Part 5.1 is the first of four parts of Chapter 5.

A Childhood at Versailles consists of the first 5 chapters of the memoirs of Mme de Boigne (1781-1866), née Adèle d’Osmond, who was a French salon hostess and writer.  She was born in the Château de Versailles and lived at the court of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette until her family fled to England during the Revolution.  Later in her long life, she married a rich soldier of fortune 30 years her senior, hosted a brilliant salon in Paris, and became an intimate of the last French queen, Marie-Amélie, consort of King Louis Philippe (r. 1830-1848).  Childless herself, Mme de Boigne addressed her memoirs to her grandnephew.  The memoirs were not published until 1907, under the title Récits d’une tante, or An Aunt’s Tales.  They’ve never been published in English, as far as I know, so I’ve decided to translate the first 5 chapters, the ones that take place mainly at Versailles, and post them here on this blog for interested readers to enjoy for free.

The chapters are quite lengthy, so I’ve broken each one into several parts. In Part 5.1, the author recounts her family’s sojourn in Rome after their flight from Paris.  While living in the Eternal City, they met many interesting people, including the last Stuart, Henry Cardinal York.  

A Childhood at Versailles, Chapter 5, Part 1 (5.1)

I shall quickly pass over our stay in Italy.  I have but a slight memory of it; I only remember hearing talk about the tiffs at Mesdames’ little court, which, even then, seemed to me to be of an extreme ridiculousness.  The quarrels of the two chief ladies-in-waiting were pushed to the point of dividing the small number of French people then at Rome.  One was either of the Narbonne party or the Chastellux party, and cordially detested one another.  

My parent’s attitude was decided by the honour that my mother had of belonging to Madame Adélaïde, which the Chastelluxes recognized, and they remained on good terms.  The Chastellux children were on intimate terms with me, as well as Louise de Narbonne, the duchess’s grand daughter.  All the same, in order not to create jealousy, we were all equally excluded from the princesses’ presence.  

I did not see Madame Adélaïde even three times during our stay in Rome.  In truth, I was past the age at which one amuses oneself with a child as with a lapdog.  Despite the domestic quarrels of which they were both witnesses and victims, their entourages never managed to drive a wedge between the two elderly princesses.  They died within days of one another, having always lived in the tenderest unity.  Madame Victoire had a great admiration for her sister, who returned it affectionately.  

Part 4.6 is the final part of Chapter 4.

A Childhood at Versailles consists of the first 5 chapters of the memoirs of Mme de Boigne (1781-1866), née Adèle d’Osmond, who was a French salon hostess and writer.  She was born in the Château de Versailles and lived at the court of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette until her family fled to England during the Revolution.  Later in her long life, she married a rich soldier of fortune 30 years her senior, hosted a brilliant salon in Paris, and became an intimate of the last French queen, Marie-Amélie, consort of King Louis Philippe (r. 1830-1848).  Childless herself, Mme de Boigne addressed her memoirs to her grandnephew.  The memoirs were not published until 1907, under the title Récits d’une tante, or An Aunt’s Tales.  They’ve never been published in English, as far as I know, so I’ve decided to translate the first 5 chapters, the ones that take place mainly at Versailles, and post them here on this blog for interested readers to enjoy for free.

The chapters are quite lengthy, so I’ve broken each one into several parts. In Part 4.6, the fraught relations between the confined sovereigns in Paris and the émigrés in Coblentz, who were lead by the King’s brothers, are laid bare.

A Childhood at Versailles, Chapter 4, Part 6 (4.6)

I have said the King was strongly opposed to the initiatives that the Comte d’Artois was taking in his name.  This opposition did not diminish after Monsieur joined his brother, and the prisoners of the Tuileries were in a state of complete hostility to the leaders at Coblentz.  

The Queen, with the King’s approval, kept up a correspondence of which the Baron de Breteuil, then at Brussels, was the principal agent, and of which the primary goal was to prevent foreign governments from a lending a hand to the princes’ intrigues.  It was for that reason hidden from Madame Élisabeth, who leaned towards her brothers’ opinions.  The upshot was that, even within that sad palace, confidentiality was not complete.  

