Palais-Royal is a palace in Paris built by Cardinal Richelieu and bequeathed to the crown. In 1648 it is the residence of the regent Anne of Austria and Cardinal Mazarin, and so the nerve center of power in France.
The edicts that Parliament rejects are issued here, secret negotiations with foreign powers are conducted, and the war with Spain that bleeds the kingdom is run. When the parliamentary Fronde breaks out in August 1648 and Paris raises barricades, the palace is virtually besieged.
Access is restricted: guards, chamberlains and spies fill the antechambers, and reaching Mazarin requires mediation or audacity. Booksellers, artisans and the curious frequent its arcades, gardens and galleries. The tension between the palace and the streets is the political axis of the gesta (campaign-cycle) of Saint-Germain.