Brantôme alludes as follows to this tale, in the Fourth Discourse of his
_Vies des Dames Galantes_:--
“I knew a great lady whose plumpness was the subject of general talk
both whilst she was a maid and when she became a wife, but she happened
to lose her husband, and gave way to such extreme grief that she became
as dry as a stick. Still she did not cease to enjoy herself to her
heart’s content, with the assistance of one of her secretaries, and
even so it is said of her cook. Nevertheless, she did not regain her
plumpness, albeit the said cook, who was all grease and fat, should as
it seems to me have made her stout again. Whilst she thus amused herself
with one and another of her varlets, she affected more prudery and
chastity than any other lady of the Court, having none but words
of virtue on her lips, speaking ill of all other women and finding
something to be censured in each of them. Very similar to this one was
that great lady of Dauphiné who is mentioned in the Hundred Tales of
the Queen of Navarre, and who was found, lying on the grass with her
stableman or muleteer, by a gentleman who was in love with her to
distraction. On finding her thus, however, he was speedily cured of his
love-sickness.
“I have read in an old romance about John de Saintré, printed in
black-letter, that the late King John brought him up as a page.
In the old times it was usual for great personages to send their pages
about with messages, as is indeed done nowadays, but at that time they
journeyed anywhere across country, on horseback. In fact, I have heard
our fathers say that pages were often sent on little embassies, for very
often a matter would be settled and expense saved by merely despatching
a page with a horse and a piece of silver. This little Jehan de Saintré,
as he was long called, was a great favourite with his master King John,
for he was full of wit, and it often happened that he was sent with
messages to his [the King’s?] sister, who was then a widow, though
of whom the book does not say. This lady fell in love with him after
several messages that he had delivered to her, and one day finding him
alone, she engaged him in converse, and, according to the usual practice
of ladies when they wish to engage any one in a love attack, she began
to ask him if he were in love with any lady of the Court, and which one
pleased him the most. This little John de Saintre, who had never even so
much as thought of love, told her that he cared for none at the Court as
yet, whereupon she mentioned several other ladies to him, and asked him
whether he thought of them. ‘Still less,’ replied he.... Thereupon the
lady, seeing that the young fellow was of good appearance, told him that
she would give him a mistress who would love him tenderly if he would
serve her well, and whilst he stood there feeling greatly ashamed,
she made him promise that he would keep the matter secret, and finally
declared to him that she herself wished to be his lady and lover, for
at that time the word ‘mistress’ was not yet used. The young page was
vastly astonished, thinking that the lady was joking, or wished to
deceive him or to have him whipped. However, she soon showed him so many
signs of the fire and fever of love, saying to him that she wished to
tutor him and make a man of him, that he at last realised that it was
not a jest. Their love lasted for a long time, both whilst he was a page
and afterwards, until at length he had to go upon a long journey, when
she replaced him by a big, fat abbot. This is the same story that one
finds in the _Nouvelles du Monde Advantureux_ by a valet of the Queen of
Navarre [Antoine de St. Denis], in which one sees the abbot insult
this same John de Saintré who was so brave and valiant, and who right
speedily and liberally paid back my lord the abbot in his own
coin.... So you see it is no new thing for ladies to love pages. What
inclinations some women have, they will willingly take any number of
lovers but they want no husband! All this is through love of liberty,
which they deem such a pleasant thing. It seems to them as though they
were in Paradise when they are not under a husband’s rule. They have a
fine dowry and spend it thriftily, they have all their household affairs
in hand, receive their income, everything passing through their hands;
and instead of being servants they are mistresses, select their
own pleasures and favourites, and amuse themselves as much as they
like.”--Lalanne’s _OEuvres de Brantôme_, vol. xi. pp. 703-6.