Part 4.5 is the penultimate part of Chapter 4, and the second of two parts about the royal family’s disastrous, failed flight to Varennes in the summer of 1791.

A Childhood at Versailles consists of the first 5 chapters of the memoirs of Mme de Boigne (1781-1866), née Adèle d’Osmond, who was a French salon hostess and writer.  She was born in the Château de Versailles and lived at the court of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette until her family fled to England during the Revolution.  Later in her long life, she married a rich soldier of fortune 30 years her senior, hosted a brilliant salon in Paris, and became an intimate of the last French queen, Marie-Amélie, consort of King Louis Philippe (r. 1830-1848).  Childless herself, Mme de Boigne addressed her memoirs to her grandnephew.  The memoirs were not published until 1907, under the title Récits d’une tante, or An Aunt’s Tales.  They’ve never been published in English, as far as I know, so I’ve decided to translate the first 5 chapters, the ones that take place mainly at Versailles, and post them here on this blog for interested readers to enjoy for free.

The chapters are quite lengthy, so I’ve broken each one into several parts. In Part 4.5, the author sets down what she remembers of the Marie Antoinette’s account of the flight to Varennes, as told by the Queen to her father.  

A Childhood at Versailles, Chapter 4, Part 5 (4.5)

There are many accounts of these events, but the authenticity of this one, from the Queen’s own lips, has decided me to set down the details that have remained in my memory of those that I heard my father recount. 

The traveling carriage had been ordered by Mme Sullivan (since then Mme Crawford), who had been so employed by M de Fersen on behalf of one of his friends, the Baronne de Korff.  It was for this same baroness, her family, and her suite that a passport in perfectly good order and a permit for post horses had been obtained. The carriage had for several days been on Mme Sullivan’s premises.  She had taken it upon herself to put in it the necessary items for the royal family’s use.  

One would have wished for the inhabitants of the Tuileries to disperse, but they did not want to be separated from one another.  The danger was great, and they wanted, they said, to escape or perish together.  Monsieur and Madame, who each consented to leave on their own, got away without obstruction.  In truth, they only needed to reach the nearest frontier, while the King, not being able to leave France, had but one route to follow.  Many precautions were taken, but one was lacking.  

The Baronne de Korff’s berline was to have been occupied by the King, the Queen, Madame Élisabeth, the two children and the Baron de Viomesnil.  Two bodyguards in livery were on the box.  Mme de Tourzel was only informed of the departure at the last minute.  She asserted the rights of her office (les droits de sa charge), which authorized her never to leave the Dauphin.  The argument was overriding for those to whom it was addressed, and she replaced M de Viomesnil in the carriage.  From then on, the royal family had no one able to act for them in case of an unexpected circumstance.  No ordinary bodyguards, as devoted as they might be, would assume that responsibility.  This decision was seen for what it was too late for it to be remedied.  

Part 4.4 is the fourth part of Chapter 4, and the first of two parts about the royal family’s disastrous, failed flight to Varennes in the summer of 1791.

A Childhood at Versailles consists of the first 5 chapters of the memoirs of Mme de Boigne (1781-1866), née Adèle d’Osmond, who was a French salon hostess and writer.  She was born in the Château de Versailles and lived at the court of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette until her family fled to England during the Revolution.  Later in her long life, she married a rich soldier of fortune 30 years her senior, hosted a brilliant salon in Paris, and became an intimate of the last French queen, Marie-Amélie, consort of King Louis Philippe (r. 1830-1848).  Childless herself, Mme de Boigne addressed her memoirs to her grandnephew.  The memoirs were not published until 1907, under the title Récits d’une tante, or An Aunt’s Tales.  They’ve never been published in English, as far as I know, so I’ve decided to translate the first 5 chapters, the ones that take place mainly at Versailles, and post them here on this blog for interested readers to enjoy for free.

The chapters are quite lengthy, so I’ve broken each one into several parts. In Part 4.4, the author records her father’s projected part in the royal family’s attempted flight from Paris and its aftermath.  

A Childhood at Versailles, Chapter 4, Part 4 (4.4)

Once established in Rome, my mother spent several months there in a state of keen anxiety over the dangers to which my father was exposed.  He came to join us in the spring of the year 1792,* a few months after the flight to Varennes. Here is what I have heard him tell about it since.

