The Tales of the Heptameron, Vol. V | Page 9

few were able
to withstand him." In 1525 the Prince of Poix married a Demoiselle
d'Acigné or Assigny, of petite noblesse, who in 1532 became a lady of
honour to Queen Eleanor. She died in 1558, surviving her husband by
three years. See Rouard's rare _Notice dun Recueil de Crayons à la
Bibliothèque Méjanes d'Aix_, Paris, 1863.--Ed.
Now this Prince conceived a deep affection for a widow lady called
Madame de Neufchastel, (2) who was reputed the most beautiful
woman it were possible to see; and if the Prince of Bel-hoste loved her
well, his wife loved her no less, and would often send and bid her to
dinner, for she deemed her so discreet and honourable, that, instead of
being grieved by her husband's love for her, she rejoiced to see him
address his attentions to one so full of honour and virtue.
2 M. Lacroix thinks that this lady may be Jane de Hochberg, only
daughter of Philip, sovereign Count of Neufchâtel. According to the
custom of the time, she was commonly called Madame de Neufchâtel,
despite her marriage with Louis d'Orléans, Duke of Longueville. She
died in 1543, after a lengthy widowhood. We consider the accuracy of
M. Lacroix's surmise to be extremely doubtful, for the names of both
the men figuring in the story are obviously altered so as to conceal their
identity, and it is therefore not likely that Queen Margaret would
designate the lady by her real name, and thus publish her shame to the
world. The Madame de Neufchâtel she speaks of may really have been
a Madame de Châteauneuf, Châteauvieux or Maisonneuve; or we may
again be in presence of Margaret's lady of honour, the widowed
Blanche de Chastillon, née de Tournon, to whom frequent reference has
been made.--Ed.
This affection lasted for a great while, the Prince of Belhoste caring for

all the lady's affairs as though they were his own, and his wife doing no
less. By reason, however, of her beauty many great lords and
gentlemen earnestly sought the lady's favour, some only for love's sake,
others for sake of the ring, for, besides being beautiful, she was also
very rich.
Among the rest was a young gentleman, called the Lord des Cheriots,
(3) who wooed her so ardently that he was never absent from her levee
and couchée, and was also with her as much as possible during the day.
This did not please the Prince of Belhoste, who thought that a man of
such poor estate, and so lacking in grace, did not deserve an honourable
and gracious reception, and he often made remonstrances about it to the
lady. She, however, being one of Eve's daughters, (4) excused herself
by saying that she spoke with every one in general, and that their own
affection was the better concealed, since she never spoke more with
one than with another.
3 "Des Cheriots" (occasionally Des Cheriotz in the MS.) may be a play
upon the name of D'Escars, sometimes written Des Cars. According to
La Curne de Ste. Palaye car as well as char signified chariot. The
D'Escars dukedom is modern, dating from 1815, and in the time of
Francis I. the family was of small estate. Some members of it may well
have filled inferior offices about the court, as in 1536 a Demoiselle
Suzanne d'Escars married Geoffrey de Pompadour, who was both a
prothonotary and cupbearer to Francis I., and lived to become Governor
of the Limousin under Charles IX.--M. and Ed.
4 We take this expression from MS. 1520. Ours says, "a daughter of the
Duke," which is evidently an error.--L.
Albeit, after some time, this Lord des Cheriots so pressed her that,
more through his importunity than through love, she promised to marry
him, begging him, however, not to urge her to reveal the marriage until
her daughters were wedded. After this the gentleman was wont to go
with untroubled conscience to her chamber at whatsoever hour he
chose, and none but a waiting-woman and a serving-man had
knowledge of the matter.

When the Prince perceived that the gentleman was growing more and
more familiar in the house of her whom he so dearly loved, he took it in
ill-part, and could not refrain from saying to the lady--
"I have always prized your honour like that of my own sister, and you
are aware of the honourable manner in which I have addressed you, and
the happiness that I have in loving a lady as discreet and virtuous as
yourself; but did I think that another who deserves it not could win by
importunity that which I am not willing to crave, contrary to your own
desire, this would be unendurable to me, and in the like degree
dishonouring to you. I tell you this because