The Valet's Tragedy, and Other StudiesLang, Andrew
History
The Valet's Tragedy, and Other Studies
Lang, Andrew
History; World history
These explanations by Arlington do not tally with Marsilly’s
communications to him, as cited at the beginning of this inquiry.
Nothing is said in these about getting the regicides of Charles I.
out of Switzerland: the paper is entirely concerned with bringing the
Protestant Cantons into anti-French League with England, Holland, Spain,
and even Sweden. On the other hand, Arlington’s acknowledged letter
to Balthazar, carried by Marsilly, may be the ‘commission’ of which
Marsilly boasted. In any case, on June 2, Charles gave Colbert, the
French ambassador, an audience, turning even the Duke of York out of the
room. He then repeated to Colbert the explanations of Arlington, already
cited, and Arlington, in a separate interview, corroborated Charles.
So Colbert wrote to Louis (June 3, 1669); but to de Lyonne, on the same
day, ‘I trust that you will extract from Marsilly much matter for the
King’s service. IT SEEMED TO ME THAT MILORD D’ARLINGTON WAS UNEASY ABOUT
IT [EN AVAIT DE L’INQUIETUDE].... There is here in England one Martin’
(Eustace Dauger), ‘who has been that wretch’s valet, and who left him
in discontent.’ Colbert then proposes to examine Martin, who may know
a good deal, and to send him into France. On June 10, Colbert writes to
Louis that he expects to see Martin.*
*Bibl. Nat., Fonds Francais, No. 10665.
On June 24, Colbert wrote to Louis about a conversation with Charles.
It is plain that proofs of a murder-plot by Marsilly were scanty or
non-existent, though Colbert averred that Marsilly had discussed the
matter with the Spanish Ministers. ‘Charles knew that he had had much
conference with Isola, the Spanish ambassador.’ Meanwhile, up to July 1,
Colbert was trying to persuade Marsilly’s valet to go to France, which
he declined to do, as we have seen. However, the luckless lad, by nods
and by veiled words, indicated that he knew a great deal. But not by
promise of security and reward could the valet be induced to return to
France. ‘I might ask the King to give up Martin, the valet of Marsilly,
to me,’ Colbert concludes, and, by hook or by crook, he secured the
person of the wretched man, as we have seen. In a postscript, Colbert
says that he has heard of the execution of Marsilly.
By July 19, as we saw in the previous essay, Louvois was bidding
Saint-Mars expect, at Pignerol from Dunkirk, a prisoner of the highest
political importance, to be guarded with the utmost secrecy, yet a
valet. That valet must be Martin, now called Eustache Dauger, and his
secret can only be connected with Marsilly. It may have been something
about Arlington’s negotiations through Marsilly, as compromising Charles
II. Arlington’s explanations to the Foreign Committee were certainly
incomplete and disingenuous. He, if not Charles, was more deeply engaged
with Marsilly than he ventured to report. But Marsilly himself avowed
that he did not know why he was to be executed.
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