PARIS, Friday, Dec. 8, 1673.
I must begin, my dear child, by telling you of the death of the Count
de Guiche: this is the chief subject of conversation at present. The
poor youth died of sickness and fatigue in M. de Turenne’s army; the
news came on Tuesday morning. Father Bourdaloüe went to acquaint the
Marshal de Grammont with it; who feared it the moment he saw him,
knowing the declining state of his son. He made every one go out of
his chamber, which was a little apartment near the convent of the
Capuchins, and as soon as he found himself alone with Bourdaloüe, he
threw himself upon his neck, saying, that he guessed but too well what
he had to tell him; that it was his death-stroke, and that he received
it as such from the hand of God; that he lost the true, the only object
of his tenderness and natural affection; that he had never experienced
any real joy, or violent grief, but through his son, who was not a
common character. He threw himself on a bed, unable to support his
grief, but without weeping, for this is a situation that denies the
relief of tears. Bourdaloüe wept, but had not yet spoken a word.
At last he began to comfort him with religious discourse, in which
he employed his well-known zeal and eloquence. They were six hours
together; after which Bourdaloüe, to induce him to make a complete
sacrifice, led him to the church of these good Capuchins, where vigils
were said for his son. He entered the church fainting and trembling,
supported more by the crowd that pressed round him on every side, than
by his feet; his face was so much disfigured with grief, that he could
scarcely be known. The duke saw him in this lamentable condition,
and related it to us at Madame de la Fayette’s, with tears. The poor
marshal returned at last to his little apartment, where he remains
like a man under sentence of death. The king has written to him. No
one is admitted to see him. Madame de Monaco[78] is inconsolable, and
refuses to see company. Madame de Louvigny[79] is likewise incapable of
receiving comfort; but it is only because she is not at all grieved. Do
not you wonder at her good fortune? She is in a moment become Duchess
of Grammont. The chancellor’s lady[80] is transported with joy: the
Countess de Guiche[81] behaves admirably well; she weeps when they
tell her all the kind things her husband said, and the excuses he made
to her when he was dying. “He was a very amiable man,” she says; “I
should have loved him passionately, if he had loved me in the slightest
degree; I suffered his contempt with grief, and his death affects me
with pity; I always hoped he would change his sentiments with regard
to me.” This is certainly true; there is not the least fiction in it.
Madame de Verneuil[82] feels real concern on this occasion. I believe
it will be sufficient, if you only desire me to make your compliments
to her; so you need only write to the Countess de Guiche, to Madame de
Monaco, and Madame de Louvigny. The good D’Hacqueville has been desired
to go to Frasé, thirty leagues from hence, to tell the news to Madame
de Grammont, and to carry her a letter written by the poor youth a
little before he died. He made a full confession of the faults of his
past life, asked pardon publicly, and sent to tell Vardes a great many
things which may benefit him. In a word, he ended the comedy well, and
has left a rich and a happy widow.[83] The chancellor’s lady is so
fully sensible, she says, of the little happiness this poor lady must
have had in her marriage, that she thinks of nothing but repairing
this misfortune. We are at a loss for a proper match for her. You will
perhaps name for her M. de Marsillac, as we did; but they do not like
each other: the other dukes are too young. M. de Foix is destined for
Mademoiselle de Roquelaure. Think a little for us, for the affair is
pressing. I have sent you, my dear child, a tedious account, but you
sometimes tell me you like minuteness.
[78] Catherine Charlotte de Grammont, sister to the Count de
Guiche.
[79] Maria Charlotte de Castelnau, sister-in-law to the Count.
[80] Relict of the late Chancellor Seguier, and grandmother to
the Countess de Guiche.
[81] Margaret Louisa Susan de Bethune Sulli.
[82] Charlotte de Seguier, mother to the Countess de Guiche: she
first married the Duke de Sulli, and afterward Henry de Bourbon,
Duke de Verneuil.
[83] She was married afterward to the Duke de Lude, in 1688. The
Count de Guiche had been the lover of Henrietta of England. He
also entered into the intrigues of M. de Vardes. He had made a
brilliant campaign in Poland, and to him was owed the passage of
the Rhine. He was as handsome and witty as he was brave.