12. Each Social Group Had Its Own Slang and Organization
The social structures and hierarchies within the Court of Miracles were clearly delineated, to the extent that some of the “classes” within the slums began to resemble their autonomous societies. Some of the classes, such as thieves, had clear leadership and coordinated direction between tenements. Others even developed their own unique slang language that would be used to communicate without other slum residents being able to understand.
The beggars had a clear and rigid hierarchy, with the names of the officers coming from the beggars’ slang itself. The equivalent of the king of the beggars was originally called the ragot, but later became known as the chef-coërsre. The chef-coërsre was served by assistants called ducs. Below the ducs were the archissupots. The archissupots were former students of the beggars’slang who took on the role of teaching the slang to newly initiated beggars.
The existence of the slang is preserved in modern knowledge thanks to the incredibly detailed accounts of historian Henri Savaul. His depictions of the day to day life of the Court’s residents included diagraming the hierarchies of how the societies operated, including the slang languages unique to various groups. It is interesting to note that the poorest of France’s residents constructed social classes as rigid and elaborate as those in shining Versailles who lived at their expense.