Marie de Hautefort: Beauty & Politics

Scarron

Richelieu identified Marie de Hautefort as an incorruptible enemy. He feared her influence on the King and succeeded in banning her from the Court. To the King's great displeasure, she went to Le Mans where only a handful of friends would visit her, including La Porte, recently freed from La Bastille. “La Porte knew her as so intrepid, so pure, and so caring a lady,” writes Cousin, “that he had given himself out to her as much as to the Queen.” When in Le Mans, Marie de Hautefort heard of Scarron, the burlesque poet. She became his protector and even obtained a pension for him when she came back to the Court, three years later. The poet, who was suffering from physical disability, portrayed himself as the illustrious sick of the Queen. He dedicated many works to Marie—they are to be found in Tom. VII of his works (Amsterdam, 1752). Here is one of them, entitled Travel of the Queen to La Barre:

Is it so? Such a wreck,

Of the Dukes challenged the courage?

And the Duke of Ventadour

Lost everything, but the love he had;

That love that left him the strength

To walk like a Sarabande,

Notwithstanding his limping,

To offer himself, humble and subdued,

To your heart, my so good and so beautiful,

My incomparable Hautefort,

The only mistress of his fortune.

In 1643, Louis XIII died, and the Queen, and mother of the young Louis XIV, became the regent of the kingdom. La Porte and Mme de Hautefort came back triumphantly to the Court. But the Queen was in charge and her political decisions soon hurt her former friends. Cardinal Mazarin, who had succeeded his mentor, Cardinal Richelieu, won the heart of the Queen—some say he won more than that—and tried to bribe Mme de Hautefort. He did not succeed, and had her disgraced again. This was a very troubled time in France and Marie was no politician. She suffered as a friend from the political decisions of the Queen and retired from the Court. In 1646, she married the powerful Maréchal de Schomberg, and became Mme de Schomberg. Her husband died a few years later and Mme de Hautefort led a confortable life, exchanging letters with various authors, especially Benserade. She died in 1691, aged 75, leaving no children.

The biography of Victor Cousin is quite interesting as he added a previously unpublished manuscript biography of Mme de Hautefort, as well a two important indexes: the story of the house of Hautefort, and a portrayal of Mme de Chevreuse, whose life was closely linked to Mme de Hautefort’s. Marie did not spend a lot of time in the castle that bears her name but the old and dignified stones of the monument keep on reminding of her life, her beauty and her determination.

Thibault Ehrengardt