Chapter XV:
Il ne veulent plus perdre un moment d'une nuit si précieuse.
Lacretelle, Tom. XII.
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In concluding the opening description of Dumas, the author gives us this footnote: Dumas was a Beau in his way. His gala-dress was a blood-red coat, with the finest ruffles.
Madame de Lamballe is Marie Thérèse Louise of Savoy, Princesse de Lamballe. Or was, as she was executed in 1792, almost two years prior to the events of this chapter.
fournée: batch
Je pense, citoyens, que vous etes convaincus du crime des accuses? - I think, citizens, that you are convinced of the crime of the accused.
Vive le Vertueux Robespierre, la Colonne de la Republique! - Long life to the virtuous Robespierre, the pillar of the Republic!
eau de vie: brandy
métier: job
atrabilious: melancholy or ill-tempered
Regarding André Chenier, we have this footnote from the author: His brother is said, indeed, to have contributed to the condemnation of this virtuous and illustrious person. He was heard to cry aloud, "Si mon frère est coupable, qu'il périsse". This brother, Marie-Joseph, also a poet, and the author of "Charles IX.," so celebrated in the earlier days of the Revolution, enjoyed, of course, according to the wonted justice of the world, a triumphant career, and was proclaimed in the Champ de Mars "le premier de poëtes Francais," - a title due to his murdered brother.
Where Fouquier says he never ventures out without an escort, we get this footnote from the author: During the latter part of the Reign of Terror, Fouquier rarely stirred out at night, and never without an escort. In the Reign of Terror those most terrified were its kings.
Zanoni and Dumas met way back in Book 1, chapter 8. Zanoni had saved an old man from being poisoned by his adopted son (who we learn in this chapter is apparently Jean Nicot), and the old man had a cousin who came to check on him afterwards with Zanoni present at the meeting, that cousin being Rene Dumas.
The picture used is of Antoine Quentin Fouquier de Tinville, by Bonarov, used here under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en).
Rather curiously, there doesn't seem to be any pictures of René-François Dumas, which is what I really wanted to use for the picture for this chapter. Fortunately we do have at least the public accuser, and he is rather important to this chapter as well, so there you go.
To follow along: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/2664/2664-h/2664-h.htm#link2HCH0079
