Who is Milady Laurence de Winter based on?
Others think that the character of Milady Laurence de Winter may be based on Lucy Hay, Countess of Carlisle (née Percy; 1599 – 5 November 1660). François de La Rochefoucauld mentioned in his Memoirs an anecdote he was told by Marie de Rohan, in which Lucy Hay stole some diamond studs (a present of the king of France to Anne of Austria) the queen had given to George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham from the duke as revenge because he had loved her before he loved the queen of France. The king of France then wanted to see the studs and somehow the queen was able to recover them. Alexandre Dumas later used this entire story, and therefore he probably based Milady Laurence de Winter on Lucy Carlisle in his 1844 novel The Three Musketeers .
Who is Milady in the book?
In Courtilz's novel (one of the literary sources for the more famous novel by Dumas), Milady is one of the exiled English Queen Henrietta Maria 's ladies-in-waiting. Dumas changed Milady's background significantly; from another Courtilz novel ( Mémoires de M. le Comte de Rochforte, 1687) Dumas partly derived the idea of the branded woman, which he applied to his version of Milady.
What did Milady do to the priest?
As a young Benedictine nun of 16, she seduced the convent's trusting priest. Urging him to steal the church's sacred vessels to finance a new life in another part of the country, they fled together and quickly were apprehended. Milady then seduced the jailer's son and escaped, leaving behind her first lover to be branded for theft. The executioner who had to brand the priest happened to be his brother, and blaming Milady for leading his brother astray, tracked her down on his own and branded her on the shoulder with the same fleur-de-lis symbol, marking her as a convicted criminal. The priest in turn escaped, and the lovers fled to a small town, where they posed as a country curate and his sister.
What is the true identity of the Comte de la Fère?
As the true identity of the Comte de la Fère is concealed by the name Athos , Milady's true identity is hidden by various names throughout the novel:
What is the fleur de lis on Milady's shoulder?
The fleur-de-lis on Milady's shoulder with which she was branded for having committed a felony in her extreme youth would certainly come as a shock to anyone discovering it, but it does not fully account for the terror and horror which she evoked in every man who had ever known her intimately. Only her husbands (she had two) and her lovers find out her 'secret,' and for that, she declares, they must die. And why was the Cardinal, who employed her as his chief secret agent, who had spies all over the country and who knew everything about everyone of importance in France, himself unaware of her criminal record? At the end of the story, d'Artagnan discloses this to [Richelieu], who then declares that he and his friends were perfectly justified in taking the law into their own hands and beheading her. Might not Dumas, in creating such a character, have intended to convey that Milady had that particular form of physical malformation which was regarded even in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries as a terrifying token of divine displeasure, punishable by death - a malformation of which the fleur-de-lis was merely a symbol?
Who did Milady murder?
Returning to France, Milady murders d'Artagnan's lover, then flees. The musketeers and Lord de Winter hunt Milady and track her to Lille, where they try her among themselves for her numerous crimes, including the poisoning of de Winter's brother. Athos finally charges her with deceiving him, hiding the fact that she was a convicted criminal when he married her. Milady defies anyone to produce any proof that she ever was sentenced for a crime. To her horror, the executioner of Lille steps forward to reveal himself as the man who branded her.
Who was the inspiration for Milady?
One of Dumas' collaborators, F. Gaillardet, wrote the Mémoires sur la Chevaliére d'Éon, of which Dumas is known to have owned a copy. However, Sudley concedes that the idea of d'Éon being an inspiration for Milady de Winter "is, of course, pure conjecture, impossible to prove or disprove."
Where did Milady de Winter arrive?
Arrival in Paris. Milady de Winter arrived in Paris accompanied by Raul Mendoza. During her stay in a local inn, she sleeps with D'Artagnan for a night. She revealed to him that a man had once tried to kill her when he noticed the scarring on her neck.
How old is Milady de Winter?
In the novels, she is described as a twenty-five-year-old blonde haired, blue eyed woman instead of a brunette. In the books, she goes by multiple names, such as Anne de Breuil, Charlotte Backson, and Milady de Winter.
Why did Milady ask the Cardinal to give her time off?
Hearing about the capture of Emile Bonnaire in Le Havre, Milady requested from the Cardinal that she have time off to deal with personal matters involving Athos. The Cardinal was reluctant to give her this freedom. She traveled to the small village where she had been almost hanged, and killed her executioner, Remi Blacksmith. Then, she returned to the house where she once lived and set it alight. She escaped when D'Artagnan arrived at the scene.
How long has Milady been in the Cardinal's service?
She has been in the Cardinal's services for over five years. Milady impresses the Cardinal with her untempered air and success in completing a task. Purely platonic, their relationship is based on business as Richelieu employs her as an associate and spy to try and destroy the Musketeers and put the King's faith in him.
What happened to Milady after Athos killed her brother?
But, after killing Athos' brother, their relationship deteriorated rapidly, especially when Athos attempted to kill her. Following his attempt, Milady has grown quite resentful of Athos.
What did Milady believe about Athos?
Blinded by love, Milady believed that the relationship she had with Athos would be enough to bind them above anything else. But, after killing Athos' brother, their relationship deteriorated rapidly, especially when Athos attempted to kill her.
What did Milady do to Athos?
