#Napoleon’s mistress

[empirearchives]

Madame de Rémusat on Marie Walewska:

This extraordinary wooing did not, however, prevent the young Polish lady [Marie] from becoming attached to the Emperor, for their liaison was prolonged during several campaigns. Afterwards the fair Pole came to Paris, where a son was born, who became the object of the hopes of Poland, the rallying point of Polish dreams of independence.

I saw his mother when she was presented at the Imperial Court, where she at first excited the jealousy of Madame Bonaparte; but after the divorce she became the intimate friend of the repudiated Empress at Malmaison, whither she often brought her son. It is said that she was faithful to the Emperor in his misfortunes, and that she visited him more than once at the Isle of Elba. He found her again in France, when he made his last and fatal appearance there. But, after his second fall (I do not know at what time she became a widow), she married again, and she died in Paris this year (1818). I had these details from M. de Talleyrand.

Source: Memoirs of Madame de Rémusat vol. i. p. 20-21

[murillo-enthusiast]

Why do I get the feeling that you really like MILFS

I don’t believe you could describe me that way. — Louise Soult-Berg

Nonsense. You are the mother of my children and my beloved. And you shouldn’t be reading my correspondence.

Why not, dear?

I would never presume to tell you what to do. And you may if you wish.

[vulupture]

I can't believe they turned my OCs into white, 18th century emperors.

[ilhoonftw]

it's official, period fantasy mangakas run out of western european names 😔

[floatyflowers]

Dark! Napoleon Bonaparte x Reader

You are Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI's daughter who was sent away before getting captured or beheaded like your family.

Honestly, you wanted to forget about everything that happened, and move on.

However, that unfortunately was impossible especially when Napoleon Bonaparte became the emperor of France.

Napoleon invited you to come back to court, assuring that you will be safe under his protection.

You hesitantly agree, praying that it's not a trap.

And surprisingly, it wasn't, Napoleon received you in his court with a smile and open arms, not caring about the opinions of others about that matter.

The reason for Napoleon's passion towards you is because he saw a painting of you and immediately became obsessed.

When you found out that the French emperor plans on making you his mistress.

You planned to escape, not wanting to be put in a scandalous position.

However, during your escape in the middle of the night, trying to leave the palace with your servants.

You didn't expect to see Napoleon waiting for you at the exit with his soldiers.

He only smiles at you upon seeing your frightened expression.

"I do not remember giving you permission to leave, my dear"

[napoleonic-sexyman-tournament]

All the propaganda is under the cut. It's long for both of them:

Alexander I Pavlovich:

a. “Maybe not the most handsome or charismatic man in this tournament, but he has ample chaotic neutral energy that both baffles and fascinates contemporaries. In short, if you're into mysterious men, you won't find a sexier enigma than our imperator.”

b. “Look. Is this or is this not the monsterfucking website.”

c. There are lots of monuments dedicated to him. There's one in Moscow in the Alexander Garden right by the Red Square. While nowhere near as grand as the Alexander Column, I think it's still worth showcasing!

The monument is meant to celebrate his victory in the 1812 Russian invasion. He's holding a sword, proudly standing on top of his enemies' weapon.

The sculptors, however, have never seen the man in their life - all the people involved in the making are still alive and well (i think), so that should tell how new it is. The monument was opened for the public just a decade ago in 2014.

d. quote about this bust from the memoirs of Sophie de Choiseul-Gouffier: “No painter was able to properly capture the features of his face and especially his soft expression. Alexander didn’t like to pose for portraits and they were mostly done with some stealth. In this case sculpture have produced a better likeness. The famed Thorvaldsen made a bust of this sovereign worthy of a hand of such a remarkable artist.”

e. His family nickname might have been ‘our angel’ and the medal commemorating his death bears the inscription “Our angel is in heaven”, but did you know that to this day Alexander looks down on Sankt Petersburg as an actual angel, wings, cross, trampled snake and all? Alas, you cannot see it from the ground, the Alexander Column being so very tall, but the statue of the angel on top certainly seems to take after our sexy thrice-angel Emperor.

f. Apotheosis of Alexander! An eminently universal image, perfectly serviceable for his rise to the throne… of Napoleonic Sexyman Tournament.

