Comprachicos - historical fact or fiction of Hugo?

Victor Marie Hugo is the full name of one of the most famous writers in France. He created such great works as “Notre Dame Cathedral”, “Les Miserables”, “The Man Who Laughs”, “Gavroche”. These are only his most famous novels, which thundered throughout the world, and he also wrote many other works. Hugo can safely be called a literary genius, because in addition to his talented lines, he managed to write the novel “Les Miserables” during a period of creative crisis he was experiencing.

It seems to me that only true talent can create no matter what, not the events happening around, not the inner state of mind. In his works, the writer reveals himself as a lover of the Gothic style and an adherent of romanticism. Reproaches to the social inequality existing in the world are also noticeable. It is worth noting the most important thing in Hugo’s work - his novels became some of the most talented and popular not only in his homeland in France, but throughout the world.

Traditional French names for boys

Look at the beautiful names that become melodious nicknames for cats:

• Alain is handsome.
• Alphonse is always first.
• Andre, Henri - courage and courage.
• Arman is strong and resilient.
• Armel is a strong prince.
• Arno is the ruler eagle.
• Astor is a hawk.
• Basil is a king.
• Bernard is bear power.
• Boniface - born to live a good life.
• Valerie is strong and healthy.
• Vivien is the source of life force.
• Guy is a forest guy.
• Gautier - commander, leader of the army.
• Gregoire is a vigilant protector.
• Damian - reverent, respectful.
• Desiree - desire, goal.
• Joe is a pigeon.
• Joseph is the increase of things.
• Dominic is a subordinate to the lord.
• Donat is a gift from the Gods.
• Jacques is a repressor.
• Jean is the kindness of God.
• Germain is my brother.
• Gilles is a little child.
• Joseph is the one who will become rich.
• Jules is a peasant, a tiller.
• Kamil is a minister, priest.
• Cola is a great winner.
• Lance is the whole earth.
• Leon is a lion.
• Leopold is a lion's heart.
• Lawrence - crowned with laurels.
• Louis is a famous raven.
• Luke, Lucien - light, illuminating the way.

Red-haired Leon:

• Marin - sea.
• Mark is the power of the hammer.
• Martin is a worshiper of the god of war, Mars.
• Mathis - Divine gift.
• Michel is like God.
• Maurice is dark and black.
• Narsis is proud and selfish.
• Nickel is the winner.
• Oberon is a bear.
• Auguste is majestic.
• Odric is the ruler of the nations.
• Otis is rich.
• Pascal - born on Easter.
• Patrice is a noble lord.
• Pons is a sailor.
• Raoul is wise with experience.
• Raphael - God's life.
• Robert is brilliant, bright.
• Severin is strict.
• Sylvester is forest.
• Cyril is a ruler, landowner.
• Theo, Theodore - God's gift.
• Thibault is a brave man.
• Timothy - reverent, respectful.
• Tom is a twin brother.
• Thierry is the ruler of nations.

Dear Cyril:

• Fernand is an eternal traveler.
• Forest - living in the forest.
• Frank is free, free.
• Charles is undaunted and courageous.
• Edgard is a protector.
• Eugene is handsome and noble.
• Aimery is the ruler of the house.
• Alison is of noble birth.
• Eloi is a choice.
• Emery is power.
• Emil is friendly and joyful.
• Hercule - Hercules.
• Etienne - crowned.
• Hubert has a bright soul.

Boy Emery:

How the Comprachicos acted

There were not enough people with deformities to meet the growing need for them. Buyers of children quickly figured out how to make money from the shortage. Masters of their craft appeared among the criminals. A child that was normal from birth acquired squint, a hump, inverted joints of the arms and legs, and a lifelong mask.

Children were sold by slave owners and poor people trying to get rid of an extra mouth. During operations, criminals euthanized babies using drugs. The child was losing memory of his previous life. Some had vague memories that they were sick with something, they were treated. But the victims forgot that they were once healthy and had parents, considering themselves deformed from birth.

Paul Kane "Flatheaded Woman and Child"

The buyers were patronized by the nobility: representatives of the Stuart dynasty and the holy fathers treated them condescendingly. They resorted to the services of the comprachicos when it was necessary to put an end to the existence of a rebellious race. The infant heirs were sold to buyers, and they radically changed their appearance. This made it easier for the king to confiscate the property of those unwanted and distribute estates to his favorites. The Comprachicos of the Holy Church supplied castrati for church choirs.

The Comprachicos could not be accused of theft: they bought, but did not steal children. And they never gave away state secrets. It was unsafe for the criminals themselves. The rulers were loyal to the activities of the Comprachicos, but controlled them in every possible way.

