Twenty Years After · Chapter
The Tower of St. Jacques de la Boucherie explained
Gondy meets with Planchet, who offers his services to the Fronde, and then with Rochefort to coordinate the rebellion.
What happens
Gondy meets with Planchet, who offers his services to the Fronde, and then with Rochefort to coordinate the rebellion. Later, in the tower, a mendicant reveals he has mobilized ten thousand men for the uprising and signals the start of the barricades. The mendicant, a former Bastille prisoner, seeks Gondy's blessing and hints at a hidden past.
Themes in this chapter
Revolution and Rebellion
The chapter centers on organizing the Fronde uprising, with Gondy, Planchet, and Rochefort plotting against Mazarin.
Power and Corruption
Gondy's manipulation of the mob and the mendicant's avarice reflect the corrupting influence of power and money.
Characters to notice
- Gondy
Coordinates the Fronde uprising, meeting with Planchet, Rochefort, and the mendicant in the tower.
- Planchet
Former servant of d'Artagnan, now a confectioner and Frondist, offers to raise men for the rebellion.
- Rochefort
Recently escaped from the Bastille, coordinates with Gondy and promises fifty soldiers from the Chevalier d'Humières.
- Beaufort
Mentioned as being in Vendôme, waiting to be summoned to Paris to lead the revolt.
- Mazarin
Target of the Fronde; Planchet and Rochefort discuss opposing him.
- D'Artagnan
Mentioned as Planchet's former master and a Mazarinist lieutenant of Musketeers.
Key passages
“I am a Frondist from my heart. You see in me, such as I am, a person sentenced to be hung.”
Planchet declares his loyalty to the Fronde and reveals he is wanted by the authorities.
Planchet's commitment to the rebellion is underscored by his willingness to risk execution.
“You asked me for five hundred men, did you not? Well, I have ten thousand for you.”
The mendicant exceeds Gondy's expectations by providing a much larger force.
The mendicant's ability to mobilize thousands highlights his hidden influence and the scale of the planned revolt.