The Shadow Queen A Novel (38 page)
Read The Shadow Queen A Novel Online
Authors: Sandra Gulland
Jerkin—a short, close-fitting garment, often sleeveless (rather like a vest).
Jeu de paume—a precursor of the game of tennis, played indoors. It was a very popular game in the early part of the seventeenth century, but lost favor under Louis XIV. A number of the abandoned courts were converted to theaters.
Jours ordinaires and extraordinaires—the theater week was divided into
jours ordinaires
(Tuesday, Friday, and Sunday) and
jours extraordinaires
(Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday).
Justacorps—a knee-length coat which flared out from the waist.
Keeper of Secrets—the title given the machinist who creates the “magical” special effects; also called Great Sorcerer.
King’s Evil—scrofula, a tuberculosis infection of the lymph nodes in the neck. It was preached that Saint Marcouf granted the kings of France the gift of healing this deforming disease. From Edward the Confessor on, a king was believed to be able to cure “the King’s Evil” with his touch when his spiritual power was strong—just after he’d been newly anointed, for example, or shortly after he’d made confession and gone to Mass. It was also practiced by English kings.
Lettre de cachet—an order from the King, sending someone to prison, a convent, a hospital, or exile without the benefit of trial or appeal.
Litter—a chair or bed (often covered) carried by two or more men, sometimes called a sedan chair or palanquin.
Loge—box in a theater.
Loge attendant (ouvreuse)—the woman who has the key to a loge and attends to the needs of those patrons seated in it.
Love powder—a powder or tincture containing cantharides, more commonly known as “Spanish Fly,” a potentially fatal ingredient that caused inflammation of the organs of the genital tract (and was thus used to treat impotence).
Machine play—a play in which special effects were achieved by the use of machinery.
Madame, Monsieur—when used as a name at Court, understood to be the King’s brother and his wife.
Mushrooms—a game in which a woman would twirl and drop to the floor, trying to get her skirts to fall in a perfect circle around her.
Ombrella (or ombrello)—the original Italian word for an umbrella, from the Latin word
umbra,
for shade.
Ouverture—the day after Easter when all the theaters opened their doors to the public.
Overhire list—the list of part-time workers who helped to put on a theatrical production.
Paradis—the top tier (balcony) of a theater, where servants and relatives of the players were permitted to sit.
Parterre—an open area in front of the stage (“orchestra” seating today) where men, often rowdy, stood to watch a performance.
Pensions list—each year the King announced which playwrights and performers would be awarded a pension (what we would consider a “grant”).
Petticoat breeches—wide, pleated pants that resembled a skirt, worn by men in Western Europe in the mid-seventeenth century.
Pit—see
Parterre.
Pit-fall—a trapdoor on the stage floor, the means by which a character abruptly—alarmingly—disappears.
Poke—a bag hidden under a woman’s skirts; the original purse.
Post chaise—a four-wheeled closed carriage.
Tant pis—“Too bad” in French.
Teethy—a very old word meaning testy and peevish.
Terce—see
Canonical hours.
Travesty player—someone who played the part of the opposite sex in a play.
Turkey carpet (also known as Anatolian)—a hand-knotted or flat woven carpet made by Turks.
Unblood—someone not of the nobility.
Unities—from Aristotle’s
Poetics,
three rules for drama: 1) unity of action (the play must be about one main action), 2) unity of place (the play must be set in one place), and 3) unity of time (the action of the play must take place in twenty-four hours or fewer).
Versaie—the Palace of Versailles in its early evolution.
Vespers—see
Canonical hours.
Voyage—when a theatrical troupe makes a performance away from their regular theater in Paris, to travel to perform for the King, for example, wherever the Court resides.
Winter Swallows—country boys who migrate to Paris and other city centers during the winter months to beg.
Wormwood wine—a bitter tonic prepared by steeping a handful of wormwood in a gallon of wine. It evolved to become today’s vermouth.
Frankly, I was tempted to dedicate this book to John Golder, scholar of seventeenth-century French theater, so great is my debt. He generously answered my many (many!) questions over the years and provided a reading list that amounted to a master class in this fascinating subject. All errors of fact are mine, and mine alone—and when I do get something right, he is responsible.
Thanks also to the following academics who responded to my questions: Lynn Wood Mollenauer, author of
Strange Revelations: Magic, Poison, and Sacrilege in Louis XIV’s France;
Holly Tucker, author of
Blood Work: A Tale of Medicine and Murder in the Scientific Revolution;
Jeffrey Jackson, author of
Paris Under Water: How the City of Light Survived the Great Flood of 1910;
and Virginia Scott, author of
Molière: A Theatrical Life.