Satisfied, Milady attended Athos' execution and was dismayed when his fellow Musketeers arrived with a signed release from the King. Distraught, she visited the local church, where she met with the priest. She confessed that she had loved a man once, and that she wanted revenge on him.
Who is Milady in The Three Musketeers?
Milady Clarick de Winter, often referred to as simply Milady, is the main antagonist in the 1844 historical adventure novel The Three Musketeers by the late Alexandre Dumas, pere. She acts as a spy for Cardinal Richelieu.
Who hanged the woman from the tree?
Identifying her as a convicted criminal. Thinking she had married him only for his money, and feeling dishonored, Athos hanged her from a tree on the spot, but she survived.
What did the musketeers do to Buckingham?
Even if he is the enemy of France, the musketeers regard Buckingham, the man, as a friend. They commit treason to the crown and thus warn him of the threat and upon arriving in England, Milady is arrested and imprisoned in a house by her hostile brother-in-law, the new Lord de Winter.
Who killed Artagnan's lover?
Returning to France, Milady murders d'Artagnan's lover, Constance Bonacieux, when the two happen upon one another in a convent. The musketeers and Lord de Winter hunt Milady and track her at Lille, where she is beheaded after a mock trial.
Who led the expedition to assist the French troops?
When the French troops lay siege to the Hugenot city of La Rochelle, the Duke of Buckingham leads an unsuccessful expedition to assist the besieged. In a house near La Rochelle, Athos and his friends Porthos and Aramis overhear a conversation between the Cardinal and Milady, plotting to kill Buckingham before he can make another attempt.
Is Milady a spy?
A capable and beautiful spy, Milady is an unusual example of a strong, independent woman with a tragic and checkered past, filled with the seduction and willful destruction of men who will provide her with monetary support. Milady is remorseless and unrepentant for her countless "misdeeds".
Who picked up Aramis' handkerchief?
Aramis dropped and stepped on a handkerchief, and D'Artagnan picked it up to give it to him.
What does Aramis say about D'Artagnan?
Aramis says he is entering a monastery and D'Artagnan must take his place in the musketeers. d. D'Artagnan jumps out the window and escapes to England. a. D'Artagan saves himself by presenting a letter of protection that he took from Milady.
What did the Queen steal from the Queen?
That she stole the diamonds from the queen.
Overview
Milady Laurence de Winter, often referred to as simply Milady, is a fictional character in the novel The Three Musketeers (1844) by Alexandre Dumas, père, set in 1625 France. She is a spy for Cardinal Richelieu and is one of the dominant antagonists of the story. Her role in the first part of the book is to seduce the English prime minister, the duke of Buckingham, who is also the secret lover of Queen Anne of France. Hoping to blackmail the queen, Richelieu orders Milady to steal t…
Character overview
She is described as being 22 years old, tall, fair-haired and uncommonly beautiful, with brilliant blue eyes and black lashes and brows, Milady possesses a voice that can seduce and bewitch.
A capable and intelligent French spy who effortlessly can pass as a native Englishwoman, Milady's beautiful exterior hides a diabolically cunning, manipulative, ruthless and cruel interior; she is remorseless and unrepentant for her countless "misdeeds" and often described as appearing de…
Background
Like Athos, who sheds his true identity as the Comte de la Fère when he joins the musketeers, Milady goes by numerous aliases, so that her identity is concealed for a good part of the novel. Athos first knows her as an adolescent Anne de Breuil, but because she already was concealing a scandalous and criminal past at that time, it was probably not her real name.
As a young Benedictine nun of 16, she seduced the convent's trusting priest. Urging him to steal t…
Active role in the novel
When d'Artagnan first spies Milady in Paris, she has married into English nobility some time previously by wedding Baron Sheffield, the younger brother of Lord de Winter. After she was made her husband's heir, he died violently and mysteriously within a matter of hours, leaving her a widow with a young child, who is Lord de Winter's only heir. Discovering that Milady is infatuated with Comte des Wardes, an equally infatuated d'Artagnan forges the count's reply to a love letter …
Aliases
As the true identity of the Comte de la Fère is concealed by the name Athos, Milady's true identity is hidden by various names throughout the novel:
• Anne de Breuil (the name by which Athos knew Milady when he met her)
• Comtesse de la Fère (the title Milady assumed when she married the Comte de la Fère, later known as Athos)
Her son in the sequel
In the 1845 sequel Twenty Years After, Milady's son Mordaunt, now 23, takes her role as one of the chief antagonists. As twisted and as deceitful as his mother, he sets about avenging her death, posing as a monk and murdering the executioner of Lille while taking his confession. He also murders Lord de Winter, Milady's brother-in-law, who raised him after the death of his mother.
Mordaunt later becomes involved in the English Civil War and commits regicide, executing King C…
Origin of the character
The character of Milady previously appeared in the Mémoires de M. d'Artagnan (1700), a historical novel by Gatien de Courtilz de Sandras, which Dumas discovered during his research for his history of Louis XIV. In Courtilz's novel (one of the literary sources for the more famous novel by Dumas), Milady is one of the exiled English Queen Henrietta Maria's ladies-in-waiting. Dumas change…
In popular culture
Actresses who have played Milady on screen include:
• Barbara La Marr in The Three Musketeers (1921)
• Dorothy Revier in The Iron Mask (1929)
• Margot Grahame in The Three Musketeers (1935)