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Nobility in France was tyically hereditary, passed down the male line. The advantages of being born noble included exemption from taxes, sole access to certain offices and positions within the civil and military administrations of France, and all commissions in the army.

The guiding pricicple behind this system was the belief that to be born noble was to possess greater intelligence, more refined sentiments and a ‘right’ to the best life had to offer.  These expectations and assumptions underscore Christopher Hampton’s adaptation of Pierre Choderlos de Laclos novel, Les Liaisons Dangereuses.

The titles of French nobility, in order of importance:

• Duc
• Comte
• Marquis
• Vicomte
• Baron

These titles as well as the names of the family were derived from the properties they were attached to, and only one person at a time could carry each of these titles. The title was not in itself a test of nobility. After all, there were many more family members than titles to go around!

Other degrees of nobility also excited attention, especially amongst the hierarchy at the Versailles court. These included the length of time your family been noble and how many of your paternal and maternal grandparents’ lineages were noble. Of those already blessed enough to claim the ties of nobility, some could also claim peerages. These peers originated from the twelve dukes who were raised in the 12th century above the other dukes by the King as his direct vassals. There were also ecclesiastical peers, which ranked ahead of lay peers. For lay peers, the order of precedence was determined by date of peerage’s creation- except as it applied to Princes of the Blood, they gained precedence over the other peers, regardless of peerage creation date, because of their claim to royal blood.

By the time of Louis XIV, the main role of the peers was to participate in the coronation ceremony. This was important, because it created precedence in day-to-day life for the title-holder over others without this distinction.

The labyrinthine etiquette played out at the Versailles Court from Louis XIVs time onwards developed out of an already complex system of noble distinction. The prestige attached to a name was a valuable commodity for those trying to advance themselves or their connections at court.  What is more the system of court etiquette devised under Louis XIV prevailed through subsequent reigns and ended only with the execution of Louis XVI.   It is this etiquette which forms the cornerstone of Les Liaisons Dangereuses.

Life at Versailles was centered on conversational skill and interpersonal interactions, much of which was non-verbal in its expression. The way courtiers moved through the day at court could be summed up with the housekeeping maxim: “A place for everything, and everything in its place.”  And ‘place’ and ‘order’ was all, in every regard and at all times.  A lack of subservience to those higher ranked than you was punishable by ostracism at best or more vile punishments as specified by the slighted party.   It was a system built on fear.  

While these distinctions seem unimportant in our more democratic era, in the 17th century knowledge and use of proper etiquette was vital because it was the foundation of the social order and political system of the ancien regime.

As this extract from the original novel by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos makes clear, the subtle dictinctions between the nobility extended even to friendships:

“Come back, my dear Vicomte, come back: what are you doing, what can you possibly do at the house of an old aunt whose property is all entailed on you? Leave at once: I need you. I have had an excellent idea and I want to put its execution in your hands. These few words should be enough; only too honoured by this mark of my consideration, you should come, eagerly, and take my orders on your knees. But you abuse my kindness, even now that you no longer exploit it. Remember that since the alternative to this excessive indulgence is my eternal hatred, your happiness demands that indulgence prevail. Well, I am willing to inform you of my plans, but swear first that, as my faithful cavalier, you will undertake no other enterprise till you have accomplished this one.”

(The Marquise de Merteuil to the Vicomte de Valmont)

To get a better insight into the claustrophobia and intrigue prevalent at Versailles in pre-revolutionary France, come and see the Spread Eagle Players’ production of Les Liaisons Dangereuses at the Bridewell Theatre, London in November 2009.