Maintenon

In a large dining room stood the table at which Louis XIV and his mistress Madame Maintenon, and after them Louis XV, and Pompadour, had sat at their meals naked and unattended--for the table stood upon a trapdoor, which descended with it to regions below when it was necessary to replenish its dishes.

Perhaps the little woman thought she might play the part of a Maintenon or a Pompadour.

"Come, my dear Albert," said Debray, "confess that your cook is behindhand, that the oysters have not arrived from Ostend or Marennes, and that, like Madame de Maintenon, you are going to replace the dish by a story.

Madame de Maintenon Chateau de Versailles 15 April-21 July www.chateauversailles.fr

King Louis XIV (1638-1715), aka the Sun King, has secretly wed his mistress, the Marquise de Maintenon; rid himself of the Man in the Iron Mask, his real father (or so this BBC version of history has it) and kicked out all the French Protestants after revoking the Edict of Nantes.

A Jean Racine B Catherine de' Medici C Jacques Benigne Bossuet D Francoise Marquise de Maintenon 10.

The historical series continues, with Madame de Maintenon (Catherine Walker) happy to become a full time member of King Louis' council.

But there's something sweetly magical about Chateau de Maintenon, some 47km from Versailles in a leafy patch of the Loire Valley.

Madame de Montespan finds a way to hurt a former friend in the king's prim companion Francois de Maintenon, while Philippe returns a war hero, accompanied by his brother-in-arms Guillaume, who is rewarded by the king for his bravery in battle.

34) cita como exemplo madame de Maintenon, ultima mulher de Luis XIV, com quem, apos a morte da rainha, o rei acabou se casando em uma cerimonia noturna e quase secreta.

During the third series, Louis will indulge in a fiery romp with Madame de Maintenon, who is just as thirsty for power and domination as he is.