a href="#Page_174">174</a>-<a href="#Page_176">176</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Choisy, <a href="#Page_7">7</a>-<a href="#Page_9">9</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Choisy, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_393">393</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chronicles (contemporary), <a href="#Page_7">7</a>, <a href="#Page_305">305</a>, <a href="#Page_374">374</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Church, the, <a href="#Page_63">63</a>, <a href="#Page_158">158</a>, <a href="#Page_197">197</a>-<a href="#Page_199">199</a>, <a href="#Page_275">275</a>-<a href="#Page_277">277</a>, <a href="#Page_286">286</a>, <a href="#Page_288">288</a>, <a href="#Page_289">289</a>, <a href="#Page_291">291</a>, <a href="#Page_292">292</a>, <a href="#Page_296">296</a>, <a href="#Page_369">369</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Cid</em>, the (<i>see</i> Corneille)</li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="la" lang="la">Cinna</i>, <a href="#Page_177">177</a>, <a href="#Page_181">181</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">effect upon Condé, <a href="#Page_377">377</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cinq-Mars, Henry, Marquis d'Effiat, <a href="#Page_200">200</a>-<a href="#Page_202">202</a>, <a href="#Page_206">206</a>-<a href="#Page_210">210</a>, <a href="#Page_218">218</a>, <a href="#Page_220">220</a>, <a href="#Page_221">221</a>, <a href="#Page_223">223</a>-<a href="#Page_226">226</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his mother, <a href="#Page_201">201</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Circle, the" (<i>see</i> Salon Rambouillet)</li> - -<li class="indx">Claque, the, <a href="#Page_215">215</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Claude, cousin and bride of the Cardinal-Bishop, <a href="#Page_197">197</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Clarinte, <a href="#Page_53">53</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cléonville, de, Sieur, <a href="#Page_70">70</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Clitandre</em>, <a href="#Page_170">170</a>, <a href="#Page_171">171</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Clorinde</em>, <a href="#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Clovis</em>, Desmarets's dramatic poem, <a href="#Page_213">213</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cluny, Bernard of, <a href="#Page_293">293</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cluny, Musée, <a href="#Page_123">123</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Colbert, <a href="#Page_78">78</a>, <a href="#Page_133">133</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Collation of Benefices," <a href="#Page_295">295</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Colietet, the seeker for domestic comfort, <a href="#Page_141">141</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cologne, <a href="#Page_221">221</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Combalet, de, Mlle. (Mme. d'Aguillon), <a href="#Page_64">64</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Comedy, the dramatic play, and theatre, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>, <a href="#Page_158">158</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Communardes, the, <a href="#Page_332">332</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Compiègne, <a href="#Page_67">67</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Concorde, Place de la, <a href="#Page_23">23</a>, <a href="#Page_413">413</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Concorde, Pont de la, <a href="#Page_23">23</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Condé, the great, <a href="#Page_34">34</a>, <a href="#Page_39">39</a>, <a href="#Page_57">57</a>, <a href="#Page_126">126</a>, <a href="#Page_297">297</a>, <a href="#Page_306">306</a>-<a href="#Page_309">309</a>, <a href="#Page_317">317</a>, <a href="#Page_335">335</a>, <a href="#Page_358">358</a>, <a href="#Page_363">363</a>, <a href="#Page_373">373</a>, <a href="#Page_375">375</a>-<a href="#Page_379">379</a>, <a href="#Page_387">387</a>, <a href="#Page_388">388</a>, <a href="#Page_390">390</a>-<a href="#Page_393">393</a>, <a href="#Page_398">398</a>, <a href="#Page_406">406</a>-<a href="#Page_409">409</a>, <a href="#Page_412">412</a>-<a href="#Page_416">416</a>, <a href="#Page_418">418</a>-<a href="#Page_425">425</a>, <a href="#Page_427">427</a>-<a href="#Page_429">429</a>, <a href="#Page_434">434</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Condé (Père), <a href="#Page_115">115</a>, <a href="#Page_335">335</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Condé, de, Mme. la Princesse (mother of the great), <a href="#Page_149">149</a>, <a href="#Page_150">150</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Condé, de, Mme. la Princesse (wife of the great), the heroine of Bordeaux, <a href="#Page_309">309</a>, <a href="#Page_310">310</a>, <a href="#Page_379">379</a>, <a href="#Page_393">393</a>, <a href="#Page_398">398</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Condé, Hôtel de, <a href="#Page_311">311</a>, <a href="#Page_364">364</a>, <a href="#Page_432">432</a><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_440" id="Page_440">[440]</a></span></li> - -<li class="indx">Condé, de, House of, <a href="#Page_311">311</a>, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>, <a href="#Page_325">325</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Conférence Library (<i>see</i> Vicomtesse d'Auchy), <a href="#Page_56">56</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Conférence, quai de la, <a href="#Page_390">390</a> (Mazarin's departure)</li> - -<li class="indx">Conrart, Valentin, <a href="#Page_136">136</a>-<a href="#Page_138">138</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>, <a href="#Page_423">423</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Madame, wife of, <a href="#Page_138">138</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Conseil de Conscience</i>, <a href="#Page_295">295</a>, <a href="#Page_297">297</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Contes de Perrault, les, <a href="#Page_57">57</a>, <a href="#Page_58">58</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Conti, de, Prince (his treatise), <a href="#Page_60">60</a>, <a href="#Page_61">61</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Corbie, the siege of, <a href="#Page_190">190</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Cordons Bleus</i>, <a href="#Page_63">63</a> (Order of the Saint Esprit)</li> - -<li class="indx">Coriolanus, <a href="#Page_344">344</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Corisande, the fair, <a href="#Page_277">277</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Corneille, Preface, iv., v.; <a href="#Page_1">1</a>, <a href="#Page_56">56</a>, <a href="#Page_105">105</a>, <a href="#Page_106">106</a>, <a href="#Page_135">135</a>, <a href="#Page_139">139</a>, <a href="#Page_141">141</a>, <a href="#Page_145">145</a>, <a href="#Page_153">153</a>, <a href="#Page_161">161</a>, <a href="#Page_167">167</a>, <a href="#Page_168">168</a>, <a href="#Page_170">170</a>-<a href="#Page_184">184</a>, <a href="#Page_194">194</a>, <a href="#Page_195">195</a>, <a href="#Page_213">213</a>, <a href="#Page_215">215</a>, <a href="#Page_344">344</a>, <a href="#Page_436">436</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Corporal, "the Little," <a href="#Page_401">401</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Corps, army (escorting the royal mourners), <a href="#Page_235">235</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cossack, natural investiture of, <a href="#Page_113">113</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">gestures of, <a href="#Page_122">122</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">oaths of, <a href="#Page_303">303</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Costar, Pierre, <a href="#Page_124">124</a>, <a href="#Page_167">167</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Coulanges, de (the Abbé), <a href="#Page_54">54</a>, <a href="#Page_55">55</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Council, the, <a href="#Page_231">231</a>, <a href="#Page_240">240</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Chief of, <a href="#Page_239">239</a>, <a href="#Page_244">244</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Councils of Finance, <a href="#Page_37">37</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cours la Reine, <a href="#Page_24">24</a>, <a href="#Page_25">25</a>, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>, <a href="#Page_358">358</a>, <a href="#Page_359">359</a>, <a href="#Page_413">413</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Court of Catherine de Médicis (Mlle. de Senterre), <a href="#Page_97">97</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Court of France, the requirements of, <a href="#Page_27">27</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">spirit of, <a href="#Page_126">126</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Court of Germany, the, <a href="#Page_263">263</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Court of <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">le Grand Envie</i>, <a href="#Page_94">94</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Court of Henry IV., <a href="#Page_97">97</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Court of Miracles, the, <a href="#Page_23">23</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Court of the Valois, the, <a href="#Page_97">97</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Court of Vienna, the, <a href="#Page_263">263</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Courtenvaut, <a href="#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Croquemitaine," <a href="#Page_60">60</a>, <a href="#Page_90">90</a>, <a href="#Page_213">213</a>, <a href="#Page_216">216</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cross, the true, <a href="#Page_281">281</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Crusaders, the, <a href="#Page_4">4</a>, <a href="#Page_153">153</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cures, Curés, abbeys, and abbots (<i>see</i> Catholic Renaissance)</li> - -<li class="indx">Cyrus le Grand, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>, <a href="#Page_47">47</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">D</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Damophile, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>-<a href="#Page_49">49</a>, <a href="#Page_55">55</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dauphin, <a href="#Page_40">40</a>, <a href="#Page_89">89</a>, <a href="#Page_90">90</a>, <a href="#Page_159">159</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dauphine (place), <a href="#Page_165">165</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Débats</i> (<cite>Journal des</cite>), <a href="#Page_65">65</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Declaration against Monsieur, <a href="#Page_229">229</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Declaration for the appointment of an Executive Council, and for a nominal Regent, <a href="#Page_233">233</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dedalus, <a href="#Page_23">23</a>, <a href="#Page_107">107</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Des Jardins, de, Mlle., <a href="#Page_56">56</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Desmarets, <a href="#Page_213">213</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Dialogues des Morts</i>, <a href="#Page_320">320</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Diana, <a href="#Page_150">150</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Dictionnaire des Précieuses</i>, <a href="#Page_79">79</a>, <a href="#Page_113">113</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dijon, <a href="#Page_337">337</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Diodée, Mlle., <a href="#Page_56">56</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Divers pieces, etc., <a href="#Page_66">66</a>, <a href="#Page_68">68</a>, <a href="#Page_70">70</a>, <a href="#Page_71">71</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Doll's House</em> (Ibsen's), <a href="#Page_174">174</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dombes, <a href="#Page_21">21</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dôme, le (pavillon de l'Horlage), <a href="#Page_22">22</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Don Lope, <a href="#Page_181">181</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Don Sancho d'Aragon</em>, <a href="#Page_180">180</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Drama, the, <a href="#Page_177">177</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dubuisson-Aubenay, <a href="#Page_362">362</a>, <a href="#Page_378">378</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dulaure, <a href="#Page_108">108</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Du Perron, <a href="#Page_286">286</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Dupes, Journée des</i>, <a href="#Page_60">60</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dupré, Mme., <a href="#Page_433">433</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Durandarte, <a href="#Page_153">153</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">E</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Echo, the, <a href="#Page_23">23</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Edification</em> (book of), <a href="#Page_115">115</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Education, Fénelon on, <a href="#Page_30">30</a>, <a href="#Page_31">31</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Effiat, d', Henry (<i>see</i> Cinq-Mars)</li> - -<li class="indx">Elbœuf, d', duc, <a href="#Page_62">62</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Elect, the, <a href="#Page_196">196</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Elector Palatine, Frederick V., <a href="#Page_305">305</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Element, religious, the (<i>see</i> Catholic Renaissance)</li> - -<li class="indx">Eloquence, <a href="#Page_71">71</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Emerson, iii., Preface</li> - -<li class="indx">Emperor (Ferdinand III.), <a href="#Page_263">263</a>, <a href="#Page_264">264</a>, <a href="#Page_267">267</a>, <a href="#Page_272">272</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">wife of, <a href="#Page_262">262</a>, <a href="#Page_264">264</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Empire, <a href="#Page_212">212</a>, <a href="#Page_264">264</a>, <a href="#Page_273">273</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Second Empire, <a href="#Page_216">216</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Enghien, d' (Louis), duc, <a href="#Page_247">247</a>, <a href="#Page_309">309</a>, <a href="#Page_312">312</a></li> - -<li class="indx">England, <a href="#Page_256">256</a></li> - -<li class="indx">England, King of, Charles I., <a href="#Page_193">193</a></li> - -<li class="indx">England, King of (Prince of Wales), <a href="#Page_259">259</a></li> - -<li class="indx">England, Queen Henriette of, <a href="#Page_193">193</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">throne of, <a href="#Page_257">257</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Elizabeth of, <a href="#Page_304">304</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Epernay, <a href="#Page_134">134</a><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_441" id="Page_441">[441]</a></span></li> - -<li class="indx">Épernon, d', duc, <a href="#Page_116">116</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Episcopate, the, <a href="#Page_197">197</a>, <a href="#Page_205">205</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>, <a href="#Page_277">277</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Epistles of St. Paul</em> (<cite>Homilies on the</cite>), <a href="#Page_56">56</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Erinne, <a href="#Page_50">50</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Erudition, <a href="#Page_71">71</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Esprit, Jacques, <a href="#Page_127">127</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Étampes, <a href="#Page_407">407</a>, <a href="#Page_408">408</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Europe, <a href="#Page_131">131</a>, <a href="#Page_194">194</a>, <a href="#Page_211">211</a>, <a href="#Page_229">229</a> (contemporary Europe, <a href="#Page_185">185</a>)</li> - -<li class="indx">Exile (<i>see</i> Saint Fargeau), <a href="#Page_434">434</a>, <a href="#Page_435">435</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">F</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Farce, the, <a href="#Page_168">168</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Father Joseph, <a href="#Page_65">65</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Favourite (Monsieur's), Abbé de la Rivière, <a href="#Page_262">262</a>, <a href="#Page_263">263</a>, <a href="#Page_265">265</a>-<a href="#Page_267">267</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Favourites of Louis XIII., young Baradas and Cinq-Mars (<i>see</i> Cinq-Mars)</li> - -<li class="indx">Feminist leaders(<i>see</i> de Chevreuse, de Chatillon, de Gonzague, and de