19
"Your Highness is most welcome!" The rotund rosy-cheeked man greeted me as I entered the small Chateau my husband used in governing Picardy. I was relieved to be there, my toes tingling from the early January cold. I had just managed to arrive in Amiens before a sleet storm and the disagreeable weather would keep me indoors for several days after my arrival.
When my sister Catherine heard of my sudden desire to leave for Picardy, she protested constantly. "You are mad to try to trek across the countryside this time of the year! What possible reason could you have to leave now!" Her recovery from the birth dictated that she stay in bed, but that did not bar her from regaling me with hundreds of reasons why I should remain in Joinville. I was relieved to see that none of Catherine's
