In 18th- an 19th-century Venice, the cicisbeo (pronounced [ˌtʃitʃizˈbeo]; plural: cicisbei), or Cavalier Servente, was the professed gallant and lover of a married woman, who attended her at public entertainments, to church and other occasions and had privileged access to his mistress. The arrangement is comparable to the Spanish cortejo and, to a lesser degree, to the French petit-maître. The exact etymology of the word is unknown, some evidence suggests it originally meant "in a whisper" (perhaps an onomatopeic word), some suggests it is an inversion of bel cece , "beautiful chick (pea)". According to OED, the first recorded usage of the term in English is found in a letter by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu dated 1718.