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Citizen Chauvelin

Citizen Armand Chauvelin (Citoyen Chauvelin in French) is the villain in Baroness Emmuska Orczy's classic novel The Scarlet Pimpernel and the various plays and films derived from the work.

Armand Chauvelin
First appearanceThe Scarlet Pimpernel
Last appearanceMam'zelle Guillotine
Created byBaroness Orczy
Portrayed byWilliam Burress
Norman Page
Raymond Massey
Cyril Cusack
Stanley Van Beers
Ian McKellen
Martin Shaw
Terrence Mann (Original Broadway Cast)[1]
Rex Smith (B'way Replacement)[2]
Marc Kudisch (B'way replacement)[3]
William Michals (Touring)[4]
In-universe information
GenderMale
NationalityFrench

Overview

He is cast as Sir Percy Blakeney's arch-enemy throughout the novel's many sequels and appears in almost all of them. The former ambassador to the Court of St. James's (The Scarlet Pimpernel, The Elusive Pimpernel), Chauvelin is both a representative in the National Assembly and the chief agent of the Committee of Public Safety. Chauvelin is also an old friend of the Pimpernel's wife Lady Blakeney, having been a frequenter of her salon in Paris before her marriage (and is depicted in some film treatments as being Marguerite's suitor or lover prior to her marriage to Sir Percy).

Chauvelin is a ruthless, amoral patriot who firmly believes that the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel is a threat and a mockery to the French Republic, and uses his position incessantly to attempt to destroy or discredit the Pimpernel and his associates. He is described as dressing always in black. While he is depicted as being a small and physically weak man, he is extremely intelligent and cunning, able to manipulate those around him and devise elaborate plots. He is fearless concerning his own safety, except so far as his own incapacity or death might foil his plans.

Although he learns the true identity of the Pimpernel early on, Chauvelin keeps the knowledge to himself, partially because he realises that if the government knew, he would lose his leverage over them as the only man who knows what the Pimpernel looks like. Also, his bitter hatred of Sir Percy has become an obsession and he wishes to be personally responsible for stopping the Pimpernel's interference in French politics.

Chauvelin's exact marital status, and whether or not he has other children, is unknown. However, Orczy reveals that Chauvelin has a more human side and fills in some background details - among other things, mentioning his first name, Armand, for the only time in the series - in the novel Sir Percy Hits Back which features his daughter, Fleurette. Protected from the brutalities of the Revolution, she is unaware of her beloved father's identity as a leading politician. Fleurette's mother is never mentioned, except for the implication that she was not involved in her daughter's upbringing within Fleurette's memory.

Chauvelin is also depicted more sympathetically in the 1999 TV series; in that series, Martin Shaw portrays Chauvelin as having some sense of sympathy and decency. Chauvelin and the Pimpernel are even shown as having some respect and admiration for each other, though not quite a friendship. However, in the 1982 television film, Chauvelin (played by Ian McKellen) appears to be deeply in love with Marguerite, but in an egotistical, controlling way; furthermore, he is so ruthlessly ambitious and vengeful that he turns on Marguerite when he realizes that her love and loyalty is to Sir Percy.

His final brief appearance is in The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel, suggesting that, sometime between then and the events of Mam'zelle Guillotine, he has been executed, presumably by the authorities after the Thermidorian Reaction. In Lord Tony's Wife, it is implied that he survived until at least September 1794, since his testimony is said to have weighed heavily at the trial of Jean-Baptiste Carrier.

Inspiration

Orczy's depiction is loosely based on Bernard-François, marquis de Chauvelin, a notable political figure in revolutionary France. Although there are some similarities between the real and fictional Chauvelins, Orczy's depiction of Chauvelin's career, personality and history is highly distorted. The historical Chauvelin was in fact a notable military officer who served with Rochambeau in the American Revolution, and as assistant ambassador to Britain in the time period depicted. The real Chauvelin was never a member or an agent of the Committee of Public Safety, and survived Thermidor.

References

  1. ^ https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/the-scarlet-pimpernel-12566#OpeningNightCast
  2. ^ "The Scarlet Pimpernel – Broadway Musical – Original | IBDB".
  3. ^ "The Scarlet Pimpernel – Broadway Musical – Original | IBDB".
  4. ^ "The Scarlet Pimpernel – Broadway Musical – Tour | IBDB".

