Chapter 43: The Sign of the Red Dovecot

Summary

    There is a bit of drama between the higher-ups in the army, but the king and cardinal sort it out, and they lay a siege on the Isle de Loie. The French defeat the English at the Isle, and some compromising papers that could get the Duchesse de Chevreuse into trouble are found in the Duke of Buckingham’s post, abandoned as the English had to flee. The Musketeers had very little to with this attack, so they spent time partying in the camps. One night, d’Artagnan is assigned to his guard duties so the original three Musketeers decide to take a little ride. On their way back from a tavern, they run into someone in disguise, who turns out to be the cardinal! He asks them to follow him to protect him as he rides. They agree and do so. They relate to the cardinal their adventures of the night. In a tavern called the Red Dovecot, they got in a duel to defend a woman’s honor. The cardinal questions them about the woman for some reason, but they did not get a good look at her and are unable to supply any more information. Now, the cardinal is going into the Red Dovecot for his mission, and they get a chamber and wait for him.

Reaction

     Most of the chapter is fluff about petulant higher-officials, which was uneventful and easy to summarize, so the chapter seems very short. I always have trouble understanding the Fearsome Four’s mix of respect and hatred for the cardinal. They always behave like gentlemen towards him and are loyal to him in a strange way, yet they dislike him personally and what he stands for. The whole relationship is quite odd.

     My favorite line was: “On their part the Musketeers, who had not much to do with the siege, were not under very strict orders and led a joyous life. It was the more easy for our three companions in particular; for being friends of M. de Treville, they obtained from him special permission to be absent after the closing of the camp.” I love how the whole beginning of the chapter is about how hard everyone else is working, and then here are the Musketeers, goofing around and getting special privileges.