In 1629, Cardinal Richelieu began the construction of this palace.
When finished, in 1636, he called it the _Palais Cardinal_, a
denomination which was much criticized, as being unworthy of the
founder of the French Academy.
Like the politic Wolsey, who gave Hampton-Court to Henry VIII, the
crafty Richelieu, in 1639, thought proper to make a present of this
palace to Lewis XIII. After the death of that king, Anne of Austria,
queen of France and regent of the kingdom, quitted the _Louvre_ to
inhabit the _Palais Cardinal_, with her sons Lewis XIV and the Duke
of Anjou.
The first inscription was then removed, and this palace was called
_le Palais Royal_, a name which it preserved till the revolution,
when, after the new title assumed by its then owner, it was
denominated _la Maison Égalité_, till, under the consular government,
since the Tribunate have here established their sittings, it has
obtained its present appellation of _Palais du Tribunat_.
In the sequel, Lewis XIV granted to Monsieur, his only brother,
married to Henrietta Stuart, daughter of Charles I, the enjoyment of
the _Palais Royal_, and afterwards vested the property of it in his
grandson, the Duke of Chartres.
That prince, become Duke of Orleans, and regent of France, during the
minority of Lewis XV, resided in this palace, and (to use Voltaire's
expression) hence gave the signal of voluptuousness to the whole
kingdom. Here too, he ruled it with principles the most daring;
holding men, in general, in great contempt, and conceiving them to be
all as insidious, as servile, and as covetous as those by whom he was
surrounded. With the superiority of his character, he made a sport of
governing this mass of individuals, as if the task was unworthy of
his genius. The fact is illustrated by the following anecdote.
At the commencement of his regency, the debts of the State were
immense, and the finances exhausted: such great evils required
extraordinary remedies; he wished to persuade the people that
paper-money was better than specie. Thousands became the dupes
of their avarice, and too soon awoke from their dream only to curse
the authors of a project which ended in their total ruin. It is almost
needless to mention that I here allude to the Mississippi bubble.
In circumstances so critical, the Parliament of Paris thought it
their duty to make remonstrances. They accordingly sent deputies to
the regent, who was persuaded that they wished to stir up the
Parisians against him. After having listened to their harangue with
much phelgm, he gave them his answer in four words: "Go and be
d----n'd." The deputy, who had addressed him, nothing disconcerted,
instantly replied: "Sir, it is the custom of the Parliament to enter
in their registers the answers which they receive from the throne:
shall they insert this?"
The principles of the regent's administration, which succeeded those
of Lewis XIV, form in history, a very striking shade. The French
nation, which, plastic as wax, yields to every impression, was
new-modelled in a single instant. As a rotten speck, by spreading,
contaminates the finest fruit, so was the _Palais Royal_ the corrupt
spot, whence the contagion of debauchery was propagated, even to the
remotest parts of the kingdom.
This period, infinitely curious and interesting, paved the way to the
present manners. If the basis of morality be at this day overthrown
in France, the regency of Philip of Orleans, by completing what the
dissolute court of Lewis XIV had begun, has occasioned that rapid
change, whose influence was felt long before the revolution, and
will, in all probability, last for ages. At least, I think that such
a conclusion is exemplified by what has occurred in England since the
profligate reign of Charles II, the effects of whose example have
never been done away.
Different circumstances have produced considerable alterations in
this palace, so that, at the present day, its numerous buildings
preserve of the first architect, LE MERCIER, no more than a small
part of the second court.
The principal entrance of the _Palais du Tribunat_ is from the _Rue
St. Honoré_. The façade, on this side, which was constructed in 1763,
consists of two pavilions, ornamented by Doric and Ionic pillars, and
connected by a lofty stone-wall, perforated with arches, to three
grand gates, by which you enter the first court. Here, two elegant
wings present themselves, decorated with pilasters, also of the Doric
and Ionic orders, which are likewise employed for the pillars of the
avant-corps in the centre. This avant-corps is pierced with three
arches, which serve as a passage into the second court, and
correspond with the three gates before-mentioned.
Having reached the vestibule, between the two courts, where large
Doric pillars rise, though partly concealed by a number of little
shops and stalls, you see, on the right, the handsome elliptical
stair-case, which leads to the apartments. It branches off into two
divisions at the third step, and is lighted by a lofty dome. The
balustrade of polished iron is beautiful, and is said to have cost
thirty-two workmen two years' labour. Before the revolution,
strangers repaired hither to admire the cabinet of gems and engraved
stones, the cabinet of natural history, the collection of models of
arts, trades, and manufactures, and the famous collection of
pictures, belonging to the _last_ duke of Orleans, and chiefly
assembled, at a vast expense, by his grandfather, the regent.
This second court is larger than the first; but it still remains in
an incomplete state. The right-hand wing only is finished, and is
merely a continuation of that which we have seen in the other court.
On the left hand, is the site of the new hall intended for the
sittings of the Tribunate. Workmen are now employed in its
construction; heaps of stones and mortar are lying about, and, the
building seems to proceed with tolerable expedition. Here, in the
back-ground, is a crowd of little stalls for the sale of various
articles, such as prints, plays, fruit, and pastry. In front stand
such carriages as remain in waiting for those who may have been set
down at this end of the palace. Proceeding onward, you pass through
two parallel wooden galleries, lined on each side with shops, and
enter the formerly-enchanting regions of the