Line #29 Literature/LaReineMargot


1	[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/qm001_4304.png]]
2	[[caption-width-right:300:A Queen, a King, and her cabinet.]]
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4	''La Reine Margot'' (A.K.A "Queen Margot", "Marguerite de Valois") is the first novel of ''The Last Valois'' series written in 1845 by Creator/AlexandreDumas, père. The series next books are ''Literature/LaDameDeMonsoreau'' and ''Les Quarante-Cinq''.
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6	During the reign of Charles IX and the UsefulNotes/FrenchWarsOfReligion, the throne of France had several suitors and every one try their hardest to keep it. Marguerite de Valois, better known as Margot, marries Henry de Navarre to bring peace to this chaotic country. Margot, who does not love Henri, begins a passionate affair with La Môle, a noble Huguenot, who was saved by her during the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre.
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8	Beside the famous Huguenot decimation, the plot contains murders by poisoning, court intrigues and several attempts of murder.
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10	It has been adapted to a [[Film/LaReineMargot movie]] in 1994 with Isabelle Adjani, Creator/DanielAuteuil, Virna Lisi and Creator/VincentPerez.
11	----
12	!!Tropes:
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14	* AlasPoorYorick: Margot kept a rather grisly souvenir [[spoiler:of her lover La Môle.]]
15	* ApothecaryAlligator: René's laboratory had an assortment of odd tools, that include a yawning alligator.
16	* ArtisticLicenseHistory: It's Dumas, so it's par for the course:
17	** Far from being allies, Charles IX, Anjou, and Catherine de' Medici actually loathed the duc de Guise (and he fully returned their hatred).
18	** On the other hand, Alençon and Henri de Navarre actually were allies, not enemies.
19	* BalconyEscape: The way La Môle saved Henri's life, when the royal siblings meant to off him. La Môle would later flee the same way, shortly before [[MissedHimByThatMuch his would-be killers stormed into Marguerite's room.]]
20	* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: Coconnas was nice to the executioner, and so [[spoiler:avoided torture. La Môle disdained the man, and had his legs broken.]]
21	* BegoneBribe: Charles IX got the Duke of Anjou the crown of Poland in exchange for some peace. Although in this case it's more of a ReassignedToAntarctica, Poland being viewed as a BarbarianTribe by the refined d'Anjou.
22	* BeneathTheMask: Charles IX forges onward, even when he knew he was dying.
23	* BetaCouple: The duchesse de Nevers and Coconnas fill the spot, but they are less peaceful than Margot and La Môle.
24	* BrotherSisterIncest: The original book just hints on such accusations against the real Valois, but the film likes to show it for the sake of creating a frightening and decadent atmosphere.
25	* TheChainsOfCommanding: Charles IX visits a grieving Marguerite [[spoiler: after the execution of her lover]] and urges her to attend a ball, following his example as a StepfordSmiler because they are kings and queens, and therefore have duties.
26	* ChekhovsGun:
27	** A VoodooDoll used for a Love Spell was presented as evidence of a crime.
28	** René gives the queen a rare book on hunting instead of a grimoire because they have the same binding. The book is later used in a murder attempt.
29	* ClosetShuffle: A cabinet in Margot's room is repeatedly used to shove in whatever gentleman caller must not be seen by an incoming visitor. Margot once hid her ''husband'' and her ''lover'' in the same cabinet, at the same time (although they're perfectly fine with the other's relationship with Margot).
30	** At one point during the king's interruption of a dinner between the lovers, she grabs someone's hand in the dark, thinking him to be La Môle.
31	-->"We are saved!" murmured Marguerite, seizing a hand which she took for that of La Mole. "The King thinks my husband is one of our guests."\
32	"And I shall let him think so, madame, you may be sure," said Henry, answering the queen in the same tone.
33	* DecadentCourt: The French court.
34	* DefeatMeansFriendship: Coconnas and La Môle need to fight twice before they achieve friendship.
35	* DownerEnding: [[spoiler: Almost all the main male characters are exhausted and die, only Henri de Bourbon manages to escape from Paris, while Queen Catherine triumphs and Henri the Third ascends to the throne in order to plunge Valois into the abyss in the following books.]]
36	* EdibleAmmunition: The characters hiding in Rue Cloche Percée defended themselves with the rest of their dinner.
37	* EvilMatriarch: Dowager Queen Catherine, practically the TropeMaker for this.
38	* FingerLickingPoison: A poisoned book is used in attempt on King Henri de Navarre's life, but the plan backfires with disastrous results.
39	* FlowerPotDrop: During the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre, Coconnas had a flower-pot thrown at him by an old Huguenot woman. It hit him above the knee.
40	* ForeignCussWord:
41	** ''Mordi!'' It's introduced into the narrative by Coconnas, and the duchess of Nevers picks it up.
42	** There's also ''Sang-dioux!'', used by Henri of Navarre.
43	** In at least one English translation, all the swearing is left in French.
44	* FunetikAksent: Monsieur de Pesme - ahem, Besme -, in the service of the duke of Guise. He's German.
45	* GambitPileup: Henri de Navarre is the center of all plans of the French royal court: the King trying to destroy their religion, the queen mother trying to ruin his marriage, and the Duke d'Alençon trying to take his kingdom.