Longueville)</li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Femmes Savantes, les</i>, <a href="#Page_45">45</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fénelon, <a href="#Page_30">30</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">sketch of Mazarin, <a href="#Page_320">320</a>, <a href="#Page_321">321</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ferdinand III. (<i>see</i> Cardinal-Infant, and <a href="#Page_273">273</a>)</li> - -<li class="indx">Feuillade, de la, <a href="#Page_248">248</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fiésque, de (belle Comtesse), <a href="#Page_401">401</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fiésque, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_249">249</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fiésque, de, M. le Comte, <a href="#Page_193">193</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Finance (Councils of), <a href="#Page_37">37</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Flanders, <a href="#Page_196">196</a>, <a href="#Page_200">200</a>, <a href="#Page_251">251</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Flèche, la, <a href="#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fontainebleau, <a href="#Page_13">13</a>, <a href="#Page_61">61</a>, <a href="#Page_62">62</a>, <a href="#Page_314">314</a>, <a href="#Page_384">384</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fontenelle, <a href="#Page_215">215</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Force, de la, Piganiol, <a href="#Page_23">23</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Foreign Affairs, Department of, <a href="#Page_5">5</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Forez, <a href="#Page_95">95</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Fortunio</em>, <a href="#Page_261">261</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Foundlings' Hospital, <a href="#Page_294">294</a></li> - -<li class="indx">France, progress under Richelieu, <a href="#Page_212">212</a></li> - -<li class="indx">France, woods and gardens of, <a href="#Page_109">109</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fra Angelico, <a href="#Page_205">205</a></li> - -<li class="indx">French clergy, the, <a href="#Page_286">286</a>, <a href="#Page_293">293</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fronde, the crime of the architects of the, <a href="#Page_335">335</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fronde, the last battle of the, <a href="#Page_414">414</a>-<a href="#Page_421">421</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Frondeurs, their opportunity as masters of Paris, <a href="#Page_391">391</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Frontenac, de, <a href="#Page_401">401</a>, <a href="#Page_403">403</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fuensaldagne, <a href="#Page_434">434</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">G</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Galatée, Queen Marguerite, <a href="#Page_94">94</a>, <a href="#Page_108">108</a>, <a href="#Page_366">366</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Galilee, Lake of, <a href="#Page_290">290</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gamboust, <a href="#Page_23">23</a>, <a href="#Page_120">120</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Garden, Renard's, <a href="#Page_23">23</a>-<a href="#Page_25">25</a>, <a href="#Page_414">414</a>, <a href="#Page_428">428</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Garenne, La</i>, <a href="#Page_23">23</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gassau, Jean, <a href="#Page_28">28</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gassion, de, Jean, <a href="#Page_31">31</a>-<a href="#Page_34">34</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gauls, the, <a href="#Page_279">279</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Gazette, la</i> (de France), <a href="#Page_261">261</a>, <a href="#Page_313">313</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Gazette, la</i> (de Loret), <a href="#Page_114">114</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Gazette, la</i> (de Renaudot), <a href="#Page_64">64</a>, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>, <a href="#Page_75">75</a>, <a href="#Page_78">78</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gendarmerie and light cavalry (Gaston's), <a href="#Page_229">229</a></li> - -<li class="indx">German students, <a href="#Page_140">140</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Germany, <a href="#Page_59">59</a>, <a href="#Page_94">94</a>, <a href="#Page_212">212</a>, <a href="#Page_264">264</a>, <a href="#Page_272">272</a>, <a href="#Page_390">390</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gesvres, des, duc, <a href="#Page_50">50</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Giotto, <a href="#Page_205">205</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Godeau, Antoine, <a href="#Page_140">140</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Gold Room," <a href="#Page_166">166</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gondis, les, <a href="#Page_107">107</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gonesse, <a href="#Page_251">251</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gonzague, de, Anne, "wife of Henry de Guise," Archbishop of Rheims, <a href="#Page_281">281</a>, <a href="#Page_304">304</a>, <a href="#Page_305">305</a>, <a href="#Page_328">328</a>, <a href="#Page_379">379</a>, <a href="#Page_387">387</a>, <a href="#Page_393">393</a>, <a href="#Page_395">395</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gordes, <a href="#Page_210">210</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gournay, "the worthy," <a href="#Page_55">55</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Government, the, <a href="#Page_61">61</a>, <a href="#Page_64">64</a>, <a href="#Page_211">211</a>, <a href="#Page_332">332</a>, <a href="#Page_351">351</a>, <a href="#Page_368">368</a>, <a href="#Page_369">369</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Governor of Orleans, the, <a href="#Page_401">401</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gramont, de, Maréchal, <a href="#Page_117">117</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Grand Cyrus, Le</i>, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>, <a href="#Page_47">47</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Greece, <a href="#Page_150">150</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">language, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>, <a href="#Page_37">37</a>, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>, <a href="#Page_79">79</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">H</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Halles, the, <a href="#Page_340">340</a>, <a href="#Page_366">366</a>, <a href="#Page_374">374</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hardy, Alexander, <a href="#Page_163">163</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Haro, del, Don Louis, <a href="#Page_300">300</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Harpagon, de, <a href="#Page_367">367</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hauranne, de, Jean Duvergier (<i>see</i> St. Cyran), <a href="#Page_290">290</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hautefort, de (Madame de or Mlle. de), <a href="#Page_35">35</a>, <a href="#Page_85">85</a>-<a href="#Page_88">88</a>, <a href="#Page_90">90</a>, <a href="#Page_114">114</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Havre, the prison of, <a href="#Page_390">390</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hébert, <a href="#Page_411">411</a><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_442" id="Page_442">[442]</a></span></li> - -<li class="indx">Helmet of Minerva, <a href="#Page_134">134</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Henry III., <a href="#Page_96">96</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Henry IV., <a href="#Page_13">13</a>, <a href="#Page_91">91</a>, <a href="#Page_94">94</a>, <a href="#Page_101">101</a>, <a href="#Page_222">222</a>, <a href="#Page_406">406</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Henry IV., the Court of, <a href="#Page_97">97</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hermes Trismegistus, <a href="#Page_56">56</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hermogène, <a href="#Page_24">24</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Heroinate, the, <a href="#Page_399">399</a>, <a href="#Page_430">430</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hérouard, <a href="#Page_15">15</a>, <a href="#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hesiod, <a href="#Page_49">49</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hippocrates, <a href="#Page_39">39</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hocquincourt, d', <a href="#Page_118">118</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hohenzollern, <a href="#Page_16">16</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Holy Orders, <a href="#Page_196">196</a>, <a href="#Page_197">197</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Holy See, <a href="#Page_242">242</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Homilies on St. Paul's Epistles</em>, <a href="#Page_36">36</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hôpital, l', de Maréchal (threatened by Mademoiselle), <a href="#Page_113">113</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">in Council, <a href="#Page_416">416</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Horace (Camille), <a href="#Page_176">176</a>-<a href="#Page_179">179</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hôtel-de-Ville, <a href="#Page_18">18</a>, <a href="#Page_143">143</a>, <a href="#Page_363">363</a>-<a href="#Page_365">365</a>, <a href="#Page_370">370</a>, <a href="#Page_374">374</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Orleans, <a href="#Page_404">404</a>, <a href="#Page_416">416</a>, <a href="#Page_417">417</a>, <a href="#Page_422">422</a>, <a href="#Page_423">423</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">fire (Condé's revenge), <a href="#Page_424">424</a>, <a href="#Page_425">425</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Houri, the, <a href="#Page_250">250</a></li> - -<li class="indx">House of Commons, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Houssaye (the Abbé), <a href="#Page_275">275</a>, <a href="#Page_278">278</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Huet (the ecclesiastical head of Avranches), <a href="#Page_95">95</a>, <a href="#Page_128">128</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Huguenot, a, <a href="#Page_137">137</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Humanities</em>, the, <a href="#Page_195">195</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hungary, <a href="#Page_194">194</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Huxelles, d', Marquise, <a href="#Page_362">362</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">I</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Ibsen's <em>Doll's House</em>, <a href="#Page_174">174</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Idea, the innate, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">(the monarchical), <a href="#Page_185">185</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Idealogues, <a href="#Page_333">333</a></li> - -<li class="indx">l'Ile, Saint Louis, <a href="#Page_337">337</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Importants, the, <a href="#Page_248">248</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Indifference, Infidelity, and Licence, <a href="#Page_295">295</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Infant-Cardinal, <a href="#Page_196">196</a>, <a href="#Page_199">199</a>, <a href="#Page_200">200</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Iphigénie</i> (Racine's), <a href="#Page_185">185</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Installation, Mademoiselle's first, <a href="#Page_25">25</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Institute of France, <a href="#Page_144">144</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Intrigue, Spanish (Duchesse de Chevreuse and Val-de-Grâce), <a href="#Page_302">302</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Italy, gardens of, <a href="#Page_109">109</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">J</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Jacob, <a href="#Page_75">75</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Jansenism, <a href="#Page_106">106</a>, <a href="#Page_181">181</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Jansenists, <a href="#Page_291">291</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Jarzé, <a href="#Page_375">375</a>, <a href="#Page_376">376</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Jesuit Brothers, <a href="#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Jeunesse dorée</i> (la), <a href="#Page_279">279</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Jewels, silver dishes, debts, etc., <a href="#Page_258">258</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Joly, Guy, <a href="#Page_395">395</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Joseph, Père ("Father Joseph"), <a href="#Page_65">65</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Joubert, <a href="#Page_291">291</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Journal des Débats</i>, <a href="#Page_65">65</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Journée der Dupes</i>, <a href="#Page_60">60</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Judas, <a href="#Page_11">11</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Julleville, de, Petit, <a href="#Page_93">93</a>, <a href="#Page_170">170</a>, <a href="#Page_171">171</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Jurisconsults (Richelieu's), <a href="#Page_250">250</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Justice, Palais, de (invaded by the people), <a href="#Page_330">330</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">K</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Kerviler, Mme., <a href="#Page_144">144</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Kerviler, René, <a href="#Page_137">137</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">L</li> - -<li class="ifrst">La Barre, <a href="#Page_149">149</a>, <a href="#Page_152">152</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"La Belle Paulet," <a href="#Page_143">143</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>, <a href="#Page_149">149</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Bruyère, <a href="#Page_139">139</a>, <a href="#Page_146">146</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Calprenède, <a href="#Page_1">1</a>, <a href="#Page_166">166</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lafayette, de, Mlle., <a href="#Page_88">88</a>, <a href="#Page_132">132</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Flèche, <a href="#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lanson, <a href="#Page_165">165</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Laon, diocese of, <a href="#Page_435">435</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Porte, <a href="#Page_316">316</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">La Pucelle</i>, <a href="#Page_129">129</a>, <a href="#Page_130">130</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"La Pucelle Priande," <a href="#Page_142">142</a>, <a href="#Page_150">150</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Rochefoucauld, <a href="#Page_328">328</a>, <a href="#Page_345">345</a>, <a href="#Page_356">356</a>, <a href="#Page_365">365</a>, <a href="#Page_376">376</a>, <a href="#Page_417">417</a>, <a href="#Page_426">426</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Latin (required by the priest), <a href="#Page_277">277</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lauzun, <a href="#Page_2">2</a>, <a href="#Page_436">436</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Valette, de, Cardinal, <a href="#Page_149">149</a>, <a href="#Page_150">150</a>, <a href="#Page_152">152</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Villette, <a href="#Page_151">151</a></li> - -<li class="indx">League, the, <a href="#Page_98">98</a>; the banners of, <a href="#Page_342">342</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Le Maître, Antoine, <a href="#Page_37">37</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lemaître, Jules, <a href="#Page_106">106</a>, <a href="#Page_170">170</a>, <a href="#Page_174">174</a>, <a href="#Page_176">176</a>, <a href="#Page_291">291</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lenet, <a href="#Page_40">40</a>, <a href="#Page_308">308</a>, <a href="#Page_352">352</a>, <a href="#Page_354">354</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lenôtre, <a href="#Page_109">109</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lens, battle of, <a href="#Page_335">335</a>, <a href="#Page_336">336</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Leopold, Archduke, <a href="#Page_264">264</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Le petit Catilina ("Little Catiline"),<a href="#Page_344">344</a><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_443" id="Page_443">[443]</a></span></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Les cas de Conscience</i>, <a href="#Page_39">39</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Les Femmes Savantes</i>, <a href="#Page_45">45</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Le Tellier," <a href="#Page_395">395</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Letters, men of, <a href="#Page_126">126</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a> (<i>see</i> Hôtel de Rambouillet)</li> - -<li class="indx">Libourne, <a href="#Page_381">381</a>, <a href="#Page_382">382</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Library (National), <a href="#Page_244">244</a>.