Part 4.3 is the third part of Chapter 4.

A Childhood at Versailles consists of the first 5 chapters of the memoirs of Mme de Boigne (1781-1866), née Adèle d’Osmond, who was a French salon hostess and writer.  She was born in the Château de Versailles and lived at the court of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette until her family fled to England during the Revolution.  Later in her long life, she married a rich soldier of fortune 30 years her senior, hosted a brilliant salon in Paris, and became an intimate of the last French queen, Marie-Amélie, consort of King Louis Philippe (r. 1830-1848).  Childless herself, Mme de Boigne addressed her memoirs to her grandnephew.  The memoirs were not published until 1907, under the title Récits d’une tante, or An Aunt’s Tales.  They’ve never been published in English, as far as I know, so I’ve decided to translate the first 5 chapters, the ones that take place mainly at Versailles, and post them here on this blog for interested readers to enjoy for free.

The chapters are quite lengthy, so I’ve broken each one into several parts. In Part 4.3, the author recounts her father’s role in the narrow escape of Mesdames, Louis XV’s aunts, from the mob.  

A Childhood at Versailles, Chapter 4, Part 3 (4.3)

Far from calming down, the Revolution became ever more menacing.  The King, who had formed the project of leaving Paris, wished to get his aunts away from it.  They asked for and obtained the National Assembly’s permission to go to Rome.  Before leaving, they went to stay at Bellevue.  

My father had been named minister to St. Petersburg to replace M de Ségur (1790).  The Minister’s public report had it that this choice had been made because the Empress Catherine would not consent to receive an envoy who was a patriot.  This circumstance could not but render my father’s position very dangerous.  Nevertheless, he did not think of leaving France, but he wanted his wife and daughter to leave.  As soon as Mesdames had crossed the frontier, my mother was to follow them.  

On the eve of the day fixed for Mesdames’ departure, my father, who spent his days among different groups, caught wind that many no longer wanted to let them leave.  Demagogic orators preached a crusade against Bellevue, with a view to fetching the old ladies and bringing them back to Paris; one could never have too many hostages, etc.  The obedient mob was already on the road to Bellevue.  

Part 4.2 is the second part of Chapter 4.

A Childhood at Versailles consists of the first 5 chapters of the memoirs of Mme de Boigne (1781-1866), née Adèle d’Osmond, who was a French salon hostess and writer.  She was born in the Château de Versailles and lived at the court of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette until her family fled to England during the Revolution.  Later in her long life, she married a rich soldier of fortune 30 years her senior, hosted a brilliant salon in Paris, and became an intimate of the last French queen, Marie-Amélie, consort of King Louis Philippe (r. 1830-1848).  Childless herself, Mme de Boigne addressed her memoirs to her grandnephew.  The memoirs were not published until 1907, under the title Récits d’une tante, or An Aunt’s Tales.  They’ve never been published in English, as far as I know, so I’ve decided to translate the first 5 chapters, the ones that take place mainly at Versailles, and post them here on this blog for interested readers to enjoy for free.

The chapters are quite lengthy, so I’ve broken each one into several parts. In Part 4.2, the author remembers her last meeting with Marie-Antoinette, whose Calvary had begun, in the summer of 1790.  

A Childhood at Versailles, Chapter 4, Part 2 (4.2)

After having been entrusted with a commission related to the Dutch refugees in 1788, my father was named minister to the Hague, and he was in that post at the time of our sojourn in England.  A quarrel between the Prince of Orange and the French ambassador made the Court of Versailles decide that it would no longer send a minister to Holland.  The Republic did not wish to receive anything but an ambassador.  This vexation prevented my father from taking up his post; all the more patience was required since he hoped to arrive thereby at the rank of ambassador, which could not be had at the start.  

The town of Versailles had reflected on the damage the Court’s absence was causing it.  The agitation had calmed, and it regretted the sad days of October.  On my mother’s return she could not have been better received by the very people who had railed against her the most at her departure; nonetheless, we did not stay there long.  We started by spending the summer at Bellevue, and the following winter we lived in an apartment in the Pavillon de Marsan at the Tuileries.  

Part 4.1 is the first part of Chapter 4.

