Memoirs of Louis XIV and His Court and of the Regency — Volume 03 — Background and Themes

The Language of Power and Illness

Saint-Simon's diction in describing the King of Spain's decline is clinical: 'very weak health,' 'danger of his life several times.' He avoids melodrama, letting the political stakes speak for themselves. When Monsieur falls ill, the vocabulary shifts to urgency: 'emetic had no effect,' 'no remedy has taken effect.' The author's choice of the word 'hubbub' to describe the chaotic flight from Marly to Saint Cloud is deliberately informal, contrasting with the usual decorum of court. He notes that Monseigneur, the Dauphin, was 'so struck' by the resemblance to his own past illness that he 'could scarcely stand'—a rare moment of physical vulnerability in a memoir otherwise concerned with protocol.

Tears and Tactics: The King's Display of Grief

Saint-Simon repeatedly observes Louis XIV weeping: 'naturally he wept with great facility; he was, therefore, all tears.' The author does not take this at face value. He suggests the King's tears may stem from guilt over a morning quarrel that 'hastened death,' or from the unsettling fact that his younger brother had 'enjoyed as good health as he.' The memoirist notes that the King wept again when told of the death, and tears 'often ran down his cheek' during dinner. Yet Saint-Simon also records the King's immediate return to business: after weeping, he 'worked with Chamillart and Pontchartrain' to arrange funeral ceremonies. The juxtaposition of tears and paperwork is characteristic of Saint-Simon's unsentimental eye.

Ridiculous Contrasts in a Deathbed Scene

Saint-Simon explicitly states that 'the most horrible sights have often ridiculous contrasts.' He illustrates this with the confessor Pere du Trevoux, who, after Monsieur loses consciousness, cries out, 'Monsieur, do you not know your confessor? Do you not know the good little Pere du Trevoux?' The repetition of 'good little' and the confessor's self-identification strike Saint-Simon as indecently comic, causing 'the less afflicted to laugh.' This detail is not mere gossip; it reveals the author's method of puncturing solemnity with observed absurdity. The dying man lies on a couch in his cabinet, surrounded by a crowd that 'little by little withdrew' after the King left—a quiet detail that underscores the transactional nature of court attendance.

The Young Duke's Calculated Embrace

In the aftermath of Monsieur's death, Saint-Simon records a striking exchange between Louis XIV and his nephew, the Duc de Chartres (later Regent). As the King departs Saint Cloud, Chartres, 'weeping very much,' embraces the King's thighs and exclaims, 'Oh Sire! what will become of me? I lose Monsieur, and I know that you do not like me.' The King, 'surprised and much touched,' responds with tender words. Saint-Simon does not comment on the sincerity of either party, but the scene is carefully placed: the young prince seizes the moment of royal vulnerability to secure favor. The memoirist's choice to include the detail of the embrace—'embracing the King's thighs'—emphasizes the physicality of the plea, a gesture both desperate and strategic.

Saint-Simon's memoir demands attention to its small, telling details: the confessor's absurd refrain, the King's tears that flow and then dry as he turns to state papers, the young duke's theatrical grief. Readers should watch for the author's habit of juxtaposing high drama with mundane particulars—a technique that makes these courtiers feel both remote and startlingly human. The volume offers no grand moral, only the relentless observation of power as it is performed, wept over, and calculated.

There’s something humbling about watching Saint-Simon record the theatrical tears at Monsieur’s deathbed, knowing how quickly those same mourners turned to scheming. It reminds me of another long captivity, endured far from Versailles, where survival stripped away all pretense. I keep thinking of that other prisoner’s quiet endurance—The captivity, sufferings, and escape of James Scurry Who was detained a prisoner during ten years, in the dominions of Hyder Ali and Tippoo Saib — Edition Insights—and how both memoirs, in their different ways, show what a person becomes when the performance finally stops.