The Art of Melancholia

Footnotes

Chapter I - Maman

(1) "giving the King his sword in the morning" - Attending the King's levee, or morning dressing, was a big deal and seen as a great honor and to put on or give the King his items to wear or taking them off at the end of the day. The highest ranking would put on the King's shirt - this usually fell to his brother.

(2) "his stuffy mediocre apartments was all he had to show for his service" - Even though Versailles is known as a palace of luxury, the accommodations for servants and even nobility could be sub-par at best. Only favorite nobles and royalty of the King were given the best rooms in the palace and anyone but the King and Queen could have their accommodation taken away or moved. Many nobles were given rooms too small to live in, but having rooms at all was a status symbol and a sign of royal favor. Many nobles built hotels, and it was even encouraged by King Louis XIV who promised it couldn't be taken away by debt collectors, in the town of Versailles and travelled back and forth between. Getting apartments repaired was never a guarantee and the worst accommodations were known to get stuffy in the summer and cold in the winters.

(3) "the bourgeois" - During this time there was a jumpstart in the number of wealthy commoners buying noble titles. These nobility of the robe as they were called were hated by the ancient nobility of the sword, which were nobles who could trace their noble lineage to at least the 1400s, such as the Artois's. Often the new nobility and wealthy commoners had more money than the old, who lost their over generations. Despite being class enemies, many old nobility married these nouveau riche (Men could marry commoners without the loss of nobility for their children, but not vice-versa). These nouveau riche were hated for taking positions in government that the old nobility felt entitled to, as they didn't think one could just buy nobility.

(4) "Seniority of his title" - There were court honors that some were entitled to depending on the status of one's family. Such as the Honors of the Court or Honors of the Louvre. Having either was a sign you were the creme de la creme of the nobility. The Honors of the Court were given to aristocracy that could prove nobility since the 1400s, descendants of the Marshal's of France, ministers or knights of the King's orders, or anyone the King decided. For women, this entitled them to a formal presentation to the King and Queen. For men, they were also entitled to a presentation (though less formal) and permitted to follow the King on hunts. Both included the right to be invited to royal balls.

The Honors of the Louvre were elite of the elite. This included members of the royal family, Ducs and Peers, officers of the crown and their wives, foreign princes. Since I can't find any info if Comte-Peers were entitled to Honors of the Louvre (there were only a few) I've made the decision that the Artois's are entitled to it being a peerage family. The peerage is for another footnote. This included the right to a cushion to knell on during mass, they were entrusted with essential tasks during coronations, baptisms, weddings, etc and they would ride their carriage into the inner courtyard of any palace the King resided, among other privileges.

Though most families that received honors took no special place in Court and most of the time financially incapable of holding a place at court. Honors did not mean familiarity with the King. Court honors were also not automatic. Families had to apply to be approved and the Court Genealogist had to confirm noble lineage. The King could also deny a family honors if he wanted to. Noble ranking in the palace was also more centered on age of family and court position than the title itself, except Ducs were always at the head. For example, though feudally a Marquis is above a Comte, a Comte of an older family would rank higher than a Marquis. But in the end closeness with the King mattered most, and the age of one's peerage if they had it.

(5) "neither poor or sentimental" - Since society centered around the Court, nobles who lived outside of Paris or Versailles were seen to be poor, out of touch, or unfashionable. Those who lived in the provinces either couldn't afford to live in Paris or attend court, or they were actually attached to their lands and preferred the country, rather than handing off its management to stewards.