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G ENERA L ED IT O R : L E KA ST NE R M A
. .
, . .
SELEC T ED L ET T ERS O F
MA D A ME SEVIG NE
DE
FRENC H SERIES FO R SC H O O L S .
Th is seri es i s i n t e n ded , as t h e t i t l e i n d i c a t es , p r i m ar i ly fo r t h e u s e of
s c h o o ls ; a t t h e s am e t i m e i t i s h op e d t h a t i t m ay b e fo u n d s e r v i ce a b l e fo r
t h o s e Un i v e rs i ty s t u d e n ts w h o a r e n o t sp e c i a l is ing i n Fr en c h .
Eac h v o lu m e is p ro v i d ed w ith i n t r o d u c t i o n , c o n c i s e n o t es a n d a
an
c l as s
ied b i b l i og rap hy , as w e l l a s an i n d e x A fe a t u re of t h e i n t ro du c t i o n s
.
M O LI ERE ,
L A VA RE
. Edit e d b y Pro fe s s o r A T B A KER, M A . . . . , Ph D. .
35 . ne t.
In p rep ara ti o n .
P RESS N O T I CE S P RO FE SS O R B A KER S
L A VA RE
OF
.
k
Ta i ng i t a l t oge th e r , t his i s t he b es t s c h o o l e di ti o n of a ny p l ay by
k
Mo l i er e t h at w e n o w of an d e v en a t t he Un i v e rs i ty , s t u d en ts w i ll l ea r n
k
fro m i t a gr e a t d eal W e l oo for w ard w i th p l eas an t an t ic ip ati on t o
.
k
fu r t h er w o r of t his excel l en t i n d fr om P rofess o r B a e r k k .
Th e Sc h o ol W o r ld -
.
oft en c as t , an d ju s t l
y c as t , a t Engli s h edi t i o n s offo re ign w o r s k .
Th e b o o k is s u re to nd a w ar m w e l c o m e i n s c h oo ls .
3 o urnal o Ex eri m en ta l
f p P edagogy .
SEL EC T ED L ET T ERS
OF
M AD AM E D E SEV IG NE
E D IT E D BY
A . T . BA KER, M . A .
,
PH D . .
P rofesso r f F renc h
o L angu age and L i t er at ure i n t h e f S hei eld
o
t .
3
0
V
/ J
.
M A N C HEST ER
AT T H E U N I V ERS I T Y P RES S
12 LI ME G RO VE, O XFO RD RO A D
LO NG M A NS ,
G REEN CO .
39 PA T ERN O S T ER RO W , LO N D O N
mw Y O RK, B O M BAY , C A LCU TT A , A ND M A D RAS
19 18
Man c h e s te r at
P ub lish e d b y t h e U n iv e r s it y of
1 2 L I ME G RO VE , O X FO RD RO A D M A N C HES T ER,
LO NG MA NS, G R EEN CO .
C H I CA G O Pra irie A v e n u e an d T w e n t y ft h St re e t
-
B O MB AY : 8 Ho rn b y Ro ad
C A LCU TT A : 6 O ld C o u rt Ho u se St re e t
M AD RA S : 1 67 M o un t R o a d
P REFA C E .
t h e mann er in w hi c h a t e xt should b e e di t e d th e w o r ds of ,
v e n t io n all
y asc rib e d t o g re at wr it er s of th e past says : I f th e y
,
thick e ning fold s conc e als th e m fr om t h e o r dinary ga z e
, .
its j oys and its so rro w s w ill stand reve al e d as no oth er study
could reve al th e m .
will b e his o wn .
ha ve b ee n pass e d o ver .
A T B . . .
PAG E
I NT RO D U CT I O N ix
T E XT
N O T ES 109
B I B LI O G RA P H Y I3 7
I ND E X I4 3
vi
INT RO D U C T IO N .
1 . T H E T I MES O F MM E D E SEVIG N E
.
A s t he l e t t e r s o f M m e d e S e vign e d e al so la rg e ly with th e g re at
nobl e s of th e tim e o f L ouis X I V among w h o m w ere h er ,
A t t h e d e ath o f H e n ry II I in 1 58 9 H e n ry of N a v a rre s u c
c e e de d t o t h e c r o w n as H e n ry I V ; h e had still t o con q u er
ix
x S EL EC T E D LE TT ERS OF M A D AM E DE S EV I G N E
su r plus .
th e fa v ou r ite o f th e Q u e e n Re g e n t M a r i e d e M d ic is I n
, .
an d t h e ,
Ob les '
pa c i e d and fo rc e d to ac c e p t t h e P e ac e of A lais in 1 6 2 9 B y .
la n o bl e ss e n e st bonn e qu a se fai re tu er
M an y had b ee n
e mpl o y e d in t h e supp re s s ion o f th e P r ot e stants in t h e S outh
E st r e e s n ear N i m e s Ep e rnon and M ontauban ; Ve n tad o u r at
,
spit e th e fact t hat its functions w ere p ro p erly only th e disp e nsa
tion o f ju sti c e had s ever al ti m e s play e d a p o litical Idle It
, .
p e n de nc e by Po r tugal and th e d e fe at , of h e r ee t by th e
E nglish and th e D utc h .
and h e di e d in D e c e mb er I6 4 2 , .
1 638 .
, ,
o f R e g e ncy w as t o consist o f t h e Q u e e n as Re
Min ori ty
o f L o uis g e nt th e d u e d O rle an s as l i e ut enant g e n eral O f th e
,
-
, ,
, , ,
nd e xp ression in th e st ru ggl e s k no w n as t h e Fr o n de .
T he
fo ll o w ing campaign (he had no w b e c om e p r in c e Flan dg s
C am p agm
d e C o nd aft er his fath e r s d e ath ) again d e fe at e d
x iv LE TT ER S OF DE S
po r ting th e m by fo r c e of a r ms T h e diffe re n c e w as ho w e v e r
.
, ,
s e i z e t h e m e mb er s o f th e Pa r l e m e nt t o w h o m th e p e o pl e o f
Pa r is ga v e t h e i r suppo r t and th e re e nsu e d th e battl e of th e
Ba rricad e s (A ugust 2 6 in this str uggl e th e p r in c e s
,
w e re o n th e sid e O f th e Pa rl e m e nt T he Q ue e n .
T he
Fi rs t ga ve w ay and by th e T re aty of S t Ger main (O cto
,
.
a de '
n e c e ssa r y Cond at r st s id e d w it h th e m e mb e rs of t h e Re
.
le s fo sss d e Pa r is q ui se s pa re nt d s qu rls v o ie n t le li e u
,
, ,
app ea r e d to d e si re to li ve up to h er ho r os c op e
L a gra de
M ade w hi c h had p re di c t e d sh e w ould do e xt rao rdin ary
m is c u
e '
t h e Q u ee n M oth e r is to b e b e li ev e d t o fo r c e the
-
,
Co nd
K ing h er c ousin to m a rry h e r d e spit e th e fact tha t
.
sh e w as e l e ve n y e a r s O ld er than b e A n d Cond t o o v ic t o ri
.
,
e t it w as so A nd T u r e nn e t h e g r a ve T u r e nn e w i t h th e
y .
, ,
s e mi ind e p e nd e n t e f? It s ee m s so T he n a mo re in e x
- .
,
, , ,
Th e y o un g K ing .
, ,
Ki n g .
inspi re d h i m w i t h a l o v e fo r r omanc e an d po e t ry ,
1
M ari e An n e M an c i n i m arrie d i n
-
1 6 6 2 G o d e frO i M au ric e de la To u r,
-
du c d e B o u illo n , ne ph ew of Tu re n n e , a b ro t h e r o f t he C ard in al d e
B o u illo n . C f Le t t e r
. No . 2 .
I N T RO D U C T I O N x ix
m e n p r o c e e de d fro m t h e W e s e l do w n th e Rhin e th e P ri n c e ,
o f th e Rhin e b e t w ee n A r nh e im and w h er e th e l fo rk s O
'
o th e r s ung th e ms e l v e s o n t h e D u t c h c rying : N o q ua r t er
fo llo we d by t h e a r my [ Cf Le tt er s No s 3 7 3 8 3 9
. .
,
.
, , ,
s o m e b e cau s e o f th e r a vag e s o f th e F re n ch t ro o ps in th e i r
d o minions o t h e r s b e c aus e o f th e gro w ing de t e r mination of th e
,
O n M ay I 1 6 7 3 L o ui s l e ft S t Ge r main ac c ompani e d by
, , .
D e at h o f
fo r som e tim e re sum e d th e i r gam e o f ch e ss e ach ,
Le tte rs N 0 5 4 3 4 4
, .
, ,
W m ostly in th e fo r m o f si e g e s a battl e w as a g re at
eve nt till nally p eace w as mad e in 1 6 7 8 A t th e mom e nt .
W 3 1 111
.
'
o cc u p i e d w rt h th e S i t uat i o n In E ngland th e E m , t h e P al a
t h an
p e ro r had a w a r w ith t h e T u rk s o n h is hand s and
L o ui s thought h e w o uld se i z e th is au s pi c ious mom e nt to fall
o n t h e E mp e r o r and cl e a r u p his many di f fe re n c e s with him .
S e pt e mb e r 1 6 8 8 F re n c h t r 0 0 p s p e n e t rat e d t h e t e rr ito ry o f th e
, ,
to p re pa re bills fo r t h e G r an d Ch am br e L aw y er s by p ro fe s
.
ba r o ns g re w so ti re d of b eing p rompt e d in th e la w by m e n
w hos e p o sition w as o n a b e nch at th e i r fe e t that t h e y b egan
t o ab s e nt th e ms e l v e s and th e la wye r s a s sum e d th e re d r o b e
,
C aus e w as r a re ly e x er c is e d e x c e pt in th e cas e w h e re o n e
( 111 ROi .
o f th e i r body w as to app e a r fo r t rial Th e y e a r .
C h ar ges .
g (
c har es p o sts
) w ere obtain e d by pu r c h as e by such
p e r sons as had pass e d th e i r la w d eg ree s and we re
ac c e p tabl e t o a c o mmi t t e e o f b e nc her s B y t h e e n d o f t he
.
x xv i S ELE C T E D L E TT E RS OF MAD AM E D E S VI E GN E
( o r t ier s t at
-
) had so littl e c o mmon g r ound o f ag r e e m e nt that
th e d e lib erations o f th e S tat e s w ere almost al ways bound to
T h e Th re e e nd in a d e adloc k . Th e t er m t ier s t ta t stands
Es t at e 5
p rac t ically fo r th e bou rg e oisi e th e p e asant an d t h e
,
, ,
D isab iliti es
nobl e man w as n o t eve n p e r mitt e d to b e com e a
'
( cf.
je v ous fais pa r c [ Le t t er o r l e t it on l e as e .
P r o v e nc e
cam e und er th e c r o w n th e k i ngdom fo r pu rpos e s
, an d ,
B ri t t a "
of tax tion and local administration was d i v id e d
a ,
n tig
.
, , ,
, , ,
L a aire
.
,
de N p r i v il e g e s appoint e d th e ba r on d O p p d e rst
I de
.
, ,
M ar s e ille
p re sid e nt o f t h e Pa rl e m e nt as inte rim li e u t e nant
'
and his b roth er coadj uto r G rign an s position an d his nat u ral .
G uard
S t at e s fo r a sum su f ci e nt to m al n t ain his gua r d .
, , , ,
.
, ,
.
, .
,
C h arge
posts w ere h e re dita ry o r ve ndible p r ov id e d th e s uc
'
1 In a le t t e r p
d at e d Se t e m b e r 1 3 , 1 67 1 , Mm e v
d e Se i gn e writ e s t o h er
dau gh t er : C o n se rv z v
e o t re s an t , vo t re v
b e au t , o t re am it i (i e ati c e . .
t io n ) a n qu e rie n n e m an q u e a m a jo ie .
Q ue d it e s -
vo u s de c e ll e de
M .
d A n d illy d e vo ir M . de Po m po nne ( h is so n ) m i n ist re e t s e c r t aire
d et at ? En v i
r t i l fau t lo u e r 1e Ro i d u n
si b e au c h o ix . Il t o i t en
Su d e (c f . p . xx ) ,
il (i e. . t he Ki n g) p e n se a lu i et lu i do n n e c e t t e c h arge
d e M de L io nn e ,
. s n c e s saire s p o u r fa ire q u il la
v
a e c t o ut e s le s fac il it
c o m m e i1 fau t d o n n e r q u e l q u e r ec o m e n s e a so n l s qu i a l a su rv ivan c e
p , ,
e t qu e l e p rix q u e livre s d o n t j en do n n e
j ai r gl m o n t e a
,
re t e n u e d e s l ivre s qu e vo us d e ve z fo urn ir e n at t e n d an t qu e je ,
t ro uve d an s q u e l q u e s an n e s l e m o e n d e v o u s do n n e r d e q u o i vo u s t ire r
y
d e l e m b arras m e t t e n t b e au c o u p d e d e t t e s T h is p at e n t w h ils t i t di d
"
.
in te n d a n ts
ha v e had consi d era b l e valu e fo r w e nd that ,
'
, .
h e r w ay t o v isit h e r daught er in 1 6 7 2
-
W e nd h er w r i t ing .
