When it was announced that Mademoiselle de Nesle was to be married, the whole Court understood what that implied. The young woman was to become the King’s mistress and, because King’s mistresses were always married women, if he should happen to fall in love with an unmarried one efforts must be made with all speed to put an end to her single state.
Felix de Vintimille, who was a son of the Comte du Luc, was selected for the honour of becoming the husband of the King’s favourite, and the ceremony was performed by the Archbishop of Paris who was an uncle of the bridegroom and delighted at the turn of events, as the family would lose nothing by having obliged the King in this way.
Louis attended the wedding and took a prominent part in the hilarious ceremony of putting the couple to bed. This ceremony was even more farcical than usual, for it was the King who took the place of the bridegroom, and the Comte de Vintimille who rode off afterwards in the King’s carriage.
Now Pauline-Félicité was beginning to realise her ambitions. In the short time since she had come to Court she had achieved the first. Her plans did not end there. She was now Madame de Vintimille with a husband in name only; she was beloved of the King and she was going to rid him of the influence of that doddering old Cardinal and make him take an interest in state affairs, where of course he should follow her advice.
Madame de Vintimille was following foreign affairs with a great deal of zest.
The Emperor Charles VI of Austria had died; he was the last male descendant of the great Emperor Charles V, and thus there was no son to follow him. There was however his daughter, Maria Theresa, who had been recently married to Duke François of Lorraine.
Maria Theresa was twenty-three years of age and, as she had known that she would one day inherit her father’s dominions, she had prepared herself for this duty. A clever young woman, determined to make her country great, she was fully aware of the difficulties which beset her. The war of the Polish Succession had weakened the country to a great extent – the army had been reduced and the exchequer depleted.
Her Empire was large but scattered. It consisted of Austria, Hungary and Bohemia, and there were possessions in Italy and the Netherlands. She was wise enough to know that such scattered possessions could provide great difficulties for their ruler.
Moreover there were many who, believing they had a claim to the Austrian Empire, pointed out that its rule should not be placed in the hands of a woman. Augustus III, who was now not only the King of Poland but Elector of Saxony, staked a claim on the grounds that his wife was a niece of Emperor Charles VI. Charles-Albert, the Elector of Bavaria, claimed the throne through his grandmother who was also a niece of Charles VI.
Becoming aware of these claimants, others arose. There were Charles Emmanuel of Sardinia, Philip V of Spain and Frederick II of Prussia.
It was small wonder that the young woman saw trouble all about her; but she knew that her most formidable enemy was Frederick of Prussia.
Frederick was the first to act. He claimed Silesia and offered money and an alliance to Maria Theresa in exchange for the territory, but Maria Theresa, young and idealistic, retorted sharply that her duty was to defend her subjects, not to sell them.
This was what Frederick was waiting for. He gave the order for his armies to march on Silesia.
France so far had remained outside the conflict, and Fleury, now approaching ninety, wished to keep her so. But there were men in France who had other ideas, who were young and passionately eager to enhance the glory of their country. They saw the means of doing so and a strong party, led by Charles Louis Auguste Fouquet, the Comte de Belle-Isle, rose in opposition to the Cardinal, and decided to set Charles-Albert, the Elector of Bavaria, on the Imperial throne.
Under the influence of Madame de Vintimille the King was on the side of the young men who were eager for war.
Fleury wrung his hands but he could do nothing else. Frenchmen were ready to rise against the hated Austrian, and the country was in favour of the war.
The result was a treaty between Prussia, Bavaria and France, and the French army was sent to make war on Austria.
The King, now visibly changed under the influence of Madame de Vintimille, followed the progress of the war with the greatest enthusiasm. His mistress compelled his interest and he, following her lead, discovered his boredom was receding.
There was one matter on which Madame de Vintimille was eager to have her way and which she found the most difficult of all her tasks. Try as she might to have Fleury removed from Court, the King remained firm in his determination to keep the old man in office.
‘Why, Madame,’ he said, ‘this is an old man. It would break his heart to be dismissed from Court.’
‘So France must be destroyed for the sake of one old man’s heart!’
‘Fleury is no fool.’
‘Oh, no,’ she mocked. ‘He is as alert and as virile as one can expect – at ninety.’
‘He is not yet that,’ laughed Louis. ‘Oh, come, let us talk of other matters.’
‘So Fleury stays?’ she asked, almost challengingly.
But Louis’ expression was equally challenging. ‘Fleury stays,’ he repeated.
Madame de Vintimille was angry. She very much disliked being crossed. Moreover Fleury’s position had been strengthened if anything by the recent death of the Duc de Bourbon, that enemy whom the Cardinal had once had dismissed from Court. Fleury could never feel safe while Bourbon was at Court for he knew that Monsieur le Duc would never forget the terrible humiliation he had suffered at his hands. The Duc de Bourbon was not an old man when he died, being only forty-seven, but he had made himself rather ridiculous in his last years by his extreme jealousy of his wife. Monsieur le Duc had quite blatantly been the lover of the Comtesse d’Egmont, but had raged against his wife when she had in retaliation taken a lover, and he had created quite a scandal by locking her up in a barred room at the top of his château and keeping her a prisoner there.
Madame de Vintimille was certain of one thing; before many months had passed, she was determined, Cardinal Fleury should receive the dreaded lettre de cachet.
In the meantime her attention was slightly diverted when she discovered that she was pregnant.
Delightedly she carried this news to the King.
‘Our child,’ she said, ‘will be a boy.’
Louis was amused. ‘You are sure to be right,’ he said. ‘Providence would not dare go against your wishes in such a matter.’
So during those months Madame de Vintimille was constantly at the side of the King. Her arrogance and outspokenness endeared her to him, for he admired her alert mind and he appreciated her sincerity.
She was clever and there was no doubt that she brought a brilliant mind to the study of state affairs. Louis found that with her beside him the position of King in such times, although bringing with it its anxieties, was a very interesting one.
Although there were often quarrels, she meant more to him than had any woman he had so far known and he was very much looking forward to the birth of their child.
‘You are sour and spiteful,’ Louis told her on one occasion. ‘There is one thing which would cure you: You should have your head cut off. You have such a long neck. It would suit you. Your blood should be drained off and lambs’ blood substituted.’
‘What nonsense you talk!’ snapped Madame de Vintimille. ‘Of what use should I be to you, headless? And if you want a woman who mildly agrees with you on all occasions, pray say so, and I will return to the Abbaye de Port Royal.’