</li> - -<li class="indx">Library of the <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Conférence</i> (founded by the Vicomtesse d'Auchy), <a href="#Page_56">56</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lignon, Academy of, <a href="#Page_94">94</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lignon (river), <a href="#Page_100">100</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lignon, shepherds of, <a href="#Page_95">95</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ligurian peninsula and sea, <a href="#Page_212">212</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Limoges, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_173">173</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lisieux, de, Bishop, <a href="#Page_148">148</a>, <a href="#Page_149">149</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Litterateur</i>, the, <a href="#Page_131">131</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Little Corporal, the, <a href="#Page_401">401</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Little Monsieur, <a href="#Page_304">304</a>, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>, <a href="#Page_362">362</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Livre, d'Or</i>, the, <a href="#Page_113">113</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Loire (river), <a href="#Page_402">402</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">men of the river, <a href="#Page_403">403</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Longueville, de, M. and Mme., <a href="#Page_129">129</a>, <a href="#Page_300">300</a>, <a href="#Page_305">305</a>, <a href="#Page_309">309</a>, <a href="#Page_311">311</a>, <a href="#Page_356">356</a>, <a href="#Page_358">358</a>, <a href="#Page_365">365</a>, <a href="#Page_366">366</a>, <a href="#Page_372">372</a>, <a href="#Page_379">379</a>, <a href="#Page_380">380</a>, <a href="#Page_392">392</a>, <a href="#Page_413">413</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Longueville, de, M. and Mlle., of Bagnolet,—family of de Soissons, <a href="#Page_193">193</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lope, Don, <a href="#Page_181">181</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lorraine, de, Charles, <a href="#Page_434">434</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lorraine, de, Henry II. (Duc de Guise), <a href="#Page_197">197</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lorraine, de, Marguerite (the Princesse Gaston), <a href="#Page_64">64</a>, <a href="#Page_188">188</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lorraine, Nicholas François, <a href="#Page_197">197</a>, <a href="#Page_198">198</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Loudun, <a href="#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Louis XIII., his palace, <a href="#Page_13">13</a>, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his sickly youth, <a href="#Page_15">15</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his kennels, <a href="#Page_23">23</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his quarrels, <a href="#Page_66">66</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his personal literature, <a href="#Page_66">66</a>, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his exhibition of his scars, <a href="#Page_233">233</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his care for France, <a href="#Page_233">233</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his death, <a href="#Page_235">235</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Louis XIV., <a href="#Page_304">304</a>, <a href="#Page_306">306</a>, <a href="#Page_317">317</a>, <a href="#Page_331">331</a>, <a href="#Page_333">333</a>, <a href="#Page_348">348</a>, <a href="#Page_349">349</a>, <a href="#Page_351">351</a>-<a href="#Page_354">354</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">the King's scullions, <a href="#Page_354">354</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">a hungry cherub, <a href="#Page_355">355</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">looks down from Charonne upon the last battle of the Fronde, <a href="#Page_418">418</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">returns to Paris, <a href="#Page_431">431</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his message to La Grande Mademoiselle, <a href="#Page_434">434</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Love, Christian, <a href="#Page_286">286</a>, <a href="#Page_288">288</a>, <a href="#Page_291">291</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">of man for woman (<i>see Astrée</i>)</li> - -<li class="indx">Luxembourg, the (home of Gaston d'Orléans), visited by the mobility, <a href="#Page_410">410</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lycoris, <a href="#Page_137">137</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lyonne (<i>see</i> Letters of Jules Mazarin to Anne of Austria)</li> - -<li class="indx">Lyons, Archbishop of, <a href="#Page_149">149</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">city and people of, <a href="#Page_223">223</a>, <a href="#Page_226">226</a>, <a href="#Page_228">228</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lysandre, <a href="#Page_171">171</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">M</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Madame (1), wife of Monsieur (Gaston d'Orléans), <a href="#Page_12">12</a>, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>, <a href="#Page_20">20</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Madame (2), wife of Monsieur (Gaston d'Orléans,) (Marguerite de Lorraine), <a href="#Page_62">62</a>, <a href="#Page_250">250</a>-<a href="#Page_254">254</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Madame (mother of Comte de Soissons), <a href="#Page_193">193</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Madrid, <a href="#Page_303">303</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Maillard, <a href="#Page_411">411</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Maillé-Brézé, de, Mlle., <a href="#Page_57">57</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Maintenon, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_30">30</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mairet, <a href="#Page_165">165</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Malines, Archbishop of, <a href="#Page_197">197</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Malherbe, <a href="#Page_114">114</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a>-<a href="#Page_129">129</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Mandragora, old" (cave of), <a href="#Page_108">108</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marais, the (theatre of), <a href="#Page_162">162</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Les Messieurs du, <a href="#Page_209">209</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marat, <a href="#Page_411">411</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Maréchal de l'Hôpital, the, <a href="#Page_416">416</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marfée, <a href="#Page_193">193</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marguerite de Lorraine, Madame (2) (wife of Gaston), <a href="#Page_62">62</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her crime, <a href="#Page_250">250</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her complaints, <a href="#Page_253">253</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her advent and effect upon the spiritual atmosphere, <a href="#Page_253">253</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marillac, de, Maréchal, <a href="#Page_118">118</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Marin" (Marini), <a href="#Page_129">129</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marius, <a href="#Page_344">344</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marivaux, <a href="#Page_95">95</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marolles (Abbé de Villeloin), <a href="#Page_201">201</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marsan, pavillon de, <a href="#Page_22">22</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Marseillaise, La</i>, <a href="#Page_182">182</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marshals of France, <a href="#Page_235">235</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mascarelle, <a href="#Page_24">24</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Massacre of Saint Bartholomew, <a href="#Page_101">101</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Massarini, Jules, diary of, <a href="#Page_365">365</a>-<a href="#Page_397">397</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Matton, Ursule, <a href="#Page_28">28</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mauconseil (rue), <a href="#Page_162">162</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mauny, de, Maréchal, <a href="#Page_116">116</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mazarin (Massarini), first known in Paris as Papal Nuncio, called by<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_444" id="Page_444">[444]</a></span></li> - <li class="isub1">Louis XIII. to assume the duties of de Richelieu, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his invisibility, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his appointment as Chief of Council, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his modesty, <a href="#Page_247">247</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his "methods," <a href="#Page_312">312</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his avidity, <a href="#Page_317">317</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his foreign policy, <a href="#Page_318">318</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Fénelon's sketch of his character, <a href="#Page_320">320</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his promise to Mademoiselle, <a href="#Page_336">336</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">carries the King from Paris (in flight), <a href="#Page_348">348</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">the popular idea of Mazarin, <a href="#Page_354">354</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his services in France mentioned as of incalculable value, <a href="#Page_354">354</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his "forty little fishes," <a href="#Page_355">355</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">names given by the people, <a href="#Page_355">355</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his return to Paris, <a href="#Page_355">355</a>, <a href="#Page_356">356</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his second flight and his provisions for his stay at Saint Germain, <a href="#Page_357">357</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Parliament threatens expulsion, <a href="#Page_363">363</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his would-be rival, Jarzé, <a href="#Page_375">375</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Mazarin as a weaver, <a href="#Page_378">378</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">buffeted by the people of Bordeaux, <a href="#Page_384">384</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">repulsed by Gaston, <a href="#Page_385">385</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his feelings in regard to de Retz, <a href="#Page_385">385</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his inclination toward intrigue, <a href="#Page_386">386</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his foolhardy victory at Rethel, <a href="#Page_387">387</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Mazarin sues for Mademoiselle's aid, <a href="#Page_388">388</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1"><em>Farewell!</em> <a href="#Page_390">390</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">love-letters, <a href="#Page_395">395</a>-<a href="#Page_397">397</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">enters France and again reduces royalty, <a href="#Page_397">397</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">with the King views the last battle of the Fronde, voluntarily returns to exile, <a href="#Page_426">426</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mazarinades, the, <a href="#Page_397">397</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Médée, <a href="#Page_170">170</a>, <a href="#Page_171">171</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Médicis, de, Catherine, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>, <a href="#Page_97">97</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Médicis, de, Marie, defence of Richelieu, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her music, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her death, <a href="#Page_221">221</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ménage, <a href="#Page_131">131</a>-<a href="#Page_133">133</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Merchants, Provost of, <a href="#Page_416">416</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Mercure Française</i>, the, <a href="#Page_64">64</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Metz, Mazarin, Archbishop of, <a href="#Page_298">298</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Meudon, <a href="#Page_251">251</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Michelet, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>, <a href="#Page_82">82</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Middle Ages, vestiges of the, <a href="#Page_28">28</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Minerva, the Helmet of, <a href="#Page_134">134</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Miracles, the Court of, <a href="#Page_23">23</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Miracles (tools requisite for the working of), <a href="#Page_172">172</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Moderation, <a href="#Page_71">71</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Molé, Mathieu, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_346">346</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Molière, <a href="#Page_24">24</a>, (Mascarelles) <a href="#Page_45">45</a>, <a href="#Page_132">132</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Monarchy, absolute, <a href="#Page_187">187</a>, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_230">230</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mondory, <a href="#Page_165">165</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Money, Spanish, <a href="#Page_62">62</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Monsieur ("d'Orléans"), his constancy and patience, <a href="#Page_189">189</a>, <a href="#Page_253">253</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">receives the sympathy and the encouragement of the people, <a href="#Page_410">410</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montaigne, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>, <a href="#Page_112">112</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montausier, de, M., <a href="#Page_42">42</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">"Little Montausier," <a href="#Page_322">322</a>, <a href="#Page_323">323</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montbazon, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_192">192</a>, <a href="#Page_305">305</a>, <a href="#Page_311">311</a>, <a href="#Page_379">379</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montegut, Émile, <a href="#Page_93">93</a>, <a href="#Page_94">94</a>, <a href="#Page_95">95</a>, <a href="#Page_98">98</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montglat, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_232">232</a>, <a href="#Page_317">317</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montmartre, rue, <a href="#Page_162">162</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montmorency, de, Constable, <a href="#Page_38">38</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Duke, <a href="#Page_62">62</a>, <a href="#Page_71">71</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Marshal (son of the Constable), <a href="#Page_41">41</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montpensier, duchy of, <a href="#Page_7">7</a>, <a href="#Page_21">21</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">estates of, <a href="#Page_257">257</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montpensier, de, Mlle. (Marie de Bourbon), <a href="#Page_5">5</a>, <a href="#Page_187">187</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Montrouge, <a href="#Page_258">258</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montsoreau, de, Comte, <a href="#Page_116">116</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Morillot, Paul, <a