It really looks like Peter and Catherine are instructing the Electorate. Gentlevoters, surely you wouldn’t dream of disappointing Sasha’s Grandmother and his scantily clothed giant of a Great-great-grandfather?

g. What is sexier than a man in a dress???

Thomas-Alexandre Dumas

a. “mustache”

b. “Tall! Daring! Swashbuckling! A devoted husband and father! Had a personal conflict with Napoleon! Also it was said he could, while holding onto a bar above his head, LIFT A HORSE WITH HIS THIGHS. How is he not on this list ten times already! Vote for General Dumas!”

c. “He was so hot that he inspired The Three Musketeers, The Count of Monte Cristo, and many more books that his son, Alexandre Dumas, wrote. He definitely looked the part of a sexyman, as he son recounts in his memoirs: "My father, as already stated, was twenty-four, and as handsome a young fellow as could be found anywhere. His complexion was dark, his eyes of a rich chestnut colour […]. His teeth were white, his lips mobile, his neck well set on his powerful shoulders, and, in spite of his height of five feet nine inches, he had the hands and feet of a woman. These feet were the envy of his mistresses, whose shoes he was very rarely able to put on." He could crush you between his thighs: "His free colonial life had developed his strength and prowess to an extraordinary degree; he was a veritable American horse-lad, a cowboy. His skill with gun or pistol was the envy of St. Georges and Junot. And his muscular strength became a proverb in the army. More than once he amused himself in the riding-school by passing under a beam, and lifting his horse between his legs." He was so badass he could beat 13 men with 4 and take all the enemy prisoner, and defend against hundreds of men on a bridge by himself. He performed these acts of valour numerous times in Italy. He was so formidable that the Austrians named him the "Schwartz Teufel", or the Black Devil, and his feat at the bridge earned him the moniker of "Horatius Cocles of Tyrol". He wasn't afraid to stand up to his morals and protest against unfair treatment. When unjust executions by the guillotine were happening outside his quarters, he closed the blinds of his curtains, earning him the nickname "Mr. Humanity". When in the Vendée, he complained about the wanton indiscipline in his troops. When in Italy, Berthier wrongly reported his actions as one of "observation" in St. Antonio. Dumas wrote to General Bonaparte that if Berthier was in the same position, he would have shit his pants. Dumas abhorred plunder, never exhorted the locals, and ordered the Directory agent who had come to persuade him otherwise be shot if he dared present himself to Dumas again. Integrity and a sense of moral justice is sexy, mark my words. For Dumas' final qualifier as a sexyman, look no further than this Tumblr heritage post (https://www.tumblr.com/petermorwood/133803437020/hortensevanuppity-elodieunderglass), with 300,000 notes and counting. And I quote: "- daddy general dumas was an immense fierce french warrior who was a 6 foot plus, stunningly gorgeous and charismatic Black gentleman - he invaded egypt - the native egyptians said “is this napoleon? this must be napoleon. we for one welcome our majestic new overlord” - then napoleon showed up - napoleon has all the presence of yesterday’s plain Tesco hummus - the native egyptians were like “… no… no, we’ve thought very hard and we’ll have General Dumas actually” - this did not make napoleon happy - in fact it made him jealous - napoleon felt so emasculated that he launched a campaign of revenge against General Dumas, including taking away his pension, that probably inspired a lot of Alexandre’s rather satisfying scenes in which fathers are nobly avenged and the money-grubbing villains are rubbed in the mud" I rest my case. Tl;dr: He was so hot he inspired multiple books, he was a stronk man who could crush you between his thighs or carry you like a sack of potatoes, and he was so badass that he could take on odds of 1 to 3. He had a foul mouth but a heart of gold and his actions were never self-serving. Posts relating to him on Tumblr have had 300,000 notes and counting. He is qualitatively and quantitatively qualified to be a sexyman.”

