Book of the duchess: an interview with Jacqueline

Number 16: Michael and Raoul are taken before the duchess and her provost marshal Guillot le Bourreau. Marguérite is a helpless but sympathetic witness.

The plot episode 15 (summarised from the text of Lorna’s novel)

Guillot arranged for Michael and Raoul to be brought before duchess Jacqueline for interview before their trial. He hoped that the dishevelled and filthy appearance of Michael would destroy any of Jacqueline’s thoughts of romance with the prisoner.

Immediately before the interview, Guillot ordered a band of mercenaries to rough up Michael so that he would appear before Jacqueline in rags. At the interview itself, Michael met each of Jacqueline’s questions with a stoney silence, humiliated that she should gloat over his misery.

Nobody noticed Jacqueline’s discomfort during the interview. She gripped the arms of her chair throughout, and flinched every time that Guillot tapped a minatory finger on her arm to stress some point. Raoul and Marguérite were especially unobservant: they only had eyes for each other.

Lorna’s remarks

This picture does not really belong to the series proper. It and several others - which can be detected  by the paper - were painted to fill up gaps in the story, and in the hope of proving that some improvement had been made since the first ones were done.

Subtlety, hitherto impossible owing to the exigencies of drawing, was attempted, and all that was left to the imagination in picture number 13 was here put in or suggested.

There is an attempted likeness for instance between Michael and Guillot, relatives in the story, and good and evil influences are suggested in the position of the latter and Marguérite. Guillot’s finger taps Jacqueline’s arm, while his face and his left arm express slight scorn. The duchess’ looks express amusement or disdain, but her hands grip the arm of the chair. And Marguerite - if I had not spoiled her eyelashes in painting them! - would have been casting a most commiserating glance at Raoul.

That Michael is standing and Raoul kneeling is another attempt to differentiate the two characters. If something had not gone wrong with his face, he would have been looking imploring.

There was intentional irony in the prominent position of the icon.