href="#Page_93">93</a>, <a href="#Page_99">99</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Motte, de la, Maréchal, <a href="#Page_367">367</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Motteville, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_10">10</a>, <a href="#Page_28">28</a>, <a href="#Page_82">82</a>, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>, <a href="#Page_206">206</a>, <a href="#Page_218">218</a>, <a href="#Page_220">220</a>, <a href="#Page_238">238</a>, <a href="#Page_240">240</a>, <a href="#Page_252">252</a>, <a href="#Page_254">254</a>, <a href="#Page_258">258</a>, <a href="#Page_259">259</a>, <a href="#Page_267">267</a></li> - <li class="isub1">(<a href="#Page_269">269</a> the Worthy Motteville on Truth), <a href="#Page_297">297</a>, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>, <a href="#Page_318">318</a>, <a href="#Page_320">320</a>, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>, <a href="#Page_328">328</a>, <a href="#Page_332">332</a>-<a href="#Page_334">334</a>, <a href="#Page_370">370</a>, <a href="#Page_388">388</a>, <a href="#Page_406">406</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mousaux, the captaincy of, <a href="#Page_51">51</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Muntz, Eugene, <a href="#Page_107">107</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Musée Cluny, <a href="#Page_123">123</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">N</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Nancy, <a href="#Page_134">134</a>, <a href="#Page_250">250</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Nanterre, <a href="#Page_238">238</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Nantes, <a href="#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Napoleon, <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">La Vie de César</i>, <a href="#Page_216">216</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Narbonne, <a href="#Page_219">219</a></li> - -<li class="indx">National Soul, the, <a href="#Page_248">248</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Nation's statesmen, the, <a href="#Page_37">37</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Navarre, <a href="#Page_32">32</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Nemours, de, duc, <a href="#Page_405">405</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Nerval, de, Gérard, <a href="#Page_19">19</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Nesle, Tour de, <a href="#Page_342">342</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Neuilly, bridge of, <a href="#Page_237">237</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Nicanor, <a href="#Page_49">49</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Nietzsche, <a href="#Page_177">177</a>-<a href="#Page_179">179</a>, <a href="#Page_436">436</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Notre Dame, <a href="#Page_310">310</a>, <a href="#Page_317">317</a>, <a href="#Page_336">336</a>, <a href="#Page_338">338</a>, <a href="#Page_346">346</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">O</li> - -<li class="ifrst">"Obstacle, the," <a href="#Page_229">229</a><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_445" id="Page_445">[445]</a></span></li> - -<li class="indx">Office (profession of the Episcopate), <a href="#Page_275">275</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">personal service of prayer and meditation required of the priest of the Latin Church, <a href="#Page_277">277</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Old Madame de Guise, <a href="#Page_232">232</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Old Mandragora (cave of), <a href="#Page_108">108</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Opposition, the, <a href="#Page_216">216</a>, <a href="#Page_230">230</a>, <a href="#Page_322">322</a>-<a href="#Page_324">324</a>, <a href="#Page_333">333</a>, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>, <a href="#Page_388">388</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Orasie</i>, <a href="#Page_97">97</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Oratoire, l', <a href="#Page_289">289</a>, <a href="#Page_292">292</a>, <a href="#Page_295">295</a>, <a href="#Page_297">297</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Oratorians, the, <a href="#Page_290">290</a>-<a href="#Page_292">292</a>, <a href="#Page_294">294</a>, <a href="#Page_295">295</a>, <a href="#Page_298">298</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Order, the," <a href="#Page_166">166</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Orléans, <a href="#Page_398">398</a>, <a href="#Page_399">399</a>, <a href="#Page_401">401</a>, <a href="#Page_402">402</a>, <a href="#Page_404">404</a>-<a href="#Page_407">407</a>, <a href="#Page_409">409</a>, <a href="#Page_411">411</a>, <a href="#Page_412">412</a>, <a href="#Page_427">427</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Orléans, d', Gaston, duc, <a href="#Page_189">189</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Orléans, d', Madam (1) (Marie de Bourbon) <a href="#Page_5">5</a>, <a href="#Page_12">12</a>-<a href="#Page_20">20</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Orléans, d', Madame (2) (<i>see</i> Marguerite de Lorraine)</li> - -<li class="indx">Ormesson, d', André, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ormesson, d', Olivier, <a href="#Page_258">258</a>, <a href="#Page_268">268</a>, <a href="#Page_270">270</a>, <a href="#Page_281">281</a>, <a href="#Page_306">306</a>, <a href="#Page_312">312</a>-<a href="#Page_314">314</a>, <a href="#Page_317">317</a>, <a href="#Page_350">350</a>, <a href="#Page_351">351</a>, <a href="#Page_355">355</a>, <a href="#Page_372">372</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ornano d', Maréchal, <a href="#Page_7">7</a>, <a href="#Page_8">8</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Orpheus, <a href="#Page_261">261</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ortolans (<i>see</i> Charles, Prince of Wales)</li> - -<li class="indx">Ossonne, d', duc, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">P</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Padadin, <a href="#Page_34">34</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Palais, Cardinal, <a href="#Page_204">204</a>, <a href="#Page_205">205</a>, <a href="#Page_213">213</a>-<a href="#Page_215">215</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Palais de Justice, <a href="#Page_330">330</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Palais Royal, <a href="#Page_156">156</a>, <a href="#Page_281">281</a>, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>, <a href="#Page_314">314</a>, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>, <a href="#Page_336">336</a>, <a href="#Page_346">346</a>, <a href="#Page_348">348</a>, <a href="#Page_390">390</a>, <a href="#Page_391">391</a>, <a href="#Page_396">396</a>, <a href="#Page_430">430</a>, <a href="#Page_432">432</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pallas and Venus, <a href="#Page_327">327</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pan (the god), <a href="#Page_108">108</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Papal Nuncio, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Paradise, <a href="#Page_132">132</a>, <a href="#Page_224">224</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Paris, Archbishop of, <a href="#Page_343">343</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Paris, <a href="#Page_7">7</a>, <a href="#Page_12">12</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">streets of, <a href="#Page_19">19</a>, <a href="#Page_24">24</a>, <a href="#Page_37">37</a>, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>, <a href="#Page_51">51</a>, <a href="#Page_60">60</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">people of, <a href="#Page_61">61</a>, <a href="#Page_70">70</a>, <a href="#Page_74">74</a>,<a href="#Page_77">77</a>, <a href="#Page_86">86</a>, <a href="#Page_91">91</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a>, <a href="#Page_129">129</a>, <a href="#Page_140">140</a>, <a href="#Page_147">147</a>, <a href="#Page_149">149</a>, <a href="#Page_151">151</a>, <a href="#Page_156">156</a>, <a href="#Page_182">182</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">dregs of, <a href="#Page_163">163</a>, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>,<a href="#Page_168">168</a>, <a href="#Page_188">188</a>, <a href="#Page_191">191</a>, <a href="#Page_203">203</a>, <a href="#Page_207">207</a>, <a href="#Page_208">208</a>, <a href="#Page_213">213</a>, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>-<a href="#Page_228">228</a>, <a href="#Page_232">232</a>, <a href="#Page_234">234</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Parliament, establishment of the Regent, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_330">330</a>, <a href="#Page_331">331</a>, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">demands for the release of Broussel, <a href="#Page_346">346</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">overtures made to the Queen, <a href="#Page_349">349</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">stormy sessions, <a href="#Page_349">349</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">the Magistrates and their sincerity and worth, <a href="#Page_370">370</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">débris of Parliament, <a href="#Page_425">425</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">patriots and would-be humanitarians, <a href="#Page_426">426</a></li> - <li class="isub1">(general mention from pages <a href="#Page_91">91</a> to <a href="#Page_426">426</a>)</li> - -<li class="indx">Parma, Duke of, <a href="#Page_78">78</a>, <a href="#Page_157">157</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pastoral, <a href="#Page_168">168</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pau, <a href="#Page_32">32</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Paul de Vincent, <a href="#Page_275">275</a>, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>, <a href="#Page_289">289</a>, <a href="#Page_290">290</a>, <a href="#Page_292">292</a>-<a href="#Page_297">297</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Paulet ("La Belle"), <a href="#Page_143">143</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>, <a href="#Page_149">149</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pauline, v., Preface</li> - -<li class="indx">Pavillon de Flore, <a href="#Page_22">22</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pavillon de l'Horloge, <a href="#Page_22">22</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pavillon de l'Marsan, <a href="#Page_22">22</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pavillon de Rohan, <a href="#Page_120">120</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Paying theatres, the, <a href="#Page_162">162</a>, <a href="#Page_165">165</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pellisson, <a href="#Page_95">95</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Perrault, <a href="#Page_58">58</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Petits Champs, rue des, <a href="#Page_118">118</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Phédre, v., Preface</li> - -<li class="indx">Philamente, <a href="#Page_45">45</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Philippe Augustus, the old fortress of, <a href="#Page_13">13</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pibrac, de, Mme. ("the Aged"), <a href="#Page_173">173</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pity, <a href="#Page_71">71</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Place de la Concorde, <a href="#Page_23">23</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Place Dauphine, <a href="#Page_165">165</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Place Royale</em>, play, <a href="#Page_104">104</a>, <a href="#Page_105">105</a>, <a href="#Page_171">171</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">the place Royale, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>, <a href="#Page_252">252</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pleirante, old, <a href="#Page_171">171</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Plutarch, <a href="#Page_344">344</a>, <a href="#Page_345">345</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Poitiers, <a href="#Page_397">397</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Poland, <a href="#Page_94">94</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Polexandre</i>, <a href="#Page_377">377</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Polyeucte</i>, <a href="#Page_135">135</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>, <a href="#Page_177">177</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Pompée</i>, <a href="#Page_177">177</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pont de l'Arche, <a href="#Page_426">426</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pont-Neuf, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>, <a href="#Page_168">168</a>, <a href="#Page_338">338</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pontis, de, Louis, <a href="#Page_38">38</a>, <a href="#Page_40">40</a>, <a href="#Page_41">41</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pontoise, <a href="#Page_89">89</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pope, the, reference to him in Richelieu's dying charge to Mazarin ("Our Good Master"), <a href="#Page_242">242</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Port-au-Foin, <a href="#Page_227">227</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Port Royal, <a href="#Page_30">30</a>, <a href="#Page_40">40</a>, <a href="#Page_106">106</a>, <a href="#Page_281">281</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pouvillon, <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Les Antibel</i>, <a href="#Page_169">169</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Power, contemporary, <a href="#Page_197">197</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Prayer Book, de Richelieu's <em>Hours</em>, <a href="#Page_204">204</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">de Richelieu's picture gallery, <a href="#Page_205">205</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Précieuses, les</i>, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>, <a href="#Page_79">79</a>, <a href="#Page_109">109</a>-<a href="#Page_113">113</a>, <a href="#Page_115">115</a>, <a href="#Page_119">119</a>, <a href="#Page_146">146</a>, <a href="#Page_303">303</a>, <a href="#Page_323">323</a><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_446" id="Page_446">[446]</a></span></li> - -<li class="indx">Préfontaine, <a href="#Page_393">393</a>, <a href="#Page_433">433</a>, <a href="#Page_434">434</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Press, the, <a href="#Page_64">64</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Prévost (Abbé, the), <a href="#Page_95">95</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Priande, Pucelle La," <a href="#Page_142">142</a>, <a href="#Page_150">150</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Prime Minister, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_244">244</a>, <a href="#Page_246">246</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Prince Charming," <a href="#Page_11">11</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Prince Palatine, <a href="#Page_305">305</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Prince of Wales, the, <a href="#Page_259">259</a>, <a href="#Page_262">262</a>, <a href="#Page_264">264</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Princes, the Order of, <a href="#Page_180">180</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Protestant Alliance, <a href="#Page_248">248</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Protestants, <a href="#Page_277">277</a> (<i>see</i> Catholic Renaissance)</li> - -<li class="indx">Provost, the (of the merchants of Paris), <a href="#Page_238">238</a>, <a href="#Page_416">416</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Pucelle, la</i>, <a href="#Page_129">129</a>, <a href="#Page_130">130</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Pulcherie</i>, <a href="#Page_183">183</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Purgon, M.," <a href="#Page_378">378</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Puylaurens, <a href="#Page_75">75</a>, <a href="#Page_217">217</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Puymorin, <a href="#Page_117">117</a>, <a href="#Page_118">118</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pyrenees, <a href="#Page_109">109</a>, <a href="#Page_303">303</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">R</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Rabbit Warren, <a href="#Page_23">23</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Racine (IV.), <a href="#Page_95">95</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a>, <a href="#Page_182">182</a>, <a href="#Page_183">183</a>, <a href="#Page_185">185</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rambouillet de, Château, <a href="#Page_147">147</a>, <a href="#Page_148">148</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rambouillet, de, Hôtel, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>, <a href="#Page_110">110</a>, <a href="#Page_113">113</a>, <a href="#Page_121">121</a>, <a href="#Page_123">123</a>, <a