Anything is possible if you have a goal and a strong desire to achieve it! The story of the uncrowned queen of France who lived during the time of Louis XV tells us about the unconditional female victory! No obstacles could stop this legendary marquise on her way to her success. But even her origin did not contribute to this at all.


fateful prediction

Jeanne Antoinette Poisson was born into a family whose status did not allow her to be on the lists of French high society. Her official father, a lackey who rose to the status of quartermaster, soon stole and fled France, leaving his wife and children. The mother's reputation was even worse.

Before her marriage, Madame Poisson was supported by men, and even after she married, her life was not distinguished by piety. Jeanne's mother continued to date Le Norman de Tournam's longtime lover. Who actually was the father of Jeanne, remained unknown.

When the girl was nine years old, her mother decided to take her to a fortuneteller known at that time, Madame Le Bon. It was imperative to find out if Jeanne could get married. After all, it was a successful marriage that could ensure a comfortable life. Just looking at the angular girl, the fortune teller exclaimed: “It can’t be…! Before me is the future favorite of the king!

Indeed, the prediction was absolutely absurd. Little Jeanne could not become the king's favorite. And it wasn't about her looks or her age. The king by that time was already an adult man and had a wife and children. The most important condition that could make it possible to claim such an honorary role was to be given to a lady from birth.

Only aristocratic women could become favorites. The family of Jeanne Antoinette was far from an aristocratic society. Of course, the king could afford an affair with a woman of non-aristocratic blood, but the etiquette of the French court would not allow her to be given the status of favorite. In addition, King Louis XV loved his wife and was faithful to her. In general, there was so much to say - "Impossible because ...".

Faith gives rise to an idea. Idea begets action.

Another woman would not have paid attention to such an incredible prediction. But Madame Poisson believed the fortune-teller and inspired this belief in her daughter. And what about little Jeanne? How did she react to this prophecy?

Will the king love me? Jeanne asked. This question worried her the most.

“What nonsense is contained in the thoughts of my girl,” Madame Poisson thought, “Is love the main thing ?! Become the king's favorite! This is an honor, and an opportunity that many dream of. She did not answer her daughter, but decided to act.

At that time, Jeanne studied at the monastery of the Ursulines. Such an education would allow her to become an exemplary wife. But for the future favorite of the king, completely different knowledge is needed. Madame Poisson thought about where to get money for more decent education? To be able to charm the king, the girl must be comprehensively developed.

Be able to dance, play music, keep up small talk and much more. How to be? Madame Poisson really wanted the fortuneteller's prediction to come true. And then she decided to convince her lover that it was he who was the father of Jeanne. Le Norman, who had no children before, was very pleased with the sudden appearance of his daughter and allocated the necessary funds for the education of his favorite.

And Zhanna in her youth, like probably any of us, dreamed ... She dreamed of a KING! I dreamed of meeting with HIM, of love! She confidently mastered all the wisdom of learning. She tried so hard!!! After all, this is what will lead her to her dream - to become the beloved of the king!

What naivete! Such an education at that time was received by aristocrats, but she was not such!

Jeanne grew up and gradually turned from an ugly duckling into a pretty girl. But far from beautiful. She was not tall, slightly plump, and only big eyes of an incomprehensible color distinguished her from others. Those eyes were neither blue nor gray nor green.

They seemed to hold some kind of secret. Jeanne Antoinette carried this secret through her whole life. The secret of how to charm the king and not just charm, but to be able to achieve such influence at court that allowed her to take part in the political affairs of France, become a trendsetter, and the most influential favorite.

But that's all in the future. In the meantime, Jeanne was 19 years old, and she was very far not only from the king, but even from Parisian society. In the salons of Paris in those days, representatives of the bourgeoisie and the petty aristocracy met. Only those lucky ones who were allowed access to the walls of Versailles could classify themselves as high society. In order to get there, one had to be born into seven aristocrats.

What a woman wants, God wants! And if two women passionately go to the same goal? What is God to do?!

Madame Poisson and her lover decide to marry Jeanne to Le Norman's nephew. This marriage allowed the young girl to have prosperity and acquire a more worthy name - Madame D Etiol. Jeanne began to appear in Parisian salons. With her charm, sense of humor and tact, she managed to charm many.

Jeanne had a beautiful, though not deep, voice, knew how to passionately recite poetry, and besides, she was interesting interlocutor. Soon, the gentlemen began to actively court Jeanne, offering her their love. But what about the husband? Then betrayal, both on the part of the husband and on the part of the wife, was a common phenomenon. A male attention in this matter only confirmed women's viability. O times! Oh manners! But Jeanne confidently declared to all admirers: “I will change my husband only with the king!”. Her phrase was perceived by everyone as a successful trick or a joke that allows you to remain faithful to your husband.

What was the king doing at that time? He was no longer so pious and managed to acquire more than one official favorite. Queen Maria Leszczynska miscalculated by denying closeness to the king more than once. Louis XV was a very temperamental man and could not do without carnal pleasures for a long time.

Oh those men! All the de Mailly-Nel sisters managed to visit his bed. The fourth - the Countess de Chateauroux was the most thoughtful. Having seen enough of the mistakes of the sisters, she abruptly took the king into circulation, not allowing any beauty to approach his majesty.

Jeanne learned about the details of the king's personal life from secular gossips. And she continued to hope and believe that someday she would become his lover. She had a lucky break. The king with his retinue, and his companion Madame de Châteauroux, who invariably accompanied him everywhere, went to rest in the Choiseul castle, which was located not far from the estate of d'Etiol.

The Sinar forest, where the king hunted, became the stage for Madame d'Etiol. Every day, going hunting, the king invariably met a beautiful nymph on his way. The stranger was dressed in dresses of delicate shades of lilac, pink flowers and seated in an open carriage, she was carried away from the king's motorcade.

The king was intrigued. But Madame de Châteauroux noticed the interest of the king in time, and immediately sent a message forbidding her impudent rival to appear in front of the king.

It was impossible to disobey the king's favorite. Jeanne suffered, because now her dream was not just a fantasy, she saw the KING with her own eyes. He was tall and very handsome! No wonder they called him Louis the Handsome! Madame D'Etiol fell in love and began to dream of the king even more. Dreamed, suffered and hoped!

Who among us has not experienced such feelings? To see her beloved and another woman next to him ... Jealousy, the greatness of the king and the understanding of how unattainable her dream is - all this only strengthened her feelings.

Some time passed, and the king's heart became free again - his favorite, Madame de Chateauroux, died.

An actress or a woman in love with self-respect?

Madame d'Etiool understood - you need to act! While the king is mourning, he is surrounded by many beautiful ladies, each of whom only dreams of taking the vacant place of the favorite. And they are not idle! But how can she get the attention of her beloved? After all, Jeanne did not even have the opportunity to see the king!

Many sources report that the first meeting of the King and Madame d'Etiol took place at a masquerade ball in the Paris City Hall, where Jeanne appeared in the costume of Diana the huntress and managed to attract the attention of Louis. In the fiction book of Natalia Pavlishcheva, the events of the first meeting of the king and Madame d'Etiol are described in a slightly different interpretation.

How to know perhaps fiction is closer to real events… In any case, their meeting could not have taken place without the participation of influential people. Intrigues, intrigues of the Parisian court, I think, they could not do without them! Someone made a bet on Madame d'Etiol.

But getting to know the king and even sleeping with him is only the first step. In this step, perhaps someone helped Zhanna. But the rest of the performance was played by her! It was played so masterfully that the king simply did not have a chance to fall in love with this woman without memory!

Giving herself to the king, Jeanne disappears from his field of vision. Ludovic is at a loss - how is it - is it possible that HE is so beautiful and majestic, who has won more than one heart of a beauty, this Madame did not like? He thought that having enjoyed the affair, he himself would stop this fleeting hobby.

Prior to this, all the women who surrounded Louis, having only entered into love affair, sought to protect the king from the attention of other women. Jeanne's unexpected behavior intrigued the king. What was Madame d'Etiol's explanation?

