Twenty Years After Chapter 89 Summary
Kings Returning to Capitals
D’Artagnan and Porthos guard the royal procession into Paris, violence erupts, Rochefort dies, and Fronde leaders are placated by Aramis and Athos.
Summary
Aramis and Athos return to Paris to make political visits after the peace settlement. Aramis persuades Madame de Longueville to accept the treaty by offering her the viceroyalty of Font-de-l’Arche, money, and royal favor, and urges her to win over the Prince de Condé gently so the Fronde can be kept as a latent force. Athos then visits Madame de Chevreuse, who resists peace until Athos appeals to her vanity and to his paternal concern for Raoul de Bragelonne; the duchess softens and agrees to take Raoul under her influence when he is older. Raoul himself appears to announce the court’s imminent return to Paris.
At dawn the royal cortège proceeds toward Paris with D’Artagnan and Porthos posted to protect the king and Cardinal Mazarin. The crowd grows increasingly hostile; musketeers and Swiss are spread thin. As the escort tries to force a passage, organized bands break through and the procession is assailed. D’Artagnan lunges at a leader and fatally stabs him, discovering too late that the man is the Count de Rochefort; Rochefort dies forgivingly. The fall of Rochefort disorients his followers and disperses the mob, allowing the procession to reach Notre Dame where a Te Deum is sung. Meanwhile, a dying mendicant is tended to—the boy Friquet secures a promise of aid, runs off, and is named heir by the dying man, producing a sudden windfall that he brings to Mother Nanette and Councillor Broussel. Back at court, the king rewards D’Artagnan and Porthos with an invitation to dine; Porthos is troubled, haunted by the face of a mendicant he may have killed in the struggle.
Key events
- Aramis convinces Madame de Longueville to accept peace and to influence the Prince de Condé.
- Athos placates Madame de Chevreuse and arranges for Raoul to be kept away from Paris/romance.
- Royal procession leaves Saint-Germain for Paris with D’Artagnan and Porthos as protectors.
- A coordinated mob attacks the procession; close combat erupts in the streets.
- D’Artagnan fatally stabs Rochefort, whose death disperses his followers and ends the riot.
- Procession reaches Notre Dame for Te Deum; a dying mendicant bequeaths gold to Friquet.
- D’Artagnan and Porthos are invited to dine by the king; Porthos is unsettled about a face he remembers.
Analysis
This chapter shifts between political maneuvering among the Fronde leaders and an immediate, violent public confrontation in Paris, tightening the novel’s interplay of private intrigue and public unrest. Aramis and Athos perform complementary roles: Aramis uses flatter and promise to convert ambition into political utility, while Athos deploys paternal sentiment and moral appeal. These scenes further develop both men’s strategies—Aramis’s pragmatic manipulation and Athos’s protective, almost familial concerns—while highlighting the fragility of the Fronde’s unity now that peace is presented with tangible rewards.
The procession episode foregrounds themes of appearance versus reality and the volatility of popular support. The crowd’s alternating acclamations and sudden outbreak of fury show how easily public opinion can be bought or turned; Mazarin’s bought acclamations are shown as hollow. D’Artagnan and Porthos embody differing kinds of martial honor: D’Artagnan’s swift, precise action ends the immediate threat but leads to the tragic recognition of killing an old foe, while Porthos’s brute strength is effective yet gives him an unsettled melancholy. Rochefort’s death functions as both climax and moral complication—victory brings remorse. Narrative technique alternates intimate dialogue with broad, cinematic description of the mob, emphasizing the novel’s sweep across salons and streets and underscoring how elite plotting and popular violence collide to shape political outcomes.
Important quotes
““Madame,” he said, “you have wished to conquer the prince your brother—that is to say, the greatest captain of the age; and when women of genius wish anything they always succeed in attaining it.”
AramisAramis flatters Madame de Longueville to persuade her to accept the peace and to use her influence on Condé.
““Make room!” cried D’Artagnan.”
D’ArtagnanD’Artagnan lunges into the mob in an attempt to reach the carriage and protect the king during the riot.
““Back, people!” cried D’Artagnan, “your leader is dead; you have no longer any business here.””
D’ArtagnanAfter D’Artagnan kills Rochefort, the crowd disperses, ending the immediate assault on the royal procession.
Characters in Chapter 89
- Lord de Winter
- Madame de Chevreuse
- Duke of Beaufort
- Charles I
- Henrietta Maria
- Cardinal Mazarin
- Porthos
- d'Artagnan
- Raoul de Bragelonne
- Anne of Austria
- Madame de Longueville
- Bazin
- Mousqueton
- Mordaunt
- Oliver Cromwell
- Abbé de Gondy
- Planchet
- Athos
- Louis XIV
- Rochefort
- Grimaud
- Aramis
- Bernouin
- Guitant
- Comminges
- Friquet
- Monsieur Maillard
- Mother Nanette
- Councillor Broussel
- the coadjutor
- the mendicant
- Monsieur de Chevreuse
- the young king
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