href="#Page_126">126</a>-<a href="#Page_128">128</a>, <a href="#Page_134">134</a>, <a href="#Page_138">138</a>-<a href="#Page_142">142</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>, <a href="#Page_145">145</a>, <a href="#Page_147">147</a>, <a href="#Page_152">152</a>, <a href="#Page_179">179</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rambouillet, de, Madame, <a href="#Page_114">114</a>, <a href="#Page_119">119</a>-<a href="#Page_122">122</a>, <a href="#Page_126">126</a>, <a href="#Page_130">130</a>, <a href="#Page_132">132</a>, <a href="#Page_134">134</a>, <a href="#Page_136">136</a>, <a href="#Page_138">138</a>, <a href="#Page_141">141</a>-<a href="#Page_143">143</a>, <a href="#Page_148">148</a>, <a href="#Page_323">323</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rambouillet, de, Mlle., <a href="#Page_140">140</a>, <a href="#Page_148">148</a>, <a href="#Page_149">149</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rambouillet, de, <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">née</i>, Angélique de Grignan, <a href="#Page_143">143</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ranke, Leopold, <a href="#Page_229">229</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Reaction, <a href="#Page_429">429</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Réaux, des Tallemant, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>, <a href="#Page_56">56</a>, <a href="#Page_114">114</a>, <a href="#Page_118">118</a>, <a href="#Page_119">119</a>, <a href="#Page_121">121</a>, <a href="#Page_131">131</a>, <a href="#Page_132">132</a>, <a href="#Page_149">149</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Recueil de divers pièces</i> (<i>see</i> "personal literature" under King), <a href="#Page_66">66</a>, <a href="#Page_68">68</a>, <a href="#Page_70">70</a>, <a href="#Page_71">71</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Reformation, <a href="#Page_284">284</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Regency, <a href="#Page_117">117</a>, <a href="#Page_240">240</a>, <a href="#Page_241">241</a>, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>, <a href="#Page_250">250</a>, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>, <a href="#Page_320">320</a>, <a href="#Page_331">331</a>, <a href="#Page_339">339</a>, <a href="#Page_350">350</a>, <a href="#Page_422">422</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Regent, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>, <a href="#Page_87">87</a>, <a href="#Page_233">233</a>-<a href="#Page_238">238</a>, <a href="#Page_240">240</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_256">256</a>, <a href="#Page_263">263</a>, <a href="#Page_295">295</a>, <a href="#Page_296">296</a>, <a href="#Page_304">304</a>, <a href="#Page_317">317</a>, <a href="#Page_330">330</a>, <a href="#Page_332">332</a>, <a href="#Page_341">341</a>, <a href="#Page_366">366</a>, <a href="#Page_382">382</a>, <a href="#Page_384">384</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Register, Parish, <a href="#Page_252">252</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Religion, <a href="#Page_153">153</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Religious element (<i>see</i> Catholic Renaissance)</li> - -<li>Renard, the garden of, <a href="#Page_23">23</a>-<a href="#Page_25">25</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Renaudot (<cite>Gazette</cite>, the), <a href="#Page_64">64</a>, <a href="#Page_65">65</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rethel, <a href="#Page_387">387</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Retz de Cardinal (ex-Abbé), <a href="#Page_10">10</a>, <a href="#Page_75">75</a>, <a href="#Page_83">83</a>, <a href="#Page_133">133</a>, <a href="#Page_240">240</a>, <a href="#Page_247">247</a>, <a href="#Page_300">300</a>, <a href="#Page_426">426</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Reynier, Gustave, <a href="#Page_165">165</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rheims, Archbishopric, <a href="#Page_197">197</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Richelieu de, considered necessary to France, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his enemies at Court, his relations at Court, the portly quadragenarian, etc., his lute-playing, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his jealousy, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his persecution of Anne of Austria, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his struggles with the high powers of France, <a href="#Page_59">59</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his discipline of Monsieur (Mademoiselle's knowledge of it), <a href="#Page_60">60</a>, <a href="#Page_61">61</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">the banquet of the <em>Knights of the Saint-Esprit</em>, his present from the King, <a href="#Page_63">63</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his appreciation of the power of the so-called "Press," <a href="#Page_64">64</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his editorship, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Monsieur's accusation of (Gaston's letters to the King), <a href="#Page_68">68</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">(the King's eulogy, etc.), his polemics in the <em>Recueil</em>, his self-praise, <a href="#Page_71">71</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his victims (Gaston's associates), the death of Puylaurens, <a href="#Page_74">74</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">acts as godfather, <a href="#Page_75">75</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his riches, genius, cruelty, and ambition, his declaration of love to Anne of Austria, his heart, etc., Val-de-Grâce, <a href="#Page_82">82</a>-<a href="#Page_84">84</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his rebuke of Mademoiselle, <a href="#Page_90">90</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">conspiracy of Monsieur and de Soissons, <a href="#Page_190">190</a>, <a href="#Page_191">191</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">introduction of Cinq-Mars to the King, <a href="#Page_201">201</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">the Star of Richelieu, <a href="#Page_202">202</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his pomp, his bodyguard, <a href="#Page_203">203</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his palace (hotel and theatre), <a href="#Page_204">204</a>, <a href="#Page_205">205</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his part as peacemaker, his work for France, <a href="#Page_211">211</a>-<a href="#Page_213">213</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his grand fête, <em>Mirame</em>, <a href="#Page_213">213</a>-<a href="#Page_216">216</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his disgrace <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Le petit Saint-Amour</i>, etc., <a href="#Page_217">217</a>, <a href="#Page_218">218</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">his attempt to corrupt Cinq-Mars, his insult offered to Cinq-Mars,</li> - <li class="isub2">Cinq-Mars's anger, his conspiracy, de Richelieu's revenge, his travelling room,</li> - <li class="isub2">his closing days, his death and funeral, <a href="#Page_218">218</a>-<a href="#Page_230">230</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">various references to, <a href="#Page_231">231</a>, <a href="#Page_232">232</a>, <a href="#Page_238">238</a>, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_247">247</a>, <a href="#Page_266">266</a>, <a href="#Page_280">280</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Richelieu, de (brother of the Cardinal), Archbishop of Lyons, <a href="#Page_149">149</a><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_447" id="Page_447">[447]</a></span></li> - -<li class="indx">Richelieu, rue, <a href="#Page_358">358</a>, <a href="#Page_390">390</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rigol, Eugène (<i>see</i> works cited)</li> - -<li class="indx">Rivière, de la, Abbé, Monsieur's favourite, <a href="#Page_262">262</a>, <a href="#Page_263">263</a>, <a href="#Page_265">265</a>-<a href="#Page_267">267</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Roche-sur-Yon, <a href="#Page_21">21</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rocroy, <a href="#Page_34">34</a>, <a href="#Page_246">246</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Rodrigue</i>, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>, <a href="#Page_175">175</a>, <a href="#Page_176">176</a>, <a href="#Page_261">261</a>, <a href="#Page_419">419</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Roger, "Louison," <a href="#Page_76">76</a>, <a href="#Page_77">77</a>, <a href="#Page_156">156</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rohan, de, Pavillon (Palais de Rohan, Place Royale), <a href="#Page_209">209</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Roland, <a href="#Page_419">419</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rome, <a href="#Page_197">197</a>, <a href="#Page_396">396</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ronsard, <a href="#Page_112">112</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rotrou, <a href="#Page_213">213</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rouen, <a href="#Page_337">337</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Roule (chemin de), <a href="#Page_237">237</a>, <a href="#Page_238">238</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rousseau, J. J., <a href="#Page_95">95</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rubens, <a href="#Page_221">221</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rueil, <a href="#Page_73">73</a>, <a href="#Page_74">74</a>, <a href="#Page_90">90</a>, <a href="#Page_203">203</a>, <a href="#Page_209">209</a>, <a href="#Page_210">210</a>, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>,<a href="#Page_314">314</a>, <a href="#Page_348">348</a>, <a href="#Page_370">370</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">artificial cascades of, <a href="#Page_108">108</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ryer, de, Pierre, <a href="#Page_93">93</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">S</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Sablé, de, Marquise, <a href="#Page_50">50</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Amour, "Little," <a href="#Page_216">216</a>, <a href="#Page_217">217</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Antoine, rue, <a href="#Page_347">347</a>, <a href="#Page_417">417</a> <a href="#Page_418">418</a>, <a href="#Page_420">420</a>, <a href="#Page_421">421</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">faubourg, <a href="#Page_416">416</a>, <a href="#Page_419">419</a>, <a href="#Page_423">423</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Augustine, <a href="#Page_53">53</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Bartholomew, <a href="#Page_347">347</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Bernard, <a href="#Page_277">277</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sainte-Beuve, <a href="#Page_141">141</a>, <a href="#Page_281">281</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sainte Chapelle, la, <a href="#Page_378">378</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Cloud, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>, <a href="#Page_107">107</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Denis, Carmelite nuns of, <a href="#Page_57">57</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">rue de, <a href="#Page_162">162</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">gate of <a href="#Page_347">347</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Dominick, <a href="#Page_205">205</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Saint Esprit</i> (chevaliers of the Order of the), <a href="#Page_63">63</a>, <a href="#Page_166">166</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Evremond, <a href="#Page_249">249</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Fargeau, <a href="#Page_21">21</a>, <a href="#Page_434">434</a>, <a href="#Page_435">435</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint François de Sales, <a href="#Page_276">276</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Georges, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_29">29</a>, <a href="#Page_77">77</a>, <a href="#Page_84">84</a>, <a href="#Page_249">249</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Germain l'Auxerrois, <a href="#Page_13">13</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Germaine, <a href="#Page_90">90</a>, <a href="#Page_91">91</a>, <a href="#Page_108">108</a>, <a href="#Page_201">201</a>, <a href="#Page_202">202</a>, <a href="#Page_206">206</a>, <a href="#Page_232">232</a>-<a href="#Page_236">236</a>, <a href="#Page_253">253</a>, <a href="#Page_349">349</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">fairs of, <a href="#Page_165">165</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Gervais, church of, <a href="#Page_417">417</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Honoré, rue, <a href="#Page_118">118</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">market of, <a href="#Page_29">29</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">faubourg, <a href="#Page_237">237</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Julian, abbey of <a href="#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Laurent, fair of, <a href="#Page_165">165</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Piguerol, prison of, <a href="#Page_333">333</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Simon, <a href="#Page_116">116</a>, <a href="#Page_147">147</a>. <a href="#Page_310">310</a>, <a href="#Page_345">345</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Saints' Party," the, <a href="#Page_296">296</a>, <a href="#Page_298">298</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Theresa, <a href="#Page_274">274</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sales, de, François, <a href="#Page_98">98</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Salon, the Blue Room, <a href="#Page_118">118</a>, <a href="#Page_119">119</a>, <a href="#Page_121">121</a>-<a href="#Page_123">123</a>, <a href="#Page_125">125</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a>-<a href="#Page_129">129</a>, <a href="#Page_131">131</a>, <a href="#Page_134">134</a>, <a href="#Page_136">136</a>, <a href="#Page_141">141</a>-<a href="#Page_147">147</a>, <a href="#Page_152">152</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sand, George, <a href="#Page_95">95</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Sapho</em>, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>-<a href="#Page_50">50</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sarrazin, <a href="#Page_124">124</a>, <a href="#Page_141">141</a>, <a href="#Page_146">146</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saujon, <a href="#Page_264">264</a>, <a href="#Page_265">265</a>, <a href="#Page_272">272</a>, <a href="#Page_335">335</a>, <a href="#Page_336">336</a>, <a href="#Page_381">381</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sauval, <a href="#Page_23">23</a>, <a href="#Page_108">108</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Savante," a, <a href="#Page_46">46</a>, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>, <a href="#Page_49">49</a>, <a href="#Page_53">53</a>, <a href="#Page_56">56</a>, <a href="#Page_79">79</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Savoy, <a href="#Page_33">33</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Scapin, <a href="#Page_24">24</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Schomberg, de, Maréchal, <a href="#Page_307">307</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Scudery, de, Mlle., <a href="#Page_1">1</a>, <a href="#Page_24">24</a>, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>, <a href="#Page_49">49</a>, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>-<a href="#Page_53">53</a>, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>, <a href="#Page_57">57</a>, <a href="#Page_135">135</a>, <a href="#Page_143">143</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sedan, <a href="#Page_191">191</a>, <a href="#Page_192">192</a></li> - -<li class="indx">See, Holy, <a href="#Page_242">242</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Segrais, Sieur, <a href="#Page_79">79</a>, <a href="#Page_161">161</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Seine, the, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>, <a href="#Page_23">23</a> <a href="#Page_337">337</a>, <a href="#Page_338">338</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Seminaries (ecclesiastical), <a href="#Page_277">277</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Senneterre, de, Mlle., <a href="#Page_97">97</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Septembrist, <a href="#Page_423">423</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sévigné, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_53">53</a>, <a href="#Page_54">54</a>, <a href="#Page_95">95</a>, <a href="#Page_123">123</a>, <a href="#Page_132">132</a>, <a href="#Page_136">136</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">her criticism of <em>Bajazet</em>, <a href="#Page_183">183</a>, <a href="#Page_281">281</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sisters of