L Art de Régner

L’Art de Régner is a tragi-comedy by Gillet de La Tessonerie, first published in 1645. It is unusual in that structurally each of its five acts is a separate playlet. The sub-title, Le Sage Gouverneur, refers to the role of a royal tutor, probably meant to be the duc de Bassompierre, to whom the play is dedicated. Each playlet is prefaced by a lesson from the tutor, and the complete play is concluded by the young prince’s words of gratitude for his dramatic education.