(
l .
is m e tant es t im e r
. A t th e e nd of this y e a r o r e a rly in 1 6 7 3
.
l i n t e n d an t e
at M a rs e ill e s .
w o ul d l e nd i t to t h e G o v e r nm e n t I n 1 6 53 Fou q u e t w ho h ad .
,
w ellt o f
l
l e ssly mix e d up wi th t h e public m o n e y that h e had
f?
b e long ed to t h e nation F o u q u e t had ot h e r 0 c .
ha ve don e a w ay w i t h all this fa r ming of tax e s had it not
b e e n so d ee p r o o te d as to b e in eradi c abl e .
P o s t in g
all th e main
. r oads and at distan c e s o f fou r l eagu e s
le t t e rs
by S ully I n 1 6 2 7 Rich e li e u a rrang e d fo r th e
b e t w e e n all th e la rg e c e nt re s of population Le tt e rs l e ft Pa r is .
S v ign in h e r impati e n c e to re c e i ve h e r l e tt e r s b r ib e d a cl e rk
, ,
p o wer o f t h e c ount r y .
t h e fact t h at s h e h e r s e lf re q ui re d Six ho r s e s a re e l o q u e nt e v i
h e d re ad e d th at if h e all o w e d t h e e x p o rt o f w h e at C o lb ert s ,
t io n h e fe lt mo r e at h o m e wi t h t r ad e and s o ught by p ro t e c
,
sai re s ; o r w h e n Colb ert fail e d to bo rro w as mu c h as was
w ant e d th e K ing w ould re ply that h e k n e w that C o lbe r t w as
,
o f the , ,
dp e ns e e n habit s
S aint S im o n c ond e mns M a za rin as th e ev il g e niu s wh o
-
d O rl an s L o u is X IV s un c l e in F e b r ua r y 1 66 0 ) ha v ing lost
, , ,
,
d e si re d t o h e a r w hat h e want e d : S i re said h e j ay per du
, ,
v ost re maj e st m e p e rm is t d p o u se r u n e d e s p e ti t e s F o u q u e t t e s
dat e .
, le s
fe mm e s y pa ru re n t dans u n c lat ext r ao r dinai re but t h e m e n s ,
d a rg e nt : le s chauss e s e sto ie n t d un ve lo ux (an old er and mo re
1
Arm an d d e B et h u n e , c o m t e , an d , lat e r, d u c d e C h aro st , had marri ed
Fo u qu e t
s e l de s t d au gh t e r a v
fe w m o nt h s p re i o us t o t h is in c id e n t .
xxxv ii i SE L EC T E D LE TT ER S OF MA D AM E DE S EV I G N E
m a i
r
1
le comt e d e G ui c h e : i1 e st o it aussi [v t u] d e v e lo u x
,
fo rm o it uh t r s b el e sc lat .
bi e n r ich e s e t d e bi e n m agn i qu e s s e l o n la m o d e q u i c ou r t :
e t c omm e d o rd in aire l e s fe mm e s se p ic qu e n t d e p aro is t re plus
le s un e s q u e le s a u t re s e t d av o ir q u e l q u e c hos e d e pa r tic u li e r
,
il y e n av o it d e di v e r s e s m an i re s : le s un e s e st o ie n t b rod e s ,
l e s a u t re s e st o ie n t chama rr e s d e d e nt e ll e s e t il y e n av o it dont ,
fe mais il
l e n ric h isse m e n t c o n s is t o it e n la s e ul e fago n d e l e s t o f
n y e n av o it point q ui n e u st Sa b e a u t e t sa magni c e nc e
.
l o n p o r t e s u r le c h ap p e au e st t re s fasc h e ux it q ui n y e s t pas
ac c o u st u m c ar o n e n p o rt e d e s b o u q u e ts a t ro is r angs
,
e t a n
1
Eld e s t so n o f t h e m ar c h al d u c d e G ram m o n t , h ad m arrie d M lle de
Su lly a fe w w e e ks b e fo re t his b al l . Aft e r his d e at h i n Tu re n n e
s arm y
d O lo n n e
et q u el q u e s aut re s y pa r u rent a v e c d es to q u e s d e
v e lo u x noi r e n t o u rn e s d e plum e s e t d e s just au
,
Th e e x
,
o f d ress
c e s e x e a in ve nt it l imita t ion de la r e yn e d e S u e d e
'
c o st e z e t au d ev ant e t au d err i e re E ls e w h ere th e y t e ll us
.
d re ss (se e Bibliog raph y p
, .
, .
p l is s s o e n t e .
th e C a n t
Fran c e consist e d in gath er ing hi s Cou rt p erp e tually
'
T h e C ourt
[ Le tt er N o . M o re than two y e a r s lat e r goe s t o ,
v e rm i n
O ctob er 1 2 1 6 7 8 w e re ad : la cou r e st a S aint
, ,
:
, ,
t h e n e xt y e a r F e b r ua ry 9 1 6 8 3 M m e d e S v ign is full o f th e
, , ,
E spagn e d e n v oi r 1a v r it J e l ai v u e e t mani e c e st un
.
fut it c e s d e ux ch o s e s q u e je m at t ac h ai e t e ll e s m e re n t fo r t
,
T h e m ag_
ho r s e s ll e d th e stabl e s and fo r mil e s a r o und t h e ,
ni c e n c e o f w h ol e c o u nt r y fo r m e d t h e r o yal pa r k o r p lais au n c e .
m t o it
tout e nou ve ll e j uge z M adam e d o p laisi r q u e jy pr is , ,
.
m e n c h e z M d e L o u v o is qu i m a dit d e song er a ma c o m
.
,
d e s e s jo u e s .
M li re r
n e ll e in Mo li re s Tar tuiz ( 1 66 4 9 ) r e e cts o n th e
-
So n t d u m ali n e sp it t o ut e s ve t io s
r In n n .
n e t e d d e p i e us e s p a o l e s
L ajam ai s on n n r :
Ce so nt p o p o s i ifs h a so s t fa ib o l ;
r o s , c n n e r es
B ie n so uv t l p o h ai e
en a sa b o
e e pa t r c n n nn r ,
Et l
on y s ai t m d ir e et d u t ie r s et du q u art .
q u a faire b o n n e c h ere ,
C ro is t u q u u n n ait
-
ju ge
Qu ab at t re l a
p av c o m m e u n t as d e galan t s ,
bi sh o p P re xe wh o h ad b e e n t h e K ing s tuto r C o u rt
'
, ,
s e a t I n Le tter No 2 0 Sh e re ma rk s t h at la c k e ys had b e e n
. .
l a dy at
,
Ch u m"
beli e et t r es tou chan te -
I n Fe b r ua r y 1 6 64 Sh e w as
.
, ,
p re s e nt at a s e r m o n o f B o u rdalo u e o n t h e day o f t h e P u ri c a
ti o n o f th e Vi rgin an d re ma r k s t hat it : faiso it t re mbl e r le s
,
hau t e m e nt e t Si g n r e u s e m e nt l e s v ri t s c h rti e nn e s : il t o it
q u e sti o n d e fai r e v oi r q ue to u t e p u issanc e d o it t re so u mis e
it la lo i a l e xe m p l e d e N o t re S e ign e u r qu i fut p r s e n t au
-
, ,
il lui p laiso it d e n ir
B oth B o u rd alo u e and B ossu e t w e re
.
o r a t i o ns on H e n ri e tt e d e F ran c e (N o ve mb e r
HOW t h e ,
b un e d
th e Q u e e n ( M a ri e T h r se S e pt e mb er
-
, ,
re ad
armoires . Romances then w e must unde r stand had rather , ,
d e m b arqu e m e n t d av e n t ure s ( p 7 0 l
, In July 1 6 7 1 .
,
.
, ,
, ,
, ,
m a charm e ( J uly 2 3 S he had t he goo d ta s te t o
,
had bro k en all her early lite ra ry idols ; Chapelain M enage and , ,
d oc t o r s.
an d o f doctors Whereas M me de S e vign e has a
.
certain resp ect fo r the s u rgeon sh e has lit t le for the doc t or
, ,
, .
, .
o n La Rochefoucauld [C f Let t er N o
. . It w as th e fashion
.
,
ship for her s o n an d only later and after s ome years service did
,
a full com pany for the young ma r quis [Cf Letter . Only .
T ill his time the r e had been n o corps o f en gineers but he had ,
c ould read Virgil i n all the maj esty of t he t ext tha t she r ead
,
had for med in the past alliances w ith les Clisson les Mon t ,
, ,
aimable qualities for the grief sh e felt at his loss was violen t
an d lasting .
When Mme de S v ign arrive d in Paris after her husband s
death t hat ci t y was in a s t ate o f ferment It w as the eve of
,
.
intermediary bet w een her father and the Quee n but the price ,
w hen they feared that at any moment the young King might
ee o r migh t be carried o ff by the princes the capital s eemed
,
e tc
. La grande mademoiselle w as at that time over
Lau z un
forty but s t ill o f a ro mantic temperament ; she
.
T h e Fronde over and Paris once m ore peace ful the gaieties ,
Corneille s star w as o n the wane S carron C yrano B o isro b e rt , , ,
the C ourt during the struggle B oth Mo n tau sie r and his w ife .
Although Louis w ent each year t o rej oin the army tak ing ,
S e vign e s cousin B ussy w hom w e have already mentioned was
, , ,
, ,
o m mt
E st o zr e to Mme de Baume a person o f no p rin p
' '
'
a s ong sati rising the King and s ome o f the ladies o f the C o u rt ,
. . .
,
Cw :
traits of the great captains of h is time in another ,
cet t e beaut
'
l ines
V o us qui n aqui t e s t o ut e b e l le
A vo t re in differe nc e p res
.
s uc c e s s
S e vign e w as so great an ornament o f the C ourt
at C o ur t .
l m
gig t ravelling w as unbelievably slo w and dangerous
tu '
stay at Mo u lins she rece ived a letter from her mother w hich
had been entr u sted for delivery to M me de G u n gau d th en ,
cross t he Rhone d uring a storm and the boat w hich bore t hem
w as driven violently against o n e o fthe a rches of th e ruined bridge
o fAvignon
[ C f p 2
5 l
. .At Arles
. M me ,
de Grign an made
.
, ,
P ro v e nc e .
by Va r des and President B andol sh e made h e r ,
Gd gn an
Gri gnan w ith i t s high w alls an d turre t s l o o k in g '
, ,
o ffe r ed all sorts O fdis t ractions even the O pera an d above all ca r d
,
O ppo r t unity of co mpa rative leisure to bring her beauti ful young
relative Mlle Murinais t o call o n M me de Se vign e Im m e d i
, ,
.
?mf gf
v in c ial co mpany When she left L es Ro e/z er s to
.
, ,
, ,
Letter 3 3 ] as early as sh e had arranged M me de la T rousse s .
so n w as t hat de la T rousse
(already mentioned ) to w ho m
C harles de S e vign e became ensign and her da u ghter w as Mlle ,
at the time o f the Fronde at w hich time he and B ussy had had
,
occasion o f the Kin g s tour to Flanders before t h e D utch War
the King condescended to spend a night o n the w ay as th e
guest o f Con d at Chantilly E xtensive p reparations w ere
, .
made for w ee k s before this visit the u nfort u nate Vat e l being
,
l x iv S ELE C TED LETTE RS O F M ADA M E DE SEV IG N E
Frie n ds in
lived M me de Villa r s sister o f the marchal de ,
qu ar te r
, , ,
in the end elle s e m p re ssa de r edonner le Roi a l a France
Grignan felt that her husban d nee ded her an d that she could
best s erve his inte r ests in Proven ce In 1 6 7 4 ho w ever after .
, ,
unite d'
toujou r s to r t it w as fel t by all M me de G rign an s
m arqm s
en t erprise o f the w ar w as the ta k ing o f Philipp s
P h ilisb o u rg e st pris Letter gives some idea of
[ ]
c ry :
5 7
w ha t an e t ernity O f an xiety the month had been for both moth er
and gran dmo t her The army t hen pro ceeded to th e con quest
.
