Coupé

## Overview

A coupé (from French couper, to cut) is an enclosed horse-drawn carriage with a fixed roof, seating for two passengers, and a coachman's seat outside. The name indicates that it is "cut" — a shortened version of a larger coach, typically with only one interior compartment and a single door on each side.

## Description

Key features: - Enclosed body with fixed roof and glass windows - Seating for two passengers facing forward - Coachman on an elevated front box seat - Four wheels, compact design - Suitable for city use and private travel - Also used for first-class train compartments (a "coupé" in a railway carriage)

## Social Significance

The coupé was a respectable, practical carriage — more discreet than the open calèche, more intimate than the larger landau. It was associated with city driving, bad-weather travel, and occasions where display was less important than comfort and privacy. A "voiture fermée" (closed carriage) like a coupé could also mean discreet travel — Marie notes Gioia traveling "en voiture fermée avec un homme" in an early entry.

## Marie's Usage

- 1874-06-01 (carnet 020): Coupé as private city carriage - 1874-06-11 (carnet 020): Spotting "le prince noir dans un coupé" - 1874-09-16 (carnet 024): "Le capitaine nous retient un coupé" — reserving a coupé for travel - 1874-09-30 (carnet 024): Railway coupé — private first-class train compartment - 1878-01-01 (carnet 077): Paul comically stuck in a coupé — "ses jambes et sa tête étaient déjà dans le vestibule quand ses pieds n'étaient que sous la banquette" - 1881-06-16 (carnet 092): "coupe" carriage

## Related Terms

- *Voiture fermée — closed carriage (generic term) - Fiacre — hired cab (could be a coupé in form) - Landau — larger, with folding hoods - Calèche* — open carriage