The Warble
The Official Blog of Karen Ullo
In the Footsteps of Alix de Morainville: My Research Trip to France, Part 2
For several years now, I’ve been working on a historical fiction novel set during the French Revolution. The novel retells the story of Alix de Morainville, first introduced in George Washington Cable’s 1888 book Strange True Stories of Louisiana. The legend of Alix de Morainville holds that she was the daughter of a Norman count, raised in the tiny fishing village of Morainville, who later moved with her parents to the court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette at Versailles, and married her cousin, Vicomte Abner de Morainville. After her husband was killed during the French Revolution, she married her gardener, Joseph Carpentier, to lose her title and save her life. Then the two of them fled to Spanish-controlled Louisiana, into the wilderness of the Attakapas Territory, in modern-day St. Martin and St. Mary Parishes.
My novel, To Crown with Liberty, retells this story in a whole new way, taking both Alix and the reader on a journey through France in the last days of the ancien régime and the first years of the revolution. My recent trip to France took me to many of the settings of the novel so that I could experience some of Alix’s life first-hand.
Read Part 1 of my adventures here.
Second Stop: Paris
In my novel, Alix’s home in Paris is situated in the neighborhood of Saint Germain des Prés, which is where I spent most of my time. Saint Germain des Prés is home to such landmarks as Saint Sulpice Church, the Sorbonne (Université de Paris), Luxembourg Gardens, and the Odéon Theatre.
Saint Sulpice was a major focus of my time in Paris because it is Alix’s parish church and the setting of several scenes from the novel. I toured it twice, as well as attending Mass and an organ recital.
The astronomical gnomon inside Saint Sulpice, which uses the sun for extremely precise measurement of time. Some scholars believe its existence is the reason the Revolution did not desecrate Saint Sulpice to the same extent as most other churches.
The last remaining artifact of the revolutionary Cult of the Supreme Being in France, above the doors of Saint Sulpice
One of three newly restored paintings by Eugene Delacroix in the Chapel of the Holy Angels in Saint Sulpice
I did leave Saint Germain to tour sites pertaining to the French Revolution in other parts of Paris, as well as to visit the Carnavalet Museum, which only recently reopened after five years of renovation. I focused on the section devoted to the revolution, but if you’re going to Paris, you can easily spend an entire day there viewing everything from ancient streets signs to original Renoir paintings.
Recreation of a genuine 18th century salon, Carnavalet museum
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen, Carnavalet Museum
Detail of a painting of the Festival of Federation on the 1st anniversary of the fall of the Bastille, July 14, 1790, Carnavalet museum
Another highlight of Paris was a tour of Saint Joseph des Carmes, a Carmelite monastery before the revolution that became one of the major sites of the September Massacres in 1792—an event that will feature heavily in my novel. Here, one hundred fourteen priests who refused to swear an oath to the “Constitutional Church” were martyred, including many who served at Saint Sulpice.
Saint Joseph des Carmes
The statue before which the martyrs prayed immediately before being executed
Skulls of some of the 114 priests killed during the massacres in the crypts of Saint Joseph des Carmes
In the Footsteps of Alix de Morainville: My Research Trip to France, Part 1
As those of you who follow me on social media know by now, for several years I’ve been working on a historical fiction novel set during the French Revolution. The novel retells the story of Alix de Morainville, first introduced in George Washington Cable’s 1888 book Strange True Stories of Louisiana. The legend of Alix de Morainville holds that she was the daughter of a Norman count, raised in the tiny fishing village of Morainville, who later moved with her parents to the court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette at Versailles, and married her cousin, Vicomte Abner de Morainville. After her husband was killed during the French Revolution, she married her gardener, Joseph Carpentier, to lose her title and save her life. Then the two of them fled to Spanish-controlled Louisiana, into the wilderness of the Attakapas Territory, in modern-day St. Martin and St. Mary Parishes.
My novel, To Crown with Liberty, retells this story in a whole new way, taking both Alix and the reader on a journey through France in the last days of the ancien régime and the first years of the revolution. My recent trip to France took me to many of the settings of the novel so that I could experience some of Alix’s life first-hand.
First Stop: Versailles
This trip was supposed to happen last year, and my husband, Michael, was supposed to go with me. But, like most things in 2020, it got cancelled due to Covid. This time around, I went alone, but it was still Michael who planned the details.
