Rameau called Les Paladins a comédie lyrique, putting it in the same category as his earlier work Platée.
In her 2014 biography of the composer, the Rameau specialist Sylvie Bouissou inclines slightly to the belief it was Pierre-Jacques, given his greater experience of writing for the theatre.
[1] The plot is based on a verse tale by La Fontaine, Le petit chien qui secoue de l'argent et des pierreries, itself derived from an episode in Ludovico Ariosto's Orlando Furioso.
Atis and his fellow paladins arrive disguised as pilgrims; he intends to carry Argie away with him on a pilgrimage of love.
Scene: The same as Act 2 The paladins are celebrating their success when Anselme appears with a group of armed followers.