Abstract
Hortense and Marie Mancini, as members of French courtly society, lived in a world where keeping track from minute to minute of the dips and swells in one's own and in others' social status came as naturally as breathing. They were not born into French society, and their standing there was entirely dependent on the power and wealth of their uncle, Cardinal Mazarin, and on the marriage alliances he managed to forge between their family and the leading families of France. This introductory chapter first presents the biographies of Hortense and Marie Mancini. It then discusses editions of their memoirs; their formulation of feminine gloire; and their pursuit of an independent life.
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