The Arts in the Middle Ages and at the Period of the Renaissance

by P. L. Jacob

Figs. 212 and 213.—The “Knave of Clubs” in the Packs of Cards of R. Passerel and R. Le Cornu. (Sixteenth Century. Bibl. Imp., Paris.)

The cards that might be styled those of Charles VII., which appear to us to convey some reminiscence of the ballet des ardents, have no inscription but the name of the cardmaker. But in the other pack of the same date the “knave of clubs” bears as a legend the word Rolan; the “king of clubs,” Sans Souci; the “queen of clubs,” Tromperie; the “king of diamonds,” Corsube; the “queen of diamonds,” En toi te fie; the “king of spades,” Apollin, &c. This collection of names reveals to us the threefold influence of the Saracenic origin of playing-cards, the ideas conveyed at that period to the mind by the reading of the old romances of chivalry, and the effect of contemporary events. In fact, in the ancient epics, Apollin (or Apollo) is a deity by whom the Saracens were accustomed to swear; Corsube is a knight of Cordova (Corsuba). Sans Souci is evidently one of those sobriquets which squires acquired the habit of adopting at the time they were proving themselves worthy of the title of knight. Roland, the mighty Paladin who died at Roncevaux fighting against the Saracens, seems to have been placed upon the cards in order to oppose the memory of his glory to that of the infidel kings. The queen “En toi te fie” might well allude to Joan of Arc. The queen “Tromperie” recalls to mind Isabel of Bavaria, who was an unfaithful wife and a cruel mother; and, moreover, had betrayed France to England. All these ideas are doubtless mere suppositions, but such as a critical examination of a more minute and extended character would perhaps succeed in changing into unquestionable certainties.

Next after the cards of the time of Charles VII. follow, as the most ancient in point of date, two packs which certainly belong to the reign of Louis XII. One of these packs does not bear any kind of legend; in the other the “king of hearts” is called Charles; the “king of diamonds,” Cæsar; the “king of clubs,” Arthur; the “king of spades,” David; the “queen of hearts,” Héleine; the “queen of diamonds,” Judith; the “queen of clubs,” Rachel; the “queen of spades,” Persabée (doubtless for Bathsheba).

In a pack of cards belonging to the reign of Francis I., the “king of clubs” becomes Alexander, and the name of Judith is transferred to the “queen of hearts;” and for the first time (at least in the specimens which have been preserved) some of the “knaves” bear special names—the “knave of hearts” is La Hire, and the “knave of diamonds” Hector of Trois (sic).

A few years later, about the time of the battle of Pavia and of the king’s captivity, the influence of Spanish and Italian fashions begins to affect the legends on packs of cards. It is remarked that the “knave of spades,” which presents nothing in the way of a legend but the name of the cardmaker, is made to resemble Charles-Quint ([Fig. 211]). The three other knaves bear the singular denominations of Prien Roman, Capita Fili, and Capitane Vallant. The kings are: “hearts,” Julius Cæsar; “diamonds,” Charles; “clubs,” Hector; “spades,” David. The queens are: “hearts,” Héleine; “diamonds,” Lucresse; “clubs,” Pentaxlée (Penthesilea); “spades,” Beciabée (Bathsheba).

In the reign of Henry II., the names given to the personages come much nearer to the arrangement observed in our present cards. Cæsar is the “king of diamonds;” David, the “king of spades;” Alexander, the “king of clubs.” Rachel is the “queen of diamonds;” Argine, of “clubs;” Pallas, of “spades.” Hogier, Hector of Troy, and La Hire, are the “knaves” of “spades,” “diamonds,” and “hearts,” respectively.

At the time of Henry III., who devoted himself much more to regulating the fashions than to governing his kingdom, and was the first to grant statutes to the association of cardmakers, the pack of cards became the mirror of the extravagant fashions of this effeminate reign. The “kings” have the pointed beard, the starched collar, the plumed hat, the breeches puffing out round the loins, the slashed doublet, and the tight-fitting hose. The “queens” have their hair drawn back and crisped, the dress close round the body, and made à vertugarde (in the form of a hoop-petticoat). We see a Dido, an Elizabeth, and a Clotilde, make their appearance in the respective characters of “queens” of “diamonds,” “hearts,” and “spades.” Among the kings figure Constantine, Clovis, Augustus, and Solomon.

The valiant Béarnais[26] mounts the throne, and the cards still reflect the aspect of his court. But soon Astrea and a whole cortége of tender and gallant heroes begin to assume an influence over refined minds, and we then find Cyrus and Semiramis as “king and queen” of diamonds; Roxana is the “queen of hearts” ([Fig. 214]), Ninus the “king of spades,” &c.

In the regency of Marie de Medicis, in the reign of Louis XIII., or rather of Richelieu, in the time of Anne of Austria and Louis XIV., playing-cards continued to assume the character of the period, following the whim of the court, or the fancy of the cardmaker. At a certain time they began to take an Italian character. The “king of diamonds” was called Carel; his queen, Lucresi; the “queen of spades,” Barbera; the “queen of clubs,” Penthamée; the “knave of diamonds,” capit. Melu.

A vast field of investigation would lie before us if, in tracing out the detailed history of these numerous variations, we were to endeavour to distinguish and settle the different causes which gave rise to them. One fact must certainly strike any one devoting himself to such inquiry; he would see that, in contradistinction to the changes which have affected the personages on the cards and their names, a continuous state of stability has been the characteristic of the four suits in the French cards or the piquet-pack, which were adopted from the very commencement, and that no attempt has ever been made against their arrangement and nature. Cœur (hearts), carreau (diamonds), trèfle (clubs), and pique (spades)—these were the divisions established by La Hire or Chevalier, and they are still faithfully maintained in the present day, although at various times endeavours have been made to define their symbolical signification.