Queens of the French Stage

de, lover of Ml

lled by a b

etort

s, Mlle. Gaussin

YNE, Hanson & Co.

TNO

e Estrapade, a machine invented, in the days of Fran?ois I., for the benefit of heretics. Turlupin usually played a roguish valet, Gros-Guillaume a pedant, and Gaultier-Garguille a supreme

ate of the Chatelet; to him belonged, among other functions, the supervisio

er's object in inserting his name in the acte de n

search of the registers of all the old parishes of Paris-there were sixty-eight-but failed to discover either the acte de naissa

tique de Biographie et d'

e theatre led him to become an actor. In spite of the ridicule to which he was subjected by Molière, he was an excellent tragedian, and in parts made up of "

de J. Racine (édit. d

p. 33,

La Comédie de Molière, l'a

nals of the Frenc

wife;" the mother of La Bruyère described in a legal document as a "demoiselle veuve"; while La Fontaine, in his correspondence, invariably refers to his wife as "Mademoiselle." People spoke also of la Du Parc, la de Brie, la Béjart, la Molière, and so forth, a custom which has continued to this day. This la, which appears so contemptuous, was not the exclusive property of actresses or of women of the people. Madame de Sévigné and Saint-Simon employ it for ladies

nts sur la vie de Molière: M. de Modèn

tique de Biographie et d'H

nts sur la vie de Molière: M. de Modèn

, La Comédie de M

édie de Mol

of the second and third acts; Quinault contributed all the lyrical matter, with the exception

ey in the Cornhill

Les comédienne

on Dramatic Art

édie de Mol

on of the British Museum, contains a "foreword" from the bookseller to th

op, made me a present of it, and assured me that it is true in every detail. I believe it to be incumbent upon me to give this present to the public, in order

le amorous incidents, as trifles unworthy of his book or his heroine. I am persuaded that there is not an actress in France whose career would not afford sufficient material for a simi

roumet, La Comédie

, though the last-named writer ought not perhaps to be taken very seriously. The article on Armande in Mr. Sutherland Edwards's "Idols of the French Stage"-hith

he, brother of Philibert de Gramont,

d in securing the hand and vast possessions of that princess, and who, in November 1671, was imprisoned at Pignerol, where he remai

u Palais-Royal. It was a very large house, capable of accommodating two or three families, and Mlle. de Brie had for some time occupied part of it. Molière's object in residing there seems to have been to

la vie et les ?u

édie de Mol

e week following Easter, during the illness of a member of the Royal Family, on public fête days, and also, occasionally, when any particularly notorious criminal was to be executed in the Place de Grève. Thus, there were no performances on July 17, 1676, the day on which Madame de Brinv

s 30,000 livres, a sum, according to M. Larroume

n Maugras, Les Comédie

actors in the modern acceptation of the word, but mimes, jugglers, acrobat

ras, Les Comédiens

ras, Les Comédiens

abutin on March 3, 1673. "I believe that no one will be less affected than his wife; she acted in

he H?tel de Bourgogne, Mondory of the Marais, while Molière was for some years his own bellman. La Grange, however, appears to have excelled them all. "Although," says Chappuzeau, "he is but of middle height, his presence is good, and his air easy and elegant. You are charmed before he opens his lips. As he has a great deal of fire an

y a heavy fine, while the printers of the memoir in which he had libelled Armande and others were also punished. He appealed against t

epigra

ari d'esprit, qu

de chair, qu'elle

t, La Comédie de

count of a visit paid to it, in his beautifully illustrated work,

her, Les Couli

f the Pont-au-Change, as so many writers

sans doute [tes ve

n papa mesura

its

of Molière's comedy, the Bourgeois gentilhomme, which was played concurrently with Tite et Bérénice, the average tak

e p. 10

r of Janua

ter of M

ter of A

of Februar

de la Franche-Comté, en l'anneé 1674: Paris, 1676, folio. A copy of this very rare and valuable work

nals of the Frenc

ury, La Champ

e Sévigné to Madame de

King and the Court are aware of the scruples which I entertain about attending them, and they will have a poor opinion of you, if you show so little regar