Letter
T his yea r o f 1 6 8 8 brought another distinction to the
Grignan in the form o f the covete d ribbon o f the S aint Esprit
,
-
o rd re d u
S ai n t Paris to have the order confe r red so Mme de ,
age of seventy .
'
perds : c est une amie tendre e t solide u n e socit d e lic ie u se ,
soumission tonnantes .
Cette femme si tendre e t si foible pour tout c c q u elle
A P a is r , c c 20 m ai 1 66 7 .
En at t e n d an t qu e no s
gu e rrie rs 5
R e vi e nn e nt c o u ve rt s d e l au ri e r s .
laby r in t he d O II l O n n e so r t i ra p as sa n s le l d A rian e J ai 2 5
.
,
[ ] 2 AU CO MTE DE BU SS Y RA B U T IN
A P aris , c c 26 j u ill e t 1 66 8 .
, ,
5
e n u n mo t que je hu r le avec les loups e t que je suis d as se z
, ,
1 0 pays Ci
-
.Mo n cousin apprenez donc de moi que c e n est pas ,
3 5 quelque tem ps apr e s ayant su que vous aviez fait des mer ,
vu
,
me di t o n en core au bou t de hui t j ours ; e t moi de souri r e
-
,
.
, Je n e ,
.
,
vous t e s casse la t e te
'
IO vous conj u ran t d Ot e r de vot r e esp r it que c e soi t moi qui aie
2 0 e n deu x mille ; e t e n n
je n fe r ai t an t par des let t res d un e
,
.
,
les honneurs .
6 S ELE C TE D LETTE RS OF
le res t e .
J e n e vous dis point main t enan t com ment vous
e t es avec moi ; le monde me je t t e ro it des pierres si je faiso is ,
fense prtendue
,
J ai re c u c e que vous m av e z envoy to u chant notre mai
l abb e e n a aussi quelq u es uns 1 1 y a p laisir d e t ale r u ne bonne -
.
'
[4 ] AU C OM T E DE BU SS Y RAB U T I N
A Pa i s r , cc 4 d c e m b re 1 66 8 .
,
,
r e gle .
8 S ELE C TED LETTER S O F
moi J e sais que vous avez mis au bas d u por t rai t que vous
.
la n otre
Qua t or ze cont ra t s de ma r iage d e p er e e n ls ; t r ois cent c in
quan t e ans de c h evale r ie ; le s p e res quelquefois consid rables
dans les gue rr es de B r e t a gne e t bien ma r qus dans l h ist o ire ; ,
J e m o.n s , ,
[ 5] A U COM T E D E BU SS Y RAB U T I N
A P ar is ,
ce 7 j an vie r 1 66 9 .
l am it i qu en di t es vous ? J e n t e n ds vo t r e t on e t je c o m 1 0
- -
, ,
quelle diff re n c e
IO S ELE C T ED LE TT E R S OF
[6 ] AU CO MTE DE BU SS Y RABU T IN
A P aris , cc 4 j uin 1 66 9 .
point d t re grand m e re
out r age u se ment o u m aimer plus que votre vie ? Des mouve
,
'
IS tat qui n e vous d e v ro it pas brouiller avec moi Si je t o is ,
20 I l j ure qu il n e vous crira poin t sottement comme tous ,
, ,
[ 7] A U CO MT E D E BU SS Y RABU T I N
A P aris , cc 9 j u in 1 669 .
, ,
vous dive rt i t dans votre soli t ude p u isq u e lle me rjo u isso it ,
J e vous j ure qu il y a
n av o n s p as voulu envoye r
Nous n av o n s point fai t tant de
.
p la ,
.
[ ]
8 AU C O M T E DE GRIGNAN
A Pa is r , m e r c re di 6 ao f
it 1 670 .
EST -
qu en v ri t je n e vous ai p as donn la plus j oli e
CE
.
,
334 m ] A M . DE C OUL A N GE S
A P a is r , ce lu n di 1 5 d c e m b re
, , ,
chose qui fait crier misrico rde a tou t le mon d e ; une chose
qui comble de j oie M me de Rohan e t M me d Hau t e riv e ; une
J e n e puis me rsoudre .
moque de vous que voil a une b e lle raill e r ie que cela est bien
, ,
Adieu les lettres qui seront port es par cet ordinaire vous
feront voir si n ous disons vrai o u non .
[ u ] A M . DE C OULANGE S
A Pa is r , cc ve n dre d i 1 9 d c e m b re
r ien avaler que des bou illons Voil a u n beau songe voil a u n .
,
[1 2] A M D E CO U LA NG ES
-
.
A P a is
r ( 1 6 70 ) r , ce m e rc re di 24 d cemb e
, ,
i [ 1 3] A M
s . DE C O U L A NG ES
A P a is r ,
ce m e rc re d i 3 1 d c e m b re
J J l
AI e t o nne .
, ,
j a a ,
Se v e re dans P o ly/enci e
D u m o in s ne la p e u t o n b l am e r d u n m auv ai s
-
c h o ix :
Po ly e u c t e a d u n o m , e t so rt d u s an g d e s ro i s .
p r udence ! ah ! la prudence l
Elle me t pleurer a force de
pleu r er J y suis enco r e r etourne deux fois elle est fort
.
A ,
[1 4] A M A D A M E DE GR I G N A N .
A Pa is ve r ,
n d re d i 6 f vrie r
M A douleur s e ro it bien m diocre Si je p o u v o is vous la
dpeind r e je n e l e n t re p re n drai pas aussi J ai beau che r cher
.
5
m arrac h o it 1e coeur e t l a me ; e t e n effet quelle rude s e para
,
Io j
pour moi voil a c e que je sais avec les douleu r s de tous ceux
, ,
compliments Si je v o u lo is .
[ 1 5] A M A D A M E DE GRIGNAN
A P a is l u r ,
n di 9 f v ie r r
, ,
c
que de ceux qui savent aimer comme je fais Vous me fai t es .
n e n cherche
J e suis e n t i ere m e n t in capable de voi r beau
p as .
rjouir je les prie de m e xc u se r : je n ai jamais v u de Si belles
ames qu il y e n a e n c e pays Ci J e fu s sa me d i tou t le j our chez
-
.
,
d U z es e t chez M me d u Puy d u Fo u qui vous fait mille
,
- -
,
s e n s] A M ADA M E DE GRI G N A N
A P aris , l o m e rc re di 1 8 f vrie r
, .
l e tat O ii i1 m a vue autre fois Mais quit t ons c e s t r istes so u v e
.
2 o nable
je me sou t iens au besoin e t quelque fois je suis qua t r e ,
fort bien les tendresses que j ai pour vous ; elle est t ouch e d e
35 c o n n o is Fai t es quelque
. mention de certaines g e n s dans vos
IO honn e te de vous en e tre souven ue comme d une de vos an
.
,
L o n a eu avec l une e t l aut r e des conve r sations tendres : tout
Vau v in e u x tout cela vous baise les mains mille e t mille fois
,
.
J e ne
p ens e a a u tre chos e ! J e mb rasse vos
p auvr e s lle s
.
M AD A M E DE SEV IG N E 23
[ 1 7] A MADAM E D E GRIGN A N
V e n dr e d i au s o ir , 2 7 f vrie r
le savoi r par vous jat t e n d s cette nouvelle avec une impa t ience
A MA D AME DE GRIGNAN
Mardi 3 m ars
autre chose a lui dire Voici tout le contraire c est que j aime .
,
Helas ! .
2 5 dit elle
-
mais vous m o u b lie z : son gez que je suis vot r e plus
,
l c lat de votre ma r i m e fera p r i r Si vous n av e z Soin de m oi
, .
en co r e tous les j ours e t t ous les entretiens de ceux qui ent r ent ,
d avan ce ; m o n coeur en av o it besoin je n en ferai pas un e
coutume .
Me rc re di .
.
,
, .
, ,
1 0 je n
frissonne e t je m en suis rveille avec d e S sursauts
,
rendu gra ces a Dieu de vous avoir sauve Pour moi je suis .
,
pe r suade que les messes que j ai fai t dire tous les j ours pour
[ 1 9] A MA DA ME D E G RIG NA N
A P a is r , cc ve n dre di 1 3 m ar s
.
,
1e voir entendre . 10
que vous aviez voulu p aro it re brave dans l esp erance que ,
,
28 S ELE C TED LETTER S O F
dise u n mot ?
p
-
.
une mine qui n e v alo it rien Apr e s cela o n a dit cent mille .
l avois p r vu
C est u n e chose tran ge q u u n e imagination
.
notre maison de Paris m asso m m e encore tous les j ours e t ,
Livry m ach ave Pour vous c est par u n e ffet de mmoire que
.
,
J ai trouv de la douceur dans la tristesse que j ai eue ic i : une
Mascaron ; j ai touj ours honor les belles passions Adieu ; .
A Paris ve n dre di , s ai n t 2 7 m ar s .
d au t re s
J e suis tr
. e s O blige a B andol de m av o ir fait une Si
agrable relation Mais d o u vient ma bonne que vous .
, ,
pas relue ; c ar pour moi qui les lis avec attention ell e m a , ,
, ,
c est que quelque ave r sion que je vo n s aie t ouj ours vue pour
, a
le s n arra t ions j ai cru que vous aviez trop d esp rit pour n e pas 1 0
,
J e n e O
25
.
qu il me se m b lo it pas qu il ma r c h at
3o
.
ri r e ? "
ai envie de vous dire enco r e c e que je vous dis une 4o
fois : Ennuyez vous cela est si m chant -
, .
s u cc e s
.
C o m m e n t vo u s le p je d ir e ?
o u rrais -
Ri e n
n e st p lu s in c e rt ain que 1 h e u e d e l a m o t
r r .
heure.
A Paris ,
m e rc re di v
Ier a ri l
35 t -
.
,
.
,
jamais .
z z ] A MADA ME
DE GRI GNAN
)
A P ari s , cc dim an c h e 26 vril
a
, ,
2 0 pas . Il dit a Gourville : La t e t e me tourne i1 y a douze
,
nuits que je n ai dormi ; aid e z m o i a donner des ordres
~
.
non pas a la table d u Ro i mais aux vingt cin qui emes lui
-
, ,
d u Ro i Monseigneur votre bont m ac h ev e ;
Il lui dit :
.
,
l r o a Point d u tout
j e sais que e ti a manqu deu x table s
,
,
d u n nua ge il c o tt t o it seize mille francs A quatre heures d u .
de l h o n n e u r e t de la rep u t at io n a pe r dre
Gou r ville se moqua .
.
,
que les g ran ds voya ges : Si l o n t o it touj ours dans l e sen t imen t
, ,
-
.
bel esprit qui a In tous les r omans e t qui a re gu deux let t res ,
bon rien n est Si bea u que c e s alles que vous avez v u es n ait re
,
.
38 S ELE C TE D LETTER S O F
M 2 5] A MA DA ME DE GRI G N A N
j uill e t A ux Roc h e rs , cc 15
toujou r s les plus grandes le t tres d u monde ; mais cela n est pas
Oh Iqu e j aim e l a s o l it u d e l
ue c e s
l ie u x s ac r s a l a n u it ,
lo ign s d u m o n d e e t d u b ru it ,
Plais e n t a m o n i n qu i t u d e !
aime r ; elle comprend les sen t iments que j ai pour vous : cela
tend r esse ; rpondez y par une petite demi feuille que je lui
- -
mais pour les a ffaires presses que vous avez ensemble il n est
m c ri t d e s
pieds de mouche qu e je me sau ro is lire : je lui
r ponds des ru desses e t des injures qui la dive r tissent e t m o i ,
, ,
r ames tous co mme des gens de pierre J e pris cou rage e t lui .
,
pas que cela puisse jamais reveni r a Picard ; elle meur t don c
d e n n u i ; je s uis sa seule consola t ion e t vous c r o yez bien que
, ,
que les po e tes o n t clb r e p r end r e t ous ceux qui t rav aillo ie n t , ,
c est que faner ? Il faut que je vous l e xp liqu e : faner e st la
n i ro i t
p as qu il n t o it pas ent re a m o n se rvice pour cel a que
, ,
c e n t o it
y fo n t des pas de B o h
miens e t de bas B r etons avec une dlicatesse e t une j ustesse ,
1 5 sid e n t M M ,
les procureurs e t avocats gn r aux d u pa r lemen t
.
,
, .
. .
sais com men t plus de quarante mille cus qui lui reviennen t
, .
, ,
con t inuel des bals t e rnels des comdies t rois fois la semaine
, , ,
p , ,
M ADA M E DE S EV I G N E 43
vous voudrez .
papier par fum Ceux qui vous voient lire m e s le ttre s c r oient
.
v u u n e Si
grande C h er e Nulle table a la cour n e peut e t re .
aussi
est c e pour n ourrir trois cents personnes qui n o n t que cette
-
, ,
1 5 sant de M me de Car i gn an
C e tt e sot t ise a fait ri r e M M . .
q u on n ous av o it assu r qui le v o it la paille Ma fo i elle .
