A secret society established around 1627-29 by an “associate” of Gaston D’Orléans, one of the chief frondeurs (see Lorraine, house of). The Compagnie’s goals were never clear, but members claimed to share a portentous “secret” that “shape[d] the spirit of the Compagnie.” Cardinal Mazarin vowed to destroy the order, and Louis XIV ordered its dissolution in 1660. In 1665 the Compagnie declared it could no longer exist in its “present” form, at which point it allegedly dissolved. All documents pertaining to its mission were concealed in a secret archive somewhere, probably St. Sulpice, the Compagnie’s rumored base of operations. The members, goals and motives of the society remain a mystery, but the order supported Nicholas Fouquet during his trial.