The Scarlet Pimpernel is an Experience! I'm also pretty sure that when Orczy wrote the first book, she had not yet decided that Chauvelin was a little tiny bit Nemesis Dreamy; you can tell when she changes her mind because suddenly Chauvelin has a noble background that he's renounced for the Revolution and there's tons of More Evil Frenchmen popping up to make him look good by comparison.