Chapter XLIV: Colbert – Summary & Analysis
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This page contains detailed analysis and plot details from Chapter 44 of Between Two Kings. If you haven’t read the chapter yet, proceed with caution.
Summary
The chapter opens with Colbert waiting in a corridor, chatting with courtiers about the latest gossip while Cardinal Mazarin attends to other matters. The narrative then pauses for a full portrait of Colbert, a man thirteen years older than Louis XIV, of moderate build and severe, stony expression. Son of a wine‑seller and destined for commerce, Colbert learned accounting in Paris—and, crucially, how to fudge the books. His stern manner became his greatest asset, masking a relentless ambition.
A lengthy anecdote illustrates his character. As a young clerk under Michel Le Tellier, Colbert was sent to deliver a compromising letter from Anne of Austria to Cardinal Mazarin and, more importantly, to bring it back. When Mazarin tried to return the packet without the letter, Colbert coolly tore it open in front of the cardinal, proving the letter missing. Though Mazarin erupted in anger, he eventually returned the original after days of Colbert’s persistent waiting. This tenacity so impressed the cardinal that he later made Colbert his intendant.
Years later, as Mazarin lies dying, he summons Colbert to discuss his fortune. Colbert recites the exact known wealth—over forty million livres—and adds that thirteen million extra remain hidden. Mazarin is again astonished. Just as the cardinal’s confessor arrives, Mazarin decides that his “temporal confessor” Colbert should also hear his deathbed confession. He orders Colbert into the alcove and draws the curtains, ending the chapter on a conspiratorial note.
Key Events
- Colbert lingers in a corridor, observing court life while waiting for Mazarin.
- The narrator offers a detailed biographical portrait of Colbert: his low birth, accounting training, and stern, calculating nature.
- Flashback: as a clerk, Colbert delivers Queen Anne’s compromising letter to Mazarin and insists on its return, winning the cardinal’s respect.
- In the present, the dying Mazarin calls Colbert to discuss his estate.
- Colbert reveals that he knows every livre of Mazarin’s visible forty million and the secret thirteen million.
- Mazarin’s confessor arrives; the cardinal orders Colbert to stay and listen to the confession, hiding him in an alcove. The curtains close.
Character Development
Colbert
The chapter transforms Colbert from a background figure into a formidable presence. His portrait highlights an unyielding blend of meekness and audacity. The anecdote of the queen’s letter shows how his dogged insistence—bordering on insolence—earned him a powerful patron. His exact knowledge of Mazarin’s secret millions cements his image as an indispensable, quietly menacing accountant. The chapter positions him as a man who, through sheer force of will and intelligence, climbs from commerce to the inner circle of power.
Cardinal Mazarin
Mazarin’s reaction to the letter episode—first rage, then reluctant admiration—reveals his pragmatism. He values competence over pride, which explains why he later trusts Colbert with the most intimate financial secrets. In his dying moments, Mazarin’s decision to let Colbert witness his confession underscores his reliance on the clerk as a “temporal confessor,” equal to the spiritual one.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
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Information as Power
The chapter repeatedly emphasises that knowledge—financial details, compromising letters, secret accounts—is the truest currency at court. Colbert rises because he understands, controls, and verifies information, never taking a superior’s word at face value. -
The Mask of Severity
Colbert’s rigid, dour exterior functions as both shield and weapon. The narrator explicitly compares his manner to Fortune, suggesting that his seeming principle hides a flexible, goal‑oriented interior. -
Mortality and Confession
The chapter juxtaposes the spiritual confession (the Theatine father) with the secular one (Colbert). Mazarin’s desire to confess to both men symbolises the intertwining of soul and wealth, hinting that the cardinal’s legacy is as much about money as about absolution.
Why This Chapter Matters
Chapter 44 is a pivotal character study that elevates Colbert from a shadowy aide to a central axis of the novel’s political machinery. By revealing his backstory and his exact knowledge of Mazarin’s hidden fortune, the narrative sets the stage for the power vacuum that will follow the cardinal’s death. Colbert’s presence at the deathbed confession signals that he will be a custodian of dangerous secrets, potentially shaping the future reign of Louis XIV. The chapter also humanises Mazarin’s final days, blending cynicism and vulnerability in a way that deepens the story’s exploration of corruption and loyalty.
Study Questions and Answers
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How does the anecdote of Queen Anne’s letter illustrate Colbert’s core traits?
It shows his tenacity, his refusal to accept authority without verification, and his willingness to risk offense in pursuit of a precise goal. Colbert does not trust Mazarin’s word; he checks the packet himself, proving that even a cardinal can overlook what a clerk will not. -
Why does Mazarin call Colbert his “temporal confessor,” and what does this imply about their relationship?
Mazarin trusts Colbert with his most damaging secrets, just as a penitent trusts a priest. The term implies that Colbert, unlike a spiritual confessor who offers absolution, exists to manage and perhaps exploit the cardinal’s earthly sins—particularly his vast, dubiously acquired fortune. -
What does Colbert’s precise recitation of Mazarin’s wealth reveal about his role at court?
It reveals that Colbert has insinuated himself into the very fabric of the cardinal’s finances, knowing even the sums Mazarin believed hidden. This knowledge makes him both indispensable and dangerous, positioning him as a future architect of state finances under a new king.