Charity, <a href="#Page_294">294</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sobieski, John, <a href="#Page_94">94</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Soissons de, Comte, <a href="#Page_187">187</a>-<a href="#Page_194">194</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Soissons, de, Comtesse, <a href="#Page_77">77</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Soissons, Madame, mother of M. le Comte, <a href="#Page_193">193</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Somaize, <a href="#Page_113">113</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sons of the nobility, the, <a href="#Page_37">37</a>, <a href="#Page_38">38</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sorbonne, the, <a href="#Page_56">56</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Soul of the nation (national soul), <a href="#Page_248">248</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Spain, <a href="#Page_81">81</a>, <a href="#Page_83">83</a>, <a href="#Page_194">194</a>, <a href="#Page_212">212</a>, <a href="#Page_213">213</a>, <a href="#Page_219">219</a>, <a href="#Page_255">255</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">literature of, <a href="#Page_98">98</a>, <a href="#Page_156">156</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">influence upon the Court of France, <a href="#Page_111">111</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">alliance with, <a href="#Page_248">248</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">"Envoy" of, <a href="#Page_255">255</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">King of, <a href="#Page_303">303</a>, <a href="#Page_379">379</a>, <a href="#Page_380">380</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Spanish money," <a href="#Page_62">62</a></li> - -<li class="indx">State, the, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">importance of women in, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">"the obstacle," the French cavalier's opinion of, <a href="#Page_102">102</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">shield and the sword of, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">credits of, <a href="#Page_318">318</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">magistrates attempt to pacify, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Statesmen, the nation's, <a href="#Page_37">37</a><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_448" id="Page_448">[448]</a></span></li> - -<li class="indx">Strowski, Fortunat, <a href="#Page_285">285</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Strozzi, Maréchal, <a href="#Page_134">134</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Students of Philosophy (<i>see</i> Antoine Godeau)</li> - -<li class="indx">Success, <a href="#Page_246">246</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Supervisor (of the national finances), <a href="#Page_37">37</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Sur-homme," <a href="#Page_178">178</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Suze, <a href="#Page_25">25</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Swans' Pond, <a href="#Page_23">23</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sweden, King of, <a href="#Page_33">33</a>, <a href="#Page_34">34</a>, <a href="#Page_407">407</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sweden, Queen of, <a href="#Page_347">347</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">T</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Tacitus, <a href="#Page_54">54</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Tallemant des Réaux, <a href="#Page_114">114</a>, <a href="#Page_118">118</a>, <a href="#Page_119">119</a>, <a href="#Page_121">121</a>, <a href="#Page_128">128</a>, <a href="#Page_131">131</a>, <a href="#Page_132">132</a>, <a href="#Page_143">143</a>, <a href="#Page_149">149</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Talon, Omer, <a href="#Page_31">31</a>, <a href="#Page_37">37</a>, <a href="#Page_328">328</a>, <a href="#Page_423">423</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Tarascon, <a href="#Page_219">219</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><em>Te Deum</em>, <a href="#Page_76">76</a>, <a href="#Page_336">336</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Temple, the" (<i>see</i> Salon Rambouillet)</li> - -<li class="indx">Theatre (the comedy or play), <a href="#Page_155">155</a>, <a href="#Page_156">156</a>, <a href="#Page_164">164</a>, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>, <a href="#Page_168">168</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"The Elect," <a href="#Page_196">196</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"The Humanities," <a href="#Page_195">195</a></li> - -<li class="indx">The indulgent Abbé, <a href="#Page_217">217</a></li> - -<li class="indx">The Innate Idea (<i>see</i> Vicomtesse d'Auchy)</li> - -<li class="indx">Thélème, the Abbey of, <a href="#Page_230">230</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"The Manly Passions" and "Monsters of the Will" (<i>see</i> Corneille and Nietzsche and <a href="#Page_195">195</a>)</li> - -<li class="indx">The Press, <a href="#Page_64">64</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Thesssaly, <a href="#Page_150">150</a></li> - -<li class="indx">The Terror, <a href="#Page_412">412</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Thou, de, François August, born <a href="#Page_160">160</a>7, died <a href="#Page_164">164</a>2, son of Thou the historian, friend of Henry d'Effiat de Cinq-Mars, and Confidant of Madame la Duchesse de Chevreuse, <a href="#Page_223">223</a>-<a href="#Page_225">225</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Tivoli, fountains of, <a href="#Page_150">150</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Toledo (Bishop of), <a href="#Page_196">196</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Tour de Nesle, <a href="#Page_342">342</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Tours, <a href="#Page_76">76</a>, <a href="#Page_155">155</a>, <a href="#Page_156">156</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Toury, <a href="#Page_400">400</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Treasury, the National, <a href="#Page_308">308</a>, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Treatise on the dramatic play (Prince de Conti), <a href="#Page_160">160</a>, <a href="#Page_161">161</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Treaty, peace (the Peace of Westphalia), <a href="#Page_354">354</a>, <a href="#Page_355">355</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Trissotin, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>, <a href="#Page_127">127</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Tuileries, the, <a href="#Page_13">13</a>, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>, <a href="#Page_23">23</a>, <a href="#Page_29">29</a>, <a href="#Page_60">60</a>, <a href="#Page_78">78</a>, <a href="#Page_156">156</a>, <a href="#Page_158">158</a>, <a href="#Page_221">221</a>, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>, <a href="#Page_253">253</a>, <a href="#Page_260">260</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Turenne, de, <a href="#Page_247">247</a>, <a href="#Page_380">380</a>, <a href="#Page_387">387</a>, <a href="#Page_398">398</a>, <a href="#Page_408">408</a>, <a href="#Page_413">413</a>, <a href="#Page_414">414</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">U</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Urfé d'Honoré, <a href="#Page_92">92</a>-<a href="#Page_95">95</a>, <a href="#Page_98">98</a>-<a href="#Page_101">101</a>, <a href="#Page_104">104</a>, <a href="#Page_106">106</a>, <a href="#Page_109">109</a>-<a href="#Page_111">111</a>, <a href="#Page_124">124</a>, <a href="#Page_157">157</a>, <a href="#Page_167">167</a>, <a href="#Page_168">168</a>, <a href="#Page_170">170</a>, <a href="#Page_288">288</a>, <a href="#Page_289">289</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Usson, d', Château, <a href="#Page_108">108</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">V</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Vadius, <a href="#Page_131">131</a>, <a href="#Page_132">132</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Val-de-Grâce, <a href="#Page_81">81</a>, <a href="#Page_83">83</a>, <a href="#Page_84">84</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Valette, de la, Cardinal, <a href="#Page_149">149</a>, <a href="#Page_150">150</a>, <a href="#Page_152">152</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Valois, the, <a href="#Page_13">13</a>, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>, <a href="#Page_97">97</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Vanini, <a href="#Page_279">279</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Vaugelas, <a href="#Page_138">138</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Veille rue du Temple, <a href="#Page_165">165</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Vendômes, the, <a href="#Page_232">232</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Vengeance, <a href="#Page_177">177</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Venus, son of, <a href="#Page_168">168</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Verdue, de, Mme., <a href="#Page_113">113</a>, <a href="#Page_114">114</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Versaillais, the, <a href="#Page_332">332</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Versailles, <a href="#Page_92">92</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">the Minerva of, <a href="#Page_2">2</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Vice and Virtue, <a href="#Page_279">279</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Vieuville, de, Marquis, <a href="#Page_62">62</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Vigeau, de, Mlle., <a href="#Page_149">149</a>, <a href="#Page_377">377</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ville l'Evêque, <a href="#Page_25">25</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Villepreau, <a href="#Page_118">118</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Villette, la, <a href="#Page_151">151</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Vincennes, <a href="#Page_13">13</a>;</li> - <li class="isub1">Wood of, <a href="#Page_74">74</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Virgil, <a href="#Page_54">54</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Virtue, <a href="#Page_254">254</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Vivienne, rue, <a href="#Page_396">396</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Voiture, "Little," <a href="#Page_133">133</a>-<a href="#Page_136">136</a>, <a href="#Page_140">140</a>, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>-<a href="#Page_146">146</a>, <a href="#Page_150">150</a>, <a href="#Page_152">152</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">W</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Warren, Rabbit, <a href="#Page_23">23</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Westphalia, Peace of, <a href="#Page_246">246</a>, <a href="#Page_354">354</a>, <a href="#Page_355">355</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Wisdom, <a href="#Page_71">71</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Wives (of the Bourgeoisie), <a href="#Page_375">375</a></li> - -<li class="indx">"Wives, Fish," (of the Halles), <a href="#Page_374">374</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">Y</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Yveteaux, de, M. ("d'Yveteaux"), <a href="#Page_128">128</a></li> - - -<li class="isub3">Z</li> - -<li class="ifrst">Zoroaster, <a href="#Page_56">56</a></li> -</ul> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_449" id="Page_449"></a></span></p> - - - - -<p class="p3">FRENCH HISTORY.</p> - -<hr class="r5" /> - -<p class="p5b">OLD COURT LIFE IN FRANCE.</p> - -<blockquote> -<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Frances Elliot</span>. Illustrated with portraits and with views of the<br /> -old châteaux. 2 vols., 8º, $4.00. Half-calf extra, gilt tops $8.00</p> - -<p>"Mrs. Elliot's is an anecdotal history of the French Court from Francis I. to Louis -XIV. She has conveyed a vivid idea of the personalities touched upon, and her book -contains a great deal of genuine vitality."—<cite>Detroit Free Press.</cite></p></blockquote> - - -<p class="p5b">WOMAN IN FRANCE DURING THE<br /> - -EIGHTEENTH CENTURY.</p> - -<blockquote> -<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Julia Kavanagh</span>, author of "Madeline," Illustrated with<br /> -portraits on steel. 2 vols., 8º, $4.00. Half-calf extra, gilt tops, $8.00</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>"Miss Kavanagh has studied her material so carefully, and has digested it so well, -that she has been able to tell the story of Court Life in France, from the beginning of the -Regency to the end of the revolutionary period, with an understanding and a sobriety -that make it practically new to English readers."—<cite>Detroit Free Press.</cite></p></blockquote> -</blockquote> - -<p class="p5b">FRANCE UNDER MAZARIN.</p> - -<blockquote> -<p class="center">By James Breck Perkins. 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The writing is -admirably simple, lucid, and sympathetic, and the -memoirs are surprisingly varied in their interest. -The plates have been prepared from noteworthy -originals which rank among the great works of -art of the period.</p></blockquote> - -<hr class="full" /> - -<p class="center">New York—G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS—London</p> - </div> -</div> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<div class="footnotes"><h3>FOOTNOTES:</h3> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_1_1" id="Footnote_1_1"></a><a href="#FNanchor_1_1"><span class="label">[1]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires de Gaston.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_2_2" id="Footnote_2_2"></a><a href="#FNanchor_2_2"><span class="label">[2]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires de Gaston.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_3_3" id="Footnote_3_3"></a><a href="#FNanchor_3_3"><span class="label">[3]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires de Gaston.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_4_4" id="Footnote_4_4"></a><a href="#FNanchor_4_4"><span class="label">[4]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires de Mademoiselle de Montpensier.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_5_5" id="Footnote_5_5"></a><a href="#FNanchor_5_5"><span class="label">[5]</span></a> Sauval (1620-1670), <cite>Histoire et recherches sur les antiquités de Paris</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_6_6" id="Footnote_6_6"></a><a href="#FNanchor_6_6"><span class="label">[6]</span></a> The gate of the "Conférence" was built at the time the great improvements -were begun, in 1633. It was built after the grand plans of -Cardinal de Richelieu and according to his own instructions (Gamboust).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_7_7" id="Footnote_7_7"></a><a href="#FNanchor_7_7"><span class="label">[7]</span></a> Piganiol de la Force (1673-1753), <cite>Description of the City of Paris</cite>, etc.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_8_8" id="Footnote_8_8"></a><a href="#FNanchor_8_8"><span class="label">[8]</span></a> <cite>Estat de la France</cite> (Collection Danjou).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_9_9" id="Footnote_9_9"></a><a href="#FNanchor_9_9"><span class="label">[9]</span></a> <cite>Extraits des comptes et dépenses du roi pour l'année 1616</cite> (Collection -Danjou).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_10_10" id="Footnote_10_10"></a><a href="#FNanchor_10_10"><span class="label">[10]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires de Mathieu Molé.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_11_11" id="Footnote_11_11"></a><a href="#FNanchor_11_11"><span class="label">[11]</span></a> Letter written by Pontis.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_12_12" id="Footnote_12_12"></a><a href="#FNanchor_12_12"><span class="label">[12]</span></a> <cite>Richelieu et la monarchie absolue.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_13_13" id="Footnote_13_13"></a><a href="#FNanchor_13_13"><span class="label">[13]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite> of Lenet.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_14_14" id="Footnote_14_14"></a><a href="#FNanchor_14_14"><span class="label">[14]</span></a> See his <cite>Mémoires</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_15_15" id="Footnote_15_15"></a><a href="#FNanchor_15_15"><span class="label">[15]</span></a> A few years before his death, which occurred in 1670.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_16_16" id="Footnote_16_16"></a><a href="#FNanchor_16_16"><span class="label">[16]</span></a> Beheaded in 1632, aged thirty-seven years.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_17_17" id="Footnote_17_17"></a><a href="#FNanchor_17_17"><span class="label">[17]</span></a> Tallemant.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_18_18" id="Footnote_18_18"></a><a href="#FNanchor_18_18"><span class="label">[18]</span></a> The first volume of <cite>Le Grand Cyrus</cite> appeared in 1649; the last in 1653.