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Fact or fiction?

August 25th, 2006 Molly - Central

Five passionate letters that inspired what some consider to be the first international best-seller, The Portuguese Letters, published in 1669 in France by Claude Barbin, are the focus of Letters of a Portuguese Nun: Uncovering the Mystery Behind a 17th Century Forbidden Love. Myriam Cyr weaves the tale of a furtive affair between Mariana Alcoforado, a nun at the convent of Concieção in Beja, Portugal, and Noël Bouton, marquis of Chamilly. 

The daughter of a nobleman, Mariana lived a life of relative luxury under the guidance of the nuns at Concieção. She studied Latin, Spanish, French, mathematics, music, history, geography and science. She learned the art of serving tea and how to make delicious Portuguese pastries. The daughter of one of Beja’s richest men, she was able to communicate freely with the outside world, and had her own separate little home within the walls of the convent. It was customary at the time for the nuns to entertain guests, and by all accounts, she was a brilliant companion.

When Spain invaded Portugal in the mid seventeenth century, French soldiers were enlisted to help, and Chamilly was stationed in Beja off and on between March 1666 and the summer of 1667. It was during this time that Cyr believes Mariana and Chamilly were introduced, fell madly in love and consummated their relationship. Chamilly was hastily summoned back to France shortly thereafter. It is believed that the letters were written during the period immediately proceeding Chamilly’s departure.

Historians argue that a woman of that time period would never have written such letters, and many credit a French rogue named Guilleragues as the author. Cyr argues that only a woman of Mariana’s education and Portuguese heritage would have been capable of writing letters with such specific cultural references and intonations. Cyr makes a compelling argument, but the mystery of the authorship of the Portuguese letters remains.

Entry Filed under: Mystery, Nonfiction