FOOTNOTES:

Now give us laws for pantalons,The length of breeches and the gathers,Port-cannons, periwigs and feathers.[991]

There was a French peddling woman at Court, Mlle. Le Boord, who "us'd to bring peticoates, and fanns and baubles out of France to the Ladys,"[992]and whose opinion had great weight. De Grammont won the favour of the English ladies by having French trinkets sent them from France. "Let the fashion be French, 'tis no matter what the cloth be."[993]Travellers from France were beset with questions as to the latest mode. Some devotees were said to receive weekly letters from France providing information on this subject.[994]At one momentCharles protested against the rage for French fashions by adopting a simple garment after the Persian style, which was first worn at Court on the 18th October 1666. Divers gentlemen went so far as to wager that His Majesty would not persist in this change; and when Louis XIV. retorted by ordering his pages to be attired in the same Persian garb, Charles withdrew. "It was a comely and manly attire," writes Evelyn, "too good to hold, it being impossible for us in good earnest to leave the Monsieurs' vanities long."[995]

Francomania indeed was carried to extremes:

And as some pupils have been knownIn time to put their tutors down,So ours are often found t'ave gotMore tricks than ever they were taught.[996]

We are told of an "English captain that threw up his commission because his company would not exercise after the French Discipline."[997]Dryden even accuses the French of influencing the course of English politics:[998]

The Holy LeagueBegot our Cov'nant; Guisards got Whig,Whate'er our hot-brain'd sheriffs did advance,Was like our fashions, first produced in France,And when worn out, well scourg'd and bannish'd there.Sent over, like their godly Beggars, here.

A French patent was said to authorize any crime.[999]"Now what a Devil 'tis should make us so dote on these French," says Flecknoe,[1000]and another writer adds:[1001]

Our native speech we must forget e'er longTo learn the French that much more modish Tongue.Their language smoother is, hath pretty Aires,But ours is Gothick if compar'd with theirs.The French by arts of smooth insinuationAre now become the Darlings of the Nation.

FRENCH SPOKEN AT COURTThe example was set at Court, where French was commonly in use, and where to be able to speak it well was a necessity and proof of good breeding. "Mark then, I makes 'em both speak French to show their breeding," says the author Boyes of his two kings in Buckingham'sRehearsal.[1002]Sir John Reresby first attracted notice at Court by his fluent French. "It was this summer," he writes in 1661, "that the Duke of York first took any particular notice of me. I happened to be in discourse with the French Ambassador and some other gentlemen of his nation, in the presence at Whitehall, and the Duke joined us, he being a great lover of the French tongue and kind to those who spoke it. The next night he talked with me a long while as he was at supper with the king."[1003]And Reresby, with a keen eye for his own advancement, took advantage of this to secure the patronage of the Duke. He also tells us that the King, Duke, and French ambassador were very often merry and intimate together at Louise de Kerouaille's (now Duchess of Portsmouth) lodgings,[1004]where French alone would be used, for it was an unknown thing for a French ambassador to speak English. There was not a courtier[1005]who did not speak French with ease, Clarendon alone excepted.

The ladies of the Court were equally well versed in the language. When De Grammont, who had made the acquaintance of most of the courtiers in France, came to make that of the ladies, he needed no interpreter, for all knew French—"assez pour s'expliquer et toutes entendaient le françois assez bien pour ce qu'on avait à leur dire."[1006]Amongst them was Miss Hamilton, Anthony's sister, who became De Grammont's wife,[1007]and was much admired at the Court of Louis XIV. The accomplishments of Miss Stuart may be quoted as typical of the rest: "elle avoit de la grâce, dansoit bien, parloit françois mieux que sa langue naturelle: elle étoit polie, possédoit cet air de parure après lequel on court et qu'on n'attrappe guères à moins de l'avoir pris en France dès sajeunesse."[1008]The least gifted lady of the Court was Miss Blake, who "n'entendoit presque point le françois." When the Countess of Berkshire recommended one of her near relatives as one of the queen's dressers, the fact that she had been twelve years in France, and could speak French exceedingly well, was mentioned as her chief qualification.[1009]The Portuguese queen[1010]was indeed out of place in her Frenchified Court. She could not speak French, and Spanish was her means of intercourse with Charles II. and the Duke of York, who both spoke this language fairly well, and were able to act as interpreters between their French mother and the young queen. Catherine's Portuguese attire was the subject of much amusement, and her efforts to induce the ladies of the Court to adopt it were of no avail. James II., when he was an exile in France for the second time, told the nuns of Chaillot that she had endeavoured to prevail on King Charles to use his influence with them: "but the ladies dressed in the French fashions and would not hear of any other, constantly sending artificers and dressmakers to Paris to import the newest modes, as they do to this very day."[1011]The country ladies caught the fashion as it was going out in London.[1012]

In many cases the passion for all things French became a mania with the ladies, as is frequently pictured in the drama of the time.[1013]A Frenchified lady would have a French maid, "born and bred in France, who could speak English but brokenly," with whom she would talk a mixture of broken French and English; while many a one like Melantha of Dryden'sMarriage à-la-mode,[1014]doted on any new French word: "as fast as any bullion comes out of France, she coins it intoEnglish, and runs mad in new French words."[1015]THE FRENCHIFIED LADYShe importunes those returned from the tour in France, or who have correspondence with Parisians, to know the latest words used in Paris. Her maid supplies her daily with a store of French words:

Melantha.... Yousotyou, come produce your Morning's work.... O, my Venus! 14 or 15 words to serve me a whole day! Let me die, at this rate I cannot last till night! Come read your words....Philotis.Sottises.Melantha.Sottises, bon.That's an excellent word to begin withal: as for example, he or she said a thousandsottisesto me. Proceed.Philotis.Figure: as what aFigureof a man is there!NaïveandNaïveté.Melantha.Naïve!as how?Philotis.Speaking of a thing that was naturally said: it was sonaïve. Or such an innocent piece of simplicity: 'twas such aNaïveté.

Melantha.... Yousotyou, come produce your Morning's work.... O, my Venus! 14 or 15 words to serve me a whole day! Let me die, at this rate I cannot last till night! Come read your words....

Philotis.Sottises.

Melantha.Sottises, bon.That's an excellent word to begin withal: as for example, he or she said a thousandsottisesto me. Proceed.

Philotis.Figure: as what aFigureof a man is there!NaïveandNaïveté.

