Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Marquise de Pompadour

"Ah, but the French ones can have a certain charm. Did I ever tell you the story of Madame Reinette? That wasn't her real name..."

- Christopher Gist to Shay Cormac and Haytham Kenway, 1758.

Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Marquise de Pompadour, better known as Madame de Pompadour, or Reinette, (29 December 1721 – 15 April 1764), was a member of the French royal court and the official chief mistress of Louis XV from 1745 to her death.

In 1749, Pompadour accompanied Louis on a trip to Le Havre, since she wished to see the ocean. As predicted by local businesswoman and Templar Magdelaine Lévesque, the visit proved disastrous for the city's economy.

That same year, Jean Henri Latude sent Pompadour a vial of poison, followed by a letter warning her of the poison. Having invented a false conspiracy against her, Latude intended to use this to gain favor with Pompadour and receive a payment for warning her. Instead however, she had him imprisoned.