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_19_19" id="Footnote_19_19"></a><a href="#FNanchor_19_19"><span class="label">[19]</span></a> Mademoiselle de Scudéry uses the word <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">propre</i>, meaning "elegant," etc.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_20_20" id="Footnote_20_20"></a><a href="#FNanchor_20_20"><span class="label">[20]</span></a> In <cite>Clélie</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_21_21" id="Footnote_21_21"></a><a href="#FNanchor_21_21"><span class="label">[21]</span></a> Tallemant.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_22_22" id="Footnote_22_22"></a><a href="#FNanchor_22_22"><span class="label">[22]</span></a> The first number bears date 1605.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_23_23" id="Footnote_23_23"></a><a href="#FNanchor_23_23"><span class="label">[23]</span></a> The first number appeared May 1, 1631.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_24_24" id="Footnote_24_24"></a><a href="#FNanchor_24_24"><span class="label">[24]</span></a> <cite>Recueil</cite>, etc. <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Discours sur plusieurs points importants de l'état present -des affaires de France.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_25_25" id="Footnote_25_25"></a><a href="#FNanchor_25_25"><span class="label">[25]</span></a> <cite>Recueil</cite>, etc. <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Avertissement aux provinces sur les nouveaux mouvements -du royaume</i>, by the Sieur de Cléonville (1631).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_26_26" id="Footnote_26_26"></a><a href="#FNanchor_26_26"><span class="label">[26]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite> of Mademoiselle.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_27_27" id="Footnote_27_27"></a><a href="#FNanchor_27_27"><span class="label">[27]</span></a> <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Relation de ce que c'est passé en l'affaire de la reyne au mois d'août, -1637, sui le sujet de la Porte et de l'Abbesse du Val-de-Grâce.</i> See document -in the Bibliothèque National.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_28_28" id="Footnote_28_28"></a><a href="#FNanchor_28_28"><span class="label">[28]</span></a> The first part appeared in 1610, or perhaps [says M. Brunetière], in -1618. The rest followed at long intervals. The four last volumes bear -date 1627 and consequently are posthumous. The part written by d'Urfé -cannot be distinguished from the part written by Baro, who continued the -work begun by d'Urfé.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_29_29" id="Footnote_29_29"></a><a href="#FNanchor_29_29"><span class="label">[29]</span></a> <cite>Manuel de l'histoire de la littérature française</cite>, by M. Ferdinand Brunetière. -Cf. <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">En Bourbonnais et en Forez</i>, by Emile Montégut, and <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Le roman</i> -(XVII. Century) by Paul Morillot in <cite>L'histoire de la langue et de la littérature -française</cite>, published under the direction of M. Petit de Julleville. <cite>Les -vendanges de Suresnes</cite>, by Pierre du Ryer.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_30_30" id="Footnote_30_30"></a><a href="#FNanchor_30_30"><span class="label">[30]</span></a> Waliszeffski: <i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Marysienka</i>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_31_31" id="Footnote_31_31"></a><a href="#FNanchor_31_31"><span class="label">[31]</span></a> Paul Morillot, <i xml:lang="la" lang="la">loc. cit.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_32_32" id="Footnote_32_32"></a><a href="#FNanchor_32_32"><span class="label">[32]</span></a> In the Dedication of <cite>Place Royale</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_33_33" id="Footnote_33_33"></a><a href="#FNanchor_33_33"><span class="label">[33]</span></a> In the Dedication of <cite>Place Royale</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_34_34" id="Footnote_34_34"></a><a href="#FNanchor_34_34"><span class="label">[34]</span></a> M. Lemaître's address, delivered at Port Royal. (Racine's Centennial.)</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_35_35" id="Footnote_35_35"></a><a href="#FNanchor_35_35"><span class="label">[35]</span></a> <cite>Histoire de l'art, pendant la renaissance.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_36_36" id="Footnote_36_36"></a><a href="#FNanchor_36_36"><span class="label">[36]</span></a> Sauval, <cite>Les antiquités de Paris</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_37_37" id="Footnote_37_37"></a><a href="#FNanchor_37_37"><span class="label">[37]</span></a> Dulaure, <cite>Environs de Paris</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_38_38" id="Footnote_38_38"></a><a href="#FNanchor_38_38"><span class="label">[38]</span></a> <cite>Astrée.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_39_39" id="Footnote_39_39"></a><a href="#FNanchor_39_39"><span class="label">[39]</span></a> Montégut, <i xml:lang="la" lang="la">loc. cit.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_40_40" id="Footnote_40_40"></a><a href="#FNanchor_40_40"><span class="label">[40]</span></a> Somaize's <cite>Dictionnaire des Précieuses</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_41_41" id="Footnote_41_41"></a><a href="#FNanchor_41_41"><span class="label">[41]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite>, Conrart.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_42_42" id="Footnote_42_42"></a><a href="#FNanchor_42_42"><span class="label">[42]</span></a> <cite>Gazette de Loret.</cite> (Letter bearing date August 13, 1651.)</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_43_43" id="Footnote_43_43"></a><a href="#FNanchor_43_43"><span class="label">[43]</span></a> Tallemant.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_44_44" id="Footnote_44_44"></a><a href="#FNanchor_44_44"><span class="label">[44]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite>, de Richelieu.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_45_45" id="Footnote_45_45"></a><a href="#FNanchor_45_45"><span class="label">[45]</span></a> Young Louvigny was killed in a duel in 1629; he was entering his -twenty-first year.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_46_46" id="Footnote_46_46"></a><a href="#FNanchor_46_46"><span class="label">[46]</span></a> Vicomte d'Avenel, <cite>Richelieu et la Monarchie absolue</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_47_47" id="Footnote_47_47"></a><a href="#FNanchor_47_47"><span class="label">[47]</span></a> See Gamboust's map, <cite>Paris en 1652</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_48_48" id="Footnote_48_48"></a><a href="#FNanchor_48_48"><span class="label">[48]</span></a> Tallemant.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_49_49" id="Footnote_49_49"></a><a href="#FNanchor_49_49"><span class="label">[49]</span></a> In one of the angles at the end of the courtyard (Tallemant).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_50_50" id="Footnote_50_50"></a><a href="#FNanchor_50_50"><span class="label">[50]</span></a> M. Bourciez <i xml:lang="la" lang="la">loc. cit.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_51_51" id="Footnote_51_51"></a><a href="#FNanchor_51_51"><span class="label">[51]</span></a> <i>Ibid.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_52_52" id="Footnote_52_52"></a><a href="#FNanchor_52_52"><span class="label">[52]</span></a> Bussy-Rabutin, <cite>Histoire amoreuse des Gaules</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_53_53" id="Footnote_53_53"></a><a href="#FNanchor_53_53"><span class="label">[53]</span></a> Oh, no! not such a good boy as all that!—Arvède Barine.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_54_54" id="Footnote_54_54"></a><a href="#FNanchor_54_54"><span class="label">[54]</span></a> Mme. de Sévigné.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_55_55" id="Footnote_55_55"></a><a href="#FNanchor_55_55"><span class="label">[55]</span></a> <cite>Valentin Conrart</cite>, Réné Kerviler and Ed. de Barthélemy.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_56_56" id="Footnote_56_56"></a><a href="#FNanchor_56_56"><span class="label">[56]</span></a> Mme. de Kerviler and Ed. de Barthélemy, <i xml:lang="la" lang="la">loc. cit.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_57_57" id="Footnote_57_57"></a><a href="#FNanchor_57_57"><span class="label">[57]</span></a> Tallemant.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_58_58" id="Footnote_58_58"></a><a href="#FNanchor_58_58"><span class="label">[58]</span></a> Cardinal La Valette.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_59_59" id="Footnote_59_59"></a><a href="#FNanchor_59_59"><span class="label">[59]</span></a> Near Enghien.</p></div> - - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_60_60" id="Footnote_60_60"></a><a href="#FNanchor_60_60"><span class="label">[60]</span></a> Mademoiselle was ten years old at that time.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_61_61" id="Footnote_61_61"></a><a href="#FNanchor_61_61"><span class="label">[61]</span></a> The Palais-Royal of to-day.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_62_62" id="Footnote_62_62"></a><a href="#FNanchor_62_62"><span class="label">[62]</span></a> <cite>>Alex. Hardy et le théâtre français</cite>, Eugène Rigal.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_63_63" id="Footnote_63_63"></a><a href="#FNanchor_63_63"><span class="label">[63]</span></a> Sorel, <cite>La maison des jeux</cite>. The book was published in 1642, but M. E. -Rigal supposes that the disorders and the complaints cited in it date from a -previous epoch.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_64_64" id="Footnote_64_64"></a><a href="#FNanchor_64_64"><span class="label">[64]</span></a> <cite>La pratique du théâtre.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_65_65" id="Footnote_65_65"></a><a href="#FNanchor_65_65"><span class="label">[65]</span></a> Certainly the desire was not lacking.—<span class="smcap">Author.</span></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_66_66" id="Footnote_66_66"></a><a href="#FNanchor_66_66"><span class="label">[66]</span></a> <cite>Le théâtre au temps du Corneille</cite>, Gustave Reynier. The first representation -of the <cite>Cid</cite> took place either in December, 1636, or in January, 1637.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_67_67" id="Footnote_67_67"></a><a href="#FNanchor_67_67"><span class="label">[67]</span></a> See dedicatory letter accompanying a comedy played in 1632 and published -in 1636. <cite>Galanteries du duc d'Ossonne.</cite> Mairet.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_68_68" id="Footnote_68_68"></a><a href="#FNanchor_68_68"><span class="label">[68]</span></a> <cite>Aminta</cite> was played in 1573, but it was not imprinted until 1581, when -it was first known outside of Italy.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_69_69" id="Footnote_69_69"></a><a href="#FNanchor_69_69"><span class="label">[69]</span></a> <cite>Pierre Corneille</cite>, Petit de Julleville.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_70_70" id="Footnote_70_70"></a><a href="#FNanchor_70_70"><span class="label">[70]</span></a> <cite>Pierre Corneille</cite>, Petit de Julleville.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_71_71" id="Footnote_71_71"></a><a href="#FNanchor_71_71"><span class="label">[71]</span></a> Jules Lemaître.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_72_72" id="Footnote_72_72"></a><a href="#FNanchor_72_72"><span class="label">[72]</span></a> <cite>Manual de l'histoire de la littérature française.</cite> F. Brunetière.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_73_73" id="Footnote_73_73"></a><a href="#FNanchor_73_73"><span class="label">[73]</span></a> <cite>Corneille</cite>, Lanson.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_74_74" id="Footnote_74_74"></a><a href="#FNanchor_74_74"><span class="label">[74]</span></a> <cite>Cyrano de Bergerac</cite>, E. Rostand.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_75_75" id="Footnote_75_75"></a><a href="#FNanchor_75_75"><span class="label">[75]</span></a> "There are agreeable things in <cite>Bejazet</cite>, but there is nothing perfectly -beautiful in it, nothing to carry you away in spite of yourself, none of the -tirades which make you shiver when you read Corneille. My daughter, -take good care not to compare Racine to him. Distinguish the difference -between them" (16th March, 1672).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_76_76" id="Footnote_76_76"></a><a href="#FNanchor_76_76"><span class="label">[76]</span></a> Henriette, third daughter of Henry IV., was "accorded with" or promised -in betrothal to Comte de Soissons a few months after her birth; the -Comte was between five and six years old. Marie de Médicis did not consider -the infantile betrothal binding; when she saw fit to marry her daughter -she bestowed her hand upon Charles I., the King of England (1625).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_77_77" id="Footnote_77_77"></a><a href="#FNanchor_77_77"><span class="label">[77]</span></a> Ferdinand, third son of Philip III.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_78_78" id="Footnote_78_78"></a><a href="#FNanchor_78_78"><span class="label">[78]</span></a> The Cardinal-Infant had been forced to leave his camp and go to -Brussels to recover his health. He died in Brussels soon after his arrival, -more beloved by the French people—so it was said—than was becoming to -a King of Spain. (See <cite>l'Histoire de la France sous Louis XIII</cite>. A. Bazin.)</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_79_79" id="Footnote_79_79"></a><a href="#FNanchor_79_79"><span class="label">[79]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires de Michel de Marolles</cite> (Abbé de Villeloin); <cite>La Conspiration -Cinq-Mars</cite> (Mlle. J. P. Basserie).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_80_80" id="Footnote_80_80"></a><a href="#FNanchor_80_80"><span class="label">[80]</span></a> Dulaure's <cite>Histoire de Paris</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_81_81" id="Footnote_81_81"></a><a href="#FNanchor_81_81"><span class="label">[81]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite>, Montglat.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_82_82" id="Footnote_82_82"></a><a href="#FNanchor_82_82"><span class="label">[82]</span></a> Fontenelle's <cite>Vie de Pierre Corneille</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_83_83" id="Footnote_83_83"></a><a href="#FNanchor_83_83"><span class="label">[83]</span></a> Cinq-Mars had been promoted to the position of Grand Equerry.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_84_84" id="Footnote_84_84"></a><a href="#FNanchor_84_84"><span class="label">[84]</span></a> Motteville.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_85_85" id="Footnote_85_85"></a><a href="#FNanchor_85_85"><span class="label">[85]</span></a> Motteville.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_86_86" id="Footnote_86_86"></a><a href="#FNanchor_86_86"><span class="label">[86]</span></a> Montglat.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_87_87" id="Footnote_87_87"></a><a href="#FNanchor_87_87"><span class="label">[87]</span></a> <cite>Registres de l'Hôtel de Ville</cite> (Collection Danjou).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_88_88" id="Footnote_88_88"></a><a href="#FNanchor_88_88"><span class="label">[88]</span></a> <cite>Mémoire du roi au plénipotentiaires</cite> (6th January, 1644). ("Il ne faut pas -s'étonner de tout ce que disent nos enemies; C' est à nous de tenir: il est -indubitable qu'ils se rangeront peu à peu.")</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_89_89" id="Footnote_89_89"></a><a href="#FNanchor_89_89"><span class="label">[89]</span></a> The first of our casinos.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_90_90" id="Footnote_90_90"></a><a href="#FNanchor_90_90"><span class="label">[90]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite> of Mademoiselle.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_91_91" id="Footnote_91_91"></a><a href="#FNanchor_91_91"><span class="label">[91]</span></a> Olivier d'Ormesson.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_92_92" id="Footnote_92_92"></a><a href="#FNanchor_92_92"><span class="label">[92]</span></a> Mademoiselle erred as to the date; the <cite>Gazette de France</cite> fixes it March -8th.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_93_93" id="Footnote_93_93"></a><a href="#FNanchor_93_93"><span class="label">[93]</span></a> About six millions of francs.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_94_94" id="Footnote_94_94"></a><a href="#FNanchor_94_94"><span class="label">[94]</span></a> Mademoiselle errs in supposing (in her memoirs) that it was but one -year. Such errors are frequent in her writings.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_95_95" id="Footnote_95_95"></a><a href="#FNanchor_95_95"><span class="label">[95]</span></a> <cite>Père de Bérulle et l'Oratoire de Jésus</cite ->, M. l'Abbé Houssaye.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_96_96" id="Footnote_96_96"></a><a href="#FNanchor_96_96"><span class="label">[96]</span></a> <cite>Saint François de Sales</cite>, Fortunat Strowski.