E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
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—
1
“Scrape tripe as clean as e’er you can,
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 Pantagruel’, by Rabelais. Motteux, who makes “Pantagruel” to be Anthony de Bourbon, and “Gargantua” to be Henri d’Albert, says “Gargamelle” is designed for Catherine de Foix, Queen of Navarre. (Rabelais, i. 4.)