Melantha.Naïve!as how?

Philotis.Speaking of a thing that was naturally said: it was sonaïve. Or such an innocent piece of simplicity: 'twas such aNaïveté.

And as Melantha becomes excited with her new acquisitions, she bestows gifts on her maid at each new word.

A new catechism[1016]for the ladies was invented on these lines:

—Of what Nation are you?—English by birth: my educationà la mode de France.—Who confirms you?—Mademoiselle the French Mantua maker.

—Of what Nation are you?

—English by birth: my educationà la mode de France.

—Who confirms you?

—Mademoiselle the French Mantua maker.

We are told that the Frenchified lady was educated in a French boarding-school, by a French dancing master, a French singing master, and a French waiting woman. "Before I could speak English plain," she tells us, "I was taught to jabber French: and learnt to dance before I could go: in short I danced French dances at 8, sang French at 10, spoke it at 13, and before 15 could talk nothing else."

Among the gentlemenà la mode, "to speak French like a magpie" was also the fashion:

We shortly must our native speech forgetAnd every man appear a French coquett.Upon the Tongue our English sounds not well,But—oh, monsieur, la langue françoise est belle;[1017]

wrote a satirist of the time. And so the Francomaniacs, designated asbeauxor Englishmonsieurs, became the subject for satire and ridicule. Their French was often not of a very high standard. Pepys met one of themonsieurs, "full of hisFrench," and pronounced it "not very good." Many, no doubt, had to be content "t' adorn their English with French scraps."

And while they idly think t' enrich,Adulterate their native speech:For, though to smatter ends of GreekOr Latin be the rhetoriqueOf pedants counted and vainglorious,To smatter French is meritorious,And to forget their mother tongueOr purposely to speak it wrong.[1018]

Butler says that "'tis as ill breeding now to speak good Englis, as to wrote good Englis,[1019]good sense or a good hand," and "not to be able to swear a French oath, nor use the polite French word in conversation," debarred one from polite society. The town spark orbeau garzionis frequently introduced in the comedies of the time. Not being master of his own language, he intermingles it with scraps of French that the ladies may take him for a man of parts and a true linguist.[1020]Such is Sir Foppington, who walks with one eye hidden under his hat, with a toothpick in prominence, and a cane dangling at his button;[1021]and Sir Novelty Fashion, who prefers the title ofBeauto that of Right Honourable;[1022]and theMonsieurof Paris of Wycherley'sGentleman Dancing Master, "mightily affected with French Language and Fashions," preferring the company of a French valet to that of an English squire, and talking "agreeable ill Englis." Etherege's Sir Fopling Flutter[1023]presents us with a telling picture of what was considered good breeding and wit at the Court of Charles II. Sir Fopling is "a fine undertaking French fop, arrived piping hot from Paris," bent on imitatingTHE ENGLISH "MONSIEUR"the people of quality in France and on speaking a mixture of French and English. "His head stands for the most part on one side, and his looks are more languishing than a lady's when she lolls at stretch in her coach, or leans her head carelessly against the side of a box in the playhouse." He judges everything according to what is done at Paris, and English music and dancing make him shudder. And as it wasà la modeto be

Attended by a young petit garçonWho from his cradle was an arch Fripon,[1024]

he walks about with a train of French valets. Mr. Frenchlove of James Howard's "English Monsieur" (1674) is likewise "a Frenchman in his second nature, that is in his fashion, discourse and clothes"; he cannot discover adivertissementin the whole of London, but finds "some comfort that in this vast beef-eating city, a French house may be found to eat at."

The French ordinaries held an important place in the daily round of thebeau. His toilet occupied the whole of the early part of the day. He would then go to the French ordinary,[1025]where he boasts of his travels to the untravelled company, and if they receive this well, plies them with "more such stuff, as how he, simple fellow as he seems to be, had interpreted between the French King and the Emperor." Or, if his accomplishments will not stand this strain, "flings some fragments of French or small parcels of Italian about the table."[1026]He may then take the promenade orTour à la Mode, where he salutes withbon meen, and has a hundredjolly rancounterson the way.[1027]He usually ended his day at the play.

And here again he would find the desired French atmosphere. Many translations or adaptations of French plays were acted,[1028]and the English drama of the period is so full of Frenchwords and phrases that it is hardly intelligible to any one without a good knowledge of French.[1029]The Frenchified Gallants and Ladies, the French Valets, and other French characters introduced so freely into the plays, offered ample opportunity for the use of French words.[1030]Dryden, alone, is responsible for the introduction of more than a hundred such words.[1031]As literature was fashionable at the time, most of the dramatic authors were themselves gentlemenà la modewith strong French tastes. Sedley, for instance, had a great reputation in the world of fashion. Wycherley and Vanbrugh had both been educated in France. Etherege had probably resided many years in Paris. Cibber, who always played the part of the fop in his own plays, went twice to France specially to study the airs and graces of the Frenchpetit-maître,—at no better place, however, than atable d'Auberge, the Abbé Le Blanc tells us:[1032]"Il faut lui pardonner ses erreurs sur ses modèles, il n'étoit à portée d'en voir d'autres: si même il n'a pas aussi bien imité ceux-ci que les Anglois se le sont persuadé, je n'en suis pas surpris: il m'a avoué de bonne foi qu'il n'entend pas assez notre langue pour suivre la conversation." It is unlikely, however, that Cibber's French was as scanty as theabbéreports. At any rate his daughter Charlotte, afterwards Mrs. Clarke, tells us that she understood the alphabet in French before she was able to speak English.[1033]

The prologues and epilogues of the Restoration plays are frequently addressed to the gallants, and often in a language which would appeal to them; for instance, a French Marquis speaks the epilogue in Farquhar'sConstant Couple:

... Vat have you English, dat you call your own,Vat have you of grand plaisir in dis towne,Vidout it come from France, dat will go down?Picquet, basset: your vin, your dress, your dance,'Tis all, you zee, tout à-la-mode de France.

FRENCH PLAYS IN LONDONThe Francomaniacs of the time would find still more to their taste at the French play. During nearly twenty years after the Restoration, London was hardly ever without a company of French players. The beaux and gallants flocked to see "a troop of frisking monsieurs," and cry "Ben" and "keep time to the cadence of the French verses":[1034]

Old English authors vanish and give placeTo these new conquerors of the Norman race,

wrote Dryden, protesting against the caprice of the town for the French comedians; and he adds elsewhere:[1035]

A brisk French troop is grown your dear delight,Who with broad bloody bills, call you each day,To laugh and break your buttons at their play.