,
, .
,
46 S ELE C TED LETTE RS OF
l aim e r de tout so n coeur Mandez m o i n u m o t de lui je le .
-
,
,
n e voulez pas que j aie pe ur de verser ? c est cela que je
c r ains ; e t Si q u e lq u u n m assu ro it que je n e me fe ro is point de
[2 9 ] A M A D A M E DE GRI GNA N
A ux R o c h e rs , d im an c h e 2 3 ao f
it
a a
i Livry avec o n r ze e vous pensiez pas
p u s q u sa ,
me ,
, ,
rhume pouvantable ; j ai bu de l eau je n ai point parl je ,
,
,
qu elle allo it reprendre que de l affro n t qu elle av o it r e c u ici
demain lui aider a sou t enir le res t e des tats qui n iro n t dans 4o ,
auj ourd hui de l un e t demain de l autre n e trouvant pas que
, ,
que ma tante v a prend r e mes petites ent r ailles pou r les amener
che z elle Cela fac h e ra bien la n ou rr ice mais q ii e fai r e ?
.
,
Je .
, ,
, ,
chose que de l e n te n d re causer de tout cel a C es di scours .
t an t Ot chrtienne e t t an t Ot politique ,
Nous parlons t re s so u .
n t re pas a la mode
.
plaisant .
suis ab i m e ; je n e puis voir sou ffr ir quelques uns des amis qui -
mourir Vous paye r ez les a r rrages avec les cent mille francs
.
va
p as en emp i r and o co mme les aut r es M de T allard dit . .
D u b ru it d e B ajaz e t m o n am e im p o rt un e
vence T out de bon il n e m c o u t e ro it pas ; vous voyez que
.
,
J e n a , ,
[3 2
] A M A D A M E DE GRI GNAN
A P a is ve r , n dr e di au so ir , 1 5 j an vie r
J E vous ai cri t c e matin ma bonne pa r le cou r rie r q ui vous 2 5 , ,
ro is s e n t bonnes .
1 0 Ma belle lle m a paru la plus merveilleuse com dienne que
-
j aie jamais vue : elle surpasse la D e soe ille t s de cent lieues loin
e t moi qu on croit assez bonne pour le th e a tre j e n e suis pas
, ,
digne d allu m e r les chandelles quand elle p aro it Elle est laide
.
1 5 sa p r sence ; mais quand elle dit des vers elle est adorable , .
au dessus de
-
Appliquez e t ressouvenez vous de cette folie
.
,
-
,
)
d e s divins endroits de Corneille Il nous lut l autre jour une .
.
, ,
natu r el qu a l o rd in aire
.
n est S i fou que de mettre so n salut dans l in c e rt it u d e ; mais
J e m ab i me dans ces .
,
.
1 5 tout ; mais Si on m av o it demand m o n avis
jau ro is bien aim
, ,
e t q u A n d r o m aqn e B ajaz et e st au dessous au sentiment de
.
-
,
vo us y -
.
M AD A M E DE SEV IG N E 55
L [3 4 ] A M A D A M E DE GRI GNAN
A P a i ve n d
r s, re d i 6 m ai
re p r s e n t at i o n :
e la Force la Justice la T e m p eran c e e t la 1 5 , ,
. .
, ,
d ad re ss e ; il
a Si bien mis dans so n j our tout c e qui p o uv o it
e tre admi r il a fai t des trai t s d lo qu e n c e e t des coups de
Pour la musique c est ,une chose qu on n e peut e xpliquer ,
.
qui fat vivant il n y m an qu e ro it pas ,
Cette folie l a fait rire
.
,
,
-
dans la vie .
fais p nitence Il tombe vanoui , o n 1e couche , on l e.
, ,
1 0 l p o u se
C e ga r gon es t bru tal il e st fou il la ba tt r a b ie n t Ot
.
, ,
ma t an t e a c e pauv r e faubou r g .
y
-
, ,
3 5 vous ado r e .
J e m b
rasse m o n cher Grignan V ous aime t il toujours .
- -
di so is
.
J e n e sais donc qui peut faire c c mis r able larcin il
grand go u t a p r end r e des le t tres au deg r de 2 0
n y a pas u n ,
, ,
Alpes d on t les chemins son t plus troits que vos lit iere s en
, ,
Est elle bien dsesp r e de s e voir au del a des Alpes ? Est elle
- -
,
oublier Elle vo u s l a rendue pro m ptement mais c e n est pas
.
1 5 B rancas S es t inquit
je n e sais pourquoi ; il e st a l arm e
, ,
'
volontaire dsesp r de m ille choses qui n e v it e ra pas trop de
, ,
fait rponse .
2 5 pourquoi
; jy pense a tout moment e t j en suis dans d e s
,
, ,
.
,
v o u S y ju s q u a c e que je vo u s e n Ot e
-
Not r e C her abb p ense .
5 ju s q u a demain a Paris
J e m e n vais me promene r e t pe nser
.
3
.
[ 3 7] A M A DA ME DE GR I GNAN
A P aris ve n d re di
, 1 7 j u in a 11 h e ur e s du so ir.
l p au le e t d ans la m ac h o ire qui n o ffe n se pas l os Adieu
.
, , ,
,
que m o n ls soit dans l arm e d u Roi ; i1 y aura tant d o c c a
[ ]
3 8 AU C O MT E DE BU SS Y RABU T I N
A P aris , ce 1 9 j u in 1 672 .
S i t ou t d u n train il S am u se a m di t e r O ii il v a nous n e
,
.
,
sont a la gue rr e
Adieu m o n che r cousin je m e n vais dine r J e t r ouve
, ,
.
coup de vanit .
64 S ELE C TED LETTERS O F
[3 9 ] A M A DAME D E G RIGNA N
A Paris , 20 j u in
m est impossible de me reprsenter l e tat o u vous avez t
IL
,
l arm e ? H las ! j t o is bien loin de le c r oire ma pauv r e
q
quelque chose de funeste En effet d e s qu ell e parut Ah ! .
,
Mademoiselle ! com me se po r te M onsieur mon frer e ? Sa
3 0 pens e n osa aller plus loin
Madame i1 s e po r te bien de sa .
,
blessur e I! y a eu u n combat Et m o n ls ?
On n e lui r .
35 t l u n - -
que la plus vive douleur put faire e t par des convulsions e t par , ,
q u a .
Les n o uvelles que je vous mande sont d O rigin al : c est de
3 0 lui .
J e m b rass e M de Grignan e t le Coadj uteur
. .
M AD A M E DE SEV IG N E 67
A di x h e ur e s du s o ir .
, ,
dou t ez pas .
, , ,
vi t e Si l o n e t su l e n v ie que c e s gens l a av o ie n t de se
,
-
rend r e mais tout est ma r qu dans l o rd re de la P r ovidence .
.
,
,
.
4 o pauvre ,
[4 1 ] A M A DAME D E GRI G N A N
A Mars e ille (jan vi e r 1 6 73
harangue t re s belle J at t e n d s u h prsent e t le p r sent attend
.
, , ,
2 o a de belles
.
,
J don
A LLA Ic diner samedi c hez M de Pompone comme e . ,
, ,
vous tiez p riso n n i ere que vous t iez u n e prin c esse chasse de
,
de Dieu e t une hor r eur pour le monde tout cela j oin t a une
,
J e tout re go is
prsentement ma ch e re enfant votre lettre , ,
, ,
.
.
, ,
Io pour vos af
faires jamais je m aurois mis en compte au moin s
, ,
p .
,
'
e t S il vous manque vous savez que M de G r ignan n est pas ,
.
l in t ret de so n fr e re M onsieur le Coadj uteu r e st ha r di il e st
.
,
tenir ma lettre .
lo n gueu r d un pas e t que m m e il serra la main par convulsion
,
e tre content que je l aim asse seulement autant que j aime vot r e
po r trait .
[ 4
4 4 A M A D A M E DE GRIGN A N
A P aris v e , n dre d i 9 ao f
it
( I6 75) .
p , ,
, ,
o n t attaqus O n t t dfaites .
d u n s eul hom me
Ec o u t e z je vous prie ma bonne un e
.
, , ,
que nous avions rsolu : les yeux n e nous s c h ere n t pas Elle .
, ,
, ,
, ,
qu il av o it t t u n e n a plus cr i t u n m o t u i a la pauv r e
,
loin ( les autres par ceux qui l ont pris ou par des paysans e t
, ,
.
M ADA M E DE SEV IG N E 79
5 n e n pas di r e u n mot
Voici c e que m e con t a hier c e petit
.
25 -
. .
j e u sse l h o n n e u r de revenir au p res de vous
Monsieu r r .
3 0 h ,
4 o , ,
.
es t ime e t so n amiti
Monsieur le di t au C hevalier qui r
.
,
pondit : Ah ! Monsieur c est beaucoup pou r u n jour ; e t
,
p o i n ons
c une boite,
point de coi f
f e e n u n mot une
,
t rio m , ,
s u qu on se p laign o it qu elle e m p ec h o it toute la France de voir
1e Roi elle l a redonn com me vous voyez e t vous n e sauriez ,
e n cal a che .
'
c e prince alla eu i sp ad a ogn i v i t i o r i a e eer fa Le moyen de
.
d A lle m agn e On di t pou r tant que le Rhin e st t ellement e n
.
des neiges qui fondent des montagnes que les ennemis sont ,
p e t i t G l o r i e u x n a pas plus d a f
f ai r es que l e S au t r es : il
pourra 5
S e n n u ye r ; mais s i l a beso in d un e contusion il fa u d r a qu il se
,
de me dire u h seul m o t Oh Si vous n t e s pas con t en t e c c
.
[4 7] A MADA M E DE GRI G N AN
A G ie n v e ,
n dr e di 1 6! o ctob e r
J A I p ris vot r e lettre ma tr e s ch e re en passant par Briare :
, ,
u n tou r que vous auriez bien aim e : nous devions qui tt er notre 2 5
de so n COt e t nous d u n o t r e
, .
e t noi r s ; cette vue p o u rro it effr ayer des gens moins polis que
J
e veux vous dire u n mot de ma sant : elle est par faite ;
les eaux m ont fait des merveilles e t je t r ouve que vo us vous
,
3 o j 1 .
[4 8 ] AU C O M T E DE BU SS Y RABU T I N
A L ivry , cc 3 no ve m b re 1 677 .
feuilles ; elles sont encore to u tes aux arb r es ; elles n o n t fait que
'
bourg lui dit que c e t o it les gendarmes Dauphin e t que M de
-
,
.
c e s occasions s i chaudes e t Si longues O h l on n a q u u n e im
,
mutabilit qui vous fait voir la mort mille fois plus horrible que
quand o n est dans l ac t io n e t qu on S o c c u p e a battre e t a se
,
1 5 dfendre .
[ so] A M A D A M E DE GRIG N A N
A P aris ve n dr e di , 15 m ars
20
gn e u r .Mais son tat e st un e chose digne d ad m irat io n : il e st
fort bien dispos pour s a cons cien ce voil a qui est fait du ,
tion ; il n e n est p as e ffleur il n e n est pas troubl ; il enten d ,
reviens a c e v e rS
TIO p de sso u s d e lu i p o ur y p r t e r l e sp rit .
au -
C o mme c est lui qui e st son ami de tous ses enfants o n fut
, ,
, .
, ,
fo r ce e t qu il n e fCi t point abattu des saign es il n a fallu
, ,
1 5 douce u r u n ag r men t un e c o n an c e
,
une c o n sid erat io n pour
, ,
quelque tem ps aux d pens de notre rate qui est toute pleine ,
de tristess e .
i [52 ] A M A D A M E DE GRIGNAN
r
A N an t e s , lun di au s o ir 2 7 m ai
, , , ,
h ui i g q ue repas e n maigre a
i
j o u rd ils m ont donn u h S m a n ,
[ 53 ] A MA D AM E D E GRI G N AN
A Re nn es, m ar di 6 ao t
n baise o n su e o n n e sait c e qu on
p e li o e le t t o O n ar r t e. o , , ,
mes bel les lles plus rouges que d u feu tant elles me c raigne n t
-
, , .
