After extensive Google-fu, I've compiled as much information as I can find on the French police bureaucracy during Les Miserablès and specifically, Javert's mysterious patron, M. Chabouillet. If anyone cares to add to this post, please do; I can't read a word of French, and aside from the almanacs, I haven't dug into any original documents from that time period. Most of my conclusions regarding the police hierarchy are from papers written in the mid-to-late 1800s, which saw great changes in the Paris bureaucracy.

( Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Chabouillet )

( Miscellaneous Interesting Information )

( Contributions From Anonymous )

( References and Further Reading )