There was a great rush to the French plays, both tragedies and comedies. Valets went hours in advance to reserve a place for their masters. There is no need, says Dryden, to seek far for the reason of their popularity,—they are French, and that is enough. People go to show their breeding and try to laugh at the right moment. The English dramatist insinuates that the comedians let in their own countrymen free of charge that they might lead the applause, and give the cue to the ladies.

The English Court and its followers had evidently acquired a taste for French plays during their sojourn abroad. Immediately after the Restoration a French company settled in London, and the king became their special patron and protector. In 1661 he made a grant of £300 to Jean Channoveau to be distributed among the French comedians,[1036]and in 1663 they obtained permission to bring from France their stage decorations and scenery. It seems to have always been the king's "pleasure" that "the clothes, vestments, scenes, and other ornaments proper for and directly designed for their own use about the stage should be imported customs free."[1037]The earliest troupe of French actors, under Jean Channoveau, acted at the Cockpit in Drury Lane; and there, on the 30th August 1661, Pepys took his wife to see a French comedy.He carried away a very bad impression of the play, describing it as "ill done, the scenes and company and everything else so nasty and out of order and poor, that (he) was sick all the while in (his) mind to be there." He vented his ill humour on a friend of Mrs. Pepys whom she had met in France; and "that done, there being nothing pleasant but the foolery of the farce, we went home."

French comedies were also acted at Court. Evelyn, who went very little to the theatre, witnessed one of these on the 16th December 1662, but makes no observation on it. In thePlayhouse to be letof Davenant, who directed the Duke's company playing at Dorset Gardens,[1038]figures a Frenchman who has brought over a troupe of his countrymen to act a farce. The French actor Bellerose is said to have made a fortune by playing in London.[1039]Another of these actors who ventured to London was Henri Pitel, sieur de Longchamp, who came in 1676 with his wife and two daughters.[1040]He stayed nearly two years in England, and shone at the Court of Charles II. Charles himself is said not to have missed one of the French plays,[1041]at which his mistress, Louise de Kerouaille, Duchess of Portsmouth, Mme. Mazarin, the French ambassador, and many courtiers were always present. In 1684 the "Prince's French players" were again expected in England,[1042]no doubt the same troupe, directed by Pitel and known asLes comédiens de son Altesse sérénissime M. le Prince.