3 5 s u rm o n t o it : e n n no us re m o n t am e s en carrosse e n t iere m e n t
m connaissables e t nous v i n m e s chez M me de Ma rbeuf qui
, ,
changeai de chem ise e t d h ab it ; e t sans vanit je me S d une
,
beaut qui e ffaga e n t iere m e n t mes belles lle s : l h o n n e u r de -
ment n a pas plus d esprit que moi qui donna deux ch ecs e t
,
u n ai r de r oyaut
e t e n n vous en conclurez que c est u n 2 0
,
92 S ELE C T ED LE TT E R S O F
1 0 quelquefois bien d e S choses qu on n e pense p as e t quand o n
1 5 dlicats q uand cela se trouve avec u n esprit se c cela fait des '
lieues loin .
Me rc r e di m at in , 7 ao t .
hier danser des hommes e t des fem mes for t bien ; o n n e danse
3 o pas mieu x les menue t s e t le s passe pieds : justement com me je
-
des consolations que Dieu nous envoie apr e s les a fic t ions q u i l
am u se m e n t S v o s t r ompe r ies
,
vos lettres e t v o s vers m ont , ,
2 5 gens d esp r it
Nous avons trouv beaucoup de c e s pdants
. .
les clairer C est l e sentiment que jau rai touj ours pour u h
.
J e n e m e n ddis .
[ ] AU
56 C O MT E DE B U SS Y RABU T IN
A Paris , CS 1 0 m ars 1 68 7 .
,
.
sous des tentes dont le s coins sont ouverts e t ports par des ,
pavillon en core plus haut dont les quat r e coins retomb ent e n ,
s es i fa i t l o i n d a so l ei l d o i t t r e eac/z
T ou t e st Sem de e u rs .
J me
e rjouis avec vous q u e vous ayez a cul t iver 1e corps e t 3 0
,
.
a n e u f h e ure s d u s o ir
P li i/isao u rg e st
p r is ma ch e re enfant
, v o tr e ls se p or t e b ien .
J e n ai COt s, c ar je ne
96 S ELE C TED LETTER S O F
point changer de dis cou r s Vous app r end r ez donc par c e billet .
g
-
[58 ] A M A D A M E DE GRIG N A N
A P aris , cc me rc re di 8 d c e m b re
[ 59 ] A MADAM E D E GR I GNAN
'
A P aris ve n dre di
,
10 d c e m b re
,
r c r ier s a taille me sera point comme celle de s o n p e re il n y ,
sons quel que fois les u n s sur le s autres : soyez e n repos su r cela ,
n y pensez plus et laiss ez m o i la honte de trouver q u u n
,
-
2 5 qu a vous admirer
; mais en votre abs ence je me m e le de lui
,
nouvelles s ur quoi l o n raisonn e je suis assez instruite de c e s
3 o bagatelles J e lui p r c h e fort aussi l at t e n t io n a c e qu e les
.
parle des prodiges de prsen ce d esprit que Dangeau nous
c o n t o i t l autre j our ; il les admire e t
je p e s e su r l agr e ment
,
, , ,
,
.
n e so rt poin t de famille .
a l h u milie r
T ou t es m es amies me cha r gent tr e s souvent de
.
je vous 1e manderai ,
.
[60 ] A M A D A M E DE GR I GNAN
A Pa is r , cc ve n dre d i 2 4 d c e m b re
a t s eul a Versailles ma ch ere lle il S y est
L E m arquis
,
, ,
[6 1 ] A MA DA ME DE GR I GNAN
A P ar is , cc l u n di 3 j an vi e r
VO TRE cher enfant est ar r iv ma t in nous avons t ce
,
mieux que les n o u v elles Vous pouvez penser c e que c es t .
, ,
l affaire d u marquis
.
, ,
aventure Le Ro i di t 1e s oir :
. C est touj ours m oi qui
, .
,
qu on m an d e ro it aux abs ents d e prendre le cordon qu on le ur 3 5
.
3 .
[6 2 ] A M AD A M E DE GR I G NA N
A P ar is , ce lu n di 21 f vrie r
JE cour l autre jo u r a S aint Cyr plus agrablement
s m a
-
,
J e me mis avec
, .
1 5 1 ag r ment de cette pi e ce
c est u n e chose qui n est pas ais e a
plet qu on n y souhaite rien les lle s qui font des rois e t des
,
tente
.Mo i sans m t o n n e r je rpondis :
,
S ire je suis
, ,
charme c e que je sens est au dessus ( le s paroles
,
Le Ro i -
.
m e dit : Racine a bien de l e Sp rit
J e lui dis : S ire i1
.
,
c ela il est vrai
,
Et puis Sa Maj est S e n alla e t me laissa
.
,
l o b je t de l e n v i e : comm e i1 n y av o it q uasi q ue m o i de no u
I 06 S ELEC TED L ETT ER S OF
1 0 la nourriture de l a me e t d u corps
.
[ 6 4 ] AU D UC D E C HAUL N E S
A G rign an , lo 1 5 m ai
p g c -
p
conduire avec Votre Excellence S i vous nous appo r tez cette .
, ,
M ADA M E DE S EV IG N E I o7
vous l e n v o ye r ; e t cependant je baise tr e s humblement les
mains de Vo t re E xcellen ce .
[ 6 5] A M . DE C OULANGE S
AG ri
gn an , 26 ju i11e t
VO I LA don c M de Louvois mort grand min ist r e c e t
.
, ce ,
fai r e e t a conduire !
Ah ! m o n D ieu donnez m o i u n p eu de ,
-
t in d an S la Ve r i t e d e l a r el igi o n
y ait dans l e concl ave c est toujours l e S aint Esp r i t qui fai t l e
,
-
qui aime t out c c que Dieu fait V oil a sur quoi je vous laiss e ,
I d e ab u t in T h ro u gh h e r m o t h e r Mm e d e S evi gn e w as a C o u lan ge s ,
R
an d B u s s y , i n h i s m o r e m ali c io u s m o m e n t s , af fe c t e d t o d e s p ise t h e
C o u lan ge s w h o w e re o n ly n o b l e ss e d e r o b e Sh e allu de s t o t h is re lat io n .
s h ip u n d e r t h e n am e o fRab u t i n age , p 4 , l 34 . . .
2 . 23 . C h al o n : th e u nc e o f l Mm e d e S ev ign e an d B u ssy w h o h ad
l e ft t h e m p l i ii)
e ac h l
a e gac y (c f . . .
2 27 .Ne u c h es e t h e dire c t h e i o f t h e fo rm e an d
. r r re sid u ary l e gat e e
b y wh o m t h e p ay m e n t w o ul d h av e t o b e m ad e .
2 3 3 u n e d am e
. Mm e d e Mo n t glas (c f p l iii )
. . . .
ob lige a m o d e rn , re n d r e s er v i c e a qqn .
2 3 6 Fo uc q ue
. . t wh
e n Fo u c qu e t s p ap e rs e re se iz e d s e e ra e t t e rs
w v ll
fro m Mm e d e S e i gn e e re v
fo u n d am o n g t e mw u ss y m ad e gre at h . B
ef fo rt s in all q u art e rs t o p ro e t h e i n n o c e n c e o f h is c o u s in v
U n li e O t e rs . k h
v v
Sh e h ad n e e r r e c e i e d grat i c at io n s fr o m t h e s u r i n t e n da n t , a t o u g Sh e lh h
w as o n e o f h is w
arm e s t fr ie n d s an d h e a gre at a d m ire r o f h e r T o av e . h
v
r e c e i e d m o n e y fro m o u c qu e t o u d no t F
a e ap p e are d w l
e ry e xt rao rd i n h v v
ary S in c e h e l e n t t o Maz ar in an d t h e Qu e e n Mo t e r, an d all t h e n o t ab e h l
p e o p le w l
e re o b i ge d t o h im i n o n e w ay o r an o t e ; e n c e t h e r e fe re n c e h r h
on p . 2 1 1 .
3 .
4 . B au m e , Mm e d e l a : c f p liii . . .
3 2 7 am o u r t h is w o rd i s t o day ge n e rally m as c u l in e i n t h e S in gu l ar ;
-
. .
t h e gre at wr i t e rs o f t h e s e v e n t e e n t h c e n t u ry are u n d e c i d e d as t o i t s
ge n d e r .
3 3 6 p o v inc e s
. r
s c an d al m at e re d l i t t l e in t h e c ap it al
. e e s c an d al t wh r
v
w as rife , an d e e ryb o d y s u ffe re d m o re o r le s s fro m it an d e re it w as in wh
s t an t ly fo rgo t t e n ; b u t in t h e p ro v i n c e s , e re t e r e e re so fe w m at t e rs o f wh h w
in t e re s t an d e re p e o p l e wh
e r e i n c ap ab le o f d is c o u n t in w
g a m a i c io u s l
t o n gu e , t o b e s at ir is e d i n a p rin t e d b o o w as i n d e e d a l as t in g ur t k h .
3 .
42 . arr t : B u s s y s im p
i
r so n m e n t in t h e B as t ill e (c f .
p liv )
. .
4 p o u r B re t agn e : b e fo re t h e n am e s o f c o u n tri e s
.
5 . . t h e ar t ic le w as
r are ly o m it t e d in t h e s e ve n t e e n t h c e n t u ry (H 3 1 ) . . A .
4 7 E p o i s s e , Mm e d e : an ac qu ain an c e o f Mm e d e
. . t S evign e an d
mot h e r o f t h e w ife o f t h e c o m t e d e G i t au t w h o w as B u ssy s n e ighb o ur u ,
c o rn i c e h ad fall e n an d h u r t h i m v e ry s e ri o u s ly .
4 2 4 s ai gn e b le e d n g w as al w ay s re s o rt e d t o fo r an y in am m at io n
. . i
t h at sh e fe e ls t h e b le e d in g B u ssy h ad w it t e n t o h e r o n t h e 1 7 t h o f t h e
. r
m o n t h t h at h e h ad j u s t b e e n b l e d .
4 2 5 b ie n s : i
. t h e p lu al t h is w o rd s i gn i e d b i enfai t s an d al s o
. n r
qu a l i t s e g
, . . n ,
p o u r e n d ire t o u s l e s b ie n s qu i s e t r o u v o ie t e l i (L e t t e r O f 2 4 Fe b n n u .
,
1 6 72 )
4 . 29 . D id : w as c on s e i l l e r a u gra n d c on s e i l (c f p . . xxi v) an d t h e re
fo re a s u i t ab l e p e rs o n t o p u t i n a p e t i t io n (p l ac e t ) fo r t h e h e arin g o f a l aw
s u it .
N O TE S III
4 37. . Villars Mm e d e , h r e e n ew m ar s h al s
: th e Kin g h ad j us t r c e at e d t ,
n e p h e w o f Mm e d e V ill ars an d s h e w as t h e re fo e t h e e c i p i e n t o f v i s it s o f
,
r r
c o gr at u l at i o n
n Mm e d e S evi gn e is fo rc e d t o re e c t t h at Sh e m igh t h ave
.
h im s e l f s u gge s t s m igh t w e ll h av e b e e n t h e c as e b u t fo r t h e st u p id it y o f
t h e H is t o r e a m o u re u se wh i c h h ad d aw o n h i m t h e ro yal d s p l e as u e
z r n i r .
o u t t h e s e c u it y o f t h e ab b d e C o u la ge s wh ic h h e w as u n w il lin
r
g t o giv e n ,
o n wh ic h t h is w o u l d b e r ai s e d b e i n g i n B u rgu n dy .
Mm e d e Mo n t glas h ad i d u c e d h im t o t e ar u p t h e p art r e l at in g t o Mm e
n
d e S evi gn e an d t h at h e r h u s b an d h ad p u t t h e p i e c e s t o ge t h e r agai n.
5 1 6 r o m p re : m o d e rn d c h i r er e g
. . U n e m aill e r o m p u e e m p o r t a ,
. .
t o u t l o u v rage ,
La Fo n t ain e L e li o n et le ra t , 1
. 1 6 .
5 . 23 . : e v e ry
b o o k , e s p e c iall y o f a s c an d a o u s n at u e , w as
lan gu e s l r
p rin t e d im m e di at e ly at m s t e rd am , i ege , o r A
o l o gn e , an d S p re ad L C
b ro adc as t ; b o o s p in t e d k r w h
it o u t a p ri i le ge c o u d o n y b e i n t ro d u c e d v l l
F
i n t o ran c e s u e p t it io u s y rr l .
5 . 27 . l an t e r n e s : t h i s w o rd an d s l an t er n e r i es are o ft e n use d h e re in
t h e s e n s e o f n i ai se r i es , fad aises .
C est
d o u l e u r : w e S h o u ld say t o d ay : m a gran d e
-
d o u l e ur c e s t d e
,
or C e s t m a gran de do u le ur qu e d e m t re
.
5 3 3 d e m o d e r n p ar ; l ik e a (c f 1 1 3 ab o v e ) t h e p re p o s i t i o n d e w as
. . . .
,
u s e d fo r a var ie t y o f o t h e r p re p o s it i o n s (H 1 05 . .
