"Dépenses communes de Monsieur Toto et de Mme Juju"

Autograph manuscript by Juliette Drouet, entitled “General income for the year 1839” “General expenditure for the year 1839” (verso). Two pages in ink on one leaf.
Folds, blind stamp “Bath” in the upper left corner. Two small tears filled in, tiny holes barely visible.

A precious manuscript in the hand of Juliette Drouet, listing her expenses for 1839, a crucial year during which she gave up theater for good and became entirely dependent on her famous lover.
As was her custom at the end of each year, Drouet put her affairs in order, drew up columns and figures, compared her monthly income, and listed her expenses on the reverse: “food and wine,” ‘toiletries, maintenance, and perfumes,' ‘heating'... Of course, it was the ‘shared expenses of Monsieur Toto and Mme Juju, including travel' that cost her the most. From September to October, the two lovers traveled through Germany, Switzerland, and the south of France. They visited the Toulon prison, a decisive event in the genesis of Les Misérables, where Hugo noted in his notebook the first draft of the name of his future hero, “Jean Tréjean.”

After being rejected for the role of the queen in Ruy Blas the previous year, it is clear from her correspondence with Toto that Juliette still wanted to become a “great actress” and retain her independence. Hugo refused, and that year, they ended up celebrating a spiritual marriage, without a mediator or witnesses, on the night of November 17-18. Their union sealed her fate as a reclusive lover, and this account summary sums up her total dependence: apart from the meager sum she earned from “theater [...] bric-a-brac sold” (probably the sale of her costumes, since she was no longer acting), all of her income came from “money earned by my beloved.” : 7,304 francs, 3 sous, and half a liard. The calculations reveal Juliette's sad situation, ending the year with a deficit of 15 francs.
This fascinating document is a unique archive revealing the underside of this passionate relationship at the fateful moment when the prominent actress agreed to devote her life to the most famous writer of her time.