all the conversations he had had with Queen Elizabeth, and in
conclusion advised him to push his fortune: the Duke of Nemours

imagined at first that the King was not in earnest, but when he
found to the contrary, "If, by your advice, Sir," said he, "I

engage in this chimerical taking" target="_blank" title="n.任务；事业；计划">undertaking for your Majesty's service,
I must entreat your Majesty to keep the affair secret, till the

success of it shall justify me to the public; I would not be
thought guilty of the intolerablevanity, to think that a Queen,

who has never seen me, would marry me for love." The King
promised to let nobody into the design but the Constable, secrecy

being necessary, he knew, to the success of it. The Count de
Randan advised the Duke to go to England under pretence of

travelling; but the Duke disapproving this proposal, sent Mr.
Lignerol, a sprightly young gentleman, his favourite, to sound

the Queen's inclinations, and to endeavour to make some steps
towards advancing that affair: in the meantime, he paid a visit

to the Duke of Savoy, who was then at Brussels with the King of
Spain. The death of Queen Mary brought great obstructions to the

Treaty; the Congress broke up at the end of November, and the
King returned to Paris.

There appeared at this time a lady at Court, who drew the eyes of
the whole world; and one may imagine she was a perfect beauty, to

gain admiration in a place where there were so many fine women;
she was of the same family with the Viscount of Chartres, and one

of the greatest heiresses of France, her father died young, and
left her to the guardianship of Madam de Chartres his wife, whose

wealth, virtue, and merit were uncommon. After the loss of her
husband she retired from Court, and lived many years in the

country; during this retreat, her chief care was bestowed in the
education of her daughter; but she did not make it her business

to cultivate her wit and beauty only, she took care also to
inculcate virtue into her tender mind, and to make it amiable to

her. The generality of mothers imagine, that it is sufficient to
forbear talking of gallantries before young people, to prevent

their engaging in them; but Madam de Chartres was of a different
opinion, she often entertained her daughter with descriptions of

love; she showed her what there was agreeable in it, that she
might the more easily persuade her wherein it was dangerous; she

related to her the insincerity, the faithlessness, and want of
candour in men, and the domestic misfortunes that flow from

engagements with them; on the other hand she made her sensible,
what tranquillity attends the life of a virtuous woman, and what

lustre modesty" target="_blank" title="n.谨慎；端庄；羞怯">modesty gives to a person who possesses birth and beauty;
at the same time she informed her, how difficult it was to

perserve this virtue, except by an extremedistrust of one's
self, and by a constantattachment to the only thing which

constitutes a woman's happiness, to love and to be loved by her
husband.

This heiress was, at that time, one of the greatest matches in
France, and though she was very young several marriages had been

proposed to her mother; but Madam de Chartres being ambitious,
hardly thought anything worthy of her daughter, and when she was

sixteen years of age she brought her to Court. The Viscount of
Chartres, who went to meet her, was with reason surprised at the

beauty of the young lady; her fine hair and lovely complexion
gave her a lustre that was peculiar to herself; all her features

were regular, and her whole person was full of grace.
The day after her arrival, she went to choose some jewels at a

famous Italian's; this man came from Florence with the Queen, and
had acquired such immenseriches by his trade, that his house

seemed rather fit for a Prince than a merchant; while she was
there, the Prince of Cleves came in, and was so touched with her

beauty, that he could not dissemble his surprise, nor could
Mademoiselle de Chartres forbear blushing upon observing the

astonishment he was in; nevertheless, she recollected herself,
without taking any further notice of him than she was obliged to

do in civility to a person of his seeming rank; the Prince of
Cleves viewed her with admiration, and could not comprehend who

that fine lady was, whom he did not know. He found by her air,
and her retinue, that she was of the first quality; by her youth

he should have taken her to be a maid, but not seeing her mother,
and hearing the Italian call her madam, he did not know what to

think; and all the while he kept his eyes fixed upon her, he
found that his behaviour embarrassed her, unlike to most young

ladies, who always behold with pleasure the effect of their
beauty; he found too, that he had made her impatient to be going,

and in truth she went away immediately: the Prince of Cleves was
not uneasy at himself on having lost the view of her, in hopes of

being informed who she was; but when he found she was not known,
he was under the utmost surprise; her beauty, and the modest air

he had observed in her actions, affected him so, that from that
moment he entertained a passion for her. In the evening he

waited on his Majesty's sister.
This Princess was in great consideration by reason of her

interest with the King her brother; and her authority was so
great, that the King, on concluding the peace, consented to

restore Piemont, in order to marry her with the Duke of Savoy.
Though she had always had a disposition to marry, yet would she

never accept of anything beneath a sovereign, and for this reason
she refused the King of Navarre, when he was Duke of Vendome, and

always had a liking for the Duke of Savoy; which inclination for
him she had preserved ever since she saw him at Nice, at the

interview between Francis I, and Pope Paul III. As she had a
great deal of wit, and a fine taste of politelearning, men of

ingenuity were always about her, and at certain times the whole
Court resorted to her apartments.

The Prince of Cleves went there according to his custom; he was
so touched with the wit and beauty of Mademoiselle de Chartres,

that he could talk of nothing else; he related his adventure
aloud, and was never tired with the praises of this lady, whom he

had seen, but did not know; Madame told him, that there was
nobody like her he described, and that if there were, she would

be known by the whole world. Madam de Dampiere, one of the
Princess's ladies of honour, and a friend of Madam de Chartres,

overhearing the conversation, came up to her Highness, and
whispered her in the ear, that it was certainly Mademoiselle de

Chartres whom the Prince had seen. Madame, returning to her
discourse with the Prince, told him, if he would give her his

company again the next morning, he should see the beauty he was
so much touched with. Accordingly Mademoiselle de Chartres came

the next day to Court, and was received by both Queens in the
most obliging manner that can be imagined, and with such

admiration by everybody else, that nothing was to be heard at
Court but her praises, which she received with so agreeable a

modesty" target="_blank" title="n.谨慎；端庄；羞怯">modesty, that she seemed not to have heard them, or at least not
to be moved with them. She afterwards went to wait upon Madame;

that Princess, after having commended her beauty, informed her of
the surprise she had given the Prince of Cleves; the Prince came

in immediately after; "Come hither," said she to him, "see, if
I have not kept my word with you, and if at the same time that I

show you Mademoiselle de Chartres, I don't show you the lady you
are in search of. You ought to thank me, at least, for having

acquainted her how much you are her admirer."
The Prince of Cleves was overjoyed to find that the lady he

admired was of quality equal to her beauty; he addressed her, and
entreated her to remember that he was her first lover, and had

conceived the highest honour and respect for her, before he knew
her.

The Chevalier de Guise, and the Prince, who were two bosom
friends, took their leave of Madame together. They were no

sooner gone but they began to launch out into the praises of
Mademoiselle de Chartres, without bounds; they were sensible at

length that they had run into excess in her commendation, and so