Ah, Sir - you won my heart! I didn't run from you! I ran from myself! Smart Jeanne!!! Now the king had to catch up. He felt like a hunter, not prey. Was it a virtuoso game or a sincere impulse of a woman in love? Who knows ... Maybe both.

This game allowed Zhana to keep Louis' interest, but did not bring her closer to the status of a favorite. To obtain this status, an official presentation to the court was necessary. Even a king in love could not imagine a woman of non-aristocratic blood as his favorite. Madame d'Etiol understood that the king would catch up with her sooner or later, and what next? Then the woman takes the next step:

Having bribed the courtiers, Jeanne sneaks into the king's chambers. Already intriguing! And informs Louis that her husband, having learned about his wife's vicious connection, threatens with reprisal! He will exile Jeanne and deprive her of communication with her daughter. The only man who can save Madame d'Etiol from her husband's reprisal is the King!

Now Louis was offered the noble mission of a knight saving his beautiful lady of the heart! How could he resist?! Louis performs an unheard-of act that goes against all the rules of etiquette of that time. Jeanne is given the title of "Marquise de Pompadour" and left to live in Versailles. And that is not all! The king intends, despite all the opponents of the “arrogant rootless girl”, to present her to the court as his favorite.

Zhanna tries not to let her beloved down - she teaches the rules of etiquette. What to say, how to walk, who to smile and who not. This is a whole science that the Marquise masters brilliantly.

The Marquise de Pompadour was the king's mistress for 5 years. But her temperament did not meet the needs of Louis. What Jeanne did not do to be more sexy. A special menu with aphrodisiacs, various drugs. But nature took its toll. Soon, Jeanne did not begin to arrange the king as a mistress. Louis began to look at other women. And not just to look.

What follows the decline of the King's interest as a man? Usually the favorite is removed from the court, sent to hell. But the legendary marquise, even in this situation, was able to emerge victorious. She played the game in such a way that not only was she not expelled, but she also received a new title - the duchess.


For another 15 years, De Pompadour was next to the king already as his friend, mentor and adviser. The king could not do without the smart, always cheerful Pompadour. So that the king would not be bored, she organized a chamber theater, which could only be visited by those close to the royal person.

She herself played various roles in this theater. Pompadour even went so far as to pick up girls for the king's fun. On her advice, state affairs were managed, and more than one castle was built. She was engaged in the manufacture of porcelain and patronized the poets and philosophers of that time. The Marquise de Pompadour was the only favorite who managed to win over the queen - her rival!

Not crowned queen - so called De Pampadour. At that time, everyone understood who rules the French ball! Even last way the legendary marquise resembled a scene from a play she had thought out and staged.

Only kings and members of their families were allowed to die at Versailles. For Pompadour, Louis made an exception. She died in the royal chambers. And when her body was carried out, it was pouring rain. It seemed even nature mourned the loss of this mysterious and influential woman.

Marquise's Mystery

The influence and honors that the Marquise de Pompadour was awarded is an unconditional female victory! To remain always cheerful and interesting for a man is a titanic work. She managed to achieve high altitudes, without having for this either an exceptionally beautiful appearance, or the necessary origin, or a passionate temperament, which is so valued by men.

In addition, Jeanne was in very poor health. She suffered from consumption and died at the age of 43, while leaving an indelible mark on the history of France. And if you imagine the fact that when communicating with Louis, in addition to female charms, she also had to combine respectful communication with the king.

There was no question of any equality between women and men!

Was Pompadour a virtuoso actress or loving woman ready for anything in order to be able to communicate with her Ludovic?

Who knows ... She took this riddle with her.

The story of the Marquise de Pompadour tells us that for a woman there are no boundaries - everything is possible! What is needed for this?

Love and faith, or maybe acting talent?

Or maybe a gypsy played the main role in this story?

She swayed the king towards an alliance with Austria, contrary to traditional French policy. She removed Cardinal Burney from the Foreign Office, appointing her favorite, the Duke of Choiseul, in his place. At her request, commanders in chief were appointed in the armies; she nominated the Duke of Richelieu despite his disrepute, appointing him Marshal of France. Under her, Finance Minister Machaux tried to reform the distribution of taxes. Quesnay explained to her the foundations of his theory.

She was acquainted with many outstanding writers of her time. Her friends were Duclos and Marmontel. She rescued old Crebillon from poverty by giving him the position of librarian. Pompadour ardently supported the encyclopedists and the Encyclopedia. Voltaire admired her, although, at the same time, he laughed at her bourgeois manners. It is known that Rousseau was one of the few intellectuals of that time who were not part of her circle of acquaintances.

Spending at the expense of the royal treasury

Amusements, buildings, Pompadour outfits were expensive. For twenty years at court, she spent 350,035 livres on her toilets, she owned over three hundred jewelry, including a diamond necklace worth 9,359 francs. The furnishings in the apartments (“à la Reine” style), buildings, and costumes were named after her. She created fashion with her ability to dress luxuriously and at the same time "carelessly". Of all the royal mistresses, Pompadour is considered the most brilliant, talented and immoral. Nevertheless, according to contemporaries, Louis accepted the news of her death with indifference.

see also

Notes

Literature

  • Malassis, Pompadour. Correspondance" (P., 1878);
  • "Lettres" (1753-62, P., 1814);
  • Memoirs of Maurep, Choiseul, Marmontel, d'Argenson, Duclos;
  • M-me du Hausset, "Mémoires History of the marchioness of Pompadour" (L., 1758);
  • Soulavie, "Mémoires historiques et anecdotes de la cour de France pendant la faveur de M-me P." (P., 1802);
  • Lessac de Meihan, "Portraits et caractères";
  • Capefigue, "M-me de Pompadour" (P., 1858);
  • Carné, "Le gouvernement de M-me de P." ("Revue de Deux Mondes", 1859, 16 Janvier);
  • E. et J. Concourt, "Les maîtresses de Louis XV" (Par., 1861);
  • Bonhomme, "Madame de Pompadour general d'armée" (Par., 1880);
  • Campardon, "M-me de P. et la cour de Louis XV" (Par., 1867);
  • Pawlowski, "La marquise de P." (1888);
  • Sainte-Beuve, "La marquise de P.".
  • Evelyn Lever, Madame de Pompadour. M .: "Terra-Book Club", "Palmpsest", 2009. Translated from French by V. E. Klimanov.
  • One of the episodes of the Doctor Who series is also dedicated to her.

Links

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  • Born in 1721
  • Deceased April 15
  • Deceased in 1764
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  • Marquises of France
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  • History of the 18th century
  • Favorites of the Monarchs of France
  • 18th century women

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See what "Marquise de Pompadour" is in other dictionaries:

    Antoinette (Marquise de Pompadour, Pompadour; nee Poisson, Poisson; married Lenormand d Etiol) (December 29, 1721, Paris April 15, 1764, Versailles), mistress of the French king Louis XV Bourbon (see LOUIS XV Bourbon), who provided ... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

    Francois Bush. Portrait of Madame de Pompadour. OK. 1750. National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh Marquise de Pompadour (Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, French Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, marquise de Pompadour, December 29, 1721 April 15, 1764) since 1745 ... ... Wikipedia

    pompadour- self-righteous administrator. named after the Marquise Pompadour. The word first appeared in the work of M. E. Saltykov Shchedrin "Pompadours and Pompadours". Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, marquise de Pompadour Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, marquise de Pompadour (1721-1764) ... ... The fate of eponyms. Dictionary-reference

    - (fr., from the name of the famous favorite of the French king Louis XV), 1) the satirical name of the governor and, in general, the tyrant administrator in Russia. The Pompadour is the governor's favorite. 2) a light, elegant work bag for ladies. Dictionary… … Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

    marquise- uh. marquise f. 1. Wife or daughter of the marquis. ALS 1. The seventeen-year-old Marchioness, Polina, was beautiful, kind, and virtuous. MM 4 118. The wife, Marquise Teresa, is in charge of the house, she is an intelligent and energetic woman. Grigorovich Ship Retvizan. || trans. In… … Historical dictionary gallicisms of the Russian language

Legend of the 18th century. Jeanne Antoinette Poisson

was born in 1721. Paris. France.

