Note 102 — Chapter XVIII · THE SUPREMACY OF MAZARIN

[According to Voltaire,i so low were the royal resources that almost the entire court had to sleep, while at St. Germain, on straw. They were obliged to leave the crown jewels as security with the usurers. The young king often lacked necessities. The pages of his chamber were dismissed because there were no means to keep them. At the same time Louis’ aunt, Henrietta Maria of England, in refuge at Paris, was reduced to the extremes of poverty; her daughter, afterwards married to Louis’ brother, had to stay in bed to keep warm.]