The Running Man
Though we were surprised when the second man, also dressed in a large cloak and hat, ran up to us and with extreme earnestness directed us to go to the right rather than to the left, yet we merely thought his manner very French; and as he said in the course of a rather long unintelligible sentence “cherchez la maison,” we imagined that he understood that we were looking for the house, and followed his direction. We noticed that he stood in front of a rock and seemed to come “either over, round, or through it.”
The following year (1902), we learned that there was a tradition that on October 5th, 1789, a messenger was sent to Trianon to warn the Queen of the approach of the mob from Paris: that she wished to walk back to the Palace by the most direct route, but the messenger begged her to wait at the house whilst he fetched the carriage, as it was safer to drive back as usual by the broad roads of the park.
A local tradition affirming this has been embodied by Madame Julie Lavergne in a volume entitled (unfortunately for historical purposes) Légendes de Trianon. This particular scene in the story, called “La Dernière Rose,” interested us greatly, for it seemed to come from an eye-witness and recalled many of the points of our vision. The Queen, it is said, had been walking with and talking to Marion (the daughter of an under-gardener) before going to her favourite grotto. After remaining there some time, and on growing alarmed at her own sad thoughts, the Queen called to Marion and was surprised to see, instead of the girl, a “garçon de la Chambre” suddenly appear, trembling in all his limbs. After reading the letter brought to her from the Minister at the Palace, the Queen desired him to order the carriage and to let Madame de Tourzel know. The messenger bowed (as our man had done), and once out of sight, ran off at full speed. The Queen followed him to the house.[[23]]
Enquiries through the publisher, in 1907, as to Madame Lavergne’s sources of information, elicited the fact that her informant as to every detail of that scene had been Marion herself. This Marion, the Légendes tell us, afterwards married M. Charpentier, an under-gardener, known in 1789 by the name of “Jean de l’Eau,” on account of his bringing water daily from Ville d’Avray for the Queen’s table. He afterwards became jardinier en chef, being appointed in 1805 by Napoleon in succession to Antoine Richard.[[24]]
The name “Charpantier” appears in 1786 amongst the “ouvriers terrassiers,” who clear up sticks and leaves, plant flowers, and rake.[[25]]
In 1783, “Mariamne” received wages for picking up leaves in the Trianon grounds;[[26]] this is quite possible, as children are said to have been used for that work, and the absence of surname suggests that she was the daughter of one of the gardeners.
The marriage certificate of Alexandre Charpentier, in 1823, gives his father’s name as Louis Toussaint Charpentier, and his mother’s name as Marie Anne Lemaignan. The marriage certificate of these persons (from which we should have learnt their age) is said to have been destroyed.[[27]]
In the wages book the names of two “Lemonguin” (elder and younger) appear; also “Magny,” but not, so far as has been discovered, Lemaignan.[[28]] If this Marie Anne Charpentier was 21 years old at her son’s birth (November, 1796), she would have been eight years old in 1783, and 14 in 1789. This would suit the “Mariamne” of the Archives, Madame Lavergne’s story, and the girl seen by Miss Lamont.
Two more points show the faithfulness of “Marion’s” account of that scene. Madame Lavergne (quoting her) says that “pale rays of autumn sunshine lighted up the faded flowers.” It must, therefore, have been fairly fine; and in the wages book it appears that on October 5th, 1789, all the gardeners were at work in the grounds, and it is stated that on wet days they worked under cover, sometimes clearing out the passages of the house.[[29]] Secondly, she says that the Queen sat at the entrance of her grotto, where fallen leaves choked the course of the “ruisseau.” From entries of payment it appears that the streams were cleared of dead leaves on October 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, 1789, but not on the 4th or 5th, or ever again.[[30]] It is exactly a point which Marion would have noticed.
Madame Lavergne lived at Versailles from 1838 till her marriage in 1844, at which time Marion would have been 69; and as we believe that Alexandre Charpentier was head gardener at the Petit Trianon for over fifty years, his mother would have been easily accessible to Madame Lavergne during her repeated visits to Trianon, even after her marriage. Her father, M. Georges Ozanneaux, was a personal friend of Louis Philippe, and was constantly about in the royal palaces.[[31]]
It is necessary to speak of the grotto; for Madame Campan says that the Queen “était assise dans sa grotte ... lorsqu’elle reçut un mot d’écrit ... qui la suppliait de rentrer à Versailles.”[[32]] Madame Lavergne says “Marion se dirigea vers le parterre des rosiers, et la Reine alla s’asseoir à l’entrée de sa grotte favorite, auprès de la petite source. Les feuilles jaunies tombées des arbres couvraient la terre et obstruaient le cours du ruisseau.... Le murmure de la petite cascade qui arrose l’intérieur de la grotte, retentissait seul dans le bosquet.... Effrayée d’être seule, elle appela Marion; mais, au lieu de la jeune fille, un garçon de la Chambre ... parut, une lettre à la main.”[[33]] The Queen cannot, therefore, have been many steps away from the grotto, at one end or the other, when the messenger came to her.
In 1908 we asked to be shown this grotto, and we were taken to one on the further side of the Belvédère, near the hill called l’Escargot, which was formed in 1781. We felt sure that this could not have been either of the two grottos spoken of in the archives.