Abbé of Beaulieu, and

the witnesses hereinafter named, Guillaume Marconnau de Brécourt has declared that, having formerly followed the profession of an actor, he renounces it, and promises, with a true and since

he following paper: "The said person was not absolved and received into holy ground until after h

comédie. One of this good father's chief objections to the theatre was "because it is perpetually

on was the representation of a licentious comedy, called La Fausse

d to influence the faithful for good than for evil, and inspire them with a horror of vice and a love of virtue," they besought him to inform them if the bishops had the right to excommunicate them. The Holy See, however, unwilling to provoke a conflict with the independent F

s, Les Comédiens hors

e and Ernest Legouvé, first represented a

ed her patronymic by the article "Le," in order to give it a mor

istress, but this is incorrect. It was her cousin,

ature et d'art: Adrie

ure de Franc

e Femmes: Adri

iar and affectionate "ton" of the p

ries du Lu

Notice sur Adri

ges Monval, Lettres d

of the Comédie-Fran?aise: two brothers, Jean Baptiste Quinault and Abraham Alexis Q

e de France

rneille's tragedy

ir, it was the challenge, and not the quarrel,

ature et d'art: Adrie

ne Lecouvreur, by M.

thing more than a friend to the actress, which is perhaps not altogether a matter for surprise, seeing that he was so frequent a visitor in the Ru

Profils de femmes:

aurice's orthography, se

as Carlyle and so ma

tory of Frederick t

éodose de la Tour d'Auvergne, Duc de Bouillon, whom she married in 1725. Here is a contemporary portrait of her: "Very pretty; rather tall th

nce of the Blood, the actors Quinault-Dufresne and Grandval of

m, this young lady followed her lover to the famous Camp of Mühlberg, in Saxony, where she had the honour of supping with tw

official at Metz. He was at this time nineteen years of age,

Tour d'Auvergne, Prince de Bouillon, whom she married in 1724. Several writers have confounded the two ladies, and Scribe and

d' A?ssé à Madame Calandrin

A?ssé's story and Bouret's ev

ived the suspicious lozenges after, and not before, warning Adrienne. (4) It was not the Lieutenant of Police, Hérault, but the Chemist Geoffroy, of the Académie des Sciences, who made the experiment on the dog. He reported that some of t

this incident one of the prin

'Adrienne Leco

Monval, Lettres d'Adri

ne Mancini, R

n 1716, she became ma?tresse en t?tre of the Regent d'Orléans, which exalted position she occupied

Titon du Tillet, Adrienne had neve

s is not

elle d'Aissé à Madame Ca

of the intestines, and it was I who caused an autopsy to be performed. All that Mlle. A?ssé

u Lundi, i. 174. This letter f

ow occupied by No. 115 in the former street. The old man erected a marble tablet, inscribed with some rather indifferent verses of his own composition, to the memor

his profession. He was, of course, denied Christian burial, but no objection was raised b

nne Lecouvreur, by M.

se et des Ba

overwhelmed with customers. All the ladies of the Court and the t

Les Comédiennes

ondance litté

Les Comédiennes

ng Jews and sorcerers to be burned. Don Juan de Camargo, Bishop of Pampeluna, succeeded Don Diego d'Astorga y Cespedes

he pen. Mlle. de Camargo had only

. (1833), p. 401. The original letter was,

al de Barbi

iving in the Rue Neu

médiennes ad

here, in his Journal, we read that Mlle. le Duc "meddled with everything, and prevented the Count using his influence except on behalf of

fashionable function at this period. Its popularity dated from 1727, when the famous singer, Mlle.

p. 180, no

in, Le Comte de Clermont,

e of the Walla

arned writers assert that it was in vogue in the time of the Crusades, he probably on

farmer-general. In Favart's Mémoires

, show us a pretty and vivacious-looking young woman, but with features somewhat too irregular for beauty. It is probable, however, that the attraction which

his mistress, in a house in the Rue de Buci. But in the opinion of Desnoiresterres, the best informed of the poet's biographers, this charge is sufficiently controverted by the following letter written by Favart to his fiancée: "Take care of your health; remember that mine is involved in it. You will take more care of yourself, if you have any regard for me, who love you more than life; though do not take offence, for my very sentiments are

avart et le Ma

Correspondance (

, the great-grandmo

rres, épicuriens

e deux ou trois foy de la noier."-Letter of Maurice de Saxe to his sister, the Princess von Holstein, March 10, 1747. We hesitate to produce the remainder of this letter, of which, as Desnoiresterres very justly remarks, the orthography is the least enormity, even in the origi

s them, but adds insult to injury by calling them "rhymed prose"! One can imagine the indignation of the poet had this letter, by any chance, fallen into his hands. This was

uld you kno

indled in

y, the wife of a London merchant, and formed part of the e

Lundis (1869)

trouvé à la Bast

regard to the Marshal's love-affairs. "He (Maurice de Saxe) always kept an opéra comique in his camp. Two performers belonging to this theatre, called Chantilly and Beaumenard, were his favourite mistres

as, of cours

es et Correspondance

tary surgeon

nil, afterwards Lieuten

ittéraire, vii. 464, c

trouvé à la Bast

rs agree in representing as a charming woman and an actress of remarkable talent. He describes her as "an impudent creature, without intelligence or sk