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_97_97" id="Footnote_97_97"></a><a href="#FNanchor_97_97"><span class="label">[97]</span></a> The Abbé Houssaye, <i xml:lang="la" lang="la">loc cit.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_98_98" id="Footnote_98_98"></a><a href="#FNanchor_98_98"><span class="label">[98]</span></a> <cite>Saint Vincent de Paul et les Gondis</cite>, Chantelauze.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_99_99" id="Footnote_99_99"></a><a href="#FNanchor_99_99"><span class="label">[99]</span></a> <cite>Le Cardinal de Bérulle et Richelieu</cite>, the Abbé Houssaye.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_100_100" id="Footnote_100_100"></a><a href="#FNanchor_100_100"><span class="label">[100]</span></a> <cite>Les Libertins en France au XVII. Siècle</cite>, F. T. Perrens.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_101_101" id="Footnote_101_101"></a><a href="#FNanchor_101_101"><span class="label">[101]</span></a> <cite>Oraison funèbre d'Anne de Gonzague</cite>, Bossuet.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_102_102" id="Footnote_102_102"></a><a href="#FNanchor_102_102"><span class="label">[102]</span></a> <cite>Port Royal</cite>, Sainte Beuve.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_103_103" id="Footnote_103_103"></a><a href="#FNanchor_103_103"><span class="label">[103]</span></a> <cite>Bérulle et l'Oratoire</cite>, the Abbé Houssaye.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_104_104" id="Footnote_104_104"></a><a href="#FNanchor_104_104"><span class="label">[104]</span></a> Fortunat Strowski.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_105_105" id="Footnote_105_105"></a><a href="#FNanchor_105_105"><span class="label">[105]</span></a> Their uselessness, their ignorance have made us despise them.—Bossuet.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_106_106" id="Footnote_106_106"></a><a href="#FNanchor_106_106"><span class="label">[106]</span></a> <cite>Manuel de l'histoire de la littérature française</cite>, F. Brunetière. -</p> -<p> -The first edition of <cite>La vie dévote</cite> appeared in 1688, the <cite>Traité de l'amour -de Dieu</cite> appeared in 1612.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_107_107" id="Footnote_107_107"></a><a href="#FNanchor_107_107"><span class="label">[107]</span></a> The address delivered on the occasion of Racine's Centennial, 26th -April 1899.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_108_108" id="Footnote_108_108"></a><a href="#FNanchor_108_108"><span class="label">[108]</span></a> Motteville.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_109_109" id="Footnote_109_109"></a><a href="#FNanchor_109_109"><span class="label">[109]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_110_110" id="Footnote_110_110"></a><a href="#FNanchor_110_110"><span class="label">[110]</span></a> <cite>Declaration pour la Régence</cite> (21st April, 1643).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_111_111" id="Footnote_111_111"></a><a href="#FNanchor_111_111"><span class="label">[111]</span></a> Born in 1616.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_112_112" id="Footnote_112_112"></a><a href="#FNanchor_112_112"><span class="label">[112]</span></a> Édouard, Prince Palatine, a younger son of the Elector Palatine, -Frédéric V.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_113_113" id="Footnote_113_113"></a><a href="#FNanchor_113_113"><span class="label">[113]</span></a> Motteville.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_114_114" id="Footnote_114_114"></a><a href="#FNanchor_114_114"><span class="label">[114]</span></a> Duc d'Aumale's <cite>Histoire des princes de Condé</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_115_115" id="Footnote_115_115"></a><a href="#FNanchor_115_115"><span class="label">[115]</span></a> Among other emoluments he had 800,000 livres.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_116_116" id="Footnote_116_116"></a><a href="#FNanchor_116_116"><span class="label">[116]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite> of Lenet.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_117_117" id="Footnote_117_117"></a><a href="#FNanchor_117_117"><span class="label">[117]</span></a> Manuscript <cite>Mémoires</cite> published in fragments with Olivier d'Ormesson's -Journal, by M. Chervel (who appears to have been a member of the House -of Condé).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_118_118" id="Footnote_118_118"></a><a href="#FNanchor_118_118"><span class="label">[118]</span></a> Mazarin lived in a palace which became the Bibliothèque Nationale.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_119_119" id="Footnote_119_119"></a><a href="#FNanchor_119_119"><span class="label">[119]</span></a> In Mazarin's letters the words in italics are either in cipher or in -words which he had agreed upon with the Queen when arranging the -details of his absence; in this instance we have used the translation given -by M. Ravenel in his <cite>Lettres du Cardinal Mazarin à la Reine</cite>, etc.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_120_120" id="Footnote_120_120"></a><a href="#FNanchor_120_120"><span class="label">[120]</span></a> La Porte.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_121_121" id="Footnote_121_121"></a><a href="#FNanchor_121_121"><span class="label">[121]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite> of La Porte.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_122_122" id="Footnote_122_122"></a><a href="#FNanchor_122_122"><span class="label">[122]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite> of de Brienne, junior.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_123_123" id="Footnote_123_123"></a><a href="#FNanchor_123_123"><span class="label">[123]</span></a> See the journal of Olivier d'Ormesson. This scene took place March -19, 1645.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_124_124" id="Footnote_124_124"></a><a href="#FNanchor_124_124"><span class="label">[124]</span></a> Motteville.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_125_125" id="Footnote_125_125"></a><a href="#FNanchor_125_125"><span class="label">[125]</span></a> <cite>La misère au temps de la Fronde</cite> (quoted from the records of the Council).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_126_126" id="Footnote_126_126"></a><a href="#FNanchor_126_126"><span class="label">[126]</span></a> <cite>La Galerie des portraits de Mlle. de Montpensier.</cite> (New edition.) -Édouard de Barthélemy.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_127_127" id="Footnote_127_127"></a><a href="#FNanchor_127_127"><span class="label">[127]</span></a> May, 1648.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_128_128" id="Footnote_128_128"></a><a href="#FNanchor_128_128"><span class="label">[128]</span></a> Gamboust.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_129_129" id="Footnote_129_129"></a><a href="#FNanchor_129_129"><span class="label">[129]</span></a> André d'Ormesson. (See note accompanying Olivier d'Ormesson's -journal.)</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_130_130" id="Footnote_130_130"></a><a href="#FNanchor_130_130"><span class="label">[130]</span></a> Lenet's <cite>Mémoires</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_131_131" id="Footnote_131_131"></a><a href="#FNanchor_131_131"><span class="label">[131]</span></a> See official documents. (Paris, 31st October, 1648.)</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_132_132" id="Footnote_132_132"></a><a href="#FNanchor_132_132"><span class="label">[132]</span></a> Forty sole. (See Olivier de Ormesson's journal.)</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_133_133" id="Footnote_133_133"></a><a href="#FNanchor_133_133"><span class="label">[133]</span></a> Monsieur's second marriage had endowed him with five heirs, three -of whom (daughters) had lived.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_134_134" id="Footnote_134_134"></a><a href="#FNanchor_134_134"><span class="label">[134]</span></a> <cite>Journal des guerres civiles</cite>, Dubuisson-Aubenay.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_135_135" id="Footnote_135_135"></a><a href="#FNanchor_135_135"><span class="label">[135]</span></a> Retz.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_136_136" id="Footnote_136_136"></a><a href="#FNanchor_136_136"><span class="label">[136]</span></a> Unpublished and anonymous memoirs cited by Chévruel.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_137_137" id="Footnote_137_137"></a><a href="#FNanchor_137_137"><span class="label">[137]</span></a> <cite>La jeunesse de Mme. de Longueville</cite>, Cousin.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_138_138" id="Footnote_138_138"></a><a href="#FNanchor_138_138"><span class="label">[138]</span></a> <cite>La Rochefoucauld</cite>, J. Bourdeau.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_139_139" id="Footnote_139_139"></a><a href="#FNanchor_139_139"><span class="label">[139]</span></a> <cite>Demandes des princes et Seigneurs qui ont pris les armes avec le Parlement -et Peuple de Paris</cite> (15th March, 1649.) See <cite>Choix de Mazarinades</cite>, -M. C. Moreau.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_140_140" id="Footnote_140_140"></a><a href="#FNanchor_140_140"><span class="label">[140]</span></a> For a study of the complicated causes of the fall of the nobility see -<cite>Richelieu et la Monarchie absolue</cite>, G. d'Avenel.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_141_141" id="Footnote_141_141"></a><a href="#FNanchor_141_141"><span class="label">[141]</span></a> d'Ormesson.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_142_142" id="Footnote_142_142"></a><a href="#FNanchor_142_142"><span class="label">[142]</span></a> <cite>Registres de l'Hôtel de Ville pendant la Fronde.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_143_143" id="Footnote_143_143"></a><a href="#FNanchor_143_143"><span class="label">[143]</span></a> <cite>Registres de l'Hôtel de Ville pendant la Fronde.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_144_144" id="Footnote_144_144"></a><a href="#FNanchor_144_144"><span class="label">[144]</span></a> <cite>Segraisiana.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_145_145" id="Footnote_145_145"></a><a href="#FNanchor_145_145"><span class="label">[145]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite> of La Rochefoucauld.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_146_146" id="Footnote_146_146"></a><a href="#FNanchor_146_146"><span class="label">[146]</span></a></p> - -<div class="container"> -<div class="poem"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="i2">. . . "<i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Je veux dormir,</i></div> - <div class="i0">Je naquis en dormant, j'y veux passer ma vie.</div> - <div class="i0">Jamais de m'éveillen il ne me prit envie,</div> - <div class="i0">Toi, ma femme et ma fille, y perdez vos efforts,</div> - <div class="i9"><i xml:lang="fr" lang="fr">Je dors.</i>"</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_147_147" id="Footnote_147_147"></a><a href="#FNanchor_147_147"><span class="label">[147]</span></a> <cite>Le Journal de Dubuisson-Aubenay.</cite></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_148_148" id="Footnote_148_148"></a><a href="#FNanchor_148_148"><span class="label">[148]</span></a> <cite>La jeunesse du Mareschal du Luxembourg</cite>, Pierre de Ségur.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_149_149" id="Footnote_149_149"></a><a href="#FNanchor_149_149"><span class="label">[149]</span></a> M. Feillet cites this letter in <cite>La misére au temps de la Fronde</cite>, but he -does not give its date.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_150_150" id="Footnote_150_150"></a><a href="#FNanchor_150_150"><span class="label">[150]</span></a> Lenet's <cite>Mémoires</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_151_151" id="Footnote_151_151"></a><a href="#FNanchor_151_151"><span class="label">[151]</span></a> Motteville.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_152_152" id="Footnote_152_152"></a><a href="#FNanchor_152_152"><span class="label">[152]</span></a> The street separating the terrace from the garden, rue des Tuileries.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_153_153" id="Footnote_153_153"></a><a href="#FNanchor_153_153"><span class="label">[153]</span></a> He was less than thirteen years old.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_154_154" id="Footnote_154_154"></a><a href="#FNanchor_154_154"><span class="label">[154]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite>, La Porte.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_155_155" id="Footnote_155_155"></a><a href="#FNanchor_155_155"><span class="label">[155]</span></a> This name is of doubtful authenticity; Mazarin's letters to the Queen -are in cipher in some parts. In this book I have followed the text of -M. Ravenel, <cite>Lettres du Cardinal Mazarin à la Princesse Palatine</cite>, etc. -(1651-1652).</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_156_156" id="Footnote_156_156"></a><a href="#FNanchor_156_156"><span class="label">[156]</span></a> <cite>Les Mémoires</cite> of Guy Joly and of Mme. de Nemours.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_157_157" id="Footnote_157_157"></a><a href="#FNanchor_157_157"><span class="label">[157]</span></a> Mazarin's apartments in the Palais Royal, next to the Queen's apartments. -Lyonne lodged in the <cite>rue Vivienne</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_158_158" id="Footnote_158_158"></a><a href="#FNanchor_158_158"><span class="label">[158]</span></a> Motteville.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_159_159" id="Footnote_159_159"></a><a href="#FNanchor_159_159"><span class="label">[159]</span></a> Mademoiselle's memoirs.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_160_160" id="Footnote_160_160"></a><a href="#FNanchor_160_160"><span class="label">[160]</span></a> The city ditch.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_161_161" id="Footnote_161_161"></a><a href="#FNanchor_161_161"><span class="label">[161]</span></a> <cite>Mémoires</cite> of Conrart and the <cite>Registres de l'Hôtel de Ville</cite>.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_162_162" id="Footnote_162_162"></a><a href="#FNanchor_162_162"><span class="label">[162]</span></a> Omer Talon.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_163_163" id="Footnote_163_163"></a><a href="#FNanchor_163_163"><span class="label">[163]</span></a> <cite>La muse historique</cite>, de Loret.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_164_164" id="Footnote_164_164"></a><a href="#FNanchor_164_164"><span class="label">[164]</span></a> Governor of the Spanish Low Countries.</p></div> -</div> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<div class="transnote"> -<p class="p3">TRANSCRIBER NOTES:</p> - -<p>P.<a href="#Page_6">6</a>. 'MEDIC S' changed to 'MEDICIS'.</p> -<p>p.<a href="#Page_50">50</a>. 'aujourd'huy' changed to 'aujourd'hui'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_83">83</a>. Footnote 'National' changed to 'Nationale'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_95">95</a>. 'inaginative' changed to 'imaginative'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_114">114</a>. 's'aecrut' changed to 's'accrut'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_138">138</a>. 'phenominal' changed to 'phenomenal'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_160">160</a>. 'aud' changed to 'and'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_163">163</a>. 'française' changed to 'français'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_181">181</a>. 'nêtes' changed to 'n'êtes'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_181">181</a>. 'Je le soutien, Carlos, vous nêtes point son fils' -l think should read 'Je le soutiens, Carlos, vous n'êtes pas son fils'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_183">183</a>. 'It it' changed to 'It is'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_228">228</a>. 'dualogues' changed to 'dialogues'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_247">247</a>. Footnote #'ennemies' changed to 'enemies'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_287">287</a>. 'woful' changed to 'woeful'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_315">315</a>. Footnote # 'Lettres des' changed to Lettres du'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_345">345</a>. 'aud' changed to 'and'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_367">367</a>. Footnote # 'Parlementet' changed to 'Parlement'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_377">377</a>. 'imperi-ious' should be 'imperious', changed.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_391">391</a>. Added 'I' to 'where I was'.</p> -<p>P.<a href="#Page_423">423</a>. Footnote <a href="#Page_1">1</a> 'del' Hôtel' changed to 'de l'Hôtel'.</p> -<p>Adds: added . after dollar amountvarious.</p> -<p>Fixed various punctuation.</p> -</div> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of La Grande Mademoiselle, by Arvede Barine - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LA GRANDE MADEMOISELLE *** - -***** This file should be named 50717-h.htm or 50717-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/0/7/1/50717/ - -Produced by Jane Robins and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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