5 3 4 Q u an t p as : t h e c o n s t ru c t i o n o f Mm e d e S evign e s
. .
p h ras e s is s o m e t im es r at h e r i n vo lv e d wh e n s h e i s w i t in g t o an in t im at e r
w h o m i gh t b e tr u s t e d t o u n de rs t an d T u rn A S t o wh at y o u s ay ab o u t .
5 3 4 d ab o rd q u e : m o de rn , au ss i t t qu e r s
. . , t Ot a qu e . 1 37, I.
)
6 7 p ri s o n : m o d e rn e mp r i s o n n e m en t
. . .
6 . 24. b as ta = h is i s t an e xp re s s io n u se d in I t aly to
d i sm i s s an im p o rt u n at e b e ggar o r ve do r n .
6 . 25 . c o ni c r he s : cf no t e
.
4 7, . ab o v e . Mm e d e S evign e h ad m ad e
a gib e h is i c id e n t t o wh ic h Sh e do e s n o t w is h t o re t u rn
ab o u t t n .
6 3 0 7 m ai s o n o n e o f B u s s y s o c c u p at io n s as w e h ave s e e n (p li )
.
-
. , . v ,
at t h is t im e an d re ap e d a ri c h h arv e s t wh e n a m e m b e r o f t h e b o u r ge o is
,
t h i s m a i a i n L e B o rge oi s G e n t i l h o m m e wh e n h e t al k s o f M J o ur d ain
n u .
a d h is
n vis io n s d e n o b le s s e
6 3 o e nt et ee t h is w o rd h ad t h e m ean i n g o f p r o c c u p e o u p r ve n u e
. .
e n fave u r d e qqn
.
L i k e m an y o f h is c las s h e w as in t e re s t e d i n ge n e al o gy .
6 33 B ouc he t ,
. . M
d u z an o t h e r ge n e al o gis t w h o h as l e ft S e v e ral i n
.
fol i o s o n h i s t o ry an d ge n e alo gy ( se e p 9 , l . .
I IZ SELECT ED LETT ERS OF M ADA M E DE SEVI G N E
6 37. b li g b y roy al declarations of 1 6 6 I I666 1 66 8 the Kin g had
. o , , ,
but th e real object was doubtless to pre v ent escape from taxation
( cf p xxv i ) T his fact explains the great interest in genealogy Suc
. . . .
t i on (cf 2 2 3 23 3 2 3 7 1 9 53 3 74
. .
,
.
,
.
, .
, .
6 4 2 C a n d i e : cf p xx
. . . . .
had a particular liking for this young man and that is perhaps the reason ,
7 2 r le plu s j o li : all the G rign an s except the Che valier were plain
. .
, ,
Mme de G rign an s dau ghter did not resemble her mother or her grand
7 2 8 m ar ch a n d o ns : ( I ) transiti v e as h ere
. . raise n o obj ections
(2 ) h s i t e r b al an c er ; e g J e n e suis pas seule a trou v er q u e v ous
. .
,
o n the in q uiries which must hav e been made o n the two pre v ious
marria ges into the A ngennes and the Puy d u F ou families It was the - -
.
8 2 c o n te n ti e z
. . modern s atisfa i r e d mo n d si r , .
8 I O ta l e r : c f note to 6 3 7
. . . . .
8 3 3 sur : modern .3 (H 1 2 8 B )
. . . . .
9 7 cr ite au x : s e e p liv
. . . .
9 15 . cf note to I I3
. . . .
9 2 6 Ro ge r : t h is i s B u ssy s C h ristian n am e
. . .
1 14 SELECT ED LETT ERS OF M ADA M E DE SEVI GNE
prudent behav iou r i n society for it was n e c essary to be v ery cir c umspec t ,
1 2 36
. G rign an s : cf note to 9 3 1
. . . .
1 3 8 Mar s e i lle
. . M de Marseille i e the Bishop of Marseil les (cf .
, . . .
is not surprising that s h e should inform her son in law about his doings - -
.
She warns Grignan a gainst takin g his tone towards M de Marseille from .
the gossip of the prov inces whose lov e of party st rife s h e well understands .
d en etre tromp
I3 3 2 b o nn e s t et e s
. . a subj ect of such importance as the m isu n de r
standing wi t h M de Marseille would be discussed among all the friends
.
adj utor were in Paris but the term fam i l l e might include all the most
,
I4 1
. T his is one of the most remarkable letters ev er written ; it is ad
.
mentioning Mme de Rohan and Mme de Hauteriv e she gi ves them a clue ,
as both had made lo v e marriages with men of much lower station than
themsel v es She i magines Mme de Coulanges h elpin g her husband to
.
guess and three of th e great catches are enumerated nally s h e tells him
, ,
the unbeli e v able news that it is the K ing s cousin th e possessor of the
,
1 4 8 u n e x e m p le
. . it is supposed that Mme de S ev ign e was t h inkin g
of M ary sister of H enry V I I I second wife of L ouis XII of F rance
, , ,
who a few mont h s after the l atter s death in 1 5 1 5 married the D uke of
S u ffolk .
I4 2 1 Va lli ere Mm e de l a : cf p l v i
. .
, . . .
I4 2 2 Re t z
. M lle de : niece a nd h eiress of t h e cardinal de Ret z who
.
,
, . . .
I4 2 9 M a d e m o is e l le : cf p x v i 1i
. . . .
, .
rst wife was Henriette d A n gle t e rre dau ghter of Ch arles I and h is
, ,
1 5 3 o r d in a ir e : cf p xxxi v
. . . . .
ness .
N O TE S 1 1 5
15. 8 . m an t : i n the sev enteenth century this word had the meaning
a
now expressed by am o u reu x .
I5 2 4 b ar b on s
. . the people who persuaded the Ki g to break o ff this n
mar riage were probably the Cond s and the Lo gu e vi lle s Cond n
16 13
. d p lo r e : His (i e L au z u n s) fortune does not appear des
.
. .
perate
16
. 15 L o u vr e : the K ing was in residence at the L ou vre ; there had
.
e v idently been some few days durin g which M ademoiselle had been too
prostrate to pay her court .
I6 3 2
. L o uv r e : the marriage was rst arranged to be held in the
.
Cr equy .
I7 1
. pr e se n ts i e the estates and names s e t out on p 1 5 11 1 5 2 0
. . . .
, .
-
.
17
. I O r e tar de m e n t : obsolete modern d l ai
.
, .
family descended from the K ings of Scotland which explains the aptness
of Mme de S ev ign e s quotation She h as altered it slightly ; i t reads in
.
18 I
. T his is the rst letter written after the separation of Mme de
.
S ev ign e and her daughter who had s e t o ff t o jo i n her husband in Pro v ence
on the pre v ious day L etters 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 8 all refer to the journey
.
, , , , ,
and while writing these she had not yet heard of her daughter s safe
arriva l .
18 8
. Ho u ss e t M me de : we ha v e stated ( p xli v ) t h at ladies often r e
.
,
.
tired to conv ents where they li v ed in semi seclusion in their own rooms -
.
I t is not known who this Mme de Housset may ha v e been but s h e was ,
v acant room .
18
. 13 Fay e tte Mme de la : when her rst grief was spent Mme de
.
,
S ev ign e went o n from the con v ent of S ainte Marie to her friend s house -
which was in the rue de Vau girard and quite close to the L uxembou r g ,
1 8 28
. C o u lan ge s M de : cf p l xii
.
, . . . .
18 31
. c om p lim en ts : all M me de S ev ign e s friends wou ld call to pay
.
1 8 3 2 T his letter was written while Mme de Grignan was still o n her
. .
19 3 1
. Ve r ne u i l duchesse de mot h er of t h e se cond d u c h esse du L ude
.
,
( cf p xxx vi ii footnote)
. .
, .
I9 3 5 7
. T hese people were all c onnected in some way or other w it h
-
.
1 9 3 8 m a n te au
. . Mme de S evign e in spite of her depression is amused , ,
at the way in which Mme d u Puy d ufou shows her anxiety about Mme -
be at rest
.
Grignan at Mo u lins she was i the chapel weepin g for her mother and n ,
20 2 5 a : modern p o u r ; cf note to I 1 3
. . . . .
esting to note how a singer came before the public it was in t h e houses
of the wealthy that artists made their reputation W e may compare this .
. .
-
,
e,
20 3 7 M asc ar o n : cf p xl iii
. . . . .
cessions made in the hopes that her next child may be a son who wo u ld ,
21 . 21 . h
t o ut a l e ure = i m mdi ate m en t ;
c f S h akespeare s u se of
.
presently
21 . 24 . cf p l v iii
Vale n gay : . . .
21 3 1 c o n an c e
. . Mme de Grignan a nd the coadjutor h ad e v idently
been playin g the game of c o n de n c e s and they had begu i led the ted i um
.
2 1 3 9 a q uo i
. au xqu e l l e s
.
qu o i was common as a relati v e referring
to t h in gs b u t r are wh en referen c e is ma de to a per son ( H
,
. .
1 18 S ELE C TED LETTE RS O F M ADA M E DE SEV IG N E
24 . 2 0- 3 7 . e lle so u ffre : it is a qu estion in this little dia logue of th e
pa res s e de Mme
which Mme de S ev ign e p e rs o n ie s
d e G r ign an , .
with the subject o f th e principal clause and not with the antecedent of th e
relati v e when this antecedent is c e l i c e lle etc ( H 6 3 B ) u , , . . .
2 5 1 4 C ap u ci n s
. i e c e c o n v e n t d es C ap u c i n s
. what exactly h appened
. .
gradually in all its detail we hav e here two steps d nitely mentioned : e
d IIac qu e v ille apparently handed Mme de Grigna n into his carriage lent
-
for the occasion while the mother took a last despairing glance from the
,
window and then went shortly after to hear a mass at the Capucins quite
near her house ; later s h e crossed the ri v er in her coach to the Con v ent
of the V isitation in the faubourg Saint jac ques and proceeded thence to -
,
18 . I3 ) .
25 .
38 cf p lv iii
. RhOn e : . . .
Pont d A v ign o n had so o v ershadowed her former fear about the Mont de
Grignan as far as Lyons ; since the carriage belon ged to d Hac qu e v ill e
,
chosen as a careful dri ver T his might seem excessi v e maternal solicitude .
,
but contemporary e v idence shows t hat carria ge accidents due to the care
lessness of dri v ers and the bad state of the roads were most fre quent .
p e n s : cf note 3 3 3 . . .
only four of the nineteen arches remain ; there is a relati v ely modern
suspension bri d ge a little down stream A v i gnon was the residence of .
2 7 5 C o n t i etc
. . cf pp xv ii x v iii , . . .
, .
2 7 1 5 L a Ro ch e fou c au l d :
. . this is typical of the author of t h e
.
th e rst edition ( 1 6 65) there is one which matc h es the incident well :
La pure v aleur ( s il y en a o i t ) s e r it de faire sans t moins c c q u on
v o
27 . 1 9 . S caram o u che
in th e old Italian :
comedy c omm edi a d e ll ar te
the actors had no xed parts but de v eloped a plot as the inspiration of
the moment took them Certain stage names were associated with stock .
famous Italian actor had been playing the part in Paris about this time
and possibly Mme de S ev ign e had seen him .
that this was the name of an o f cer in the army of F landers taken
prisoner at Q uesnoy T o j udge from this he must hav e been a v ery tall
.
man .
27 3 4 S ain t e M ar i e
. . most commentators s ay that this refers to M me
-
stated that he always took a purge before attending any counci l meeting .
Mme d Arp ajo who was of hi gher rank should ha v e taken prec e dence
n , ,
of f her glo v es and seeks to hand M ademoiselle her ser v iette but Mme de ,
S ev ign e nudges Mme d Arp ajo n and s h e immediately takes o ff her glo v es
and gi ves the ser v iette to the great annoyance of Mme de G v re s and to ,
28 1 7 e n te n d
. c o mp re n d
. .
28 2 4 ru e lle : this is the small passage bet w een the bed and t h e wa l l
'
. . .
State secretary of Henry I V T his witty old lady had a scathing ton gue .
28 2 8 c e n t mille b i e ns
. . c e n t m i l l e b o n n es e t a i m a b l es c h ases .
h ere with her uncle the a b b and her maid H el ene H ebert her butler and , , ,
Mar p h is e her dog ; her object was to spend the few days before Good
F riday in retreat and healthy physical exercise after h er sec lusion in h er
apartments entailed by her sorrow at her da ughter s departure
.
to other places and a j ubilee had been opened at N otre D ame in Paris
,
-
30 3 o du t o ut
. . to ut d fai t ; modern F rench only allows the us e of
d a to u t with a negati v e i n s u ch a c ase but O ld F rench and the langua ge ,
-
. .
