The Scarlet Pimpernel · Chapter
XVI: Richmond explained
Marguerite and Sir Percy drive from London to their Richmond home after Lord Grenville's ball.
What happens
Marguerite and Sir Percy drive from London to their Richmond home after Lord Grenville's ball. During the drive and a subsequent garden conversation, Marguerite reflects on her moral crisis and attempts to bridge the estrangement with her husband. She recounts the story of her brother Armand's humiliation by the Marquis de St. Cyr and her inadvertent role in the Marquis's downfall, revealing the deep wounds in their marriage.
Themes in this chapter
Love and Betrayal
Marguerite's confession reveals how her love for her brother led to the betrayal of the Marquis de St. Cyr, and the resulting estrangement from Percy highlights the theme of love intertwined with betrayal.
Identity and Disguise
Percy's foppish demeanor conceals a passionate and earnest nature, as Marguerite realizes during their garden conversation.
Secrecy and Trust
The lack of trust between Marguerite and Percy is central; Percy believed rumors about Marguerite without seeking her side, and Marguerite kept her past hidden, leading to their marital rift.
Characters to notice
- Marguerite Blakeney
Sits beside Percy on the drive to Richmond, reflecting on her betrayal of the Scarlet Pimpernel and her past with the Marquis de St. Cyr. She confronts Percy about their estrangement and pleads for understanding.
- Sir Percy Blakeney
Drives the coach with intense focus, remains aloof during the journey. In the garden, he initially tries to avoid Marguerite but eventually listens to her confession, revealing hidden passion beneath his foppish exterior.
- Armand St. Just
Referenced in Marguerite's account as her beloved brother who was thrashed by the Marquis de St. Cyr's lackeys, motivating her revenge.
- Marquis de St. Cyr
Mentioned as the aristocrat who had Armand thrashed and later perished on the guillotine due to Marguerite's inadvertent betrayal.
Key passages
“The drive was not a long one—less than an hour, sometimes, when the bays were very fresh, and Sir Percy gave them full rein. Tonight he seemed to have a very devil in his fingers, and the coach seemed to fly along the road, beside the river.”
The journey was short, but tonight Percy drove with unusual intensity, making the horses race along the Thames.
Highlights Percy's inner turmoil and the tension of the night.
“I was tricked into doing this thing, by men who knew how to play upon my love for an only brother, and my desire for revenge. Was it unnatural?”
I was deceived by those who exploited my love for my brother and my thirst for revenge. Was that so wrong?
Marguerite defends her actions, explaining her manipulation by others.
“She knew in a moment that for the past few months she had been mistaken: that this man who stood here before her, cold as a statue, when her musical voice struck upon his ear, loved her, as he had loved her a year ago.”
She suddenly realized that despite his cold exterior, Percy still loved her as deeply as when they first married.
Marguerite's epiphany about Percy's enduring love.