The Maréchal de Saxe was one of the greatest generals of the century. His most brilliant and memorable victory was at Fontenoy, May 11, 1745. In recognition of his achievements, he was made Marshal-General of France. He died November 30th, 1750, at the château de Chambord, which had been given him by Louis XV. 10. =Adrienne Lecouvreur.= See Introduction. At the opening presentation of the play, _Adrienne Lecouvreur_, at the Théâtre-Français, April 14, 1849, the title rôle was taken by Mlle Rachel. See below. =Rachel=: Élisa-Rachel Félix, called Rachel, a celebrated French actress, was born at Munf, in Switzerland, February 28, 1820. She excelled in leading tragic rôles, and by her extraordinary success and popularity she exerted a powerful influence in restoring to favor the great classic dramas of Corneille and Racine, which had been temporarily neglected during the Romantic movement. She also created the title rôles of a number of plays written especially for her, including _Adrienne Lecouvreur_. The talent of Mlle Rachel was strikingly similar to that of her illustrious predecessor. Moreover, there were many similarities in their experiences and artistic triumphs. It was very natural therefore that Rachel played the rôle of Adrienne Lecouvreur with remarkable fidelity and power. Mlle Rachel died at Cannet, near Toulon, Jan. 3, 1858. ACTE PREMIER =3=, 2. =chez la princesse de Bouillon.= The former hôtel de Bouillon, built in the eighteenth century, has a large courtyard, present No. 17, on the quai Malaquais, Faubourg St. Germain. It was near the rue des Marais, now rue Visconti, on which was the home of Mlle. Lecouvreur. SCÈNE PREMIÈRE 5. =La Princesse=: Marie-Charlotte Sobieska, granddaughter of Jean Sobieski, king of Poland. She married, in 1724, Charles Godefroi de la Tour d’Auvergne, prince de Bouillon. In the play she has been given the rôle of the duchesse de Bouillon. The latter was Louise-Henriette-Françoise de Lorraine (Mlle de Guise), daughter of the prince and princesse d’Harcourt. She became, in 1725, the fourth wife of Emmanuel-Théodose de la Tour d’Auvergne, duc de Bouillon. She is said to have been very beautiful but unscrupulous. She died at Paris, March 31, 1737, at the age of thirty. 9. =scandale.= It was a period of intrigue and frivolity. 13. =Votre état est perdu=: ‘Your profession is ruined.’ The abbé represents a certain type of men who frequented the homes of the nobility and who were expected to maintain themselves in favor by continually supplying the latest bits of gossip. Owing to their position as confidants of the public in questions of morality, the members of the clerical profession were supposed to be particularly well informed on such matters. 16. =boîte à mouches=: ‘patch box.’ Small bits of black taffetas were placed on the face (“beauty spots”) by many fashionable ladies of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.