A Childhood at Versailles consists of the first 5 chapters of the memoirs of Mme de Boigne (1781-1866), née Adèle d’Osmond, who was a French salon hostess and writer.  She was born in the Château de Versailles and lived at the court of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette until her family fled to England during the Revolution.  Later in her long life, she married a rich soldier of fortune 30 years her senior, hosted a brilliant salon in Paris, and became an intimate of the last French queen, Marie-Amélie, consort of King Louis Philippe (r. 1830-1848).  Childless herself, Mme de Boigne addressed her memoirs to her grandnephew.  The memoirs were not published until 1907, under the title Récits d’une tante, or An Aunt’s Tales.  They’ve never been published in English, as far as I know, so I’ve decided to translate the first 5 chapters, the ones that take place mainly at Versailles, and post them here on this blog for interested readers to enjoy for free.

The chapters are quite lengthy, so I’ve broken each one into several parts. In Part 4.1, the Osmonds return to France in early 1790 after a brief, temporary exile in England.  Mme de Boigne backtracks a little to tell a story about her father’s interactions circa 1788 with a certain Buonaparte family in Corsica.  

A Childhood at Versailles, Chapter 4, Part 1 (4.1)

In the month of January, 1790, my father returned to France.  Three months later we rejoined him.  I have forgotten to say that he had quit the army in 1788 in order to embark on a diplomatic career.  He had previously been the colonel of the Barrois infantry regiment, which was garrisoned in Corsica.  He used to go there every year.  

One of these trips gave rise to an episode that was quite unimportant at the time, but which has become interesting since.  He was lodging at the home of M Malouet, the Intendant of the Navy and his friend, waiting for the wind to change and permit him to embark, when a Corsican gentleman asking to see him was announced.  He had him ushered in; after a few reciprocal courtesies, this gentleman told him he desired to return as promptly as possible to Ajaccio, and and that since the only felucca in port had been chartered by my father, he begged him to ask the owner’s permission to let him take passage on it.

“That is impossible for me to do, monsieur, for the felucca belongs to me, but I would be very happy to offer you a berth on it.”

“But, Monsieur le Marquis, I am not alone, I have my son with me and even my cook, whom I am taking back.”

“Well, then, monsieur, there will be room for you and all your people.”  

The Corsican thanked him profusely.  The wind changed after a few days, during which they frequently came to see my father.  They embarked.  When dinner was served, to which my father invited the passengers, consisting of some officers of his regiment and the two Corsicans, he tasked an officer, M de Belly, with calling the young man dressed in the uniform of the École Militaire, who was reading at the other end of the boat.  The latter refused to come.  M de Belly came back irritated and said to my father, “I want to throw him into the sea, that little lout.  He looks like a bad character.  Do I have your permission, Colonel?”

“No,” said my father, laughing, “I do not permit it.  I do not share your opinion; he looks like a promising character.  I am persuaded that he will make his way.”

That little lout was the Emperor Napoléon.  Belly has recounted this scene to me ten times: “Oh, if only the Colonel had permitted me to throw him into the sea” he would add, sighing, “he would not be upending the world today!” (It need hardly be pointed out that these words were spoken by the emigré Belly many years later.)

The day after arriving in Ajaccio, the elder M Buonaparte, accompanied by his whole family, came to make a visit of thanks to my father.  This was the day that his relations with Pozzo di Borgo began.  My father paid a visit to Mme Buonaparte.  She lived in Ajaccio in one of the best small houses of the city, on the door of which was written in snail shells, “Long Live Marbeuf.”  M de Marbeuf had been the protector of the Buonaparte family.  Gossip had it that Mme Buonaparte was very grateful to him.  At the time my father visited, she was still a very beautiful woman; he found her in the kitchen, without stockings, in a simple petticoat attached to a shirt, busy making preserves.  Despite her beauty, she seemed to him to be suited to her work.  

In Part 4.2, we will return to the ever-darkening clouds of the Revolution in the early days of the Court’s residence at the Tuileries.

Part 3.5 is the last part of Chapter 3.

