Gargamelle (3 syl., g hard)
was the wife of Grangousier, and daughter of the king of the Parpaillons (butterflies). On the day that she gave birth to Gargantua she ate sixteen quarters, two bushels, three pecks, and a pipkin of dirt, the mere remains left in the tripe which she had for supper; for, as the proverb says—
A tithe of filth will still remain.”
Gargamelle. Said to be meant for Anne of Brittany. She was the mother of Gargantua, in the satirical romance of Gargantua and Pantagruelʹ, by Rabelais. Motteux, who makes “Pantagruel” to be Anthony de Bourbon, and “Gargantua” to be Henri dʹAlbert, says “Gargamelle” is designed for Catherine de Foix, Queen of Navarre. (Rabelais, i. 4.)
