Empress Eugénie, wife of Napoleon III (1826-1920)

[Grace Angel]

Eugenie was quite fashionable, although her life was rather sad as her she lost her throne, and had to leave France (though it wasn't her native country), her marriage wasn't always the happiest, and her son died tragically young. But she out survived it all, and she lived in England and was friends with Queen Victoria in her later years. In some ways, she was rather low status (only nobility) for someone of the Emperor Napoleon III's status to marry, although it's true that the Bonapartes were a new dynasty.

[silverstar]

Empress Eugenie
painting by Winterhalter.....1853



History seems to always repeat itself...
Marie Antoinette and her family dramatically fled the Tuileries Palace in what became known as the ...
"flight to Varrens...." sadly they did nt escape France to safety.

In 1870 ... the Emperor... Louis Napoleon was out in the field where the French armies were facing
an onslaught from the Prussians.
Defeat followed defeat and Louis was captured and imprisoned in Germany.
The mood in Paris changed.... and became violently anti monarchy...

Eugenie, living in the Tuileries Palace, realized the danger she was in and decided to flee.....
She travelled in a horse drawn coach and after much travail she reached the safety of England....
Her fate was so unlike her predecessor... Marie Antoinette who nearly 80 years before ....
fled Paris only to be captured and returned to the Tuileries Palace.
Louis was released by the Germans and joined Eugenie in England. They lived together in some style
in a house full of servants....
Sadly Louis died after a couple of years leaving Eugenie a widow living with her son in exile.

[silverstar]

Maybe the 2nd Empire can be seen as an Indian Summer for the
French Monarchy..... before the final curtain.
Louis was not a direct heir of Napoleon..... merely
the great man's nephew.
He was however a direct heir of Josephine ! who was of course his maternal grandmother !

[Lucrezia]

The Second Empire an Indian Summer for the French Monarchy? In a transferred sense?

[Lenora]

Does Eugenie have any descendants today?

[MAfan]

She doesn't have any living descendants, as her only child predeceased her, and was childless.
But there's a famous great-great-great niece of hers living today, namely the Duchess of Alba (descendant of Eugenie's sister Maria Francisca).

[HarwichMayflower]

I have just inherited a previously unknown hand-painted miniature by Mayer & Pierson of Paris which shows the beautiful Empress when she was around 18-years of age. It is inside a lovely polished bronze antique frame. On the back of the miniature it has the the Mayer & Pierson crest and name and in French that they were photographers to the Emperor. There is also a Passy - Paris oval stamp.

Researching on the Internet I see that all Mayer & Pierson artwork is very collectable. Does anybody know where I should take it to obatin a good price?

many thanks

[Russophile]

Have it appraised first then perhaps, Sotheby's. Or another auction house that is scheduled to sell in items in the same time period or reign.