FOOTNOTES:[943]Expressed in theLettresof Guy Patin, and numerous pamphlets published at the time.[944]Evelyn,Diary, Sept. 1, 1650.[945]In theJournal de voyage de deux jeunes Hollandais à Paris, 1656-58(ed. A. P. Faugère, 2nd ed., Paris, 1899), there is some information concerning the exiled Court. The teacher Lainé mentions a lady in the suite of the exiled queen in hisDialogues.[946]Mémoires, 4 vols., Paris, 1859, i. pp. 102, 137, 225, etc.[947]Supra, pp. 262sqq.[948]After the Restoration he would also try to get out of a difficult situation on the same plea. He talked French freely to Mlle. de Kerouaille. However, when the French Ambassador, Courtin, wished to discuss with him the negotiations with the Dutch, he excused himself on the ground that he had forgotten nearly all his French since his return to England, and asked for delay to reflect on anything proposed in that language. He offered the same excuse for his Council, but Courtin retorted that many of them spoke French as well as English. Cp. J. J. Jusserand,A French Ambassador at the Court of Charles II., London, 1892, p. 143.[949]"Il me disoit des douceurs, à ce que m'ont dit les gens qui nous écoutoient et parloit si bien françois, en tenant ces propos-là, qu'il n'y a personne qui ne doive convenir que l'Amour étoit plutôt françois que de toute autre nation. Car, quand le roi parloit sa langue (la langue de l'amour) il oublioit la sienne et n'en perdoit l'accent qu'avec moi: car les autres ne l'entendirent pas si bien" (Mémoires,ed. cit.i. p. 322).[950]Lettre de M. de L'Angle à un de ses amis touchant la religion du sérénissime roy d'Angleterre, Geneva?, 1660, p. 18.[951]Evelyn was in France in 1643, on his way to study anatomy at Padua, and again in 1646-7 on his return, and yet again in 1649.[952]Lord High Treasurer Cottington, Sir Ed. Hyde, etc.; cp.Diary, Aug. 1 and 18, Sept. 7, 12, 13, Oct. 2, 7, 1649, etc.[953]Thus the King invited the Prince of Condé to supper at St. Cloud ... "where I saw a famous (tennis) match betwixt Mons. Saumaurs and Colonel Cooke, and so returned to Paris." Evelyn,Diary, Sept. 13, 1649.[954]Memoirs of Sir John Reresby of Thribergh, Bart., M.P. for York, etc., 1634-1689, ed. J. J. Cartwright, London, 1875, pp. 26, 42 (cp. pp. 359sqq., supra).[955]Sir Henry Craike,Life of Edward, Earl of Clarendon, 1911, ii. pp. 321sqq.[956]W. Harvey-Jellie,Les Sources du Théâtre anglais à l'époque de la Restauration, Paris, 1906, pp. 37sqq.[957]Evelyn visited Waller several times.[958]Evelyn met Hobbes at Paris in September 1650.[959]Dennis,Original Letters, familiar, moral and critical, London, 1723, i. p. 215. At a later date he was again in France for reasons of health. The king gave him £500 to pay the expenses of a journey to the South of France. He was at Montpellier from the winter of 1678 to the spring of 1679.[960]". . . cette langue dont il savait toutes les plus délicates ressources en grâce, en malice plaisante et en ironie." Cf. Sayous,Histoire de la littérature française à l'étranger.[961]"Hamilton dans le conte (says Sayous,op. cit.) l'emporte sur Voltaire qui eut été le premier, si au lieu de se jeter dans les allégories philosophiques il s'était abandonné, comme notre Écossais, au plaisir plus innocent de laisser courir son imagination et sa plume."[962]The Scotch Chevalier de Ramsay (1686-1743), the friend of Fénelon, also wrote French with remarkable purity. His best known work isLes Voyages de Cyrus avec un discours sur la mythologie(Paris, 1727; London, 1730). At a later date Thomas Hales (1740?-1780), known as d'Hèle, d'Hell, or Dell, a French dramatist of English birth, also made himself a name in French literature (Sylvain van de Weyer,Les Anglais qui ont écrit en français, Miscellanies, Philobiblon Soc., 1854, vol. i.).[963]Hamilton,Mémoires du Comte de Grammont. Histoire amoureuse de la Cour de Charles II, ed. B. Pifteau, Paris, 1876, Preface. Voltaire often quoted the beginning ofLe Bélieras a model of style.[964]"Il trouvoit si peu de différence aux manières et à la conversation de ceux qu'il voyoit le plus souvent, qu'il ne lui paroissoit pas qu'il eut changé de pais. Tout ce qui peut occuper un homme de son humeur s'offroit partout aux divers penchans qui l'entrainoient, come si les plaisirs de la cour de France l'eussent quitté pour l'accompagner dans son exil" (Mémoires,ed. cit.p. 83). Grammont had been banished from the French Court on account of a presumptuous love affair.[965]Institution of a Gentleman, London, 1660, p. 88. The book first appeared asInstitutions, or Advice to his Grandson, in 1658.[966]J. Smith,Grammatica Quadralinguis, 1674.[967]Sayous,op. cit.ii. ch. iv.[968]Evelyn once accompanied His Majesty "to M. Favre to see his preparation for the composition of Sir Walter Raleigh's rare cordial," when the chemist made a learned discourse in French on the nature of each ingredient.[969]Revue Historique, xxix., Sept.-Oct. 1885, p. 25.[970]J. J. Jusserand,Shakespeare in France, London, 1899, pp. 132, 135, 136. Mme. d'Aulnoy, the fairy-tale writer and authoress of theMémoires de la cour d'Angleterre, was also among the French ladies in London at this time.[971]St. Evremond was buried at Westminster at the age of ninety-one. The Duchess died at Chelsea in 1699.[972]In a letter to Justel he spoke of the Thames as "nostre Thamise."[973]Evelyn's Diary, likewise, is full of mentions of meetings with Frenchmen.[974]Sorbière,Relation d'un voyage en Angleterre . . ., Paris, 1664, p. 32.[975]Cp. Ch. Bastide,Anglais et Français du 17esiècle, Paris, 1912.[976]Jusserand,Shakespeare in France, p. 136, note 2.[977]Les Voyages de M. Payen, Paris, 1667.[978]Mauger calls London "une des merveilles du monde. On y vient de tous côtez, pour admirer sa magnificence."[979]The Ladies' Catechism, 1703.[980]J. B. Le Blanc,Lettres d'un Français, à La Haye, 1745, iii. p. 67.[981]Ibid.i. p. 145. Mrs. Pepys assisted Lady Sandwich to find a French maid (Diary, Nov. 15, 1660), and was herself very desirous of one.The prejudiced Rutledge writes nearly a century later: "As the lower classes of the French are so completely qualified for Domestics, it is not surprising that such numerous colonies of Frenchvalets de chambre, cooks and footmen are planted all over Europe: and that the nobility and fashionable people of so many countries shew an avowed Propensity to Prefer them even to their fellow natives" (Account of the Character and Manners of the French, 1770, pt. ii. p. 172).[982]Flecknoe,Characters ...(1665), London, 1673, p. 8. "They (the French) have gained so much influence over the English Fops that they furnish them with their French Puppydogs forValets de Chambre" (French Conjuror, 1678). Addison (Spectator, No. 45) says he remembers the time when some well-bred Englishwomen kept avalet de chambre"because, forsooth, they were more handy than one of their own sex."[983]Satire on the French, 1691. Reprinted as theBaboon à la Mode, 1701.[984]Satirical Reflections, 1707, 3rd pt.[985]Cp. Wycherley,Country Wife, Act I. Sc. 1.[986]Diary, Oct 19, 1663; May 30, 1665; May 12, 1667; Feb. 18, March 13 and 26, 1668.[987]Flecknoe,Characters, p. 12. Pepys describes a French dance at Court (Diary, Nov. 15, 1666), which was "not extraordinarily pleasing." He much admired the dancing of the young Princess Mary, taught by a Frenchman (Diary, March 2, 1669). Themaîtres d'armeswere often Italians and Spaniards. There were protests against the French and Italian singing and dancing "taught by the dregs of Italy and France" (Satirical Reflections, 1707).[988]Pepys'sDiary, ed. H. B. Wheatley, v. p. 332, note, and vi. p. 187.