The Laughing Cavalier · Chapter
XXXIX: “Sauve Qui Peut” explained
The conspiracy collapses as Lucas of Sparendam returns from Delft with news that the Stadtholder knows of the plot.
What happens
The conspiracy collapses as Lucas of Sparendam returns from Delft with news that the Stadtholder knows of the plot. Panic spreads among the conspirators, who flee in terror, leaving only Jan and Piet the Red to guard the prisoner. The prisoner, Diogenes, remains defiant and amused as the others abandon the cause.
Themes in this chapter
Conspiracy and Rebellion
The conspiracy collapses as fear of betrayal and the Stadtholder's vengeance drives the rebels to flee.
Fate and Chance
The sudden arrival of Lucas with news of betrayal changes the course of events, leaving the conspirators to scatter.
Characters to notice
- Diogenes
The prisoner, bound and guarded, laughs at the chaos and remains triumphant despite his predicament.
- Jan Tiele
Jan stays at his post guarding the prisoner, adjusting the rope on the gibbet, and tries to maintain order as others flee.
- Piet
Piet the Red remains with Jan, guarding the prisoner and ignoring the panic around them.
- Lucas van Sparendam
Returns from Delft with news of betrayal, triggering the mass flight of the conspirators.
- Stoutenburg
Mentioned as the lord who ordered the gibbet and sent Lucas to spy; his plot is now betrayed.
Key passages
“Men had gone mad who had heard the cries which pierced those stone walls then. One executioner had thrown down his bloody tools and fled from the place like one possessed!”
The memory of the Prince of Orange's brutal executions in the Gevangen Poort drove the conspirators to panic at the thought of capture.
Historical reference to the 1623 executions.
“We are betrayed! let us fly!”
The cry of betrayal triggers a mass stampede as the conspirators abandon their weapons and flee.
Key moment of the chapter's climax.
“The Laughing Cavalier forsooth. Lucky devil! if he can laugh!”
Jan marvels at the prisoner's cheerful defiance despite being bound and facing execution.
Diogenes' nickname and demeanor.