One of the most difficult logistical challenges was to get inside the Royal Chapel, where a scene in the novel is set. The chapel is closed to the general public and only accessible in one of two ways: you can go on a guided tour purchased through Versailles that takes place only at very specific times, in French, or you can attend a concert there. So, we planned the trip around a date when a concert was offered in the chapel, only to have it cancelled a few weeks before. The only possible way to get into the chapel was to purchase a tour that started mere hours after my flight landed and come straight from the airport.
So that’s what I did:
The Royal Chapel from upstairs
Gallery of the Royal Chapel
Tabernacle of the Royal Chapel
After dinner that evening, I also walked around the town of Versailles, which surrounds the palace, to see other sites related to the revolution.
Hotel des Menus Plaisirs, where the Estates General and later the National Assembly of 1789 met. It’s now a music school.
Another view of Hotel des Menus Plaisirs.
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The Queen’s Stables, now the appellate court
The next morning, I had arranged to meet a private, English-speaking tour guide at 9:00 am, but my alarm didn’t go off. Thanks to jetlag, I woke up at 11:25. If you ever go to Paris, hire Raphaelle Crevet. She waited for me.
The Salon des Nobles, where Alix de Morainville will be presented to the queen
The Oeil de Boeuf, an antechamber of the king’s apartments that plays a part in the novel
The reception room in the Petit Trianon, where Alix will play the harp for the queen
One particular point of interest for me, since Alix spends part of her life living in Versailles, was to get some idea what the apartments of the courtiers looked like, and how they lived. Unfortunately, most of those apartments were torn down in the 19th century after being vacant and neglected for decades. They’ve been transformed into things like offices, restaurants, and the Gallerie des Batailles. But I still got a lot of useful information from my guide.
The Gallerie des Batailles (The Gallery of Battles)
Also, even though my concert in the Royal Chapel was cancelled, I got to attend one in the Royal Opera instead:
The Stage of the Royal Opera of Versailles
Upper Galleries of the Royal Opera
Orchestra of the Royal Opera
Ceiling of the Royal Opera
On the Making of Books: Crafting Catholic Literature for the 21st Century
On Thursday, April 29, 2021, from 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM Eastern, I’ll be joining other Catholic authors and editors for a free online forum about Catholic literature in the 21st century. Sponsored by the Collegium Institute at the University of Pennsylvania and the St. Benedict Institute at Hope College, I’ll be joined on the panel by Vivian Dudro, Senior editor at Ignatius Press; Joshua Hren, founder and editor-in-chief of Wiseblood Books; and Suzanne Wolfe, author of four novels including The Confessions of X, which won the Christianity Today Book of the Year award, and moderator Bernardo Aparicio, founder and publisher of Dappled Things.
In recent years, Catholic fiction has experienced a literary revival. How can we account for this rebirth of Catholic literature? Who or what is driving it? What kind of books are Catholic authors writing? What kind of market is there for this revival? This panel brings together Catholic editors and authors to explore the promises and possibilities of contemporary Catholic fiction.
To find out more or to register, visit the event site here.
Cinder Allia… The Movie?
I am thrilled to announce that Believe Entertainment has purchased the film rights to Cinder Allia and will now begin fundraising for its eventual screen debut. When? In God’s timing, of course, which I don’t know any more than you do. But maybe someday, you’ll get to watch Allia de Camesbry save the world in technicolor!
Cary Solomon and Chuck Konzelman of Believe Entertainment have already established themselves as some of the premier Christian filmmakers of our day with films like God’s Not Dead and Unplanned. Now they’re looking to expand their repertoire into fantasy, and, as those of you who’ve read Cinder Allia already know, it’s a story made for film. Gorgeous settings, lots of action, war, intrigue, a crippled prince, a mysterious fairy godmother… Yes, of course I wrote it to become a movie someday. And now, it will have the opportunity.
If you didn’t already believe in fairy tales, hopefully you do now!
Cinder Allia has spent eight years living under her stepmother’s brutal thumb, wrongly punished for having caused her mother’s death. She lives for the day when the prince will grant her justice; but her fairy godmother shatters her hope with the news that the prince has died in battle. Allia escapes in search of her own happy ending, but her journey draws her into the turbulent waters of war and politics in a kingdom where the prince’s death has left chaos and division. Cinder Allia turns a traditional fairy tale upside down and weaves it into an epic filled with espionage, treason, magic, and romance. What happens when the damsel in distress must save not only herself, but her kingdom? What price is she willing to pay for justice? And can a woman who has lost her prince ever find true love? Surrounded by a cast that includes gallant knights, turncoat revolutionaries, a crippled prince who lives in hiding, a priest who is also a spy, and the man whose love Allia longs for most—her father—Cinder Allia is an unforgettable story about hope, courage, and the healing power of pain.
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