Francois Boucher. The Marquise de Pompadour, 1755.
When the girl was 9 years old, her mother decided to take her to one of the most famous fortune-tellers of that time - Mrs. Lebon. The fortune teller carefully looked at the fragile, ugly girl and uttered a prophecy: "This little one will one day become the king's favorite!"


So, Jeanne Antoinette is 19 years old, she is not beautiful, not rich, not distinguished by good health. What are her chances of making a decent match? Oddly enough, but the groom for Jeanne was found quickly enough - a certain Charles de Etiol, the nephew of Norman de Turnnam. Charles, of course, is not a fairy-tale prince, but he is from a good family, and besides, he is rich. Another would seize on such an offer with her hands and feet, another, but not Jeanne Antoinette. She pulls and pulls with the final answer. Cause? A prediction made by Madame Le Bon 10 years ago. Which Charles, if in the future there may be a king?


F. Bush. Marquise de Pompadour.
To become the mistress of the king, you first need to be seen by the king. Young Jeanne begins to travel regularly to the Senar forest, where the king used to hunt. The first time the king drove by, the second time he stopped and carefully looked at Mademoiselle Poisson ... After which a man came to her mother, conveying the "request" of the Marquise de Châteauroux (then favorite of Louis) "to save the king from the annoying attention of Mademoiselle Poisson."


Francois Boucher. Marquise de Pompadour 1750.
It was the collapse of her hopes. Jeanne marries Charles de Etiol, but does not strike the king off the lists. After all, the fortuneteller did not say that she would be a queen, she would be a favorite, which means that you need to be as close to the court as possible.


Nattier Jean-Marc. Portrait of Louis XV.
In 1744, the Marquis de Chateauroux died unexpectedly. The court begins to feverish, "parties" are formed in support of one or another candidate for the role of favorite.

In March 1745, at a ball, the attention of the king was attracted by a young lady dressed as Diana the Huntress. A charming mask intrigues him and ... hides in the crowd, after dropping a perfumed handkerchief. The king, being a gallant gentleman, picks up the handkerchief, but, unable to give it to the lady in person, throws it through the crowd. Competitors in mourning - a scarf thrown ...


Madame de Pompadour. Jean-Marc Nattier 1748.
A few words about the character of the man for whom such a stubborn struggle was waged: Louis XV became king at the age of five. By the time he met Jeanne de Etiol, 35-year-old Ludovic had tried all possible pleasures and therefore ... was wildly bored. Jeanne Anouinette intuitively guessed how to hook the jaded king.


Oh, the women who sit in the evening waiting phone call from "the one and only", take the example of the Marquise de Pompadour: if circumstances do not favor you, create favorable circumstances yourself.
What it cost Jeanne to get a seat next to the royal box - history is silent. But no matter how much she paid for it, dividends were received almost instantly - the king invited her to dinner ... That evening, Jeanne made the only mistake, which, however, could be fatal. That evening she gave herself to the king.


Bonnet Louis Marin.
The next day, Louis, accustomed to a certain demeanor of the ladies "made happy" by him, prepared a few kind phrases in order to discourage the applicant once and for all. Naive, he didn't yet know who he was dealing with.


Madame de Pompadour as Diana. Jean-Marc Nattier 1752.
Prudent Jeanne bribed one of the king's confidants. The "face" told Madame that the king considered her "not entirely unselfish", besides crown prince, who saw Jeanne in the theater, found her "somewhat vulgar."

Days passed, and Diana the huntress did not appear. Normal male doubts began to visit Ludovik - maybe she didn’t like him in bed?


M. C. de Latour. Madame de Pompadour.
Probably, if Jeanne Poisson had been born in another time, she would have become a great actress. The next meeting of the king and the future favorite took place in the tradition of strong melodrama. Jeanne secretly (with the help of bribed persons) made her way into the palace and fell at the feet of the king. Wringing her hands, she told His Majesty about the insane passion that she had long harbored for him, about the danger that awaits her in the person of a jealous husband (Ludovik would have looked at the stunted Charles de Etiol in the role of jealous Othello). And then - "let me die ..."

It was a brilliant move - in this situation, boredom was gone. The king promised Jeanne that after returning from Flanders, he would make her an official favorite.


F. Boucher 1759 Marquise de Pompadour.
On September 14, 1745, Louis officially introduced his new girlfriend to the court. The court took her with hostility: she was not of a noble family, so she received the nickname Grisette (by this, the king’s close associates clearly made it clear to Jeanne that they did not see the difference between her and street girls). To put an end to the rumors, the king assigns the title of Marquis de Pompadour to his favorite.


Madame Pompadour blue.
Oddly enough, but the best attitude to the new favorite was ... the wife of the king, nee Maria Leshchinskaya. Very pious, very correct and completely indifferent to sexual pleasures, the queen (not surprisingly - in the first 12 years of marriage she gave birth to 10 children to the king) felt a kindred spirit in Jeanne. She was not mistaken - the intimate side was the most difficult for Jeanne. What aphrodisiacs she tried to match the appetites of her lover.


The fact that the new favorite had “problems with temperament” very soon became known to everyone. Naturally, many ladies considered this a sign from above and tried to push the marquise away from the royal bed. But, even the most beautiful girl can't give Furthermore what she has." And in the arsenal of the marquise there were a thousand and one ways to keep the king - it was enough to cheer him up.


Louis XV. Maurice Quentin de La Tour (1704-1788)
She starts patronizing talented people, in her living room the king gets acquainted with the outstanding minds of that time. Refined conversations, excellent company... His Majesty is never bored. The Marquise was a very cynical woman, all collections of aphorisms contain her famous: "After us? Though the flood."


Alexander Roslin. Portrait of Madame Pompadour.
But this is not limited to her "contribution" to cultural heritage humanity... Diamonds, the cut of which is called "marquise" (oval stones), in their shape resemble the mouth of a favorite. Champagne is bottled either in narrow tulip glasses, or in cone-shaped glasses that appeared during the reign of Louis XV - this is exactly the shape of Madame de Pompadour's chest. A small reticule bag made of soft leather is also her invention. She fashioned high heels and high hairstyles, because she was small in stature.


Boucher F. Portrait of the Marquise de Pompadour.
In 1751, the first volume of the French Encyclopedia, or " explanatory dictionary sciences, arts and crafts”, which opened a new era in the knowledge and interpretation of nature and society. The author of the idea and Chief Editor Encyclopedia - Denis Diderot. Another representative of the glorious galaxy of figures of the French Enlightenment, Jean Leron d'Alembert, she helped financially, and shortly before her death she managed to get him a lifetime pension. Among the wards of Madame Pompadour, according to some contemporaries, was the famous creator of the monument to Peter I in St. Petersburg - the sculptor Falcone.


M. V. de Parédès Mozart by Madame de Pompadour, "Monde illustré" 1857.
The famous freethinker Jean-Jacques Rousseau, although he was offended by the marquise for not introducing him to the king, was still grateful to her for her help in staging his Siberian Soothsayer on stage, where the marquise with great success performed in the male role of Collin. It was with the assistance of the Marquise Pompadour that Voltaire gained fame and a worthy place as an academician and chief historian of France, having also received the title of court chamberlain.


Francois Boucher. Madame de Pompadour.
It was at the suggestion of the Marquise that the Military School for the sons of war veterans and impoverished nobles was created in Paris. When the money allocated for the construction runs out, the marquise pays the missing amount. In October 1781, student Napoleon Bonaparte will arrive at the school to study.


Francois Boucher. Alleged portrait of Jeanne Poisson.
In 1756, the Marquis founded a porcelain factory on the estate of Sèvres. She took an active part in the work on the creation of Sevres porcelain. Rare pink color, obtained as a result of numerous experiments, is named after her - Rose Pompadour. In Versailles, the Marquise arranged a large exhibition of the first batch of products, she sold it herself, declaring publicly: "If someone who has money does not buy this porcelain, he is a bad citizen of his country."


