# Ambrose de Lamela — Gil Blas character guide > Ambrose de Lamela in Gil Blas by Alain-René Lesage. **Role:** supporting **Also known as:** Ambrose, Lamela, Señor de Lamela, brother Ambrose **First appearance:** 0010-vii ## Snapshot A smooth-tongued monk whose piety is a costume and whose ambition makes him a formidable rival in Gil Blas's climb. ## Who they are Ambrose de Lamela operates from within the church, using the authority of the cloth to advance himself and to check Gil Blas's progress. His cunning is the more unsettling for its respectable disguise, and his rivalry forces Gil Blas to reckon with enemies who fight with rosaries rather than rapiers. He embodies the novel's satirical eye on clerical hypocrisy and the uses of religion as a ladder. ## Relationships ### [Don Raphael](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/characters/don_raphael) _friendship_ Ambrose de Lamela and Don Raphael are fellow rogues and partners in crime, sharing a bond of mutual cunning and adventure. ### [Gil Blas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/characters/gil_blas) _friendship_ Ambrose de Lamela and Gil Blas are friends and occasional co-conspirators, sharing a history of roguish adventures. ### [Don Raphael](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/characters/don_raphael) _friendship_ Ambrose de Lamela and Don Raphael are fellow rogues and partners in crime, sharing a bond of mutual cunning and adventure. ### [Don Raphael](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/characters/don_raphael) _friendship_ Ambrose de Lamela and Don Raphael are fellow rogues and partners in crime, sharing a bond of mutual cunning and adventure. ### [Gil Blas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/characters/gil_blas) _friendship_ Ambrose de Lamela and Gil Blas are friends and occasional co-conspirators, sharing a history of roguish adventures. ### [Gil Blas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/characters/gil_blas) _friendship_ Ambrose de Lamela and Gil Blas are friends and occasional co-conspirators, sharing a history of roguish adventures. ## In the story ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/i) Gil Blas's uncle, a canon who raises him and finances his journey to Salamanca. ### [XV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/xv) Hired by Gil Blas as a servant; a Galician of simple and godly appearance who claims to be content with whatever wages he is given. ### [XVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/xvi) Gil Blas's servant, suspected of betraying his master's secrets to the impostors. ### [XVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/xvii) Mentioned as having stolen Gil Blas's mules overnight. ### [Chapter I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/i) The licentiate Sédillo, a canon with gout and other ailments; employs Gil Blas and is influenced by Dame Jacintha. ### [The Meeting of Diego with His Family](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/ix) Referred to as Thomas de la Fuenta, the schoolmaster and Diego's uncle; author of the tragedy and organizer of the prize ceremony. ### [VIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/viii) Likely the 'little fellow of forty' who is the magician; described as forbidding, filthy, and deformed, he gains private access to the marchioness. ### [XI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/xi) Revealed as the younger hermit (Brother Antony); serves as Gil Blas's former squire and acts as lookout for the group. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/ii) Scouts the bandits' camp and reports back; proposes heading to Requena to continue their trade. ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/i) Mastermind of the plan to impersonate an inquisitor and extort money from Samuel Simon. ### [Chapter II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/ii) Ambrose de Lamela accompanies Don Raphael, attempting to persuade Gil Blas and Don Alphonso to stay, and later leaves for Segorba to pursue more dishonest ventures. ### [IX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/ix) The old monk who claims to be an alchemist and physiognomist; demonstrates his elixir and reads Gil Blas's palm, warning of the misery of his knowledge. ### [The employment of Gil Blas in Don Galiano's household](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/xv) The Neapolitan steward who is dismissed after Gil Blas exposes his theft; later replaced by Gil Blas. ### [Chapter VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/vii) Mentioned as a comparison; Gil Blas rejects a pious-looking servant because he reminds him of Lamela. ### [XIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/xiii) Mentioned as a former acquaintance; Gil Blas reflects that the friendship of a poet is not worth preserving. ### [VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/chapters/vi) Now a Carthusian brother named Brother Ambrose, who recounts the story of his and Don Raphael's conversion. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/characters/ambrose_de_lamela - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/gil_blas_se/characters