[989]A Frenchman was appointed in his place; cp.Cal. of State Papers, 1660-61, p. 7;1663-64, pp. 214, 607. Children were sent to France to learn music. Pepys did not like the "French airs" (Diary, July 27, 1661; June 18, 1666).[990]Flecknoe,Characters, p. 48. French gardeners (Cal. State Papers, 1661-62, pp. 175, 294) and French barbers were also in favour. Pepys went to the French pewterer's (March 13, 1667-8).[991]S. Butler,Hudibras.[992]Evelyn,Diary, March 1671.[993]Vincent,Young Gallants' Academy, 1674.[994]Cp. Sedley,Mulberry Garden(Sir J. Everyoung: "Which is the most à la mode right revered spark? points or laces? girdle or shoulder belts? What say your letters out of France?"). There is hardly a comedy of the time without some such references to French fashions; cp. Etherege,Sir Fopling Flutter; Shadwell,Humours of the Army, etc.[995]Evelyn,Diary, Oct. 18, 1666. Evelyn had himself written a pamphlet calledTyrannus or the Mode, an invective against "our overmuch affecting of French fashion," in which he praised the comeliness and usefulness of the Persian style of clothing. This he had presented to the king: "I do not impute to this discourse the change whiche soone happen'd, but it was an identity that I could not but take notice of" (Diary, Oct. 18 and 30, 1666).[996]Butler,Satire on our ridiculous imitation of the French; "A l'étranger on prend plaisir à enchérir sur toutes les Nouveautez qui leur viennent de France. . . ." Muralt (Lettres, 1725).[997]French Conjuror, 1678.[998]Duc de Guise, Prologue; cp. Prologue toAlbion and Albanius:"Then 'tis the mode of France without whose RulesNone must presume to set up here as fools."[999]French money was said to be most successful in bribes. Farquhar,Constant Couple, iv. 2.[1000]Flecknoe,Characters, p. 12.[1001]Satire against the French, 1691.[1002]Acted 1671; Act II. Sc. 2.[1003]Mémoires,ed. cit.pp. 51-52.[1004]Ibid.p. 143.[1005]Lord Rutherford, for instance, begs pardon for his English, being more accustomed to the French tongue (Cal. of State Papers, 1661-62, p. 4).[1006]Hamilton,op. cit.p. 82.[1007]The story goes that Grammont was leaving England without marrying Miss Hamilton, when her brother overtook him and told him he had forgotten something, whereat he realized his oversight and returned to repair it. It is said that this incident supplied Molière with the subject of hisMariage forcé.[1008]Hamilton,op. cit.p. 82.[1009]Cal. State Papers, Dom., 1661-62, p. 28.[1010]Two grammars for teaching Portuguese greeted the new queen. One was aPortuguese Grammarin French and English by Mr. La Mollière, a French gentleman, 1662 (Register of the Company of Stationers, ii. 307); and the other, J. Howell'sGrammar for the Spanish or Castilian tongue with some special remarks on the Portuguese Dialect, with a description of Spain and Portugal by way of guide. It was dedicated to the queen.[1011]Fragment of the Journal of the Convent of Chaillot, in the secret archives of France, Hôtel de Soubise. Quoted by Strickland inLives of the Queens, 1888, iv. p. 383.[1012]Cp. Sedley,Mulberry Garden.[1013]Such as Lady Lurewell of Farquhar'sConstant Couple; Lady Fanciful in Vanbrugh'sProvoked Wife; Brome'sDamoiselle(1653); or Mrs. Rich inThe Beau Defeated(1700?).[1014]The Frenchified Lady never in Pariswas the name given her by Henry Dell in his play, based on Dryden's and printed 1757 and 1761.[1015]There is a book calledThe Art of Affectationteaching ladies to speak "in a silly soft tone of voice and use all the foolish French words which will infallibly make your person and conversation charming" (Etherege,Sir Fopling Flutter).[1016]The Ladies' Catechism, 1703?[1017]Satire against the French, 1691, p. 14.[1018]Satire on our ridiculous imitation of the French; Chalmers,English Poets, viii. p. 206.[1019]Cp. Swift,Poem written in a Lady's Ivory Table Book(1698):"Here you may read,Here in beau-spelling—tru tel deth."[1020]Character of the Beau, 1696.[1021]Cibber,Careless Husband, Act I. Sc. 1.[1022]Cibber,Love's last shift or the Fool in fashion. Sedley's Sir Charles Everyoung, Ned Estridge, and Harry Modish are all "most accomplished monsieurs," as are Clodis in Cibber'sLove Makes a Man or the Fop's Fortune; Sir Harry Wildair in Farquhar's play of that name; Lord Foppington of Vanbrugh'sRelapse or Virtue in Danger; Bull Junior in Dennis'sA Plot and no Plot; Clencher, senior, the Prentice turned Beau in Farquhar'sConstant Couple; Mrs. Behn'sSir Timothy Tawdry; Crowne'sSir Courtly Nice, etc. In 1697 appeared a work calledThe Compleat Beau.[1023]Sir Fopling Flutter or the Man of Mode, 1676. Supposed to be a portrait of the then notorious Beau Hewitt.[1024]Satire against the French, 1691.[1025]Character of the Beau, 1691. Most of the accomplished "monsieurs" frequented the French houses (Sedley,Mulberry Garden). Act II. Sc. 2 of Wycherley'sLove in a Wood, and Act II. Sc. 2 of hisGentleman Dancing Master, both take place in a French house. Cp.Character of the Town Gallant, 1675.[1026]Vincent,Young Gallants' Academy, 1674, p. 44.[1027]Flecknoe,Characters, 1673. The 1665 edition of hisAenigmatical Characters ..., 1665, contains a description in French of theTour à la Mode: ". . . C'est une bataille bien rangée où l'on ne tire que des coups d'Œillades, et où les premiers ayant fait leur descharge, ilz s'en vont pour donner place aux autres" . . ., etc. (p. 21).[1028]Charles II. openly avowed his preference for the French drama. Dryden wrote hisEssay of Dramatic Poesy, "to vindicate the Honour of our English writers from the censure of those who unjustly prefer the French before them." Pepys saw many of the French plays acted in English. Cp. H. McAfee,Pepys on the Restoration Stage ..., Yale Univ. Press, 1916.[1029]A. Beljame,Le Public et les hommes de lettres au 18esiècle, Paris, 1897, p. 139.[1030]As in Etherege'sComical Revenge or Love in a Tub,Sir Fopling Flutter, and the plays of Cibber, Vanbrugh, Mrs. Behn, Shadwell, Farquhar, Wycherley, etc.;The French Conjuror, 1678;The Beau Defeated, 1700?, etc.[1031]A. Beljame,Quae e Gallicis verbis in Anglicam linguam Johannes Dryden introduxerit, Paris, 1881. On French influence in Restoration Drama, see Charlanne,L'Influence française en Angleterre, pp. 64sqq.[1032]Lettre à M. de la Chaussée:Lettres, 1745, ii. p. 240.[1033]Narrative of her Life, written by Herself, pub. in series of Autobiographies, London, 1826, vol. vii. p. 12. Most of the writers of the time were able to write some French. Flecknoe, for instance, wrote some of hisCharactersin the language, and wrote a French dedication of his Poems (1652), "à la plus excellente de son sexe."[1034]Dryden, "Prologue spoken at the opening of the new house, 26 March, 1674,"Works, ed. Scott and Saintsbury, x. p. 320.[1035]"Prologue to Arviragus and Phihera by L. Carlell, revival,"Works, x. 405.[1036]Shaw,Calendar of Treasury Books, 1660-67, p. 311.[1037]Ibid., 1672-75, pp. 14, 24, 29, etc.;1677-78(vol. v.), pp. 692, 803;1684(vol. vii.), p. 1444.[1038]Charles had granted two privileges: one to Henry Killigrew, who directed the King's company acting at Drury Lane, and the other to Sir William Davenant, who directed the Duke's company. The rival companies united in 1682.[1039]Chardon,La troupe du roman comique dévoilée et les comédiens de la campagne au 17esiècle, Le Mans, 1876, p. 47.[1040]Chardon,op. cit.p. 98.[1041]Revue Historique, xxix., Sept.-Oct. 1858, p. 23.[1042]Historical MSS. Commission Reports, v. p. 186. French dancers and singers also attracted the English from the performances of their own actors; cp. Cibber, Epilogue toThe Careless Husband, and Farquhar, Preface toThe Inconstant.