Eduardo Zamacois Zabala "The King's Favorite"

Traditional French names for girls

Options for beautiful nicknames for cats:

• Abel is a sweet shepherdess.
• Aurora - dawn, dawn.
• Adelaide is of noble blood.
• Adele is noble, noble.
• Isadora is a precious gift.
• Axel is the daughter of a great father.
• Alaina is an incomparable beauty.
• Amelie is efficient.
• Anastasi - resurrection, rebirth.
• Angela is an angelic messenger.
• Arabelle is a heard request.
• Arianna - pure heart, pure thoughts.
• Arletta is a little eagle.
• Armel is the princess of the stone lands.
• Aurelia - golden, golden.
• Babette is a promise, a vow to higher powers.
• Barbie is an outlander.
• Beatrice is the epitome of beauty.
• Bernadette - bearish courage.
• Blanche is snow-white.
• Bridget is great, exalted.

This is Barbie:

• Valerie is healthy and strong.
• Vivienne is a life-giving force.
• Violetta is a violet flower.
• Virginia is a virgin.
• Gabriela - strength from God.
• Desiree is a dream come true.
• Dany is a priestess of the god of fun, Dionysus.
• Jeannette is God's grace.
• Ginevra is smooth, soft.
• Julie is from the Yuli family.
• Jacqueline is a strong competitor.
• Jeanne - God's mercy.
• Giselle is my duty, my responsibility.
• Zoe is life itself.
• Ivona, Yvette - yew tree.
• Isabelle - an oath to the divine powers.
• Inessa - holiness.
• Irene - peace.
• Camila is a keeper.
• Clarice is light and bright.
• Clemens is merciful, affectionate.
• Coletta is a great winner.
• Constance - loyalty, constancy.
• Katherine is pure, pure-hearted.
• Leonie is a lioness.
• Lisette - vows made to God.
• Loretta - laurel branch.
• Louise is a glorious warrior.
• Lucy is light.
• Margot is a gem.
• Marita - little love.
• Marceline is a warrior girl.
• Matilda is a mighty warrior.
• Melina is a hard worker.
• Monica - good advice.
• Mary is loved by God.
• Nicolette is a glorious winner.
• Olivia is the tree of peace.

Kitty Melina:

• Penelope is a cunning seamstress.
• Pauletta is petite.
• Rosina, Rosalie - rose flower.
• Celeste - sublime, heavenly.
• Seraphim - fiery, fiery.
• Sybil is a predictor of the future.
• Simone - the one who heard God.
• Sophie is the embodiment of wisdom.
• Stephanie is the crown.
• Teresa is a good hunter.
• Flora is nature.
• Chloe is green.
• Chantal - rock, stone.
• Charlotte is brave, undaunted.
• Edith - fight for the best.
• Eliza - reverent.
• Helen is the light ahead.
• Elodie is a rich foreigner.
• Emily is gentle and cheerful.
• Ann is sweet and graceful.
• Estelle is a star.

Girl Chloe:

"Les Miserables"

Hugo presented the novel Les Misérables to readers in 1862, and this work became the pinnacle of the writer’s creativity. Later, a film was made based on the plot of the novel. The novel brings to the fore such social phenomena of Hugo’s modern life as poverty, hunger, the fall of women into selling love for the sake of a piece of bread, and the arbitrariness of the authorities in the person of the nobility.

Cosette is the heroine of the novel Les Misérables. Illustration by Emil Bayard

The main character of the novel, Jean Valjean, in his youth decided to steal bread from a bakery in order to save his family dying of hunger. He was caught and, despite the insignificance of the offense, tried to the fullest extent of the law. He served 19 years in prison. But even after being released, he could not live out his days in peace - everyone turned their backs on him, the man became a real outcast. However, the hero is not fixated on his misfortunes. His strength to live is supported by a bright dream of filling the fate of the homeless girl Cosette with joy.

Illustration by Gustave Brion for the novel Les Misérables, 1864

Most biographers are inclined to believe that the novel is based on real events. In 1846, Hugo witnessed a man being taken into custody for stealing a loaf of bread. Well, the writer’s thoughts and life experiences helped him develop this plot further.

Another famous story described by Master Hugo in the same novel is the story of the cheerful boy Gavroche, who died during the uprising of 1831.