. .
, , . .
behav iour and the fact that sh e has followed h er adv ice as to the treat
,
ment o f M de Marseille that she c an hold her head perfectly ere c t and
.
stiff .
3 1 2
.
7 h o m e .: we s h a ll nd a re ference i n letter 3 5 p
( 57 ) to this .
man who was so de v out that he did not dare to turn his head ; Mme de
S ev ign e had always said th at he appeared to be c arryin g a glass of water
pois e d on his head .
3 1 3 1 M a scar o n : cf p xli v
. . . . .
32 8 c c n e m e s o i t : c f note 2 2 4
. . . . .
3 2 1
.
3 lb r e t : .
son who had been le gitimised ; the poin t for P ar leme n t to decide was
whether legitimisation could carry with it suc c ession to property T his .
3 2 3
. 2 t o ut e v i .v e t o u te v i v an t e d an s l e so u v e n i r d e to us .
d A rp ajo n and tells her daughter of the many in quiries with which s h e
,
s u r l e p o in t d e ( c f 26 . . .
married a few weeks prev iously to the duc de V entadour who was ex
t re m e ly ugly and a hunchback Mme de S ev ign e sug ges t s that she had .
3 3 16 .m a i tr e : this
. is the g r a n d m a i tre d e l a t i l le ri e the d ue d u
r ,
37 3 . . Ca n d ie : c f p xx . . .
v a go d i fa ma av i d e d g l o i r e e.
37 5 . . b e lla n i e n te b l l ho e l e ri en fai re e e c s .
her rents paid partly in kind and part ly i n money notice the pun .
3 7 2 5 r e tar de m e n t : c f note to 1 7 I O
. . . . .
l a i d out for mall a game resembling cro quet ; the name is then trans
.
ferred to a walk on what was prev iously the Space laid out for the game .
3 8 I7 hip p o gri ffe : a winged monster half horse h alf grio n w hic h
'
.
- -
.
, , ,
. .
Brittany with his mother but was enj oying the gaieties of Paris instead ;
therefore he woul d hardly v enture to appear at Court L ou v ois would .
. .
- - - 1 .
3 8 3 1 cf 45 2 8
. . . . .
39 39 s u r n o u v e au x fra is
. . de n o u v e au d ere c hef ; Mme de ,
of the pro vi nciality of these two ladies and had caricatured their names
into Ke rb o rgn e and Croque O ison which we may turn by S quint and -
,
of Mme de Chaulnes and knew her i ntimately i n Paris would stand much , ,
higher in h er fav our than these two pro v incial ladies who ne v er ca me to
Court .
4 1 6 c e lle : i e c e l l e d e l a m or t d e M d e G u is
. . . . . e.
4 1 16 m alade : c f p x lv i
. . . . .
N O TE S 1 23
States of Brittany were co v ened e very two years and the sessions held n , ,
i n turn a t Nantes D inan and V itr lasted from two to three weeks T he
, , , .
persons who composed the S tates were rstly the high o f c ial s the
Go v ernor the lieutenants gen eral the rst pres ident of the P ar le m e n t
,
-
, ,
the i te nd a t hi gh law o f cers and o f cials of the local E xche quer and
n n ,
one hundr ed and sev enty four i all and lastly s ev enty deputies of the
-
n , ,
42 9 p as s e p i e d : a Breton dance
-
. . .
Brittany .
c i v i li ts c o u t o i s i e attentions
42 2 3 h o n n t e t
. .
,
r ,
was already old fashioned and that is doubtless the reason why Mme de,
S evi gn e applies it to the old world nob i lity of Brittany She nds no -
.
other occasion to u s e it in her letters F or the same reason too Moli ere .
m akes the v alet J o d e le t apply the word to the e y which has been n r
who took the title a fter the death of Philippe i n F ebruary 6 7 2 A s was ,
1 .
the fashion he wore lace cu ffs which would hav e found plenty of chances
of upsetting dishes at table during the feastin g at V i t ry on the occasion
of th e States .
T wo months later than this letter we are told that he had been condemned
to be burnt i e f gy and had the e ffrontery to criticise t h e caricature of
n ,
-
himself and to insist on supping and staying the night at the house of the
j udge who had condemned him H e added to these escapades by ap .
there must hav e been some q uarrel between M de Coet quen and the .
mar quis du Bordage which had been arranged A lthou gh this had been .
was a great friend of M me de Coet quen rev ealed it to her and she in her ,
sieur .
45 8 e n ure
. . Mme de S ev ign e had written (p 3 9 1 0 ) to her dau ghter .
,
that she was reading the Mo ra le of N icole ; Mme de Grignan had replied
objecting to some of the terminology ; her mot h er agre es with her that
e n u r e i s perhaps somewhat displeasin g
T he phrase in q uestion wa s : .
belonged .
whose lo vi ng care we owe the preserv ation of the priceless letters of the
grandmother .
came to call on her on one occasion he found his relati ve the mar quis de
T on q uedec installed in the place of honour in her ru e l l e T on qued c did . e
not as Rohan expected v acate his seat ; the result would ha v e been a
, ,
p xv i ) been warned Mme de S ev ign e does not nd that he had any more
. .
J udgment .
4 6 . 1 7 S a.in t A u b in -
: Charle s de Coulanges seigneur de Saint A ubin ,
-
,
50 .
7 d am e s i e t h e ladi es of t h e C o u r t of S aint Germain
. . .
-
.
Household .
i mp o r t u n e e
.
(S ) .
51 .
5
. Bo y er : cf p xlix . . . C h apelain who acted as literary adv iser
to Colbert wa s of the o p in io n
, that Boyer yielded only to Corneille a s a
dr amatist .
51 1 6 P o m p o nn e : cf p xxx
. . M me de S evi gn e did not wish to b e . . .
uncle of Grigna n .
whom Mme de S evign e says Racine writes all his plays Charles de .
S evi gn e had been in lo v e with her at a certain period and so his mother ,
been stated .
Paris bookseller and publisher had asked Mme de S evign e to write some ,
thing for him T hat he had some ac quaintance with the S ev ign e family
.
j us ques ici He would seem to hav e been in the habit of sendin g new
books direct to Mme de Grignan .
, , ,
. . u . .
that the e sential i n a play was grandeur and elo quence an idea which
s
,
H las !
a nd
A pr es l A g silas
,
H las
M ais apr es l A t t ila
,
H ol a .
Ep i t re V I I to Racine and s ay
L e Parnasse fran c ois e nnobli par ta v eine , ,
N e b nira d ab o d le si ecle fo rt n e
r u
tecture etc were founded and placed under the protection of Ma z arin
, .
,
a n gels h olding ligh ted c andles ; these formed the c hap e lle ar den te ( l .
1 28 S ELE C TED LETTER S OF M AD A M E D E SE VI G N E
.m o rt i er : a s chief of the whole administration of justice the
55 9 .
court .
56 I O B a pti s te : L ulli who had become not only head of all the
. .
,
, ,
and M me de Grignan felt themsel ves exiles and had t h erefore enjoyed ,
39)
57 . 1 6 . b le ss e : t h e w ounded and n ews of c asualties were comin g to
Paris .
which the journey to M onaco w as set out in all its details and enclosing a ,
59 6 I O c o mm e r c e : cf note to 26 3 1
.
, . . . .
59 2 5 la Mara ns : cf p lxii
. . . . .
59 3 4 o cc a s i o n
. c o m b at r en co n tre d e gu erre (cf 6 2
.
, . .
6o 2 s e r v a n t e : ironically
. . .
l imped .
1 3o S ELE C TED LETTER S OF M ADA M E DE SEV IG N E
digni ed as Mme de l Et o e who hav ing Spra ined her an kle was carr ied
, , ,
back on a litter .
son .
67 5 a .
t o u r (c f 9 1 5 note )
. . .
, .
6 7 1 5 am i : cf p xxxi v
. . . . .
V V I V II i n 1 6 51 V II I in 1 6 52 IX X in 1 6 53 a nd she liked to
, , , , ,
t e read
-
W riting to her daughter in S eptember 1 68 0 she says : N ous
.
, ,
the single theme of the lo v e of Cyrus for Mondane are interwo v en other
adv entures in which the heroine is carri ed o ff by one lo v er after another
only to be nal ly united to the faithful Cyrus in the tenth v olume T he .
68 3 6 p a go lui turn
. . if he were content e v ery one must be satis
,
e d .
69 . ne
9 . j is :
ol
admirable ; rather di fferent from the sense in
,
69 1 8 p ar d ire
. e n di s an t
.
(cf note to 4 1 . .
7o 1 T his letter was written during a v isit to Pro v ence ; she had gone
. .
de S evign e had accepted such a present and w as awaitin g its arri val ; the
bearer would recei v e a p is t o l e (say half a so v er eign ) as a gratuity .
in the country .
7 o 1 1 ch
. a i n e s etc : the galleys manned by con v icts were stati oned
.
, .
S eptember 1 6 6 8 , .
7 0 I 5 do
. i g t s Mme de . S ev ign e had patched u p
at le ast outwardly
her di fference with M de Marseille who on h is side w ould seem to hav e .
,
7 1 8 la M ara ns : cf p lxii
. . . . .
persuaded her that bo t h s h e and Grign an would be ser v ing their interests
best by coming .
n e 5 o c c up
7 2 2 3 i n t r t s p as au tan t d e ses p rop res i n t r t s qu e de
. . e
c eu x d u Ro i .
73 .
9 . C h au ln e s the Swedes had o ffered to mediate and i t w a agreed , s
7 3 1 1 T u r enn e : cf p xxii
. . . . .
d o l ea n c es .
73 3 1 O n d i t etc
. . this rem arkably v igorous sentence shows the free
,
.
for d a s l qu l etc d a q o i
n e er qu o i : l i
, qu i t d o nje s i s d e a
.
, ns u , su
n u e u s
( i v ) for a q oi : o u i l s fa t s o m e t t r e ( v) for q e : c e fu t Id 0 13 M
u e u u u .
d L arges
e p 77 2 7 (H .
, . .
charge of the armies till Cond could come to take o v er the command .
75 35. . a sur .
75 39. s ur a .
76 1 3
.o i t the pronoun refers gramatically to Ville ro i ; it is plain
. Il v ,
7 6 23 E lbe
. u f sister of the
. cardinal and niece of T urenne wife of ,
4)
a s = j y v ai s e n a l ler was used in the se v enteenth
m y
o O
j
77 .
9 .t e en v s
77 .
36 . sense is obscure ; the two n ephe ws are M de
it ab le s : th e v i
.
a redire
D oubtless s h e thou ght that his proper place was W i th the
.
78 3 1 glu : literally
. . bird lime ; t h e word is used gurativ ely
-
7 8 3 3 S an z e i M me d o : t h e sister of Coulanges
. .
, .
fairy stories from which phrases ha v e been taken before i n the letters ( cf .
8 1 3 fa g o t a ge :
. . muddle
8 1 2 2 D an ge au mar q uis de a courtier and highly skilled card player
. . ,
-
,
enjoyed the greatest popularity at Court His di ary kept faithfully day .
,
chamber ; by his skill at cards and his intimate knowledge of eti quette
and dress ( cf 1 06 3 6) he succeeded i securing a position at Court though
. . n
Q ueen it must hav e been a known fact that they had been ac q uired for
Mme de M ontespan .
old F rench romance ; the fairy aunt of the p rin c e ss gt u rn s Niqu e s hall
into a pal ace seats her on a wonderful throne gi v es her a magi c mirror
, ,
which casts a Spell on her and endows her with the power of striking
motionless anyone who should look on her Amadis after terrible gh t .
,
ing forces his way into the palace breaks the mirror and the charm
, , .
82 3 4 sp a d a translate
. to whose sword e v ery v ictory is certai n
.
83 4 le b ar o n : i e Charles de S ev ign e
. . . . .
. .
de Grignan .
92 9 cr e d i etc
. . believ e me for I hav e pro v ed i t
, .
9 2 2 2 al i n e : we should rath er s ay : t o u t e fo l l e
. . .
her bitter re ections She blames the G rign a s who like all the othe r . n , ,
but the K ing had objected and it was not till O ctober 1 6 8 1 that he per , ,
94 8 e m e u e p re gi o e t je m en e s t i m e
. . .
94 9 s a n g : cf note to 2 1 9
. . . . .
, e
fac tu m Bussy had sent his cousin a copy of the letter h e had
written to F ure t i ere about the memorandum (fac tu m ) which t h e latter ha d
drawn up criticising these two poets ( R ) . .
94 2 4 i.m p r o u v e r :
. an obsolete expression for d s app r o u v er .
