"Mlle de La Vallière"

Research Status: Basic Last Updated: 2025-07-05 Diary Coverage: Up to 1874-01-19

Book Details

Historical work by Arsène Houssaye about Louise de La Vallière (1644-1710), mistress of Louis XIV.

Marie's References

1874

• January 19: Begins reading. Notes Houssaye "says everything I think, what I approve but what I cannot express." Quotes: "Elle aimait le roi parce qu'il avait l'air d'un roi" (She loved the king because he looked like a king).

Marie's Application

• Applies to Hamilton: "J'aime le duc parce qu'il a l'air d'un duc et non parce qu'il est un duc" (I love the duke because he looks like a duke and not because he is a duke)
• Shows her attraction to aristocratic bearing over mere titles
• Plans to devote all free time to this "entraining and interesting" reading

Historical Context

• La Vallière was Louis XIV's mistress from 1661-1667
• Known for genuine love rather than ambition
• Later became a Carmelite nun
• Her story of love, power, and renunciation fascinates Marie

Significance

• Feeds Marie's fantasies about court life
• Provides model of woman who captured king through genuine feeling
• Reinforces Marie's belief in power of authentic nobility