[metterbiotchsystem]

What’s hilarious about Alexandre Walewski is even before the DNA Evidence of his descendants in recent times proving he was the son of Napoleon, most historians throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries never doubted or said “well he was the rumored” , nah everyone’s like yeah it’s his son.

Even when Alexandre tried to keep up the facade that Athanasius was his real father. Him being Napoleon’s son must of been an huge open secret. Like everytime he was asked about it he would wink at the camera. lol

Napoleon just ctrl+c ctrl+v’s his genes, huh?

[letterstomilenax]

astro observations | pt. 1

Hi!🤍 This is my first post with astrology observations. I am not a professional astrologer, but I have been interested in astrology for several years.

Note: These are just my observations, you don't have to agree or identify with them. Do not take everything seriously. English is my second language so forgive me for mistakes and typos. do not copy, steal, rewrite my work, or repost on other social medias

Sun square Uranus creates highly individualistic and unconventional individuals who may appear selfish and eccentric. These people have a strong desire to showcase their uniqueness and serve as examples for others. They struggle with accepting authority and often resort to rebellious behavior to draw attention to themselves. A classmate of mine from primary school has this aspect and used to rebel against teachers to impress his friends. He also bullied the weaker ones. Moon sextile Mercury this aspect gives really good memory. People with this aspect are often very intelligent. These people are interested in their origin and roots. Mercury sextile Uranus gives the ability to discover and invent new things. These people like new technologies. They often need to exchanges ideas and opinions with others. They have novel way of thinking and they like to argue about opinions. Jupiter in 11th house people are really lucky when it comes to friends, groups. Others find it easy to befriend them. Even their open enemies are relatively respectful and have shown mercy. They usually have a lot of close friends. People with the Moon in Virgo feel that anything they do is not good enough for their standards and will always find something to complain or nag about. Virgo moons tend to get upset if certain things aren’t perfect. I also noticed Virgo moons can have severe bitch energy. Libra moons may avoid conflicts and confontation. People with Moon in Libra, that I know, love to be the centre of attention and are keen to express their opinions. Most of them can be people pleasers. Scorpio venus are incredibly receptive and observant. They can come off as very passionate but may also get attached very easily as well as being obsessive. It’s like a 'ride or die' placement. I’ve never met a person with Venus in Scorpio that didn’t obsess over their partner. Scorpio venuses smell bullshit from a mile away and are not afraid to tell you what’s up. Venus square Neptune people day dream a lot and idealize people. Venus square Neptune makes people have rose-coloured glasses. They are too forgiving. Mars in the 11th house may find it difficult to make and keep friends. There may occur competition amongst friends. These people also have a habit of distancing themselves too much and ghosting other people. Venus opposite Pluto natives tend to attract people who are obsessive, attached and controlling. There may be insecurities in relationships, such as an obsessive fear that your partner may cheat on you or leave you. You may feel tempted to control your partner. "Power is my mistress. I have worked too hard at her conquest to allow anyone to take her away from me." – Napoleon Bonaparte who had this aspect.

I hope you enjoyed it. Wish you all the best and have a wonderful Thursday!!!🤍

[rpfshippingpolls]

⚠️ DON’T START DISCOURSE ABOUT RPF IN THE NOTES!! YOU WILL BE BLOCKED IF YOU DO SO ⚠️

Do you ship it?

