Baron Gouraud

A senator before whom everyone bowed and scraped.
He was 78 years old and was made a baron by Napoleon I for supplying the grand army with “spoiled” rations. He had been a peer under various kings before becoming a senator in the current regime. He would do whatever was needed to have power. He was an influential member of the municipal council of Paris and involved in giving the approval to Saccard's various property dealings. He lived a life of debauchery and had “an enormous belly, bovine face and elephantine gait”. Despite his age and looks he still manages to bed Mme Michelin who was trying to get a decoration for her husband. (A quest in which she succeeded).