The Vicomte de Bragelonne · Chapter
The Prisoner explained
Aramis visits a mysterious prisoner in the Bastille and reveals to him that he is the twin brother of King Louis XIV, born second and hidden away to prevent a succession crisis.
What happens
Aramis visits a mysterious prisoner in the Bastille and reveals to him that he is the twin brother of King Louis XIV, born second and hidden away to prevent a succession crisis. The prisoner, initially resigned to his captivity, gradually awakens to his royal identity and the possibility of claiming the throne, as Aramis presents him with a portrait of the king and a mirror to compare their likenesses.
Themes in this chapter
Fate and Tragedy
The prisoner's hidden birth and imprisonment reflect the tragic consequences of royal succession fears.
Power and Ambition
Aramis's plot to replace the king with his twin brother reveals the ambition to seize power.
Court Intrigue and Deception
The secret of the twin's existence and the queen's hidden correspondence exemplify courtly deception.
Characters to notice
- Aramis
Reveals the prisoner's royal birth and attempts to recruit him for a coup.
- Philippe
The imprisoned twin, initially resigned but stirred by Aramis's revelations.
- Louis XIV
The reigning king, whose portrait is compared to the prisoner's reflection.
- Dame Péronne
The midwife who received the prisoner at birth and later involved in the letter incident.
- Anne of Austria
The queen mother, who is aware of the twin's existence and corresponded with the preceptor.
Key passages
“The birth of twins changed into bitterness the joy to which that of an only son had given rise, seeing that in France (a fact you are assuredly ignorant of) it is the oldest of the king’s sons who succeeds his father.”
The arrival of twins turned the happiness of having a single heir into anxiety, because in France the eldest son inherits the throne.
Aramis explains the succession problem caused by the twin birth.
“I think that I am lost; the king will never set me free.”
I believe I am doomed; the king will never release me.
The prisoner despairs upon seeing the king's portrait.
“I demand to know which of these two is king; the one this miniature portrays, or whom the glass reflects?”
I ask you to decide which is the true king: the one in the painting or the one in the mirror.
Aramis challenges the prisoner to recognize his own royal identity.