Reason:

“1.They kissed (which contrary to popular belief, was not normal between men at the time) 2."if he were a woman I would make him my mistress" 3. Alexander became so shocked at the invasion of Russia he became a religious mystic and never recovered 4. Alexander saying Napolen's bed was "durable". 5. Long talks that lasted til the middle of the morning 6."Did you notice his clear grey eyes, which are so piercing you can hardly bare to look."-Alexander AND 7 NAPOLEON SAYING HE LOVED ALEXANDER MANY TIMES ON SAINT HELENA TY”

Submitted by @goddammitjosef

[empirearchives]

Emilie Kraus von Wolfsberg

She was one of Napoleon’s mistresses. They allegedly had a son, Eugen Megerle von Mühlfeld.

[josefavomjaaga]

Thank you so much, @phatburd! 💖 Awfully interesting all around, and I so wish I was an actual historian and could dig into that. I very much get why your Spidey sense is tingling!

I guess my first question would be for a source. French Wikipedia mentions his mistress Virginie Oreille, too. But the source given is a book from 1977 about Napoleon's marshals, so this only moves the question about the original source to another place.

Another thing would be to compare Bessières's financial situation to that of his fellow marshals. Most of which seem to have been in financial trouble at one point or another (okay, minus Masséna possibly), and not necessarily because they were bad at handling money, but simply because they genuinely lacked the income and resources to keep up the lifestyle that was expected from the highest ranking personalities of the empire. Expected by Napoleon, of course.

It seems all the marshals financially depended on Napoleon's generosity (i.e., his donations) and whatever they received in extra money during times of war ("presents" of the conquered towns).

Also something that might be of interest: His wife must have known, at least by 1813, while Bessières was still alive. I'm pretty sure I've seen quoted a letter Bessières wrote to his wife about his disastrous financial situation and about how he was going to ask Napoleon for help. There's also the letters he wrote from Moscow, reassuring Marie-Jeanne that "the viceroy", i.e. Eugène, was going to buy Bessières's carriages that he was not allowed to take with him on the retreat and that he otherwise would have needed to destroy without recompensation.

Is there more information on this lady Virginie Oreille? This looks like an interesting research project. 😊

P.S.: I remain unconvinced he really destroyed much of his correspondence at the end of his life. First of all, because he surely did not have his personal letters of the last two or three years with him on campaign, but it would be in the care of some private secretary and likely at home. And secondly, when you have a look at the Archives de France, there just is still too much of it there.

Edit II: So I have already found that, after Bessières' death, she apparently became the mistress of the Duc de Berry, of whom she had two children. Not bad.

Bessières and the 600,000+ Franc Question

For @josefavomjaaga

While going over sources and material related to Jean-Baptiste Bessières, there's one thing that keeps twigging my journalist Spidey sense, and I don't like that.

Always, without fail, it's presented as a fait accompli that Bessières blew anywhere between 600,000 to one million francs on his mistress, a Paris opera dancer named Virginie. The fact he had a mistress isn't actually unusual by itself, when compared to the affairs his peers carried on. The exceptions were probably the Davouts and the Lefebvres.

Furthermore, his wife, Marie-Jeanne, discovered the affair after his death when his personal affects were returned to her from the battlefield.

The massive debts the Marshal left behind bankrupted his family, necessitating that Marie-Jeanne into selling their estate, Chateau de Grignon, to cover some of it. Napoleon also paid down some of Bessières' debts and set up a yearly pension for Marie-Jeanne her son. According to some accounts, she struggled financially for the rest of her life.

This is what I don't like about it, and why it doesn't completely pass the sniff test.

I accept that Bessières died flat broke and in debt. In debt to whom, however? Who were his creditors?

When did he meet his mistress? Was that fortune spent over a period of years, or in a fairly short time?

Even as a Marshal of France he had to pay his officers out of his own pocket, and provide his own carriages and some supplies on campaign. If he was flat broke, how did he continue to pay his officers?

Bessières was also bad with money to begin with. He was known to be generous and charitable, to the point where he'd be giving away money to anyone whom he thought was more in need than he was with it. Allegedly, Virginie was in debt herself, and he paid down all of them out of the apparent goodness of his heart.

