Chapter 1.1.III: Viaticum
Background
This chapter explores the delicate controversy surrounding whether Louis could receive Last Rites, living as he was in a state of sin. Ultimately he will denounce Madame du Barry as he had previously renounced other mistresses when his life was threatened first at Metz and later by Damiens.
Notes
Extreme Unction Also known as Annointing of the Sick, the Catholic sacrament in which a person who "begins to be in danger due to sickness or old age" is annointed with oil
Viaticum The name used for the Eucharist administered to a person who is dying as part of Last Rites. Along with extreme unction, not available to those (like the adulterous Louis) who "persist obstinately in manifest grave sin"
smell of brimstone Brimstone, i.e. sulfur, is strongly associated with Hell.
the Parc-aux-cerfs Literally "stag park", a general term for the hunting fields of the French aristocracy, but now most strongly associated with the quarter of Versailles that housed Louis' mistresses
Archbishop Beaumont Christophe de Beaumont became archbishop of Paris in 1746. He is well-known for his hardline stance against Jansenism and advocacy of Church Authority.
he Church too, and whole posthumous hope of Jesuitism, now hangs by the apron of this same unmentionable woman After the 1762 suppression of the Society of Jesus, Beaumont realized that the church itself may be in danger. Beaumont had clashed with mistresses of Louis in the past, most notably Madame de Pompadour, who he would like to "see burned". His fate now rests in the hands of Madame du Barry.
or even their dead bodies Beaumont took a hardline stance against Funeral Rites for sinners
Corpus delicti Literally the "body of the crime", i.e. the facts constituting a breach of the law, with a pun on the carnal nature of Louis' sin
Grand-Almoner Roche-Aymon Charles Antoine de La Roche-Aymon was a prelate, cardinal, and the Grand Almoner of France (the officer of the Maison du Roi responsible for the religious branch of the royal household)
oeil-de-boeuf Lit. “Bull’s eye”. Generally, a small round window. Here, the name of a salon of Versailles lit by such a window. Carlyle uses this term frequently as a metonym for the court.
The three Princesses, Graille, Chiffe, Coche (Rag, Snip, Pig, as he was wont to name them) Madame Sophie, Madame Louise, and Madame Victoire (who was fat), three of Louis' eight daughters
The fourth Princess Loque (Dud) Madame Adélaïde, another of Louis' daughters
Débotter Lit. "to remove boots", the ritual in which the king so did
Poor withered ancient women! Most of Louis' daughters did not marry, unable to find sufficiently qualified husbands
ye fly through hostile countries, over tempestuous seas, are almost taken by the Turks During the revolution, Madame Adélaïde and Madame Victoire, the only two surviving daughters, had to flee to Trieste on a small boat
Duke d’Orléans At this point the grandson of Louis XV’s erstwhile regent Philippe II, Louis Philippe I “The Fat”, father of Philippe Egalité.
Prince de Condé The Prince de Condé was a title granted to a member of a cadet branch (the legitimate descendants of a male heir to the throne) of the Bourbon family. The current occupant is Bob Joseph de Bourbon. Just kidding. His name was Louis. Louis Joseph de Bourbon.
Duke de Chartres, Egalité that is to be; Louis Philippe II d'Orléans, a liberal who is better known under the name he adopted during the revolution to distance himself from his conservative family, Philippe Égalité.
jacta est alea "The die is cast", the famous quote spoken by Caesar upon his crossing of the Rubicon, typically rendered "alea iacta est"
Old Richelieu Not the famous Cardinal who lived from 1585 to 1642 but rather his great nephew's son Louis François Armand de Vignerot du Plessis, duc de Richelieu, a soldier and statesman of notoriously loose morals who was thrice Bastilled in his younger years
rochet A vestment worn chiefly by abbots and bishops
Curé A parish priest