May 16, 1703

The story, for reasons which have have never been clear to me, is adored by the French. Their Charles Perrault (January 12,1628 to May 16, 1703) did not invent the story, but his is the form most familiar to children and adults. Perrault’s book, Le Maître Chat/[or] Le Chat Botté (Master Cat/The Booted Cat), in the title, points out the theme: the cat is the boss. 

Here is an assortment of portrayals of the eponymous feline.


























Was the story popular as a "world turned upside down" thing? Were the French showing the first symptoms of toxoplasmosis? Or--  were felines, as the stories of Richelieu's cats suggest, the real, power under the table.