[943]Expressed in theLettresof Guy Patin, and numerous pamphlets published at the time.

[944]Evelyn,Diary, Sept. 1, 1650.

[945]In theJournal de voyage de deux jeunes Hollandais à Paris, 1656-58(ed. A. P. Faugère, 2nd ed., Paris, 1899), there is some information concerning the exiled Court. The teacher Lainé mentions a lady in the suite of the exiled queen in hisDialogues.

[946]Mémoires, 4 vols., Paris, 1859, i. pp. 102, 137, 225, etc.

[947]Supra, pp. 262sqq.

[948]After the Restoration he would also try to get out of a difficult situation on the same plea. He talked French freely to Mlle. de Kerouaille. However, when the French Ambassador, Courtin, wished to discuss with him the negotiations with the Dutch, he excused himself on the ground that he had forgotten nearly all his French since his return to England, and asked for delay to reflect on anything proposed in that language. He offered the same excuse for his Council, but Courtin retorted that many of them spoke French as well as English. Cp. J. J. Jusserand,A French Ambassador at the Court of Charles II., London, 1892, p. 143.

[949]"Il me disoit des douceurs, à ce que m'ont dit les gens qui nous écoutoient et parloit si bien françois, en tenant ces propos-là, qu'il n'y a personne qui ne doive convenir que l'Amour étoit plutôt françois que de toute autre nation. Car, quand le roi parloit sa langue (la langue de l'amour) il oublioit la sienne et n'en perdoit l'accent qu'avec moi: car les autres ne l'entendirent pas si bien" (Mémoires,ed. cit.i. p. 322).

[950]Lettre de M. de L'Angle à un de ses amis touchant la religion du sérénissime roy d'Angleterre, Geneva?, 1660, p. 18.

[951]Evelyn was in France in 1643, on his way to study anatomy at Padua, and again in 1646-7 on his return, and yet again in 1649.

[952]Lord High Treasurer Cottington, Sir Ed. Hyde, etc.; cp.Diary, Aug. 1 and 18, Sept. 7, 12, 13, Oct. 2, 7, 1649, etc.

[953]Thus the King invited the Prince of Condé to supper at St. Cloud ... "where I saw a famous (tennis) match betwixt Mons. Saumaurs and Colonel Cooke, and so returned to Paris." Evelyn,Diary, Sept. 13, 1649.

[954]Memoirs of Sir John Reresby of Thribergh, Bart., M.P. for York, etc., 1634-1689, ed. J. J. Cartwright, London, 1875, pp. 26, 42 (cp. pp. 359sqq., supra).

[955]Sir Henry Craike,Life of Edward, Earl of Clarendon, 1911, ii. pp. 321sqq.

[956]W. Harvey-Jellie,Les Sources du Théâtre anglais à l'époque de la Restauration, Paris, 1906, pp. 37sqq.

[957]Evelyn visited Waller several times.

[958]Evelyn met Hobbes at Paris in September 1650.

[959]Dennis,Original Letters, familiar, moral and critical, London, 1723, i. p. 215. At a later date he was again in France for reasons of health. The king gave him £500 to pay the expenses of a journey to the South of France. He was at Montpellier from the winter of 1678 to the spring of 1679.

[960]". . . cette langue dont il savait toutes les plus délicates ressources en grâce, en malice plaisante et en ironie." Cf. Sayous,Histoire de la littérature française à l'étranger.

[961]"Hamilton dans le conte (says Sayous,op. cit.) l'emporte sur Voltaire qui eut été le premier, si au lieu de se jeter dans les allégories philosophiques il s'était abandonné, comme notre Écossais, au plaisir plus innocent de laisser courir son imagination et sa plume."

[962]The Scotch Chevalier de Ramsay (1686-1743), the friend of Fénelon, also wrote French with remarkable purity. His best known work isLes Voyages de Cyrus avec un discours sur la mythologie(Paris, 1727; London, 1730). At a later date Thomas Hales (1740?-1780), known as d'Hèle, d'Hell, or Dell, a French dramatist of English birth, also made himself a name in French literature (Sylvain van de Weyer,Les Anglais qui ont écrit en français, Miscellanies, Philobiblon Soc., 1854, vol. i.).

[963]Hamilton,Mémoires du Comte de Grammont. Histoire amoureuse de la Cour de Charles II, ed. B. Pifteau, Paris, 1876, Preface. Voltaire often quoted the beginning ofLe Bélieras a model of style.

[964]"Il trouvoit si peu de différence aux manières et à la conversation de ceux qu'il voyoit le plus souvent, qu'il ne lui paroissoit pas qu'il eut changé de pais. Tout ce qui peut occuper un homme de son humeur s'offroit partout aux divers penchans qui l'entrainoient, come si les plaisirs de la cour de France l'eussent quitté pour l'accompagner dans son exil" (Mémoires,ed. cit.p. 83). Grammont had been banished from the French Court on account of a presumptuous love affair.

[965]Institution of a Gentleman, London, 1660, p. 88. The book first appeared asInstitutions, or Advice to his Grandson, in 1658.

[966]J. Smith,Grammatica Quadralinguis, 1674.

[967]Sayous,op. cit.ii. ch. iv.

[968]Evelyn once accompanied His Majesty "to M. Favre to see his preparation for the composition of Sir Walter Raleigh's rare cordial," when the chemist made a learned discourse in French on the nature of each ingredient.

[969]Revue Historique, xxix., Sept.-Oct. 1885, p. 25.

[970]J. J. Jusserand,Shakespeare in France, London, 1899, pp. 132, 135, 136. Mme. d'Aulnoy, the fairy-tale writer and authoress of theMémoires de la cour d'Angleterre, was also among the French ladies in London at this time.

[971]St. Evremond was buried at Westminster at the age of ninety-one. The Duchess died at Chelsea in 1699.

[972]In a letter to Justel he spoke of the Thames as "nostre Thamise."

[973]Evelyn's Diary, likewise, is full of mentions of meetings with Frenchmen.

[974]Sorbière,Relation d'un voyage en Angleterre . . ., Paris, 1664, p. 32.

[975]Cp. Ch. Bastide,Anglais et Français du 17esiècle, Paris, 1912.