Construction was the second, after the theater, the passion of the Marquise. Her last acquisition was the Menard castle, which she never managed to use in its converted version. The principle of elegant simplicity and maximum closeness to the living world of nature was put by the marquise into the planning of parks. She did not like large, irregular spaces and excessive pomposity. Thickets of jasmine, whole edges of daffodils, violets, carnations, islands with gazebos in the core of shallow lakes, rose bushes of the marquise's favorite "shade dawn”- these are her preferences in landscape art.


The most successful mistress of France aroused jealousy not only among hundreds of other contenders for a place in the royal bedroom. Recognized culinary masters secretly envied the "marquise-nurse" invading their territory. Others admired her. This is evidenced by dozens of culinary masterpieces dedicated to Pompadour. There are the legendary lamb chops, and pheasant croquettes, and the tournedo of young lamb with Perigue sauce, and the aspic of chopped goose liver, and the aspic of tongues and mushrooms with truffles with Madeira sauce, and an apricot dessert, and small petit fours cakes ...


By 1751, the Marquise realized that she could not hold the attention of the king for long - sooner or later he would turn his eyes to younger women - Madame de Pompadour takes this matter into her own hands. The Marquise de Pompadour was only 5 years the mistress of the king, and another 15 - a friend and closest adviser on many issues, sometimes of national importance.


Francois Boucher.
The cold mind of the Marquise and her iron will prompted her to find a way out. In the silence of two unremarkable Parisian streets, she rented a house with five rooms, hidden by a dense canopy of trees. This house, called "Deer Park", became the meeting place of the king with the ladies invited ... by the marquise.


Jean-Marc Nattier. Marquise de Pompadour (1722-1764).
The king appeared here incognito, the girls mistook him for some important gentleman. After the fleeting passion of the king for another beauty disappeared and remained without consequences, the girl, having provided a dowry, was given in marriage. If the case ended with the appearance of a child, then after his birth, the baby, together with the mother, received a very significant annuity. Numerous mistresses are selected under the personal guidance of the marquise. But none of them stay longer than a year. The Marquise continued to be the official favorite of His Majesty.


Marquise will introduce Louis to Louison Morphy. The relationship will last two years, but one day, deciding that now she can do anything, Louison will ask His Majesty: "How is the old coquette doing there?" Three days later, Louison, together with her daughter, whom she gave birth to from Louis, leaves the famous house in Deer Park forever. By 1760, the amounts allocated by the royal treasury for the maintenance of the marquise decreased by 8 times. In the spring of 1764, the Marquise de Pompadour fell seriously ill. She sold jewelry and played cards - she was usually lucky. But the treatment required a lot of money, and they had to be borrowed. Already being seriously ill, she even got a lover. But what is the Marquis of Choiseul compared to a king!


Madame Pompadour as a Vestal by Fran. David M. Stewart 1763.
The marquise, who was still accompanying Louis everywhere, suddenly lost consciousness on one of the trips. Soon everyone realized that the end was near. And although only royalty had the right to die in Versailles, Louis ordered her to be transferred to the palace apartments.


Madame de Pompadour. DROUAIS François-Hubert 1763-64.
On April 15, 1764, the royal chronicler recorded: "The Marquise de Pompadour, the queen's lady-in-waiting, died about 7 p.m. in the king's private quarters at the age of 43." When the funeral procession turned towards Paris, Louis, standing on the balcony of the palace in the pouring rain, said: “What disgusting weather you have chosen for last walk, madam! Behind this seemingly completely inappropriate joke was hidden true sadness.
The Marquise de Pompadour was buried next to her mother and daughter in the tomb of the Capuchin monastery. Now, at the place of her burial, there is Rue de la Paix, passing through the territory of the monastery demolished at the beginning of the 19th century.


Paris Rue de la Paix.
She revealed the secret that all the women of the world puzzle over - how to keep a man around for 20 years, if he is not even a husband, and you have not had an intimate relationship for a long time.

Today we will talk about the fate of such an interesting woman as Madame de Pompadour. Her biography is unique, like Jeanne herself (that was the name of this woman). The history of the birth of Jeanne Antoinette Poisson is shrouded in darkness. The girl was born in 1721, on December 29, in the family of Francois Poisson. This man made it out of the ordinary lackeys to become the master of the horse of the court of the Duke of Orleans himself. However, Francois soon stole and, in order to avoid the gallows, decided to escape. Although he was, apparently, only a nominal father for Jeanne. According to rumors, the real father of Jeanne Antoinette was Le Normand de Tournehem (Tournehem), a wealthy nobleman. Be that as it may, it was he who took care of the education and upbringing of the girl, and after she grew up, he married Jeanne to his own nephew. However, this was not enough for Madame de Pompadour. Her personal life was not limited to communication with her husband. Jeanne wanted so much more...

Fortune teller's prediction

From childhood, the future Madame de Pompadour stood out for her extraordinary abilities and beauty. The photos below prove that she was truly beautiful. Zhanna, in addition, sang well, played various musical instruments, knew how and loved to draw, and had undeniable acting qualities. According to legend, a fortune-teller predicted an amazing fate for a girl at the age of 9, as well as a long love affair with the king himself. Jeanne, having become the favorite of the monarch, found this fortune-teller and began to pay her a small pension. However, the path to the royal bedroom was by no means easy for the future favorite. Her life is like a fairy tale in the memoirs of contemporaries. It is difficult to determine in them where fiction is, where reality is. And is it worth it? The main thing is that Zhanna herself created the fairy tale.

The plan that has matured in Jeanne's head

Having become Madame d'Etiol after her marriage, she stubbornly rushed to her goal, which the fortune-teller planted in her soul. Thanks to the wealth and the name of her husband, the girl got the opportunity to be in high society. Here, with great diligence, she absorbed everything related to the court and the king. Soon Zhanna already knew many details of his intimate life, knew how he behaves with favorites and mistresses. And then the girl came up with a plan. Jeanne began to carry it out with all seriousness.

Implementation of the plan

She did not have the opportunity to meet Louis XV at court ceremonies. The Duchess de Châteauroux, the then favorite, skillfully cut off all possible applicants from him. However, there was a place where the king would certainly pay attention to a charming woman. This is the Senar forest, where the monarch liked to hunt. But the girl was not lucky: Jeanne caught the eye of the Duchess de Château, and not the king. The favorite intuitively understood why she takes forest walks. After that, they had to stop, in order not to get into big trouble with Madame de Pompadour.

Her brief biography, however, continues with the fact that soon fate smiled at Jeanne. The Duchess de Châteauroux died of pneumonia, and the way to the king's heart was open. At a masquerade ball held at the Paris City Hall on February 28, 1745, the king was intrigued by a girl who prevented his desire to see her face. After the monarch's curiosity reached its limit, Joan removed her mask. The king was convinced that it was not in vain that he showed signs of attention to this mysterious stranger.

It should be noted that Louis XV, who was 35 years old by this time, was considered a sophisticated connoisseur of women. He had long been bored with insipid family life with Maria Leshchinskaya, his pious wife, daughter of Stanislav, the Polish king. Therefore, the monarch liked to have fun with another favorite or just with a pretty woman. A new acquaintance, therefore, came in handy.

Jeanne agreed to dine with the king. In the morning, Ludovik considered that it was possible to end the affair on this. The woman, to his surprise, resignedly left. She did not let anyone know more about herself, which was not typical for others. former mistresses. It turned out that she also rejected him, and this hurt male pride. And Louis XV did not resist.

Zhanna becomes the official favorite

Jeanne, reappearing in the palace, acted out the scene of her sincere love, not only touching the king with this, but also giving rise to something similar to a mutual feeling in him. Thus, Louis XV had a new official favorite. A lucrative place was given to the wife of Madame d'Etoile, and they also drew him tempting prospects for further career growth. The king gave Joan, whose lineage was not blameless, the Margraviate of Pompadour and therefore the title of Marchioness.