External links

  • Blakeney Manor

citizen, chauvelin, chauvelin, redirects, here, historical, chauvelin, bernard, françois, marquis, chauvelin, this, article, uses, bare, urls, which, uninformative, vulnerable, link, please, consider, converting, them, full, citations, ensure, article, remains. Chauvelin redirects here For the historical Chauvelin see Bernard Francois marquis de Chauvelin This article uses bare URLs which are uninformative and vulnerable to link rot Please consider converting them to full citations to ensure the article remains verifiable and maintains a consistent citation style Several templates and tools are available to assist in formatting such as Reflinks documentation reFill documentation and Citation bot documentation August 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message This article s lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of all important aspects of the article June 2022 Citizen Armand Chauvelin Citoyen Chauvelin in French is the villain in Baroness Emmuska Orczy s classic novel The Scarlet Pimpernel and the various plays and films derived from the work Armand ChauvelinFirst appearanceThe Scarlet PimpernelLast appearanceMam zelle GuillotineCreated byBaroness OrczyPortrayed byWilliam BurressNorman PageRaymond MasseyCyril CusackStanley Van BeersIan McKellenMartin ShawTerrence Mann Original Broadway Cast 1 Rex Smith B way Replacement 2 Marc Kudisch B way replacement 3 William Michals Touring 4 In universe informationGenderMaleNationalityFrench Contents 1 Overview 2 Inspiration 3 References 4 External linksOverview EditHe is cast as Sir Percy Blakeney s arch enemy throughout the novel s many sequels and appears in almost all of them The former ambassador to the Court of St James s The Scarlet Pimpernel The Elusive Pimpernel Chauvelin is both a representative in the National Assembly and the chief agent of the Committee of Public Safety Chauvelin is also an old friend of the Pimpernel s wife Lady Blakeney having been a frequenter of her salon in Paris before her marriage and is depicted in some film treatments as being Marguerite s suitor or lover prior to her marriage to Sir Percy Chauvelin is a ruthless amoral patriot who firmly believes that the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel is a threat and a mockery to the French Republic and uses his position incessantly to attempt to destroy or discredit the Pimpernel and his associates He is described as dressing always in black While he is depicted as being a small and physically weak man he is extremely intelligent and cunning able to manipulate those around him and devise elaborate plots He is fearless concerning his own safety except so far as his own incapacity or death might foil his plans Although he learns the true identity of the Pimpernel early on Chauvelin keeps the knowledge to himself partially because he realises that if the government knew he would lose his leverage over them as the only man who knows what the Pimpernel looks like Also his bitter hatred of Sir Percy has become an obsession and he wishes to be personally responsible for stopping the Pimpernel s interference in French politics Chauvelin s exact marital status and whether or not he has other children is unknown However Orczy reveals that Chauvelin has a more human side and fills in some background details among other things mentioning his first name Armand for the only time in the series in the novel Sir Percy Hits Back which features his daughter Fleurette Protected from the brutalities of the Revolution she is unaware of her beloved father s identity as a leading politician Fleurette s mother is never mentioned except for the implication that she was not involved in her daughter s upbringing within Fleurette s memory Chauvelin is also depicted more sympathetically in the 1999 TV series in that series Martin Shaw portrays Chauvelin as having some sense of sympathy and decency Chauvelin and the Pimpernel are even shown as having some respect and admiration for each other though not quite a friendship However in the 1982 television film Chauvelin played by Ian McKellen appears to be deeply in love with Marguerite but in an egotistical controlling way furthermore he is so ruthlessly ambitious and vengeful that he turns on Marguerite when he realizes that her love and loyalty is to Sir Percy His final brief appearance is in The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel suggesting that sometime between then and the events of Mam zelle Guillotine he has been executed presumably by the authorities after the Thermidorian Reaction In Lord Tony s Wife it is implied that he survived until at least September 1794 since his testimony is said to have weighed heavily at the trial of Jean Baptiste Carrier Inspiration EditOrczy s depiction is loosely based on Bernard Francois marquis de Chauvelin a notable political figure in revolutionary France Although there are some similarities between the real and fictional Chauvelins Orczy s depiction of Chauvelin s career personality and history is highly distorted The historical Chauvelin was in fact a notable military officer who served with Rochambeau in the American Revolution and as assistant ambassador to Britain in the time period depicted The real Chauvelin was never a member or an agent of the Committee of Public Safety and survived Thermidor References Edit https www ibdb com broadway production the scarlet pimpernel 12566 OpeningNightCast The Scarlet Pimpernel Broadway Musical Original IBDB The Scarlet Pimpernel Broadway Musical Original IBDB The Scarlet Pimpernel Broadway Musical Tour IBDB External links EditBlakeney Manor Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Citizen Chauvelin amp oldid 1104309693, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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