In 1777 the end of one grotto is mentioned as being near the porte d’entrée, “à la cloison de la porte d’entrée du jardin au bout du grotte trois pottereaux et deux traverses.”[[34]]
In 1777 there was a “projet d’un pont et chutte en rocher, avec parapet.” This was probably a bridge (the Vergelay bridge?) over the principal river where it issued from the larger lake. The river was made at this time.[[35]]
In June, 1780, a new “petite rivière” was planned to receive the water drained from the “ravin de la grotte,” and to conduct it into the larger lake. For this purpose a new grotto was made of a “forme ovale, ornée en glaçon,” through which the “petite rivière” was to run. A “ravin du petit pont” was also planned.[[36]]
In August, 1780, masses of rock were procured, and the “petite rivière” was begun, and also a hill was thrown up “pour couvrir la grotte.”[[37]]
In September, 1780, “Bourdin a passé la journée ... à poser le deuxième pont venant du coté de la grotte.”[[38]] This second bridge was probably the present Rocher bridge, being the second placed over the lakes. Neither of these two bridges would be the “pont de bois,”[[39]] and “la conduitte en bois,”[[40]] two descriptions of, and identical with, the one alluded to in the words “ravin du petit pont,” which was said to have been erected on high ground “au dessus du Rocher du Ravin.”[[41]]
In December, 1780, the work was finished: “Conduitte de l’exécution de la grotte, petite rivière, et chutte d’eau retombante dans le grand lac, autre petits ravins dans la montagne près du grand lac à la fin de la petite rivière de la grotte.”[[42]]
In 1781 a “montagne” was made “en face du jardin français—en face de la comédie.”[[43]]
In March and April, 1781, a hill called “l’Escargot” was piled up[[44]]—beyond the Belvédère—and, presumably, a third and very small grotto was made. The creation of the Escargot hill would have made the “ravin” on the north side of the Belvédère, which is still visible, and leads to the greater lake.
There are several reasons why we think that the Queen’s grotto (the second made) was on the theatre side of the Belvédère.
1. D’Hezecques’ description of it in 1789 shows that, though a “ruisseau” passed through it, persons could go freely out at both ends;[[45]] whereas when water was passing down through the upper entrance of the “escargot” grotto, no one could have used it at the same time: there is only room for the water.
2. He speaks of the “prairie” being visible from “une crevasse, qui s’ouvrait à la tête du lit”; this would have been possible from a grotto on the theatre side, but not on the other, as the “escargot” hill would have been in the way.
3. D’Hezecques describes a staircase which “conduisait au sommet de la roche,” enabling persons to leave hurriedly. There is something like an ancient rock staircase attached to the back of the large rock, giving the name to the Rocher bridge.
4. He says that the grotto was very dark on first entering, and L’Espinasse’s picture of the Belvédère in 1783 shows the opening to a cavern on its southern side close to the Rocher bridge,[[46]] which could be truly described as “venant du coté de la grotte.” Could the rock out of which the cavernous mouth was cut have been lifted over the long bridge at some later time? for in L’Espinasse’s picture there is no such rock over the bridge as there is now, and the cavern has disappeared.
5. The map of 1783 represents (according to Desjardins) “le projet de Mique complètement exécuté.” In it the figure (5) (indicating the grotto) occurs both at the “escargot” and also on the theatre side of the Belvédère.
In September, 1910, Miss Lamont was asked whether she had seen a map of the place recently placed in the front hall of the Petit Trianon, and she said No. On going there she found the map, which had not been there at any of her former visits, and saw that the grottos were put, as far as she could judge, just where we had long ago, through elaborate personal research, decided must be their real position. She could only make this out by standing on the table amongst the books and photographs, the map being hung too high to be easily seen.
Several further points of interest have emerged in connection with the running man.
1. In April, 1908, we learned that our being directed at all in the grounds was unusual, for since September, 1870, they have been thrown open until dark. The difficulty now experienced is to find a guide.
2. He spoke of the “maison.” In 1907 we found out that the Queen was in the habit of calling the Petit Trianon “ma maison de Trianon,” to distinguish it from the Palace and the Chateau.[[47]] Louis XVI. had presented it to Marie Antoinette on his accession.
3. The Queen is reported by Marion to have addressed the messenger as “Breton.”[[48]] This was not an uncommon name about the court and old Versailles. The court almanack for 1783 shows that then the Queen had a Page “de l’Écurie,” called “De Bretagne.” (The Pages de la Chambre sometimes became “de l’Écurie” before receiving a commission or some other office.[[49]]) He is not mentioned in the almanack of 1789, but (as we know from other instances) it does not follow necessarily that he had no office in the household. Madame Éloffe (the Queen’s modiste) mentions a Mademoiselle Breton amongst the Queen’s women, who does not appear in the almanack.[[50]]
If “De Bretagne” was 16 years old in 1783, he would have been 22 in 1789,—just in the fresh young vigour suitable to our running man.
The name “Breton” may have referred to his nationality only, for in November, 1907, we discovered that the accent in which the man spoke to us resembled the Breton accent, in which the consonants are strengthened and the diphthongs broadened.
In the autumn of 1909 we read the Baron de Frénilly’s Souvenirs, in which it is stated that wigs were universally worn by gentlemen in French society up till 1787. After that date powdered hair became the general usage; the first person (M. de Valence) who ventured to appear with unpowdered hair did so, apparently, in 1788, after which it became a mark of extreme fashion.[[51]]
The same was the case with buckled shoes. Gold, silver, stones, and rosettes had been required for a gentleman’s dress ornaments; but after the commercial treaty with England in 1786, steel was used for everything. Buckled shoes are expressly mentioned as being very fashionable in 1789, and there was, at that time, a rage for steel ornaments.[[52]]