The Mysteries of Udolpho

Valancourt rues the mistakes he made in Paris. He and Emily meet again. Emily bids him farewell but hopes he will recover his esteem in his own eyes. Emily is torn between her reason and her deep affection for Valancourt. Valancourt departs the chateau, and Emily collapses in tears.

Back at Udolpho, Montoni is livid at Emily’s escape, but has bigger problems to solve. The authorities at Venice have ordered a large army to march to the castle, suspecting Montoni’s wrongdoings. One of the young officers—who seems to bear Montoni a grudge—tells the minister the operation to seize Udolpho has to be covert because of the size of Montoni’s forces. His forces conduct a sneak attack on Montoni’s garrison and arrest Montoni and Orsino. Morano had tipped off the authorities that Orsino was hiding at Udolpho.

In Languedoc, the kindness of the count and Blanche helps Emily cope with her grief at losing Valancourt. Dorothee finally tells Emily about the deceased Marchioness. The Marchioness had been in love with another man, but her father forced her to marry the Marquis. The Marchioness continued to pine for her first love. The jealous Marquis treated his wife badly and she eventually took sick. Dorothee recalls her face turned black before she died. After his wife’s death, the Marquis left Chateau-la-Blanc for the north of France. Dorothee does not reveal the identity of the chevalier whom the Marchioness loved. Emily wishes to see the chambers where the Marchioness died. Dorothee promises Emily that she will take her to the chambers the following night.

Dorothee takes Emily to the Marchioness’s chambers. The atmosphere is spooky, and Dorothee and Emily get startled by strange noises in the gloomy suite. Dorothee shows Emily a portrait of the Marchioness, when she was “all blooming, like you” (805). Emily realizes she does look like the deceased lady. Dorothee covers Emily with the veil the Marchioness wore the night before her death and is struck by her resemblance to her late mistress. Emily discards the veil and takes out a lute from the Marchioness’s closet. She notices the cover on the Marchioness’s bed move. The apparition of a human rises above the cover, making Emily and Dorothee scream in terror. They flee to Emily’s apartment and discuss the strange phenomenon. Emily soothes Dorothee, saying that the events probably have a rational explanation. Annette, who has heard of the events, is terrified and insists on spending the night in Emily’s room.

Though Emily asks Annette to refrain from talking about the apparition, rumors about the chateau being haunted spread among the servants. The count forbids any talk on the subject. The count’s friend, Baron de Saint Foix, visits with his son, the Chevalier St. Foix. The Chevalier courts Blanche. There is merrymaking and joy in the air, which reminds Emily of her own heartbreak. She gets away by walking alone about the grounds. Emily begins hearing mysterious music again, and spots a strange figure pass her by. On her return to the chateau, she hears someone moan outside her apartments. The strange occurrences pile up, with Annette telling Emily a maid saw an apparition disappear at the doors of the Marchioness’s suite. Ludovico offers to keep watch inside the suite that night.

The count hears of Ludovico’s watch and asks him to ensure that after tonight, all rumors of an apparition are laid to rest. Ludovico promises the count “no sceptre shall disturb the peace of the chateau” (825) henceforth. The count and Henri escort Ludovico to the suite; Ludovico settles in the drawing room of the suite with a book of Provencal tales. Meanwhile, the count discusses the ridiculousness of believing in ghosts at dinner.

After retiring to his rooms, the count also hears the strange music, but dismisses it. Ludovico reads a story about a baron. In the story, a mysterious knight asks the baron to meet him in the woods. In the forest, the knight shows the baron the corpse of a murdered man. The corpse turns out to be that of the knight. The spirit of the knight has summoned the baron to bury the body and punish his murderers. The baron has the body interred respectfully in the chapel of his castle.

Ludovico finishes the tale and falls asleep. As he sleeps, he thinks he sees a man’s face staring at him. The apparition vanishes and Ludovico rests.

Eager to know what transpired in the chambers, the count knocks at the suite in the morning. Ludovico does not answer; the count presumes he is in a deep slumber. Emily finds a poem carved on the stone tower near the chateau on her walk. She believes the poem is written for her by Valancourt. Emily longs for Valancourt, even though Du Pont continues to be in love with her. The count encourages Du Pont to keep visiting Emily and not give up hope.

Since the doors to the suite are still locked, the count and his servants force them open. Ludovico has vanished from the room. Terror spreads through the chateau, with the Baron St. Foix convinced the apparitions are real. Except for the baron, his son, and Emily, all other guests leave the chateau. Ludovico is still missing a week later. The count decides to keep watch himself in the Marchioness’s chambers one night.

When Du Pont drops in for a visit, Emily leaves for the convent to avoid him. Emily discusses the events at the chateau with the nuns. The nuns are convinced the chateau is haunted. A nun called Agnes, who has been quiet till this point, keeps interrupting the conversation with a “mixture of wildness and solemnity in her manner” (857). Emily is later told Agnes may have a mental health condition and often talks about sin and punishment.