A Childhood at Versailles consists of the first 5 chapters of the memoirs of Mme de Boigne (1781-1866), née Adèle d’Osmond, who was a French salon hostess and writer.  She was born in the Château de Versailles and lived at the court of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette until her family fled to England during the Revolution.  Later in her long life, she married a rich soldier of fortune 30 years her senior, hosted a brilliant salon in Paris, and became an intimate of the last French queen, Marie-Amélie, consort of King Louis Philippe (r. 1830-1848).  Childless herself, Mme de Boigne addressed her memoirs to her grandnephew.  The memoirs were not published until 1907, under the title Récits d’une tante, or An Aunt’s Tales.  They’ve never been published in English, as far as I know, so I’ve decided to translate the first 5 chapters, the ones that take place mainly at Versailles, and post them here on this blog for interested readers to enjoy for free.

The chapters are quite lengthy, so I’ve broken each one into several parts. In Part 3.5, Mme de Boigne records her family’s reception in England, which got off to a good start when they bumped into Mrs. Fitzherbert on the pier at Brighton.

A Childhood at Versailles, Chapter 3, Part 5 (3.5)

I have little recollection of this voyage.  I recall only the impression that the sight of the ocean caused me.  Child that I was, I devoted to it from that time a veneration that has never waned.  Its grey and green shades have a charm for me that the beautiful blue waters of the Mediterranean have not made me unfaithful to. 

We debarked at Brighton.  As chance would have it, my mother encountered Mrs. Fitzherbert, who was walking on the pier.  Some years before, fleeing the Prince of Wales’s attentions, she had come to Paris.  My mother, who was her cousin, had often seen her there.  Since then, the blessing of a Catholic priest having sanctified her relations with the prince, without making them legal, she was living with him in an intimacy to which both of them affected to give the most conjugal forms.  They lived as simple commoners in a small house in Brighton.  My parents were received there with alacrity, and this circumstance led them to spend a few days.  

I remember being taken to see Mrs. Fitzherbert one morning, and she showed us the prince’s dressing room, where there was a large table all covered in shoe buckles.  I cried out on seeing them and Mrs. Fitzherbert smilingly opened a big armoire which was also full of them.  There were shoe buckles for every day of the year.  It was part of the elegance of the time, and the Prince of Wales was the most elegant of the elegant men.  This collection of buckles struck my childish imagination, and for a long time the Prince of Wales only figured in it as the proprietor of all those buckles.  

My parents were very well received in England.  The French rarely went there in those days. My mother was a pretty woman of fashion, and her family loaded her with kind attentions.  We went to spend Christmas with the Earl of Winchilsea on his beautiful estate at Burleigh.  It seems to me now that this way of life was very magnificent, but I was too accustomed to great establishments to think much of it.  

Lord Winchilsea’s mother, Lady Charlotte Finch, was the governess of the English princesses.  I saw the three youngest of them several times at her home.  They were much older than I and they did not please me at all.  Princess Amelia called me little thing, which shocked me infinitely.  I spoke English very well, but I did not yet know that it was a term of affection.²⁰ 

Notes: 

20. See the letters written by Madame Adélaïde to the Marquise d’Osmond during this trip in the Pièces justificatives.  

Part 3.4 is the fourth of five parts of Chapter 3.

A Childhood at Versailles consists of the first 5 chapters of the memoirs of Mme de Boigne (1781-1866), née Adèle d’Osmond, who was a French salon hostess and writer.  She was born in the Château de Versailles and lived at the court of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette until her family fled to England during the Revolution.  Later in her long life, she married a rich soldier of fortune 30 years her senior, hosted a brilliant salon in Paris, and became an intimate of the last French queen, Marie-Amélie, consort of King Louis Philippe (r. 1830-1848).  Childless herself, Mme de Boigne addressed her memoirs to her grandnephew.  The memoirs were not published until 1907, under the title Récits d’une tante, or An Aunt’s Tales.  They’ve never been published in English, as far as I know, so I’ve decided to translate the first 5 chapters, the ones that take place mainly at Versailles, and post them here on this blog for interested readers to enjoy for free.

The chapters are quite lengthy, so I’ve broken each one into several parts. In Part 3.4, the author recalls the confusion, missteps, and dangers of the events of October, 1789.