Hilary Berstein and other scholars on the H-France list offered assistance, particularly Antoine Coutelle with information on Poitiers, and Jim Burrows on the approximate location of chez Duchesse d’Armagnac in Paris. Special thanks for the time and wisdom of two Corneille specialists of the Centre International Pierre Corneille: author and professor Myriam Dufour-Maître, and Evelyne Poirel, curator of Musée Pierre Corneille in Petit-Couronne.
Other guides on the long and winding research road include: Beckah Reed (visionary), Claire Naylor McKeever (actress), Frank Morlock (seventeenth-century enthusiast), Anne and Bruno Challamel (
toujours
), Katie De La Matter (seventeenth-century musicologist), Deb Reynold (clowning workshop leader), Phoebe Spanier (on seventeenth-century mirrors), and Monique Boulanger (for help with French translations). Social workers Lucy King and Fran Murphy shared their knowledge of Asperger’s syndrome (which Gaston has not, not truly). Pamela Grant, “Paris Story” tour guide, was fantastic. Special thanks go to Tanguy de Vienne, owner of the Château de Suisnes south of Paris, for a wonderful tour of Claude’s lovely château.
To my editors, whose influence can be seen on
every
page of this novel: immeasurable appreciation. They are: my brilliant early-stage editors, Dan Smetanka and Fiona Foster; the inimitable Iris Tupholme and fiction editor Lorissa Sengara at HarperCollins Canada; bright spark and guiding light Melissa Danaczko at Doubleday U.S.; agent Jackie Kaiser of Westwood Creative Artists, my first reader and lead cheerleader.
A number of readers provided invaluable feedback on the manuscript at various stages: actress and creative spirit Ellen Stewart; seventeenth-century scholar Gary McCollim; writer and editor Jude Holland; fan-volunteer Deborah Schryer; authors Stephanie Cowell and Victoria Zackheim. Although Jordan Gentile was unable to review the manuscript, his fulsome and informed comments on my blog were always helpful.
Members of my two writers’ groups saw this novel through various stages from mere scribbles to a finished book (a miracle): Jenifer McVaugh and Johanna Zomers of the WWW (Wilno Women Writers), and my ever-nameless San Miguel de Allende group: Beverly Donofrio and Susan McKinney. Thank you so much for your thoughtful feedback.
Additionally, and astonishingly, fourteen employees of Chapters/Indigo bookstores across Canada volunteered to read and critique an early draft of this novel, forwarding me written reports. Their input was extremely helpful, and a number of important changes were made as a result. They are: Carlos Alonso, June Baxter, Martina Bracek, Ellen Clark, Gaye DeWolfe, Tami Grondines, Erin Legare, Beth MacDonald, Sheena Madole, Marjorie Morris, Lynda Parkinson, John Pickard, Jena Rayner, and Vivian Samoil. Thank you all!
The title of this novel was uncertain until the very end. Twice I solicited opinions on my Facebook author page. To all the readers who helped me arrive at a short list: thank you! Profound thanks, as well, to the members of the Fiction Writers Co-op, a powerhouse Facebook group, for giving a resounding thumbs-up to the final title
The Shadow Queen,
as well as emotional support and professional advice on all things to do with writing and publishing.
There are others, as well, working behind the scenes as this novel heads out into the world—people like James Melia and Nicole Pedersen at Doubleday, Doug Richmond at HarperCollins Canada, and Chris Casuccio at Westwood Creative Artists, but also many I’ve yet to even meet, people who are giving
The Shadow Queen
their professional best: I thank you!
And lastly, and always, wholehearted thanks to my ever-supportive husband, Richard, daughter, Carrie, and son, Chet, my home team.
SANDRA GULLAND
is the author of
Mistress of the Sun
and the Josephine B. Trilogy, which has sold over a million copies worldwide and is currently under development for a television miniseries. Her work has been translated into fifteen languages. She and her husband live half the year in rural Ontario, Canada, and the other half in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
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Mistress of the Sun
THE JOSEPHINE B.TRILOGY
The Many Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B.
Tales of Passion, Tales of Woe
The Last Great Dance on Earth
Cover image by Hélène Desplechin / Getty Images
The Shadow Queen
is a work of fiction inspired by the life of Claude des Oeillets, daughter of the actress Alix des Oeillets, and confidential attendant to the Sun King’s mistress, Madame de Montespan.
Copyright © 2014 by Sandra Gulland Inc. All rights reserved.
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EPub Edition MARCH 2014 ISBN 9781443409384
Published by HarperCollins Publishers Limited
First Canadian edition
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Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
