Mobile Toilets of French Nobility

There were special toilet-related phenomena in the history of French nobility that can be regarded as akin to 'mobile toilets'.

During the Middle Ages and the reign of Louis XIV, the toilet habits of French noblewomen were quite unique. They used an oval-shaped chamber pot called a 'bourdaloue', which was often made of silver or fine porcelain and adorned with floral carvings, making it a luxury item. When using it, noblewomen would stand, lift their skirts, and hold the chamber pot between their knees while continuing to converse calmly. This portable chamber pot could be seen as a 'mobile toilet' exclusive to noblewomen, meeting their needs in social situations where it was inconvenient to go to a fixed toilet location.

In the Palace of Versailles during the reign of Louis XIV, the situation was even more peculiar. There were no dedicated toilets or restrooms in the palace at that time, yet the royal family, nobles, and others living there numbered over thirty thousand. When these people needed to relieve themselves, they would simply find a corner, such as beside a corridor, at a staircase landing, near a fireplace, or in a dark room. The entire palace seemed to turn into a giant 'public toilet'. Although this way of relieving oneself anywhere lacked the traditional 'mobile toilet' apparatus, from the perspective of behavior and setting, it was a large-scale, non-fixed 'mobile' toilet phenomenon.

In addition, there were even dirtier scenes related to 'mobile toilets' among medieval European noblewomen. They would hide chamber pots under their skirts and relieve themselves anywhere. Since their skirts dragged on the ground, they were like moving mops sweeping through streets filled with excrement as they walked. This not only reflected the poor sanitary conditions at the time but also showed a form of association between this uncivilized toilet habit and the concept of 'mobile toilets', although this method was extremely unhygienic and uncivilized.