that he knew her name but would not tell it. He
says, however, that "she was a widow and lady of honour to a
very great Princess, and knew better how to play the prude
than any other lady at Court."--M.

This Jambicque used greatly to inveigh against wanton passion, and
whenever she perceived any gentleman in love with one of her companions,
she would chide them with much harshness, and, by making ill report
of them to her mistress, often cause them to be rebuked; hence she was
feared far more than she was loved by all the household. As for
herself, she never spoke to a man except in a loud voice, and with
much haughtiness, and was therefore reputed a deadly enemy to all love.
Nevertheless, it was quite otherwise with her heart, for there was a
gentleman in her mistress's service towards whom she entertained so
strong a passion that, at last, she could no longer endure it. (2)

2 Brantome writes as follows concerning the gentleman
referred to above: "According to what I have heard from my
mother, [Anne de Vivonne, wife of Francis de Bourdeille],
who was in the Queen of Navarre's service and knew some of
her secrets, and was herself one of the narrators [of the
_Heptameron_, i.e., Ennasuite], this gentleman was my late
uncle La Chastaigneraye, who was brusque, hasty, and rather
fickle. The tale, however, is so disguised as to hide this,
for my said uncle was never in the service of the great
Princess, who was mistress of the lady [Jambicque], but in
that of the King her brother." This shows the Princess to
have been Queen Margaret herself; and Jambicque, being
described by Brantome as a widow and lady of honour to the
Princess, might possibly be Blanche de Tournon ( Madame de
Chastillon), concerning whom see vol. i. of the present
work, p. 84 (note 7) and pp. 122-4. Her successor as lady of
honour to Margaret was Brantome's own grandmother, of whom
he says that she was not so shrewd, artful, or ready-witted
in love matters as her predecessor. On the other hand,
Blanche de Tournon must have been over forty when La
Chastaigneraye engaged in this adventure, even allowing that
he was only a youth at the time.--Ed.

The regard which she had for honour and good name caused her to conceal
her affection, but after she had been consumed by this passion for a
full year, being unwilling to find relief a