[976]Jusserand,Shakespeare in France, p. 136, note 2.

[977]Les Voyages de M. Payen, Paris, 1667.

[978]Mauger calls London "une des merveilles du monde. On y vient de tous côtez, pour admirer sa magnificence."

[979]The Ladies' Catechism, 1703.

[980]J. B. Le Blanc,Lettres d'un Français, à La Haye, 1745, iii. p. 67.

[981]Ibid.i. p. 145. Mrs. Pepys assisted Lady Sandwich to find a French maid (Diary, Nov. 15, 1660), and was herself very desirous of one.The prejudiced Rutledge writes nearly a century later: "As the lower classes of the French are so completely qualified for Domestics, it is not surprising that such numerous colonies of Frenchvalets de chambre, cooks and footmen are planted all over Europe: and that the nobility and fashionable people of so many countries shew an avowed Propensity to Prefer them even to their fellow natives" (Account of the Character and Manners of the French, 1770, pt. ii. p. 172).

[981]Ibid.i. p. 145. Mrs. Pepys assisted Lady Sandwich to find a French maid (Diary, Nov. 15, 1660), and was herself very desirous of one.

The prejudiced Rutledge writes nearly a century later: "As the lower classes of the French are so completely qualified for Domestics, it is not surprising that such numerous colonies of Frenchvalets de chambre, cooks and footmen are planted all over Europe: and that the nobility and fashionable people of so many countries shew an avowed Propensity to Prefer them even to their fellow natives" (Account of the Character and Manners of the French, 1770, pt. ii. p. 172).

[982]Flecknoe,Characters ...(1665), London, 1673, p. 8. "They (the French) have gained so much influence over the English Fops that they furnish them with their French Puppydogs forValets de Chambre" (French Conjuror, 1678). Addison (Spectator, No. 45) says he remembers the time when some well-bred Englishwomen kept avalet de chambre"because, forsooth, they were more handy than one of their own sex."

[983]Satire on the French, 1691. Reprinted as theBaboon à la Mode, 1701.

[984]Satirical Reflections, 1707, 3rd pt.

[985]Cp. Wycherley,Country Wife, Act I. Sc. 1.

[986]Diary, Oct 19, 1663; May 30, 1665; May 12, 1667; Feb. 18, March 13 and 26, 1668.

[987]Flecknoe,Characters, p. 12. Pepys describes a French dance at Court (Diary, Nov. 15, 1666), which was "not extraordinarily pleasing." He much admired the dancing of the young Princess Mary, taught by a Frenchman (Diary, March 2, 1669). Themaîtres d'armeswere often Italians and Spaniards. There were protests against the French and Italian singing and dancing "taught by the dregs of Italy and France" (Satirical Reflections, 1707).

[988]Pepys'sDiary, ed. H. B. Wheatley, v. p. 332, note, and vi. p. 187.

[989]A Frenchman was appointed in his place; cp.Cal. of State Papers, 1660-61, p. 7;1663-64, pp. 214, 607. Children were sent to France to learn music. Pepys did not like the "French airs" (Diary, July 27, 1661; June 18, 1666).

[990]Flecknoe,Characters, p. 48. French gardeners (Cal. State Papers, 1661-62, pp. 175, 294) and French barbers were also in favour. Pepys went to the French pewterer's (March 13, 1667-8).

[991]S. Butler,Hudibras.

[992]Evelyn,Diary, March 1671.

[993]Vincent,Young Gallants' Academy, 1674.

[994]Cp. Sedley,Mulberry Garden(Sir J. Everyoung: "Which is the most à la mode right revered spark? points or laces? girdle or shoulder belts? What say your letters out of France?"). There is hardly a comedy of the time without some such references to French fashions; cp. Etherege,Sir Fopling Flutter; Shadwell,Humours of the Army, etc.

[995]Evelyn,Diary, Oct. 18, 1666. Evelyn had himself written a pamphlet calledTyrannus or the Mode, an invective against "our overmuch affecting of French fashion," in which he praised the comeliness and usefulness of the Persian style of clothing. This he had presented to the king: "I do not impute to this discourse the change whiche soone happen'd, but it was an identity that I could not but take notice of" (Diary, Oct. 18 and 30, 1666).

[996]Butler,Satire on our ridiculous imitation of the French; "A l'étranger on prend plaisir à enchérir sur toutes les Nouveautez qui leur viennent de France. . . ." Muralt (Lettres, 1725).

[997]French Conjuror, 1678.

[998]Duc de Guise, Prologue; cp. Prologue toAlbion and Albanius:"Then 'tis the mode of France without whose RulesNone must presume to set up here as fools."

[998]Duc de Guise, Prologue; cp. Prologue toAlbion and Albanius:

"Then 'tis the mode of France without whose RulesNone must presume to set up here as fools."

[999]French money was said to be most successful in bribes. Farquhar,Constant Couple, iv. 2.

[1000]Flecknoe,Characters, p. 12.

[1001]Satire against the French, 1691.

[1002]Acted 1671; Act II. Sc. 2.

[1003]Mémoires,ed. cit.pp. 51-52.

[1004]Ibid.p. 143.

[1005]Lord Rutherford, for instance, begs pardon for his English, being more accustomed to the French tongue (Cal. of State Papers, 1661-62, p. 4).

[1006]Hamilton,op. cit.p. 82.

[1007]The story goes that Grammont was leaving England without marrying Miss Hamilton, when her brother overtook him and told him he had forgotten something, whereat he realized his oversight and returned to repair it. It is said that this incident supplied Molière with the subject of hisMariage forcé.

[1008]Hamilton,op. cit.p. 82.

[1009]Cal. State Papers, Dom., 1661-62, p. 28.

[1010]Two grammars for teaching Portuguese greeted the new queen. One was aPortuguese Grammarin French and English by Mr. La Mollière, a French gentleman, 1662 (Register of the Company of Stationers, ii. 307); and the other, J. Howell'sGrammar for the Spanish or Castilian tongue with some special remarks on the Portuguese Dialect, with a description of Spain and Portugal by way of guide. It was dedicated to the queen.

[1011]Fragment of the Journal of the Convent of Chaillot, in the secret archives of France, Hôtel de Soubise. Quoted by Strickland inLives of the Queens, 1888, iv. p. 383.

[1012]Cp. Sedley,Mulberry Garden.

