The "tabouret" was even more highly valued. It consisted of the right for a woman or girl to sit on a stool or "ployant" (folding seat), in the presence of the king or queen. Whereas the queen had her throne, the "filles de France" and "petite-filles" their armchairs, and "princesses du sang" were entitled to cushioned seats with hard backs, duchesses whose husbands were peers sat, gowned and bejewelled, in a semicircle around the queen and lesser royalties on low, unsteady stools without any back support — and reckoned themselves fortunate among the women of France.