9 5 1 4 Esp agn o ls : cf pp x v xv i
. . . . , .
(singer) .
9 5 3 1 C o li gn y : Bussy s grandson
. . .
11 SC iii :
. Comment s ap p e lle v otre lle Lu c i de l A h l beau nom
. .
n
a m dicamenter l L u c i d e l n
9 5 3 7 P h il is b o u rg : cf pp xx ii xx iii
. . . .
, .
96 6 m o me n t d l i n s t a t m em e
. . n .
p ar le m e n t of Paris .
N O TE S I3 S
97 . 20 . j o li :
amiable ; the special application of the term to a
wound had the young mar quis not been sa v ed by the gu ard of his sword ,
v iolet white and dark grey and not to play or to go to the theatre till J ames
, , ,
an amiab le little letter to his mother which was enclosed with that of his ,
gr andmoth er .
9 8 8 c r : we should s ay t o day gr a n di -
. . .
% 2 9 q u o i : see note to 8 1 3 6
. . .
1 00 .
3 0 re m u e u s e e m u e r is the v erb used for the actions of bathing
. r
1 01 1 1
. qu o n t h e relati v e is too far from the antecedent (cf 77
.
. .
i s clear from the context that it refers to the master of the boat .
therefore were her brothers , T he order had been granted to Gri gnan
and the Archbishop of Arles ; they recei v ed the honour by proxy the ,
W isdom xv 1 5 , .
clause : FAY C E QU E VO U LD RA S
.
v ery strained for some years owin g to the claims of the liberties of the
Gallic Church L ouis had threatened to bombard Ci vita V ecchia an d
.
p o rat e d it with Prov ence and sent Grignan formally to take possession ,
.
Chaulnes had been sent post haste to Rome with orders to secure if pos
sible the election of a Pope favourable to F rench interests Cha lnes . u
had lodged with the F r e nch Car dinal d Es t e s and had not presented his
r
there had b een a scu ffl e between th e valets of Chaulnes and those of the
representati v e of Spai n such struggles were v ery commo and that n
1 06 2 8 3 1
. F rom being a simple bow o f ribbon the fon t a ge
-
. n
d i i ere )
n T his style of coi ffure was re v iv ed towards the end of L ouis
.
1 06 3 6. L an gl ee : cf note to 8 1 2 2
. . . .
1 07 13
. ra is o n . I drink to your toast
.
had been laid down in the G ram m air e d P o rt Roy a l by Ar nault e t L ance e
v e rs ally adopted .
1 08 1 4 A bb a d ie : in a letter of March 1 0
. . 1 68 7 Mme de S evign e , ,
( 1 6 8 4 ) and had found i t perfect It says much for her open mindedness .
-
brought out the rst edition which had any claims to represent the
real text o f the letters T his scholar did not remain satis ed with his
.
task but continued to impro ve it till his death It found an able and .
S e le c ti o ns .
v
a ec 8 portra its sur acier , les armes de la maison de S e ign e en chromo v
v
lithographie, 6 gra ures sur bois e t des fac simil s , in 8 , broch , H achette , - -
2 0 fr .
N v
o one could ha e been better quali ed to make a selection than M .
Re gnier and we are further indebted to him for a n edition suitable for
,
H achette 1 8 8 0 1 fr 8 0
, , . .
. n s,
D u c lau x 1 9 1 4 in the
, Biblioth eque fran c aise (XVII si ecle ) Plon
,
e
,
N ourrit e t Cie 1 fr 50 , . . .
In the excellent series Pages choi s ies d e s Grands Ec iv ain s pub lishe d
,
r ,
a nd some footnotes .
L ife an d W o rk s .
W alc k e n ae r Baron de M m oi r e s to u c h an t l a v i e e t l es e c r i t s d e M m e d e
collected by th e baron W al c ke n ae r .
T his patient in v estigator and amiable F rench nobleman de v oted his l ife
to collecting e v erythin g that to u ched e v en remotely on the period durin g
wh ich M me de S evi gn e li v ed .
B I BLI O GRA P H Y I 39
her art .
Macmillan 2 v ols 1 9 1 4 , .
, .
M e m oir s L e tt er s , .
C or re s p on da n ce d e Ro ge r d e Ra b u i n , t c om e t de B us s
y, ed . L u do vi c
L alanne , 6 v ols .
,
Paris , 1 8 57 59 -
.
M m o i r es d e l a b b e
d e C h o isy ,
, , .
dam 1 73 8 3 9
,
-
.
.
, ,
P aris , 1 8 59 .
H achette 2 v ols 1 8 8 7
, .
, .
, , ,
of Joli abov e .
1 8 3 7 3 0 fr
, .
1 4o S ELE C TED LETTER S O F M AD A M E DE SEV IGN E
M m o i re s t Si m o n ed Ch rue l e t B o islisle Hac h ett e
d a d u c d e Sa i n -
, .
, ,
2 nd e d 1 86 1
.
,
T here is a better edition by Mo n m e rqu and Paulin Paris
.
, ,
9 v ols 1 8 53 6 0 -
.
.
,
prints) .
,( see a b o v e ) .
r , ,
i llus tres contains chapters o n Mme de S ev ign e s life and cha racter her
,
,
d aughter her so n and friends t h e Court th e town and the country and
, , , ,
s ome brilliant pages on her art A few good illustrations add to its at .
t rac t iv e n e s s
s .
1 6 58 and re c orded faithfully day by day what they did and saw and heard
, .
T h eir diary forms a most v al u able account of the l ife of a youn g gentle
m an of the period an d appears to be v ery little known As an instance o f .
o y e e s t o i t de 2 50 au lnes de rubans
A
T h e p e ti te o i e ( see P rec i eu ses .
IND EX
a f o ur , 1
3, 9 . 1 . 1 5, 20 . 2 5, 52 4 2 . . B e n s e rade , 9 4 . 1 3 .
d su r , 7 5 3 5 . . bi e n s , 4 2 5 , 2 8 . . 28 .
A bbad e i , 1 0 8 I4 . . b i garre s , 3 1 2
. .
d a b ord qu e , 5 3 4
. . Boileau xl v 54 4 o , , . .
a c a de m i e , 1 0 3 2
. . Bossuet xliii , .
A cademies , 55 5 . . B ouchet M de 6 3 3 , .
, . .
a d m i r e r , 46 3 3 . . son of abov e 48 3 4 , . .
A ix parlement de xx v
, , . Bouillon duchesse de 2 , , . 1 2.
Ai x la Chapelle xix
- -
, . B o u d alo u e xliii
r , .
A l b r e t , che alier d , l
v . Brancas lxii , .
A l b r e t , mar chal d , 3 2 b ra v er i e , 42 4 2
. 1 3 . . .
a l i e n ee , 9 2 2 2
. . Brinon Mme de 1 00 7
, , . .
a m an t , 1 5 8 . . Busche 2 6 2 5 , . .
a m i ti , 6 3 9 , 23 3 2 . . . Bussy 1 , .
A rmy X lVi X Wi i,
'
'
Candi a xx .
purchase of commissions in xl v ii ,
.
,
Carcassonne B p of lix ,
A rmy S C Vic e c orps XI
.
, .
V r
Caumartin M de xx v 6
,
, .
, , .
3o .
Af n a d 6 4 2 6
i u
c a u t i o nn e ,
'
5 7
'
i . .
Ar nhe i m X ,
X
Chalon l i ii 2 2 3
A rras batt le of x v
, , . .
, , .
Chambres xxi v , .
a rt i i l e r O m l t t e d i 4 5 C h am p m e s l , L a, l vi
f
52 10
A rt i llery Grand Master of l i i
.
N , .
, ,
.
c h a rge s , xxi v
Av ignon town county and bridge
.
, , , sale xxx
o f, XXV, .
26 .
37 .
Charost duc de x xxv ii, , .
Chaulnes duc de x , , .
P sy c he ,
'
20 . 27 . tany xx vii 7 3 9 1 06 1 5 , , .
, . .
Barbin 54 2 0 , . . c h e v a li e r ,
56 7 . .
Baume Mm e de liii , , . c i in e n tr e c i 28 19 , . .
( I4 3 )
1 44 S ELE C TED LETTER S O F M ADA M E DE SEV IG N E
C oadjutor ,lix F inance xxxi xxxn .
,
-
.
51 9 , . .
, , , . .
c o m m e rc 26 3 1 e, fr ais r n o u v e a x 39 3 9
. .
, su u , . .
, .
c o n te n t er 8 2
Go v ernors independence ,
of ix
.
, , .
Conti prince de xi v n , ,
,
, .
Corneille xl v Grignan,
family of , .
, ,
c o rn i h e 4 7 6 2 5
c
,
( 1) F ran c ois A dh
.
emar Ab p of -
, .
A rles uncle of
. . .
, ,
Court xl xl i uncle of , .
ceremonial xli
,
(3 ) F ran c.
d ,
precedence at 28 9
,
( cf p 7 1 23)
.
, . .
. .
, .
( a A n geli q e d A n ge n n e s an d
Cr equy duc de 48 3 4
,
had issue , .
Mlle de 1 4 2 2 ( -
.
c re v e r 8
,
( ii ) F ran c.
7 4
, . .
as Mlle d A l rac N ot e
c ro i t r e 9 8 8
.
, .
to 46
.
d c = 15ar ( cf note to 2 7 . .
deva t 7 30
n , . .
D octors xl vi ,
had issue
.
D ov er T reaty of 44 3 0
, (4) Marie Blanche ( cf p 3 8 3 1 ,
. .
-
. . .
D unkirk lii ,
mar q uis ( cf letters 57
.
.
d up e 1 3 3 0
, . (7 ) J ean Baptiste A dh em ar (bro
.
- -
e nu re 45 8 ,
. . ther of B p of Carcassonne .
,
xxxi
Ep ar gn e , .
( 1 0 ) J oseph A dh emar (brother of
E states the T hree xx vi known as Joseph d A dh
.
, ,
'
e to n n e r , 1 0
4 32 . . mar and as comte d A d h m ar
,
o b liger , 2 .
33 . Ratisbon truce of xxiii , , .
ress e n t i m e n t 44 3 1 , . .
P a c o le t , 80 I . . r e t ard em en t 1
7 1 0 37 2 5 , , ,
. .
Palais Royal 55 -
, . 29 . Ret z cardinal de x v i lxiii
, , ,
.
p ar en, 41 . 2 5, 69 . 1 8. Richelieu xi , .
powers of xiii ,
. Roissy liii , .
p o u le tte xxv i , . r om p re ,
5 . 1 6 .
33 3 . . ru e ll e , 28 . 2 4 .
Pensions xxxv , Ryswyc k peace of xxi v .
, , .
Plessis Ml le d u lxi
, fair of 2 7 2 0 , .
, . .
Plessis Praslin M de 69 9
-
Sain t Paul 6 4 2 , . , . .
-
, . .
P o m e n ars 44 2 o 52 3 1 ,
Sal z bach xxi i .
, . .
, .
P re c i o s i t e 33 3 1
Presidents 46 2 6 , 68 2 2 . . .
y ; 60 2 5 . Racine xl v .
, .
relati v e o n 34 1 7 74 2 0 , birth xl vi ii , .
, , .
, .
qu i c e qu i 60 1 6 84 2 9 house of l v ii lx , .
, . .
, , .
q u o i 22 9 8 1 3 6 , portrait lv iii
.
, . .
,
.
P uy d u F o u Mme du lvi ii
- -
Simiane Mme de 45 3 1
, , .
, , . .
I NDEX 147
s o u h ai t er , 2
3 .
30 .
Sully x
, , .
V ardes M de xxxv ii l , .
, ,
v ui, xl vii ,
xxiii
, .
Subjuncti v e after c r o i r e , , 11 . 19 .
not modem 30 3 3 , . .
,
v e n i r with persons
, .
s ur d , 75 3 9 . 8 3 3 , 53 2 , . .
. . .
Ventadour xi , .
tabo u re t xli 33 I4 , , . .
V erb agreement of 24 2 6
, , . .
v e rs , 1 .
tai lle xxv i 7 .
V ersailles xxxi x xl , , .
V rtus Mll e de 64
e , , . 2 6.
,
t n eb r es 3o 1 3
e
, .
Vichy xl vi ,
.
vi
f t 32 3 2
v i v an , . .
,
Ville ro i M de x xxix l
.
,
l.
T on q uedec M de 46 2 , .
, , ,
t out i e d u t ou t 30 3 0
, .
, . .
s e e Bibliography
, . .
, .
T ra v el by ri v er xxxv .
dangers of xxxv
,
,
,
.
.
Vi v onne liii , .
T uileries xxxi x , . , , .
T urenne xiii xi v xv i , , , ,
death of xxii , . Y s e l,