[1013]Such as Lady Lurewell of Farquhar'sConstant Couple; Lady Fanciful in Vanbrugh'sProvoked Wife; Brome'sDamoiselle(1653); or Mrs. Rich inThe Beau Defeated(1700?).

[1014]The Frenchified Lady never in Pariswas the name given her by Henry Dell in his play, based on Dryden's and printed 1757 and 1761.

[1015]There is a book calledThe Art of Affectationteaching ladies to speak "in a silly soft tone of voice and use all the foolish French words which will infallibly make your person and conversation charming" (Etherege,Sir Fopling Flutter).

[1016]The Ladies' Catechism, 1703?

[1017]Satire against the French, 1691, p. 14.

[1018]Satire on our ridiculous imitation of the French; Chalmers,English Poets, viii. p. 206.

[1019]Cp. Swift,Poem written in a Lady's Ivory Table Book(1698):"Here you may read,Here in beau-spelling—tru tel deth."

[1019]Cp. Swift,Poem written in a Lady's Ivory Table Book(1698):

"Here you may read,Here in beau-spelling—tru tel deth."

[1020]Character of the Beau, 1696.

[1021]Cibber,Careless Husband, Act I. Sc. 1.

[1022]Cibber,Love's last shift or the Fool in fashion. Sedley's Sir Charles Everyoung, Ned Estridge, and Harry Modish are all "most accomplished monsieurs," as are Clodis in Cibber'sLove Makes a Man or the Fop's Fortune; Sir Harry Wildair in Farquhar's play of that name; Lord Foppington of Vanbrugh'sRelapse or Virtue in Danger; Bull Junior in Dennis'sA Plot and no Plot; Clencher, senior, the Prentice turned Beau in Farquhar'sConstant Couple; Mrs. Behn'sSir Timothy Tawdry; Crowne'sSir Courtly Nice, etc. In 1697 appeared a work calledThe Compleat Beau.

[1023]Sir Fopling Flutter or the Man of Mode, 1676. Supposed to be a portrait of the then notorious Beau Hewitt.

[1024]Satire against the French, 1691.

[1025]Character of the Beau, 1691. Most of the accomplished "monsieurs" frequented the French houses (Sedley,Mulberry Garden). Act II. Sc. 2 of Wycherley'sLove in a Wood, and Act II. Sc. 2 of hisGentleman Dancing Master, both take place in a French house. Cp.Character of the Town Gallant, 1675.

[1026]Vincent,Young Gallants' Academy, 1674, p. 44.

[1027]Flecknoe,Characters, 1673. The 1665 edition of hisAenigmatical Characters ..., 1665, contains a description in French of theTour à la Mode: ". . . C'est une bataille bien rangée où l'on ne tire que des coups d'Œillades, et où les premiers ayant fait leur descharge, ilz s'en vont pour donner place aux autres" . . ., etc. (p. 21).

[1028]Charles II. openly avowed his preference for the French drama. Dryden wrote hisEssay of Dramatic Poesy, "to vindicate the Honour of our English writers from the censure of those who unjustly prefer the French before them." Pepys saw many of the French plays acted in English. Cp. H. McAfee,Pepys on the Restoration Stage ..., Yale Univ. Press, 1916.

[1029]A. Beljame,Le Public et les hommes de lettres au 18esiècle, Paris, 1897, p. 139.

[1030]As in Etherege'sComical Revenge or Love in a Tub,Sir Fopling Flutter, and the plays of Cibber, Vanbrugh, Mrs. Behn, Shadwell, Farquhar, Wycherley, etc.;The French Conjuror, 1678;The Beau Defeated, 1700?, etc.

[1031]A. Beljame,Quae e Gallicis verbis in Anglicam linguam Johannes Dryden introduxerit, Paris, 1881. On French influence in Restoration Drama, see Charlanne,L'Influence française en Angleterre, pp. 64sqq.

[1032]Lettre à M. de la Chaussée:Lettres, 1745, ii. p. 240.

[1033]Narrative of her Life, written by Herself, pub. in series of Autobiographies, London, 1826, vol. vii. p. 12. Most of the writers of the time were able to write some French. Flecknoe, for instance, wrote some of hisCharactersin the language, and wrote a French dedication of his Poems (1652), "à la plus excellente de son sexe."

[1034]Dryden, "Prologue spoken at the opening of the new house, 26 March, 1674,"Works, ed. Scott and Saintsbury, x. p. 320.

[1035]"Prologue to Arviragus and Phihera by L. Carlell, revival,"Works, x. 405.

[1036]Shaw,Calendar of Treasury Books, 1660-67, p. 311.

[1037]Ibid., 1672-75, pp. 14, 24, 29, etc.;1677-78(vol. v.), pp. 692, 803;1684(vol. vii.), p. 1444.

[1038]Charles had granted two privileges: one to Henry Killigrew, who directed the King's company acting at Drury Lane, and the other to Sir William Davenant, who directed the Duke's company. The rival companies united in 1682.

[1039]Chardon,La troupe du roman comique dévoilée et les comédiens de la campagne au 17esiècle, Le Mans, 1876, p. 47.

[1040]Chardon,op. cit.p. 98.

[1041]Revue Historique, xxix., Sept.-Oct. 1858, p. 23.

[1042]Historical MSS. Commission Reports, v. p. 186. French dancers and singers also attracted the English from the performances of their own actors; cp. Cibber, Epilogue toThe Careless Husband, and Farquhar, Preface toThe Inconstant.

Inthe meantime French grammars were being published in England in considerable numbers.[1043]So plentiful were they that there was "scarce anything to be seen anywhere but French grammars." The manuals of Mauger and Festeau were still in vogue, and that of Mauger was frequently reedited. Among new grammarians figures the tutor to the children of the Duke of York (James II.), Pierre de Lainé, who may possibly have been identical with the Pierre Lainé who published a grammar in 1655.[1044]His French grammar, written in the first place for the Lady Mary (afterwards Mary II.), was published in 1667,[1045]when the princess was about five years old. It was subsequently placed at the service of the Lady Anne, afterwards queen, and a second edition appeared in 1677, with the title:The Princely Way to the French Tongue as it was first compiled for the use of her Highness the Lady Mary and since taught her royal sister the Lady Anne etc. by P. D. L. Tutor for the French to both their Highnesses.[1046]

"Before you begin anything of Letters or rules," says Lainé, "you may Learn how to call in French these few things following.

Back to Index Next