(This raises even more questions. Was she a gold digger, was she blackmailing him, was he totally besotted with her that he didn't realize what the hell he was doing? Was he just lonely? Did they have genuine feelings for one another? There's a lot of there there, but no real answers.)

My conclusion is, no, Bessières did not spend 600,000 to one million francs on his mistress. Her presence, however, was not helpful to his situation.

He paid down Virginie's debts, however much they were. Being terrible with money, he kept putting himself in a financial hole, and then he kept digging. The upkeep on Chateau de Grignon had to be ridiculous. He still had to pay his officers and his staff. He was probably borrowing and burning through money and racking up the debt. Like that meme goes, "This is fine" while everything's burning down around him. A bit like using a credit card to pay down a credit card, as one might do in the modern parlance.

(His financial problems may have contributed to his increasing depression towards the end of his life as well. Was someone blackmailing him with his debts? Another interesting question that can never be adequately addressed.)

From what I've gathered, he hid all his problems from pretty much everyone. Even Napoleon seemed caught off guard with how bad Bessières' finances were. I argue that the 600,000 to one million francs he owed upon his death were cumulative and not to a single person as the historical narrative wants people to believe.

It seems a small thing to be annoyed with, but there seems to be more than a bit of misogyny to lay all of Bessières' troubles on a single woman as the historical narrative seems to want to do.

Another thing ... if Bessières burned a lot of his recent correspondence towards the end of his life, what exactly was the evidence Marie-Jeanne discovered as proof of the affair. How did she prove it? Did other people know about the affair and kept her in the dark? If so, who was that?

In the novel, "The Battle" by Patrick Rimbaud, a semi-fictionalized account of the Battle of Aspern-Essling, Rimbaud's characterization of Bessières has him wear two gold lockets under his Marshal's uniform. One for Marie-Jeanne, the other for Virginie. I don't know if Rimbaud based that on an actual account, or if it was something he made up. I have a lot of problems with that book though, probably because the translation seems somewhat robotic and not great. It's an interesting idea, however, and maybe worth keeping around as a headcanon.

Did Madame Bessières struggle financially for the rest of her life afterwards? Possibly. I don't have enough information to make a conclusion there, but it's not impossible. She did continue to faithfully visit his tomb for years after his death.

TL;DR Bessières died broke and in debt but it wasn't all because of his mistress. If someone else has something to the contrary, I'd love to read it.

[yanderepuck]

Their nicknames for you

Mainly for my own reference bc I'm always forgetting this shit and how to spell them

Napoleon: Nunuche

Mozart: Mein liebling, mein schatz

Leonardo: Cara mia

Vincent : My schatje

Theo: Hondje

Arthur: Love/Luv (???)

Isaac: Darling

Dazai: Toshiko-san (and too many others)

Jean: Mistress, mademoiselle

Will: Darling, my muse(doesn't really have a consistent one)

Comte: Ma cherie

Sebastian: ???

Vlad: Draga mea (???)

Faust: Guinea pig (Meerschweinchen)

Charles: Princess

Drake: Fawn

Galileo: ???

[miffy-junot]

Hii !!! I have a little question... i'm shy help

Does Junot had any sort of interactions / friendships with the Marshals??

Hi! I'm always happy to answer any questions <3

As Junot was relatively important in the army he knew most of the marshals, but some he was closer with than others.

Lannes - close friends with Junot! On the voyage to Egypt they kept joking around together during Napoleon's lectures.

Marmont - very old friends with Junot. They met at school in Chatillon-sur-Seine and initially Marmont was Junot's best friend, but that place was later taken by Napoleon. They remained close friends throughout the 1790s but their friendship seems to have dulled in the 1800s. Either way they still liked each other, and Marmont speaks positively of Junot in his memoirs.

Berthier - defended Junot after Smolensk, and exchanged correspondence with Laure on the subject after Junot's death. I don't think he was actually friends with Junot, but he was one of the few marshals that supported him.