Two queens

It was easier to win the king than to gain recognition from the high society. The newly appeared marquise for the aristocracy for a long time was just an ordinary grisette - Jeanne received this nickname in high-society salons. It is noteworthy that the Marquise de Pompadour established almost friendly relations with the queen herself. The photo below is a portrait of Maria Leshchinskaya, the king's wife.

At that time, on the streets of Paris, one could often hear the cries of commoners: "Queens are coming!" The two main women of the state not only peacefully shared the royal bed for some time, but also shared official duties: one of them reigned on the throne, the other ruled.

For more than 20 years, Jeanne remained next to the king - an amazing period for an ordinary favorite. In Russia, a little later, Grigory Potemkin was the favorite for an equally long time. His fate, by the way, is somewhat similar to the fate of Jeanne de Pompadour. Having ceased to share his bed with the monarch, for another 15 years she remained his adviser and close friend.

Salon of Madame de Pompadour

The king cannot be kept for a long time by love pleasures alone. Therefore, the Marquise began to delve into the affairs of the state. She turned her salon into a meeting place for the scientific and artistic elite of France. Louis XV met this intellectual society, new to him, with curiosity. It not only entertained the king, but, more importantly, gave food to his mind. The new social circle of the monarch in society was also perceived with great interest. The opportunity to communicate with Louis XV in an informal setting was extremely important for the guests of the Marquise. This gave significant support and increased their status in society.

What did Jeanne do for France?

In France with light hand Jeanne began to spend heavily on art, literature and science. For example, with the help of this marquise, the Encyclopedia of Denis Diderot appeared, as well as the Chamber Theater in the Palace of Versailles, which opened with a production of Tartuffe by Molière. Jeanne often shone on the stage of this prestigious, albeit small, French theater, striking with the art of reincarnation of the king himself.

The circle of interests of this woman was extensive. In France, with her assistance, for example, a military school for war veterans and sons of nobles appeared, which Napoleon Bonaparte himself graduated from after some time. Madame de Pompadour established the production of porcelain in the country, establishing a model factory on her estate of Sèvres. Pale pink porcelain from Sèvres was named Rose Pompadour in her memory. It should be noted that the appearance of many accessories and little things dear to the ladies' heart was also associated with the name of this woman: high heels, a reticule bag, intricate high hairstyles, champagne glasses called "tulip", as well as a special style of cutting diamonds called " Marquis".

Madame de Pompadour boldly interfered in the affairs of the state, often moving the king to cardinal political decisions. France, which has always been in allied relations with Prussia, thanks to her reoriented towards an alliance with Austria. Louis, at the insistence of Jeanne, banned the activities of the Jesuit Order in the state. The Marquise showed in politics, as well as in love, wisdom and feminine intuition, which never let her down.

New entertainment in Europe

Do not assume that the life of this woman was cloudless. She had enough enemies. Each new favorite tried to remove Jeanne, but no one managed to shake the position of the Marquise de Pompadour. In Europe, even a new entertainment arose - bets were made on when Madame de Pompadour would lose influence on Louis XV. All such bets were lost.

Jeanne's death

This woman received the highest honor even in death. She departed to another world in the presence of the king himself. In the royal chronicle in 1764, on April 15, an entry appeared that the Marquise de Pompadour died at about 7 pm. This happened in the private chambers of Louis XV. Madame de Pompadour died at the age of 43. Her life story is of great interest today.

The majestic figure of a woman with a proud look of dark eyes, wrapped in regular folds of heavy silk. She was born in the family castle, grew up breathing the aroma of monastery incense, lived in the strict halls and gardens of Louis XIV and died in the monastery chambers of Saint-Cyr. And to replace it, from the sparkling foam of life, another figure emerged. Coquettish, graceful, in a powdered wig on a small head, flies. There is no law for her but her whim. Somewhere people worked and suffered, somewhere world issues were resolved and the future catastrophe of France was being prepared. Silk curtains tightly closed the door to an elegant boudoir. And here, among the aromas and powder, reigned always laughing, always capricious god of pleasure - Rococo. And the queen of this kingdom was the Marquise Pompadour. The age of the beautiful... And everything beautiful in art, literature, craft bears the stamp of the Marquise Pompadour.

On December 29, 1721, François Poisson, master of the ring at the court of the Duke of Orleans, had a daughter. They named her Jeanne Antoinette. François Poisson, implicated in a very ugly commissary case, was sentenced to hang and escaped only by flight to Germany. Little Zhanna was left in the arms of her mother, a very beautiful and intelligent woman, but apparently not of strict morals. There is strong reason to believe that Jeanne's real father was not François Poisson, but General Lenore-mans-de-Tournechem. In any case, he took a very active part in the fate of Jeanne. First of all, he took care to give her an excellent upbringing and education, and then decided to marry her to his nephew. And on March 9, 1741, and in Paris, in the church of St. Evtikhia, fifteen-year-old Jeanne Poisson, married Karl Lenormand d'Etiol. A small, ugly groom, a slender, with an interesting pale face, the bride.

For the wedding, the general gave his nephew half of his estates, and promised to leave the rest after his death. Young d'Etiol married for love, Mademoiselle Poisson married for convenience. She looked at her marriage as an inevitable stage in her life. When she was nine years old, a fortune-teller predicted to her that she would be the king's favorite. Mademoiselle Poisson firmly believed this prediction and prepared for it all her life.

Having married, Zhanna, despite her young age, managed to gather interesting people around her. In the castle of Etiol, where she settled, she visited many writers, artists, scientists - among them were such big names as Abbé Berni, Voltaire, Fontenelle. Through them she got acquainted with art, literature, politics.

You can't say that she was beautiful, but she was charming. A very pale, infinitely mobile face, beautiful eyes, the color of which could not be determined - sometimes they seemed black, sometimes blue, a charming smile, magnificent blond hair, beautiful hands, a slender figure of medium height. She knew her appearance very well and knew how to use it.

She had a lovely daughter, Alexandra, whom she dearly loved. With a charming smile, fanning herself with a fan on which Gabrielle d’Estre was painted, and Henry IV at her feet, she told her many admirers: “Only with the king could I cheat on my husband.” Most gossips at that time they could not say anything bad about her - her life was impeccable.

However, she could often be found near Etiol, in the forests of Senar, where the royal hunts took place. She is in a blue and pink Amazon, with a falcon in her hand, like a medieval lady ... Or she is in a blue phaeton, all in pink. They noticed her, they started talking about her, they called her the nymph of the forests of Senar. The king involuntarily drew attention to the Amazon dressed in the colors of the dawn. The curious gaze of the king meets the gaze of the unfaithful eyes of Madame Etiol. Near Louis XV was at that time Madame Châteauroux. She did not like the appearance of a young Amazon on his horizon. Madame Etiol made it clear. She stopped appearing at the royal hunt, but the goal of her life was still the king.

In 1745, the city of Paris held a great masquerade in honor of the engagement of the Dauphin. Madame Etiol knew that he would wear a king. The Countess of Châteauroux had suddenly died shortly before, and now the king was free. At the ball, Louis XV was approached by an elegant mask in the costume of Diana the Huntress. The king was interested in her witty conversation, but the mask disappeared, having managed, however, to drop the handkerchief scented with fine perfume.

A few days later, at Versailles, at a performance of the Italian Comedy, Madame Etiol's box was very close to the royal one. Some time later, the king dined alone with Madame Etiol. After this supper, Louis seemed to be frightened of his new passion and did not think about Madame Etiol for many days. In vain did his valet Binet, a distant relative of Madame Etiol, try to remind him of her. Finally, the king nevertheless spoke of her to Binet. He confessed that he liked her very much, but seemed more ambitious and powerful than loving. Binet assured him, of course, that Madame Etiol was madly in love with him and now, having cheated on her adoring husband with him, she thinks only of death.

The king wished to see Madame Etiol once more.

