Acknowledgements

I should like to express my gratitude to Madame La Comtesse du Petit-Thovârs for the help she gave in the preparation of this book. For inviting me into her home and allowing me to base the story around the ancestral home of the Petit-Thouars – though I must stress that no characters in the book are based on her family. My thanks also to Richard Hazlewood for the help and advice he gave, not to mention the many introductions. Also to Monsieur et Madame Rutault and Madame Amos.

Most especially of all I should like to thank Pamela Brunet and her husband Amedé for the research and translations they carried out on my behalf.

And lastly my love and thanks to my family and friends for their unwavering support following the death of my father.