Kellermann - collaborated with Junot on the terms of surrender at the Convention of Cintra.

Bessieres - not exactly friends with Junot, but was respected by him because of an incident in 1811 (Laure and baby Alfred were in Salamanca; Bessieres offered to personally take them to France where they would be safe; Laure refused to leave without her husband; Junot was very thankful to Bessieres for being so kind)

Davout - I genuinely cannot remember my source for this, but I seem to remember that Junot and Davout were on cordial terms although not proper friends

Ney + Soult - didn't like Junot because of his military failures in the peninsular wars

Massena - enemies with Junot because of an awkward misunderstanding (Junot and Laure accommodated in the same palace as Massena and his mistress; according to etiquette Junot should have found another place to stay but he wasn't aware of that; Junot introduced Laure to Massena's mistress which was a grave faux pas because he wasn't meant to acknowledge the existence of the mistress; Massena hates Junot and Junot is confused (he often struggled with etiquette))

Murat - friends to enemies. At first they were friends, but after Junot's affair with Caroline they quickly turned into enemies. They almost had a duel but Junot changed his mind and decided it wasn't worth it. Junot claimed that Murat had blamed him for Smolensk, and wrote to Laure that "the man of a thousand plumes" was trying to ruin him. It's messy.

And here is a brief summary of Junot's relationships with generals who weren't marshals:

friends: Duroc, Rapp, Thiebault, Lallemand (Junot's aide-de-camp and later a general in his own right)

enemies: Beauharnais, Foy

I hope this answered your question!

[goddammitjosef]

im begging you to draw fem!alexander tempting napoleon, i mean he said he would make him his mistress if he was a woman 😔

sorry im so late to this i havent been drawing much but ofc!!

[captainknell]

Does anyone know?

today yaggy dropped a nuclear bomb on me by revealing to me that supposedly Soult had multiple mistresses??? not just the Spanish woman??? well who was/were his other mistress(es) then???? I'm so confused this was the first time I'd heard of this

[nerdyrevelries]

Okay, so I have had this idea for a crack pairing, and I need to share it. 

The year is 1816. Napoleon has been exiled on Saint Helena and mainland Europe is once again safe to travel. Caroline Bingley, her sister Louisa Hurst, and her brother-in-law Mr. Hurst decide to summer in the Carpathian Mountains, which have been relatively untouched by the recent conflicts. While there mingling with the local nobility at a ball, Caroline meets Count Vlad Dracula. The two marry after a short courtship where others applaud the suitability of the pairing of Caroline’s fortune and Count Dracula’s land and title.

Caroline arrives at her new husband’s castle for the first time and finds it a mess, but Caroline Dracula is not to be daunted. With all the experience of a woman who has been assisting her brother in his estate running for years prior to his marriage, Caroline sets about getting the castle in tip-top shape. New furniture and upholstery is ordered, stonework is repaired, and styles are updated. If the Count is adverse to these updates, Caroline is not inclined to notice. She is mistress of the house now, she need not consult her husband in its appointment. 

Dracula is puzzled by the reactions of his new wife. When she encounters his wolves, she refuses to be frightened and simply cites her prior experience with her brother’s hunting dogs as she tells the wolves to heel, and they actually listen to her. If he crawls about the walls, she chides him for his behavior, saying that he is displaying a lack of manners. No matter what he does, though either a self-centered obliviousness or a prideful and bossy manner that refuses to accept that she might be less than prepared for anything, Caroline will not be frightened by Dracula. The Count is at a complete loss for how to handle her.

Anyway, time passes, hijinks happen, and eventually Count Dracula falls in love with his Countess and ends up changing to conform to her. The two possible endings that I see for this are that either Caroline remains completely oblivious to what her husband is for her entire life or she becomes a vampire and the two of them terrorize the country as equals. 

The end.