# Citizen Rateau — The League of the Scarlet Pimpernel character guide

> Citizen Rateau in The League of the Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Rateau, the man Rateau

**First appearance:** 0001-i

## Snapshot

A wheezing, quarrelsome patriot who schemes with his cronies over an heiress's fortune, a small man whose bluster hides how little he controls.

## Who they are

Rateau is the kind of revolutionary the Terror produced in quantity — loud, self-important, and quick to remind his comrades that they owe their chances to his cleverness. He coughs and splutters in the cold air, clings to a stronger man for support, and argues that his lottery scheme saved them all from broken heads. His petty plotting over the ci-devant millionairess shows how the Revolution's grand ideals curdle into squalid opportunism, and he gives the novel its grubby, human texture.

## Relationships

### [Citizen Chauvelin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/characters/citizen_chauvelin)

_professional_

Chauvelin and Rateau are close colleagues in the revolutionary secret police, working together on surveillance and arrests.

### [Citizen Chauvelin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/characters/citizen_chauvelin)

_professional_

Chauvelin and Rateau are close colleagues in the revolutionary secret police, working together on surveillance and arrests.

### [Citizen Chauvelin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/characters/citizen_chauvelin)

_professional_

Chauvelin and Rateau are close colleagues in the revolutionary secret police, working together on surveillance and arrests.

## In the story

### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/chapters/i)

Backs Merri in the game; a cadaverous man with a bad cough.

### [Chapter II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/chapters/ii)

A wretched, coughing accomplice who claims credit for suggesting the drawing of lots and demands a share of the spoils from Merri.

### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/chapters/iv)

Rateau is a consumptive, cadaverous accomplice of Merri who assists in the raid and knocks Kennard unconscious with a weighted stick.

### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/chapters/v)

Consumptive ruffian who guards Esther, taunts Kennard, and expertly binds him.

### [VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/chapters/vi)

The execrable brigand who forces Lucienne to fetch eau-de-vie and later carries Esther away.

### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/chapters/iii)

Found asleep and drunk in the tavern, described as a bloated wretch.

### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/chapters/ii)

One of the recruited ruffians who disappears with a heavy bundle, suspected of stealing the diamonds.

### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/chapters/iii)

The thief being pursued; he is tall, stooping, has a consumptive cough, and carries a cumbersome bundle.

### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/chapters/iv)

The quarry, a consumptive giant who uses evasive tactics to elude his pursuers.

### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/chapters/v)

The quarry being followed; carries a bundle, whistles, and eventually throws it into a boat before being captured without resistance.

### [VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/chapters/vii)

A workman who left five gold pieces at the cabaret before disappearing, never to be seen again.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/characters/citizen_rateau
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_league_of_the_scarlet_pimpernel_se/characters