Now she was more careful. Deeply hiding her ambition and dominance, she was before the king only an infinitely loving woman. In response to her tenderness, she felt that she was now strong, but it was important for her not to leave Versailles. And now, still in the arms of the king, Madame Etiol began to despair of what awaited her at home, she assured the king that she was madly afraid of her husband, that he had been jealous of her before, but now his anger would be terrible. The king believed her fear and tears and suggested that she take refuge temporarily from her husband's wrath in the distant chambers of the Palace of Versailles.

In all honesty, Madame Etiol's husband was more pathetic than terrible. He sincerely loved his wife, and when his uncle, General Lenormand, told him that she had left him, he lost consciousness, and when he came to, he tried many times to take his own life. Expelled by the king from Paris, he was seriously ill for a long time in Avignon.

When Louis XV left to join his troops in Flanders, Madame Etiol did not go with him. She settled in Etiol and lived there very secluded, occupied almost exclusively with correspondence with the king. In the meantime, the rooms formerly occupied by the late Madame Châteauroux were being furnished for her at Versailles. Madame Etiol knew that with the arrival of the king she would be declared the official favorite. One of the last letters of the king was addressed to her no longer as Madame Etiol, but as the Marquise of Pompadour - the letter contained documents for this title.

A few days after the return of the king from Flanders, the new marquise was granted to the court. She was very worried, but she coped with her task intelligently and tactfully. Only one moment she was confused - it was at the queen's.

Queen Maria Leshchinskaya had long ceased to be jealous of the king, and the Marquise Pompadour was only a new name for her, and not a new chagrin. And now, when the marquise was getting ready to hear from the queen a banal phrase prepared in advance about her dress, Maria Leshchinskaya suddenly asked her affectionately about a lady she knew. The marquise was taken aback, and an awkward but sincere exclamation escaped her:

"My most fervent desire is to please Your Majesty." The embarrassment of the marquise quickly passed, and for the kind words she retained gratitude to the queen for a long time.

Boredom was a hallmark of 18th-century France, the age of laughter and play. Boredom reigned everywhere. It arose below, where it led to frequent suicides, increased with the steps of position and wealth, and its full embodiment seemed to be King Louis XV himself. Boredom was the only mistress to whom he was faithful all his life, boredom was that evil genius, obedient to which Louis said: "After us, at least the flood."

Handsome, charming, surrounded not only by courtiers, but also by sincere friends, the king was bored. And so, armed with her lively mind and taste, the marquise decided to make the king not be bored. And the whole secret of her influence on Louis was in the ability to achieve this. For this, she had a rare gift in nothing, starting with appearance, never to be monotonous. Always unexpected, always smart and interesting in a new way, she quickly managed to completely master the mind and soul of the lazy, apathetic king.

Not a single small cloud on the forehead of her royal lover hides from her keen eye. She knows how to drive him away with her caress, her cheerfulness. Sna plays the harpsichord, sings, tells a new anecdote.

From the very early youth the marquise loved the arts and practiced them. Now, when, by the will of fate, she approached the French court, the arts and literature approached with her. Although personally Louis XV was indifferent to all this, she managed to interest him as well.

Twice a week, artists, writers, philosophers gathered in her salon - Bouchardon, Boucher, Latour, Verna, the architect Gabriel, Voltaire ... interesting topics conversations, heated discussions. The marquise took a great part in this, and the king involuntarily began to take part in this. In the palace of Choisy, according to the idea of ​​the Marquise, there is a theater called the Theater of Small Rooms, an intimate, refined theater for forty people spectators.

This theater was built by Gabriel according to the personal plan of the Marquise, painted inside by her favorite artist Boucher. The entrance ticket was a small card on which a coquettish Columbine was drawn, Leander in love beside her, a deceived Pierrot peeking out from behind a curtain. The audience was almost always the royal family, headed by Louis XV, relatives and friends of the marquises. Sitting on a simple chair, the king could watch the performance without tiring etiquette.

The troupe was not made up of professional actors, but courtiers, who achieved, as a great honor, to play here. The main actors were Moritz of Saxony, Duke of Duras, Richelieu, D Estrade, the director was the Duke de Lavaliere. Managed everything and the first actress was the Marquise Pompadour

While still at Etiol, she staged performances and showed herself to be a good actress and a pleasant singer. Now she could turn around and show all the subtlety and grace of female coquetry, all the charm and tenderness of her flexible voice. Indeed, where, besides the theater, one can be so variously beautiful, one can change so many captivating faces! A gentle shepherdess, a passionate odalisque, a proud Roman woman… What a scope the stage was for the delicate taste of the marquise. Not for nothing, after one of the performances, Louis told her: "You are the most charming woman in France."

The repertoire of the theater was also composed by the Marquise herself. At the opening there was Molière's comedy Tartuffe, followed by plays by Voltaire, Rousseau, Crebillon.

After the performance, the king with his closest, no more than fourteen people, usually stayed for dinner. The invitees entered with him into the exquisitely furnished salon, on the walls of which there were paintings by Latour, Watteau, Boucher. The subject of this painting was luxurious feasts, but there was not even a hint of dinner in the salon itself.

When the king crossed the threshold, two pages approached him and asked for orders about starting. As soon as the king had time to make a sign that it was possible to serve, the floor parted and, as in the palace of Armida, a luxuriously served table rose from below. The pages quickly brought food and dinner began. There was no drunkenness and revelry. Ate the lungs delicious dishes, fine wines were drunk, cheerful elegant conversations arose, the slight piquancy of which never turned into obscenity.

The king should not be bored - that is the goal of the marchioness. Therefore, during fasts, when various entertainments are prohibited, she arranges spiritual concerts in the palace, where she herself sings. When she feels that the king is already tired of entertainment, she takes him on a trip. He visits unfamiliar cities of his kingdom, receives greetings from his subjects who have never seen him before.

The influence of the marquise on Louis could not please the courtiers. She came not from their circle, but from the bourgeoisie. Everything about her, from her mannerisms to her tongue, shocked the strict court etiquette. The Dauphin and the king's daughters were against her, the queen was silent and was neither for nor against. But the marquise was ambitious. Her influence on the personality of the king did not satisfy her - she wanted to influence the entire policy of France. And despite the protests of the court and the Paris restored against her by court circles, pouring out all her anger on her in a whole series of songs called “poissonades” by her maiden name, the marquise firmly goes towards her goal.

Among entertainment and travel, she gets acquainted with the affairs of the kingdom.

As for her enemies, the marquise never erred and appreciated them. In contrast to them, she makes every effort to win friends. But the latter did not work well for her. This was hampered by her two major shortcomings - she was vengeful and vindictive. She never forgave anything, and her loved ones feared her more than they loved her. With regard to the Dauphin, her revenge was powerless, but with her other enemies, the Marquise was relentless. She seeks the resignation of Orry, the Minister of Finance, who was very popular. Exiled from Paris for mocking couplets about her, the favorite of King Maurep.

Respectfully, but firmly, the marquise fights with royal family haughtily with the courtiers, successful with the Jesuits, patient with Parliament.

The power of the Marquise is becoming stronger every day. She is becoming the unspoken ruler of France. Foreign powers seek her favor. Through it, Empress Maria Theresa achieves an alliance with France, thanks to which a seven-year war with Germany and England, unsuccessful for France, arises.

At his court, the marquise introduces strict etiquette. In her waiting room there is only one chair for her, all visitors must stand. Under the pretext of frequent ill health, she did not get up even in the presence of princes of the blood. In the theater, she sat in the royal box, in the chapel of Versailles a special elevation was built for her. The staff of her house consisted of sixty people. Her guest footman was from an impoverished but old noble family.

In her majesty, the marquise wanted, as it were, to cross out her humble origins. The Marquise turns her father, Monsieur Poisson, into a peer of France, the owner of the estate de Maregny, her brother into the Marquis de Védrière, later the Marquis de Marigny. mother.

