Le dernier des Sainctot : épilogue d’une ascension sociale

Abstract

The Sainctots’ ascension, which reached its peak when the family entered the service of the king’s ceremonies, did not seem to be compromised when, in 1709, Nicolas II de Sainctot passed on his role of introducer of ambassadors to his son Nicolas-Sixte de Sainctot. The latter, who is central to our approach, did not have any descendants that enabled him to pass on the inheritance of his lineage. What might appear to be a decline for the Sainctot family can be relativized, for Nicolas-Sixte de Sainctot sold his ceremonial role to a close member of his network, and used all of the resources of the family inheritance, notably his fortune, to ensure the success of his nephew, whose paternal family belonged to the nobility of the sword. So the last of the Sainctots succeeded in preserving his lineage’s strategy of bettering themselves by adopting a more unusual form of transmission. This study thus provides a better understanding of this group of intermediate courtesans and their family and relational strategies at the court of Versailles.

Keywords

• transmission
• office
• court
• ceremony
• family
• lineage