. Five fair sisters : an Italian episode at the court of Louis XIV. d todiscuss the subject further. Nevertheless, Ondedei oncemore proved himself a valuable ally, for, after theCardinals death, he succeeded in persuading Anne ofAustria, with whom he had great influence—had he notbeen the confidant of all Mazarins private affiiirs .?—ofthe suitability of the match ; and on 22 April 1662,the marriage of Marianne and the Due de Bouillon wascelebrated in the presence of the King and Queen, andwas followed by brilliant fetes. The Due de Bouillon, a soldier like his celebrateduncle, and, like him,
. Five fair sisters : an Italian episode at the court of Louis XIV. d todiscuss the subject further. Nevertheless, Ondedei oncemore proved himself a valuable ally, for, after theCardinals death, he succeeded in persuading Anne ofAustria, with whom he had great influence—had he notbeen the confidant of all Mazarins private affiiirs .?—ofthe suitability of the match ; and on 22 April 1662,the marriage of Marianne and the Due de Bouillon wascelebrated in the presence of the King and Queen, andwas followed by brilliant fetes. The Due de Bouillon, a soldier like his celebrateduncle, and, like him, entirely devoted to his profession,proved a kind and indulgent husband, but he had notastes in common with his wife. When his presencewas not required in the field, hunting occupied thegreater part of his time; while the duchess, as may beanticipated from her fondness for verse-making, affectedintellectual pursuits, and seemed never so happy ?.swhen surrounded by a throng of men and women ofletters : Segrais, Benserade, Madame Deshoulieres,Menage, and From a contemporary print MARIANNE MANCINl, DUCHESSE DE BOUILLON FIVE FAIR SISTERS 255 Early In the year 1665, the Due de Bouillon set outfor Hungary, to take service, under Montecuculi,against the Turks, and being indisposed to leave hisyoung wife, who had lately given birth to a son, unpro-tected amid the dangers of the Court, sent her toChateau-Thierry, one of his country-seats, to await hisreturn. Here it was that Marianne became intimate withthe poet La Fontaine, who was to owe so much toher sympathy and encouragement, and, in return, toimmortalize her in his verses. La Fontaine had then just returned to his native townfrom a three years* residence at Limoges, whither hehad accompanied his relative Jannart, the friend ofFouquet and his substitute in the office of procureur-gencral to the Parliament of Paris. He was sadly inneed of a new protector to replace his first Maecenas,languishing in his cell at Pignerol,
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