La Maupin Spoilers
This page collects links to various pages about La Maupin, Mistress of the Sword such as information on characters from history and the book, and other looks behind the scenes, as well as sneak peeks at excerpts from the rough draft of the book. Most of them constitute “spoilers” to some degree, but I’ll try not to include any truly major ones. That said, “spoiler” is in the eye of the beholder.
The following list is in reverse-chronological order, with the newest pages at the top. Click here to jump down to the oldest.
Is It True? The Convent Incident
“The Convent Fire” AI sketch
This article introduces a whole new category to my website: IIT: Is It True?
One of the difficulties in writing about a lengendary historic character like La Maupin is knowing what is true—what really happened—and what is either rumor and scandal, or fiction created by novelists writing stories about her. The articles in this series will explore what we know about La Maupin, and what is likely true.
Today we ask the question: "Did La Maupin burn down a convent?"
One of the most dramatic episodes attributed to La Maupin is the affair of the young marseillaise and the convent. Like her fighting three men at once, it is often dismissed as made up or not included in “serious” works. However, I think there is reason to believe that it actually happened. Let me explain why.
BTS: The Untrue Origin of “La Rousse Ressuscitée” (& bonus snippet)
“La Rousse Ressuscitée” sketch
Not everything that shows up in La Maupin, Mistress of the Sword comes from historical sources or earlier retellings of Julie’s life. The subject of this month’s update, “La Rousse Ressuscitée”, is an example of that. She’s someone that I made up entirely. Well, almost—I did steal a few key bits.
But even more than that, she doesn’t actually appear in the book, not really, and in the context of the book, she isn’t even real. Still, her story plays a significant role in Julie’s life, at least my version of Julie. So, who or what is La Rousse Ressuscitée? To answer that question, you’ll have to…
Background: La Maupin’s Paris
A lot of the action of La Maupin, Mistress of the Sword takes place in a section of Paris near the Palais-Royal, Palais des Tuileries and Palais du Louvre. This area includes the Théâtre du Palais-Royal, home to the Paris Opéra, the old Grande Écurie, the residences of La Maupin, the Comte d’Armagnac, Lully and his successor Francine, as well as the scene of one of La Maupin’s most famous duels, and more. This page uses a number of maps of the time to introduce you to the neighborhood of the Butte St. Roche.
Background: Chevalier Baltazar
Geneviève Prémoy, known as “Chevalier Baltazar”, was another famous cross-dressing woman at the end of the 17th century. As such, she should be of interest to fans of La Maupin, but there are historical connections between the two that offer an opportunity for an author to spin a bit of a tale. Meet her here, and look forward to seeing how their paths might cross when the book comes out.
Snippet #1: In the Place des Victoires
Our first published excerpt from La Maupin, Mistress of the Sword, which will open the story, as either a prologue or Chapter 1, finds our heroine on the verge of her debut with the Paris Opéra confronting another, well-established opera star over his abusive mistreatment of several of the company’s women.
Background: Comte d’Armagnac
Louis de Lorraine, Comte d’Armagnac, the Grand Écuyer of France, known as “Monsieur le Grand”, was an important character in young La Maupin’s life. Not only was her father the count’s secretary, but as a young woman she became his mistress.