Geographic nicknames

Beautiful names of French cities can also become charming nicknames:

• Paris;
• Marseilles;
• Lyon;
• Toulouse;
• Nice;
• Nantes;
• Bordeaux;
• Lille;
• Ren;
• Le Havre;
• Toulon;
• Dijon;
• Angers;
• Le Mans;
• Brest;
• Amiens;
• Orleans;
• Rouen;
• Kahn;
• Nancy;
• Ruby;
• Avignon;
• Creteil;
• Poitiers;
• Versailles;
• Colomb;
• Bezier;
• Calais;
• Drancy;
• Burj;
• Camper;

In the photo of Nancy:

• Valence;
• Sergi;
• Troyes;
• Niort;
• Beauvais;
• Cayenne;
• Cholet;
• Every;
• Bondi;
• Arles;
• Grasse;
• Laval;
• Vincennes;
• Sevran;
• Albie;
• Suresnes;
• Masi;
• Blois;
• Meudon;
• Set;
• Puteaux;
• Bastia;
• Castres;
• Arras;
• Melen;
• Reze;
• Bron;
• Poissy;
• Roan.

Little Puteaux:

Gastronomic nicknames

Look at the names of traditional French dishes that form funny nicknames for kittens:

• Bordeaux;
• Beaujolais;
• Cognac;
• Burgundy;
• Baguette;
• Croissant;
• Bree;
• Roquefort;
• Bechamel;
• Mayonnaise;
• Tapen;
• Veloute;
• Español;
• Truffle;
• Bisque;
• Ratatouille;
• Quiche;
• Eclair;
• Meringue;
• Profiterole;
• Macaron;
• Canele.

Kitten Roquefort:

Victor Hugo and his success

When Hugo turned 17, he and his brother Abel began publishing the magazine “Literary Conservative”. Its title spoke eloquently about the content of the publication. The collection of his own poems “Odes,” which he published in 1822, helped the young author to finally gain a foothold on the literary Olympus. From that moment on, Hugo became a recognized poet of France.

Hugo's books were a striking example of romanticism, they almost always contained political and social aspects, while Lord Byron's English romanticism was expressed in works that placed the human personality on a pedestal.

Mythological names

Names from French myths and legends are also interesting:

• Anku is the messenger of death.
• Arassa is half cat and half lizard.
• Werewolf - wolf man.
• Dahu is a mythical mountain ungulate.
• Deep is one hell of a dog.
• Kludde is a werewolf who turns into a wolf, cat, horse, raven.
• Krion is a cruel spirit.
• Luten is a mischievous creature of the night.
• Olano is half dog and half horse.

Arassa with the owner:

Hugo's parents

The Hugo family was wealthy; in Beznason they had a large three-story mansion at their disposal. The head of the family, Leopold Hugo, came from the peasant class, but the revolution gave him a chance to prove himself. And he took full advantage of it. Having started his career as an officer in the Napoleonic army, the father of the future writer became a supporter of Bonaparte, and then rose to the rank of general. Due to the service of Hugo Sr., the family constantly moved from place to place: Italy, Spain, France, the Mediterranean islands, Tuscany - the whole family followed Leopold Hugo to his new duty stations. These travels made indelible impressions on young Victor; in the future they will be reflected in his books.

Very little information has been preserved about the writer’s mother. All that is known for certain is that Sophie Trebuchet came from the family of a shipowner.

Famous names

Maybe you want to name a cat after a French celebrity:

• Alexandr Duma;
• Alain Delon;
• Amanda Lear;
• Anatole France;
• Andre Maginot;
• Antoine de Saint-Exupery;
• Brigitte Bardot;
• Vanessa Paradis;
• Victor Hugo;
• Jacques-Yves Cousteau;
• Jacques Chirac;
• Jean-Paul Belmondo;
• Jean-Paul Gaultier;
• Jean-Paul Marat;
• Jean Reno;
• Joan of Arc;
• Georges Pompidou;
• Jules Verne;
• Yves Saint Laurent;
• Catherine Deneuve;
• Coco Chanel;
• Christian Dior;
• Laetitia Casta;
• Louis de Funes;
• Louis Pasteur;
• Luc Besson;
• Maximilian Robespierre;
• Marina Vladi;
• Mylene Farmer;
• Mireille Mathieu;
• Napoleon Bonaparte;
• Natalie Portman;
• Audrey Tautou;
• Patricia Kaas;
• Pierre Beaumarchais;
• Pierre Cardin;
• Pierre Richard;
• Rene Descartes;
• Sarah Bernhardt;
• Frederic Chopin;
• Charles Aznavour;
• Charles de Gaulle;
• Edith Piaf;
• Emile Zola;
• Hubert Givenchy.

Richard himself: