Les historiettes de Tallemant des Réaux, tome cinquième Mémoires pour servir à l'histoire du XVIIe siècle

A lively tapestry of courtly gossip and street‑level scheming, this volume gathers the most biting anecdotes from a turbulent century. Tallemant’s eye for detail turns petty squabbles, shady transactions and flamboyant personalities into vivid snapshots of a world where reputation is bought, sold, and often ruined in a single afternoon.

At the heart of the collection is Puget, the son of a Toulouse apothecary who arrives in Paris barefoot, only to be thrust into high‑stakes deals with a duchess, a royal mistress and a treasury official. His swift ascent brings wealth, dangerous liaisons and a tangled web of betrayals that soon attract the scrutiny of officials and rivals alike. Alongside him stride a cast of colorful conspirators—ambitious in‑laws, duplicitous clerks and opportunistic courtiers—who illustrate both the allure and the peril of ambition in the glittering yet treacherous milieu of 17th‑century France.