Marie Blanc
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Marie Charlotte Blanc (born September 23, 1833 in Friedrichsdorf as Marie Charlotte Hensel ; † July 25, 1881 at Moutiers Castle, France ) was a German- French casino director and philanthropist . She became famous as "Madame Blanc" at the side of her husband François Blanc .
Life
Marie Blanc was born in the house at Taunusstrasse 4 in Friedrichsdorf as the daughter of the Friedrichsdorf shoemaker Caspar Hensel and his wife Catharine (née Stemler) . After the early death of her mother, her father remarried shortly afterwards and Marie grew up with nine siblings and half-siblings in rather modest circumstances. A relative introduced the young Marie as a maid in the household of the wealthy Homburg casino leaseholder François Blanc. A love affair soon developed between the two. After Marie Hensel attended the prestigious Paris convent school “St. Maria de la Rose ”had acquired adequate social skills in a four-year training course, she and François Blanc, 27 years her senior, married on June 20, 1854 in Paris . Two years later, their first child, Louise, was born. Edouard and Marie followed. François' two older sons, Camille and Charles, also lived in the household for a time.
It is said that Marie Blanc loved and enjoyed wealth very much. Nevertheless, she always supported the poor with plenty of money, as did her parents and other Friedrichsdorf relatives.
When François, who had brought the Monte Carlo casino , which was reopened in 1863, to world fame, died in 1877, Marie took over his position as general manager of the Monte Carlo casino company .
Just four years after her husband, Marie Blanc died at her Moutiers Castle in France and was buried in the Blanc family grave on the famous “ Cimetiere du Pere-Lachaise ” in Paris.
children
- Louise (1854–1911), Princess Constantin Radziwiłł : two children, Lise (Duchess of Larochefoucault-Doudeauville) and Léon (1880–1927), one of the prototypes Robert de Saint-Loup from Marcel Proust's In Search of Lost Time
- Edmond (1856–1920): wife Marthe Galinier (1874–1947), two sons, Édouard Edmond-Blanc (1904–1952) and François Edmond-Blanc (1908–1996)
- Marie-Félix (1859–1882), Princess Roland Bonaparte : one daughter, Marie Bonaparte , Princess Georg of Greece
Honors
A bust of Marie Blanc stands on the right side of the entrance to the Bad Homburg casino .
In her home town of Friedrichsdorf, a street named after her commemorates the city's famous daughter.
Entertaining
- Rolf Palm : I'll give you a Monte Carlo. Roman (= Bastei Lübbe 12068 Exclusive ). Bastei-Verlag Lübbe, Bergisch Gladbach 1977, ISBN 3-404-00598-8 . The novel tells the story of Marie Hensel from Friedrichsdorf, who rose from the poor shoemaker's daughter as Madame Blanc to the “grande dame” of the Monte Carlo casino.
Web links
- Marie Blanc. In: FemBio. Women's biography research (with references and citations).
- Marie Blanc on the website of the city of Friedrichsdorf
- The brothers Blanc and Marie Blanc, Bad Homburg casino
Individual evidence
- ↑ knerger.de: The grave of Marie Blanc
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Blanc, Marie |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Hensel, Marie Charlotte (maiden name); Madame Blanc (pseudonym) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | General Manager of the Monte Carlo Casino Company |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 23, 1833 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Friedrichsdorf |
| DATE OF DEATH | July 25, 1881 |
| Place of death | Moutiers Castle, France |