Notwithstanding the curious and interesting character of this book, and the authority which it possesses on this subject, we cannot, much to our regret, do more than borrow a few passages from it; but these, carefully selected, will no doubt suffice to give some idea of the manners and customs of the nobility during the fifteenth century, and to illustrate the laws of etiquette of which it was the recognised code.

One of the early chapters of the work sets forth this fundamental law of French ceremonial, namely, that, “according to the traditions or customs of France, women, however exalted their position, be they even king’s daughters, rank with their husbands.”  We find on the occasion of the marriage of King Charles VII. with Mary of Anjou, in 1413, although probably there had never been assembled together so many princes and ladies of rank, that at the banquet the ladies alone dined with the Queen, “and no gentlemen sat with them.”  We may remark, whilst on this subject, that before the reign of Francis I. it was not customary for the two sexes to be associated together in the ordinary intercourse of court life; and we have elsewhere remarked (see chapter on Private Life) that this departure from ancient custom exerted a considerable influence, not only on manners, but also on public affairs.

[Illustration:  Fig. 394.—­Interview of King Charles V. with the Emperor Charles IV. in Paris in 1378.—­Fac-simile of a Miniature in the Description of this Interview, Manuscript of the Fifteenth Century, in the Library of the Arsenal of Paris.]

The authoress of the “Honneurs de la Cour” specially mentions the respect which Queen Mary of Anjou paid to the Duchess of Burgundy when she was at Chalons in Champagne in 1445:  “The Duchess came with all her retinue, on horseback and in carriages, into the courtyard of the mansion where the King and Queen were, and there alighted, her first maid of honour acting as her train-bearer.  M. de Bourbon gave her his right hand, and the gentlemen went on in front.  In this manner she was conducted to the hall which served as the ante-chamber to the Queen’s apartment.  There she stopped, and sent in M. de Crequi to ask the Queen if it was her pleasure that she should enter....  When the Duchess came to the door she took the train of her dress from the lady who bore it and let it trail on the ground, and as she entered she knelt and then adyanced to the middle of the room.  There she made the same obeisance, and moved straight towards the Queen, who was standing close to the foot of her throne.  When the Duchess had performed a further act of homage, the Queen advanced two or three steps, and the Duchess fell on her knees; the Queen then put her hand on her shoulder, embraced her, kissed her, and commanded her to rise.”