Bastion Saint-Gervais Breakfast

The Bastion Saint-Gervais Breakfast stands as one of the most audacious and strategically layered episodes in the La Rochelle campaign. What began as a tavern wager became the crucible in which the four friends, isolated from the camp and exposed to enemy fire, forged the plan that would ultimately lead to Milady's downfall. The event simultaneously cemented their reputation as daredevils and provided the cover they needed to confer in secret, all under the amused and then calculating eye of Cardinal Richelieu.

The Wager and Its Setting

The morning after d'Artagnan had survived an assassination attempt in the trenches, the four friends found themselves at the inn of the Parpaillot, surrounded by soldiers of various corps. Athos, perceiving that the crowded room made private conversation impossible, proposed a wager to Monsieur de Busigny and three other officers: that he and his three companions would go and breakfast in the bastion St. Gervais and remain there for a full hour, regardless of enemy action. The stake was an unlimited dinner for eight. The proposal was accepted with enthusiasm, and the four friends, followed by Grimaud carrying a basket of provisions, set out across the open plain toward the bastion, watched by more than three hundred soldiers assembled at the gate of the camp.

Occupation of the Bastion and the Secret Council

Upon entering the bastion, the friends found it occupied only by a dozen corpses, French and Rochellais. Athos immediately assumed command, directing Grimaud to spread the table while the four of them collected the guns and cartridges left by the dead. As they loaded the muskets, they began to speak freely, knowing the walls had no ears. It was here that Athos revealed the critical intelligence: he had seen Milady the previous night at the inn of the Red Dovecot, where she had obtained from Cardinal Richelieu a signed carte blanche authorizing her to do whatever she deemed necessary for the good of the state. Athos had confronted her and taken the document, but the danger was far from over. The four friends debated their options—whether to inform the queen, to send word to Lord de Winter, or to take more direct action—and ultimately decided to dispatch Planchet to London with a warning to Lord de Winter about Milady's intentions, and Bazin to Tours with a coded message to Marie Michon.

The Defense of the Bastion

The council was interrupted by the approach of enemy troops. First came sixteen pioneers and four soldiers, whom Athos attempted to dismiss with a courteous speech from the breach. When they opened fire, the four friends replied with deadly accuracy, killing three soldiers and wounding one pioneer. A second volley felled the brigadier and two more pioneers, sending the rest fleeing. A larger force of twenty to twenty-five soldiers of the garrison then advanced. The friends fired in disciplined volleys, killing four with the first salvo and continuing to fire as the enemy pressed forward. When the survivors reached the ditch and prepared to scale the breach, Athos ordered the final stroke: the four friends, aided by Grimaud, pushed an enormous sheet of the wall down upon the attackers, crushing most of them. Only three or four limped away toward the city.

Aftermath and Cardinal's Response

Having held the bastion for an hour and a half, the four friends withdrew in triumph, their white flag—a napkin tied to a half-pike—still flying. The camp erupted in cheers, and the news reached Cardinal Richelieu, who sent La Houdiniere to inquire. Upon learning the names of the participants—Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and d'Artagnan—the cardinal murmured, "Still my three brave fellows!" and "Still my young scapegrace." That evening, he spoke to Monsieur de Treville and, as a reward, ordered that d'Artagnan be transferred from the Guards to the Musketeers, declaring, "When four men are so much attached to one another, it is only fair that they should serve in the same company." The napkin itself was to be embroidered with three golden fleur-de-lis and given to the company as a standard. The event thus accomplished both its overt purpose—winning glory and a promotion—and its covert one: the four friends had secured the time and privacy to lay the groundwork for their campaign against Milady.