But the main subject of her worries and ambitious plans is her only and dearly beloved daughter Alexandra, who is similar to her mother in character and appearance. She was brought up in the aristocratic monastery d'Assomption, where she was called, as children of royal blood, by name: Alexandra. The marquise was preparing a brilliant future for her. But fate crushes all her dreams. Alexandra died unexpectedly at the age of ten. Poison was suspected, the revenge of the Jesuits, but the autopsy found nothing.

In general, the marquise assumed poison everywhere and warned the king against it many times. She herself did not eat anything first. True, she had an example before her eyes - the unexpected death of Madame Chateauroux, very similar to poisoning. The marquise could not even trust her close ones. Her relative and best friend, Madame d'Estrade, turned out to be a spy for her and the mistress of her enemy, Foreign Minister Argenson.

In the midst of splendor, at the height of her power, the Marquise was very lonely. She had to expend a lot of strength, both mental and physical, in order to stay at a decent height. Having seized power over France, the marquise forever renounced a quiet life. And many times at home, left alone with her maid Madame José, she complained about her fate and the need to wage an “eternal battle” with the surrounding people and events, as she called her life.

Mad energy lived in the weak and sickly body of the Marquise Pompadour. It seemed that she never spent a single hour of her life in inactivity. She delved into everything. An art exhibition, about which she listens to the opinions of others and expresses her own ... Antique dealers, from whom she often buys beautiful things for her palaces - furniture, Saxon porcelain, Chinese porcelain ... Conversations with architects, artists ... The printing house she set up in Versailles, where on Corneille’s “Rodo-gune” and some of Voltaire’s works were printed in her eyes ... Discussion with Clairon of theatrical toilets ... Her personal work on etching, engraving or gemma ... Some of her works have come down to us - of course, they are weaker than the works of the artists surrounding the Marquise, but they are still very interesting.

The Marquise carried on a huge correspondence with many wonderful people. “I still have about twenty letters to write,” she says, saying goodbye to her father in the evening.

The Marquise loved books, and her colossal library served her more than just for show. There were history books civil law, political economy, philosophy - in them she drew knowledge for the role that she wanted to occupy in France. And indeed, if the Marquise was not always competent in any matter, she always knew enough not to seem ignorant in it ... In addition, she had an excellent collection of books on the theater and in general on the arts.

But most of all, the Marquise had books about love. Novels of Spanish, Italian, French writers, chivalric novels, heroic, historical, moralistic, political, satirical, comic, fantastic. Her library was the temple of the novel. Reading, the marquise experienced thousands of lives devoted to love, and, leaving reality, rested from it in a different, created life.

According to the idea of ​​the Marquise, a military school is founded. The construction of the building of the Marquise herself supervises, and even she personally drew the designs of some of his decorations. French tapestries had long defeated oriental carpets, French crystal was as beautiful as Venetian, but French porcelain could not compete with Saxon and Chinese. The marquise, who loved him and understood him well, set out to create French porcelain that would be better than Saxon. In 1756, the state porcelain factory, formerly in Vincennes, was transferred to Sevres.

Magnificent buildings are being built here for artists and factory workers. The buildings are surrounded by beautiful gardens, where fountains gush and charming bosquets are planted. A dense forest is visible in the distance, where the factory dwellers can hunt.

Under the guidance of a master who has the secret of making good porcelain mass and its coloring, five hundred people work, of which sixty are experienced artists.

The marquise chose Sevres as the place of her usual walks. She encourages artists, gives them advice, helps in choosing colors and shapes. The beautiful pink color is named after her "Rose Pompadour". Very quickly, the works of Sevres reach an extraordinary height, and they are not afraid of comparisons with Saxon and Chinese porcelain. To distribute Sevres products, the Marquise arranges their exhibition in Versailles, where she sells them herself. When trading, she praises them so convincingly that it is difficult not to buy from her.

Once, during a walk in Sevres, the marquise was captivated by the landscape spread out before her. She stood on a charming green hill, from where she could see Versailles, Saint-Cloud, and even further Saint-Germain. The marquise decided to build a palace here. On a beautiful summer day, she gathers architects, artists, gardeners here and, sitting on the green grass, discusses the construction plan with them. And now, under the guidance of the architect Landuro, the artists Bush, Vanloo and the gardener Delisle, on a picturesque hill, like in a fairy tale, the Belle Vue Palace grows.

In the first courtyard there were two buildings, one for the stables, the other for theatrical performances. Further on, the second courtyard, surrounded on three sides by the buildings of the palace, and on the fourth, a garden with a terrace adjoins it, from where a view of the Seine, the Bois de Boulogne, the verdant islands and villages opens. A green staircase of blossoming oranges and lemons descended from the terrace to the Seine, and in the park, under a dome of trees, rose the bust of the king and the marchioness. The interior of the palace was no less beautiful. Pictures, marble, porcelain… The Marquise understood and loved beauty.

On the day of the King's first visit to Belle Vue, in a theater decorated in Chinese style, the ballet "Cupid the Architect", an elegant joke on the theme of the construction of Belle Vue, was performed. In the evening, after the performance, the marquise took the king to the winter garden.

Many fires burned, thousands of flowers streamed their fragrance. The king was surprised that the marquise, as usual, did not pick flowers for him and decided to do it himself. But it was impossible to pick the flowers - they were from Sevres porcelain, and their cups were filled with perfumes corresponding to each.

The marquise possessed not only the palace of Belle Vu. She often bought new lands and palaces and sometimes sold them at a big loss. Her possessions were vast, and she very rarely visited many of them. Grand Palace Cressy, which cost a colossal sum, the small palace of La Selle, a simple little pavilion near the Versailles park, decorated with Persian wallpaper and picturesque panels, surrounded by a garden, which was a bosquet of roses, in the green of which the white, marble Adonis was hiding; small house at Fontainebleau with many chickens different breeds, house in Compiègne; luxurious palace in Paris.

In general, none of the undertakings seems too expensive to the Marquise, and she, without hesitation, buys everything that she would like to see as her own. But despite the fact that these purchases cost France very dearly, they total amount cannot be compared with any other number. The greatest cost to France was the whole galaxy of architects, painters, sculptors and gardeners, whom the Marquise carried with her to each of her possessions, where they remade everything from beginning to end to her taste. It cost the state thirty million livres.

The marquise did not limit herself to rebuilding her palaces and the houses she occupied. She also remodeled all the palaces of the king in which he received her. In this, as in everything, the marquise tried to find entertainment for the bored king. She wanted none of his palaces to be like the other and to be interesting to him in a new way.

The life of the Marquise Pompadour was not only an "eternal battle" with the intrigues of enemies, but also an "eternal battle" with herself, a battle with her soul, with her weak, sickly body, even with her cold temperament. She is always seen cheerful, calm, with a smile and a song on her lips. Only from the notes of her maid Madame José, which have come down to us, do we recognize her intimate life, her sleepless nights full of anxiety and tears.

"My dear! I'm afraid of losing the king's heart, of ceasing to please him. You know men attach great importance certain things, and I have, unfortunately, a very cold temperament. I decided to apply a somewhat stimulating regimen to myself in order to correct this deficiency, and in these two days this elixir helped me, or at least it seemed to me so. So says the Marquise to her friend, the Duchess de Branca.

To excite her temperament, she also drinks chocolate with a lot of vanilla, eats a salad of celery and truffles.

But the king's attitude towards her becomes colder.

When Damien wounded him with a dagger in 1757, the marquise locked herself in her chambers for eleven days, not knowing what awaited her. She cried, fainted, came to herself, cried again and again fainted. Dr. Kezne from the king's chambers went to her and back all the time, trying as best he could to calm her down. The king himself did not call her to him and did not make himself felt. After eleven days of painful waiting, the king sent his minister Machaux, her protege, to the Marquise with an order on behalf of the king to immediately leave the Palace of Versailles. The marquise had already decided to carry out this order, but one of her friends, the marshal's wife, Mirenois, dissuaded her. Pretending to leave the palace, the marquise actually remained there, waiting for events. It was not in vain that the Marquise followed the advice of Madame Mirenois, a few days later the king saw her, and she again took her position.

Minister Macho was resigned. The day came when the Marquise had to give up hope of keeping her lover king. Exhausted by internal and external struggles, amusements through force, under the eternal fear of rivals, she could not bear it, and her poor health was shaken.

She easily defeated the first betrayals of the king.

Eliminated and suddenly dies (there is a suspicion that she was poisoned on the orders of the Marquise) seductive Made Mauselle Choiseul-Romanet. But now the Marquise understood that it was no longer so easy. And now she decides on an act that has branded her for centuries. With her permission, the so-called "Deer Park" appears, something like a small harem for the king, where there were no more than two girls at the same time. Who their lover, the girls did not know. They were hinted that this was a Polish prince, a relative of the queen. Modest, uneducated girls were not afraid of the Marquise. “I want his heart,” she said of the king.

When one of the girls became pregnant, she was taken away from there, the child was provided, and the mother, with a small dowry, was given in marriage to the province. All this was arranged by the Marquise herself, and it is difficult to say whether in the name of love or in the name of ambition she took on this ambiguous role.

With a compressed heart and a cold mind, the Marquise Pompadour became no longer a lover, but a friend and confidant of King Louis. She leaves the upper intimate chambers of the Palace of Versailles and settles downstairs, where only princes of the blood lived before her. And as if announcing to everyone about the change in her position, she puts her statue in the form of the goddess of Friendship in Belle Vue Park.

But now it was important for the marquise to have an official position at court, and the king asks the queen to accept her into his retinue. But even meek Maria Leshchinskaya was outraged by this request. Not having the courage to directly refuse the king, she says that she cannot accept a woman who has left her husband and for this has been condemned by the church. Then the Marquise writes to her husband, Mr. Lenorman D Etiol, a letter full of repentance, where, realizing all her mistakes, all her guilt before him, she begs to forgive her and take her back to her.

Simultaneously with this letter is sent faithful man tell him that if he does not wish to incur the displeasure of the king, he is advised to refuse.

The marquise's husband had long ago come to terms with his fate and lived, having fun with wine and light love affairs. To her letter, the Marquise received a polite answer from him, where he wrote to her that from the bottom of his heart he forgives her for her guilt before him, but does not want to accept her. Having received an impatiently awaited answer, the Marchioness bursts into a flood of complaints. She is guilty, she repented, what should she do if her husband is now pushing her away, only religion can console her.

Every day in the chapel of Versailles, but not upstairs, not in her place of honor, but below, in the crowd, and for a long time after the end of the service she kneels at the altar. After long hesitation and indecision of the Jesuit father de Sassi, after her letter to the Pope, she finally receives the pardon of the church. Maria Leshchinskaya now has no choice but to submit to the will of the king.

“Sovereign! I have one king in heaven, who gives me the strength to endure my grief, and one king on earth, to whose will I am always obedient, ”she says to the king, accepting a new lady in her retinue. The marquise did not forget the hostile attitude of the Jesuits during her repentance. Twelve years later, the Jesuits were expelled from France. The king, bound to the Marquise solely by force of habit and her mind, sought new love. His short novels in " deer park He was not satisfied. The enemies of the Marquise tried to put forward a new favorite.

A long line of women passes before the king, each of whom brings several days of anxiety and grief to the marquise. When Mademoiselle Roman appears on the horizon of the king, the marquise sees that the king is already in love for real. Mademoiselle Roman had a son by Louis.

With a beating heart, the Marquise goes to the Bois de Boulogne, where on the grass, pinning her luxurious black hair with a diamond comb, Mademoiselle Roman is breastfeeding her son, Louis of Bourbon. Covering her face with a handkerchief, as if from a severe toothache, the marquise watches her and even speaks to her. Returning home, she says with sadness to Madame José, "I must confess, both mother and child are very beautiful."

But this novel of the king, more serious than others, did not break the chains with which he was chained to the Marquise de Pompadour. This victory somewhat calms the marquise, but she, still outwardly cheerful, is sad, disappointed and lonely.

“The older I get, my dear brother, the more philosophical my judgments become. I'm sure you are thinking the same. Apart from the happiness of being with the king, which, of course, consoles me in everything, everything else is just a fabric of malice, vulgarity - in general, of all the sins that poor humanity is capable of. Good material for reflection, especially for those who, like me, were born philosophizing over everything,” she writes to her brother

In another letter she says:

“Wherever there are people, you will find all the vices, lies, all that they are capable of. Living alone would be very boring, so you need to endure their shortcomings and pretend that you do not notice them.

But of all the sorrows of the Marquise, the greatest was that instead of the glory of France, with which her name would have been associated for centuries, her interference in the affairs of the state brought ruin and unfortunate wars to the country. She repeats, laughing: "After us, at least the flood." But in fact, she cared a lot about her name in the offspring.

“We must give up all thought of fame. It is a heavy necessity, but it is the only thing left for us. Your diligence and devotion to the king may still be needed by him, ”she writes during the Seven Years' War to the Duke d'Etion.

When she saw that all her dreams of fame had failed, she really left them, and is forever dejected by this. A person close to her, her beloved minister and, they say, even her lover, the Duke of Choiseul, says of her:

“I am afraid that melancholy will not take over her completely and she would not die of grief.”

How strange that sounds. The all-powerful Marquise Pompadour, dying of grief. Already in 1756, the Marquise began to feel very ill. But she hard hides her illness from the king. A cheerful smile and skillful make-up masked her sickly appearance from prying eyes. Once a fortune-teller predicted to the Marquise her brilliant rise. And now, in disguise, with a glued nose, the Marquise makes her way to another fortune teller, to find out how she will die. She gets the answer: "You will have time to repent." This prediction, like the first, came true.

The Marquise was bleeding in her throat as a child. Her life ruined her health completely. But she did not want to give up until the last opportunity. In 1764, after one pleasure walk in Choisy, she fell ill. Around her are several friends, the Duke of Choiseul, Mademoiselle Mirepois, and the Prince of Soubise, her most devoted person. A few days before death, there was an unexpected improvement. The Marquise was transferred to the Palace of Versailles. Here, in a palace where, according to etiquette, only princes of the blood could die, the Marquise of Pompadour died. She died calm, and still beautiful, despite her illness. As her end approached, the king personally told her that it was time to take communion. She could not lie down because of shortness of breath and sat, padded with pillows in an armchair, suffering greatly. Before her death, she sketches a drawing of the beautiful facade of the church of St. Magdalene in Paris. When the priest of St. Magdalene was about to leave, she said to him with a smile: "Wait a minute, holy father, we will leave together." She died a few minutes later.

She was 42 years old and ruled France for twenty years. Of these, only the first five she was the beloved of the king. Before her death, she ordered to put on a monastic dress, a large rosary of the Franciscan order and a wooden cross on her chest. Immediately after her death, her body was taken out of Versailles. Walked on the day of the funeral heavy rain. The king, along with his valet Champlost, stood on the balcony with his head uncovered, watching her funeral procession pass by the palace. When she disappeared around the corner, his eyes were full of tears: "That's the only honor I can give her."

The Marquise appointed the Prince of Soubise as her executor. Everything was clearly thought out in the will, she made it with love for the art objects that she left behind in huge quantities. In this, as in all her life, she was more of an aesthetic than a good Christian. She rewarded friendship, but at the same time guarded her numerous collections for the future.

She was buried in a crypt in Place Vendôme, where her mother's coffin already stood.

Diderot speaks cruelly about her: “So, what is left of this woman who ruined so many human lives, spent so much money, left us without honor and energy and destroyed political system Europe? Treaty of Versailles, which will last known time, Cupid by Bouchardon, which will always be admired, a few engraved stones that will delight the antiquarians of the future, a pretty little Vanloo painting that will be looked at sometimes, and ... a handful of ashes. But the Marquise loved art, she loved literature, and the names of Boucher, Fragonard, Latour, Vanloo, Grez, Montesquieu, Voltaire and many other great people of her era surround her appearance with a halo for centuries. History is against it, but art is for it.