46	* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: Queen Catherine. Schemer, poisoner, murderer; she will stop at nothing to achieve her goals.
47	* GoodScarsEvilScars: They don't call the Duke of Guise "Le Balafré" (Scarface) for nothing.
48	* KissOfDeath: The even more devious plan to poison [[spoiler:Henry]] via his paramour's lipstick is employed but thwarted by the would-be poisoner who couldn't murder said paramour in cold blood.
49	* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Henriette, duchess of Nevers, is as kind-hearted as she is blonde.
50	* HistoricalHeroUpgrade: While in real life Charlotte of Sauve was indeed one of Catherine of Medici's circle of beautiful courtly spies, she is considerably more heroic here. The real Marguerite wrote that Charlotte exerted incredible sway over Henri and alienated the King and Queen of Navarre.
51	* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: Possibly Dumas was influenced too much by the propaganda against Catherine of Medici. In the book she didn't stop short of murder to help her son Henri, [[spoiler:and even ended up accidentally murdering her own son]].
52	* HoistByHisOwnPetard: [[spoiler:Charles IX is poisoned by a book that Catherine meant for Henri of Navarre.]]
53	* HopeSpot: La Môle and Coconnas escaped disaster so many times that one would think [[spoiler:the plot for them to escape their execution would succeed. It failed because the latter was too honorable to leave La Môle to die.]]
54	* HuntingAccident: [[spoiler:Charles IX]] would have died in such an accident, if it wasn't for [[spoiler:Henry of Navarre]]. Charles IX also voices his suspicions that his father went out this way, too.
55	* MasterPoisoner:
56	** [[spoiler:Réné the Florentine]].
57	** [[spoiler:Queen Catherine]], to some degree.
58	* TheMistress:
59	** Charlotte de Sauve was one for Henri de Bourbon.
60	** Marie Touchet was a real nice one.
61	* NoOneCouldSurviveThat: Coconnas left Maître la Hurière bleeding out in the gutter. [[spoiler:The innkeeper would outlive both him and La Môle.]]
62	* NiceToTheWaiter: And Maître Caboche remembers it. This benefits Coconnas because it spares him torture, but [[spoiler:backfires when Coconnas refuses to flee and leave La Môle, whose legs had been broken by the same torture.]]
63	* OffWithHisHead: The last favor of M. de Coconnas' friend.
64	* OneSteveLimit: Henri of Navarre (the future Henri IV) is referred to as Henri, while the future Henri III is always referred to as the duke d'Alençon. There's also Henri, duke of Guise, and Henriette, duchess of Nevers.
65	* ParentalSubstitute:
66	** Charles claims Coligny is like a father to him.
67	** Charles's Huguenot nurse was the mother Catherine would never be to him.
68	* PerfectlyArrangedMarriage: Henri of Navarre and Marguerite of Valois. They become allies, with her saving him repeatedly from her family's machinations.
69	* PerfectPoison: Ghastly subverted in the poisoned book mentioned above.
70	* ProfessionalKiller: Maurevel started his career killing De Mouy's father and from that point, he get some other jobs, until De Mouy stopped him.
71	* PublicSecretMessage: Delivered by Margot, in Latin, in a formal ceremony to announce to her husband's allies that the escape was impossible.
72	* PuppetKing: Charles was this until recently, while his mother wielded the true power in France. He credits Coligny with freeing him from Catherine's control.
73	* RedOniBlueOni: Coconnas to La Môle, and Henriette to Marguerite, are respectively the red and the blue.
74	* RoyalBlood: Why Henri de Bourbon is so dangerous to Queen Catherine.
75	* RoyallyScrewedUp: Valois is a pretty vivid example, considering that because of the dictatorship of Catherine, her children grew incapable of governing the country. Moreover, her most adequate son is a clear ManChild and is deadly sick, and her last daughter is barren despite a dissolute life.
76	* TheScapegoat: [[spoiler:Coconnas and La Môle]] took the fall for [[spoiler:Queen Catherine]].
77	* ScyllaAndCharybdis: Henri de Bourbon, to avoid death during the massacre, was forced to choose between convert or being locked into the Bastille.
78	* SuccessionCrisis: The whole point of the novel. Charles IX had a marked preference for Henri de Bourbon, over his brothers of Anjou and Alençon. Queen Catherine works to ensure Henri de Bourbon doesn't get the crown of France.
79	* TogetherInDeath: [[spoiler:Coconnas and La Môle. The executioner placed them side by side and hand in hand.]]
80	* TortureAlwaysWorks: Played with when Coconnas gave them a good amount of information (against his former employer d'Alençon) under false torture. Averted when La Môle never speaks under real torture.
81	* TortureTechnician: Maître Caboche is the chief executioner of the provostry of Paris and had some apprentices, but he does the whole work for [[BlueBlood folks of quality]].
82	* WhatCouldHaveBeen: InUniverse; a footnote winders how France would have turned out if Charles' son with Marie Touchet had survived into adulthood.
83	* TropeMaker: For EvilMatriarch, RoyallyScrewedUp and at least one of the classic {{Trope Codifier}}s for StarCrossedLovers.
84	* WigDressAccent: It's amazing how far a cherry-colored cloak can take you.
85	* WouldHurtAChild: Catherine leads Henri's young servant Orthon to fall into an oubliette.

Context Literature / LaReineMargot