A Childhood at Versailles, Chapter 3, Part 4 (3.4)

One day, I was out playing at the home of the little de Guiches, and I was fetched away much earlier than usual.  Instead of the servant ordinarily charged with carrying me home, I found my father’s trusted valet.  I had an English nursemaid who spoke French badly; she was given a note from my mother.  While she was reading it, I returned to my little companions’ room, and already everything was upside down, there was weeping, and packing had got started.  I was bundled into a fur-lined coat and the valet took me up in his arms.  Then, rather than taking me to my parents,’ he settled me with my nursemaid at the home of an old English master, who lived in a small fourth-floor room in a distant part of town.  

The following night I was fetched away to the countryside, where I remained for several days without news from anyone.  I was already old enough to suffer a great deal from this exile.  It was around the time of the troubles of the month of June and the time of the departure of the Comte d’Artois, his children, and the Polignac family.  On my return, I found that the eldest of the little de Guiches was gone and his sister hidden at the home of her maid’s parents.  The motive of all this anxiety for us children had been the rumour put about that the people, as a handful of miscreants was then called, were on their way to come and take the nobles’ children away and make hostages of them.  

A great fright engendered by this separation remained with me, and when the events of 6 October occurred, my thoughts were occupied by the fear of being sent away from our house.  

Part 3.3 is the third of five parts of Chapter 3.

A Childhood at Versailles consists of the first 5 chapters of the memoirs of Mme de Boigne (1781-1866), née Adèle d’Osmond, who was a French salon hostess and writer.  She was born in the Château de Versailles and lived at the court of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette until her family fled to England during the Revolution.  Later in her long life, she married a rich soldier of fortune 30 years her senior, hosted a brilliant salon in Paris, and became an intimate of the last French queen, Marie-Amélie, consort of King Louis Philippe (r. 1830-1848).  Childless herself, Mme de Boigne addressed her memoirs to her grandnephew.  The memoirs were not published until 1907, under the title Récits d’une tante, or An Aunt’s Tales.  They’ve never been published in English, as far as I know, so I’ve decided to translate the first 5 chapters, the ones that take place mainly at Versailles, and post them here on this blog for interested readers to enjoy for free.

The chapters are quite lengthy, so I’ve broken each one into several parts. In Part 3.3, the author recounts her father’s refusal to attend the opening of the Estates General in May, 1789, and the offence he gave to Madame Adélaïde on that score.   

A Childhood at Versailles, Chapter 3, Part 3 (Part 3.3)

My father made no mistake about the gravity of the circumstances.  The ceremony of the opening of the Esates-General was solemn and accompanied by magnificent proceedings that attracted foreign visitors from every corner of Europe to Versailles.  My mother, attired in full court dress, had my father informed that she was leaving.  Not seeing him arrive, she went to his room and found him in his dressing gown.

“But you must hurry, we shall be late.”

“No, for I’m not going. I do not want to see that unfortunate man abdicate.”

That evening, Madame Adéläide spoke of the splendid view in the hall.  She addressed my father with a few questions about the details.  He replied that he had no idea of them.  

“Where you were sitting, then?”

“I was not there, Madame.”

“Were you ill?”

“No, Madame.”

“How is it that when others have come from so far away to attend this ceremony, you did not trouble yourself to cross the street?”

“It is just that I do not like funerals, Madame, still less that of the monarchy.”

“And I do not like that at your age you think you know better than everyone else.”

So saying, the princess turned on her heels.

It should not be concluded from this that my father did not want concessions to be made. On the contrary, he was persuaded that the times demanded them imperiously, but he wanted them made according to a plan agreed upon in advance, and he wanted them to be generous and freely given, not extorted. He watched the Estates General open with mortal anguish because, abreast of everyone’s vague aims, he knew that no one had fixed the actual goal at which they had to stop, whether in terms of demands or in terms of concessions.   

Furthermore, he had no confidence in M Necker. He believed that the latter was disposed to place the King at the top of a slope, not with the intention of pushing him down it, but with the arrogant notion that only he could hold him back, and thus render himself indispensable.  

Madame Adélaïde’s anger did not have long to wait before events calmed it.  

Part 3.4, in which Mme de Boigne recalls the events of October, 1789, should appear sometime in the first week of May, 2018.