trouvé à la Bast

, one of Maurice's

on of the Marquis d'Argenson,

t doubt, Mau

, 1749; Manuscrit trouvé à

stage name of Chantilly, whi

iresterres, épicurie

rouvé à la Bastil

Abbe de Voisenon (

with the Prince de Conti, with whom he had a long-standing quarrel. The Marshal's biographer, M. Saint-René Taillandi

médiens du Roi de la Tr

rres, épicuriens

te, Acteurs et Actrices

ench Stage in the Eigh

oncourt, Mademois

demoiselle Clairon (

Mademoiselle Clair

e Queen Elizabeth of Thomas Corneille's play on the evening when Clairon visited the

Archives de la Ba

at a time constantly in her train-one whom she deceived, one whom she received à la

is time, colonel of the 28th Foot, and, the following year, commanded a brigade at the battle of Dettinge

n, Les Comédiens du Roi

by Edmond

ench Stage in the Eigh

spiration was as often as not aided by wine, and a servant, g

ncourt, Mademoisel

ee p. 3

ee p. 3

al et Mémoir

ranc de Pompi

se to witness a performance of Andromaque, and, when she saw the celebrated actress in the part of Hermione, cried in astonishment: "That is not Mlle. Clairon!" She was assured that it was, but flatly refus

respondence of Dav

espondence of David

e Jullien, L'Histoire

that she never had any cause to be ashamed of her love-affairs, and

Archives de la Ba

ourt, Mademoiselle C

chives de la Bastil

n on a visit to Paris, had fallen violently in love with Mlle. Gaussin, "et qu'il a commencé par lui faire un présen

chives,

ce's preserves. He took a similar liberty with the heart of Mlle. de Verrières,

e Marmontel (edi

most delicate attentions, were directed towards rendering her lover happy. So long as she loved, no one could be more faithful or more tender than she.... I left her charming, I found her equally, an

Marmontel (edit. 1

d not redound to her credit. To which Mlle. Clairon rejoined by addressing him before the assembled company as follows: "I was well aware, Monsieur, that you were a man of repulsive appearance, but I did not know that you possessed a soul a thousand times more hideous than your person." Lekain left the theatre in a towering passion, and, with the assistance of another enemy of Mlle. Clairon, the Chevalier de la Morlière, composed a letter, "the most insulting, the

ha?r, ingrat!

e pit burst into such peals of merriment that it was ful

ee p. 2

e players his share of the profits, in order to

al et Mémoi

aire, cited by Edmond de Goncourt,

ieutenant of Police;" Ravaisson,

rrespondance li

rryer, Lieutenant of Police,

ncourt, Mademoisel

ble me to attain the talent of the actress. It is in this sanctuary that I ought to live and die.'" We fear that the sanctuary was, on occasion, somewha

leau de Mlle. Clairon, par M. Carle Vanloo, a manuscript document cited by Edmond de Goncourt. When it was nearly completed, Louis XV. expressed a wish to see it, and came to Van Loo's studio, while the actress was sitting to him. "You are indeed fortunate," said he to the pai

a year, a house, a coach,

emoiselle Clairon (ed

annoyed because they have placed his father after Voltaire, that is to say, below him: it is the last of the volumes on which Mlle. Clairon is leaning. I have thrown th

s fanatical admirers, and declares that if medals were to be struck in honour of an actress, who, after all, was

be his mistress, she esteemed herself too little to be his wife." On her retirement from the stage in 1783, Louis XVI. granted her a special pension, "as if to

M. Fréron, Lettre V. Janvier 1

en of loose character who had

oires et Journal

émoires et Jou

oon after this, Garrick very generously offered Mlle. Clair

pompously in the midst of the assembly, when M. Marmontel, the coryphée of the house, presented an ode, composed by himself, in honour of the new god of Pindar. Mlle. Clairon, habited as a priestess of Apollo, placed a crown of laurel on the bust, and recited the ode with the most vehement enthusiasm.

red to entitle her to this. It is probable, however, that her request would have been granted, bu

which sum, if we are to believe Bachaumont, was spent by Molé,

ondance litté

me Riccoboni to Garr

and a lackey, besides a French cook. The Margrave supplied her with the best wines from his cellar. Her expenses were enormous, and all paid from th

le to Sir Horace M

ncourt, Mademoisel

de Madame Vigé

r that of a lover in the flesh, and had the bad taste to remark to Mlle. Clairon that "the signals of her rendezvous we

emoiselle Clairon (ed

ncourt, Mademoisel

teurs et Actrices du

ittle girl and provided her dot, which led to a widespread belief

teurs et Actrices du