French Crown Jewels Theft: History and the Empresses

The stolen French Crown Jewels reveal the turbulent history of France and the lives of the empresses who wore them. Theft highlights the jewels' political significance and the stories of Maria Amalia and Eugénie.

Historian Raphaël Dargent, however, hasn’t neglected them. He recently released bios of Maria Amalia, the last queen of France, and of Empress Eugénie, both of whose gems were swiped Sunday. Dargent informed ARTnews that the theft of the eight gems is particularly unpleasant given that they were among minority remaining Crown Jewels after the majority of were auctioned off in 1887 by the French government, both to pay for debt and to rid the freshly established Third Republic of monarchical signs.

The Forgotten Empresses Behind the Jewels

Empress Eugenie presides over the award ceremony at the Imperial Organization of Honor Region in Saint Denis, 1869, France, Historical, electronically brought back reproduction of an original artwork from the 19th century, exact initial day unknown.Bildagentur-online/ Universal Ima

Empress Eugénie’s Stolen Treasures

Before the shocking burglary of the French Crown Jewels from the Louvre on October 19, a lot of had actually all but neglected the judgment ladies that as soon as wore them during their 19th-century powers. Even the Louvre’s own internet site offers little context– under “Object Location,” the web page for each and every piece currently checks out the stinging phrase: “Not exhibited.” However the private histories of the females who once had these jeweled parures disclose much about France’s turbulent political past– and bring those imperial names to life.

2 of the taken items when came from Empress Eugénie: her pearl-and-diamond a pretty tiara and a bow-shaped brooch. Both were sold at that fateful 1887 public auction and later repurchased for the Louvre greater than a century later with the assistance of the Société des Amis du Louvre, the gallery’s organization of exclusive contributors. Eugénie’s tiara, decorated with 212 pearls and 1,998 diamonds prepared in 992 roses, was acquired in 1992 from Sotheby’s for a reported $1 million. The brooch was obtained in 2008 for nearly $8 million. Other items, acquired by the museum in 1985, had actually never ever been sold by the French state. They stayed with the family members of their initial proprietors, who were enabled to keep them.

To memorialize the union, Napoleon talented her a necklace from the jewelry expert Nitot made up of 32 emerald greens, 1,138 rubies, and matching earrings– all stolen in the current break-in. The Louvre obtained the parure in 2004 with contributor support, for a reported $4 million.

“The violence was ongoing in France, which was why Louis-Philippe intended to reconcile France with its past. This meant both he and his better half needed to appear positive, and not as though they were returning to a kind of outright monarchy,” Dargent claimed. “It was necessary for both of them not to exhibit the crown jewels in public, which can have been seen as a type of justification.”

There is Hortense de Beauharnais (1783– 1837), Queen Consort of Holland from 1806 to 1810 when it was part of the French Empire and daughter of Empress Joséphine from her first marriage to Alexandre Francois Marie, the Vicomte de Beauharnais, that was beheaded during the initial French Transformation. Napoleon scheduled his embraced stepdaughter to wed his brother, King Louis Bonaparte; their son would take place to come to be Napoleon III.

One product of particularly high worth, according to Dargent, was the reliquary breastpin, which had never ever left main hands and was protected at the Louvre till its burglary. The brooch consists of 2 huge diamonds initially gifted to King Louis XIV by Cardinal Mazarin in the 17th century. As soon as worn by the king as a button, the central ruby was.

Dargent’s favorite among them is Empress Eugénie, a progressive figure in her time. “During the 2nd Realm, there was a desire to restore an older sense of royal natural beauty, which is why it was essential that Empress Eugénie used these jewels in a main ability,” Dargent said.

Hortense was the original proprietor of the sapphire parure, which she later on marketed to Queen Maria Amalia for monetary reasons. Tale says her mommy Joséphine talented it to her, however the Louvre notes there is no docudrama evidence to sustain this claim– or that Marie-Antoinette ever before owned it, as some think.

Nevertheless, Maria Amalia purchased gems as a monetary investment and used them ceremonially. What she treasured most was “emotional jewelry”– items having locks of hair or pictures of her lots of children and grandchildren. She reportedly possessed about 40 such “portrait bracelets.”

Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily ruled as queen from 1830 to 1848, till her hubby, King Louis-Philippe, was toppled in yet an additional French change. “When Marie-Antoinette was performed, Maria Amalia was about 11 years old,” Dargent stated. These implementations were her very first political memories, and were extremely terrible, with this terrible image of her aunt and uncle beheaded by the public in Paris.”

Louis-Philippe and Maria Amalia involved power after the 1830 July Transformation, referred to as the Trois Glorieuses, establishing an absolute monarchy. It was not the moment for a leader to flaunt their bling,

He recently published biographies of Maria Amalia, the last queen of France, and of Empress Eugénie, both of whose gems were swiped Sunday. The various other empresses whose gems were taken, nevertheless, had a different mandate. Dargent’s favorite among them is Empress Eugénie, a dynamic figure in her time. As partner of Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte– who took power in a successful stroke and crowned himself Napoleon III in 1852– she ruled as Empress from 1853 to 1870. “Throughout the 2nd Realm, there was a need to restore an older sense of imperial natural beauty, which is why it was important that Empress Eugénie wore these jewels in an official ability,” Dargent claimed.

Every one of Europe’s judgment elite, he included, were “exceptionally shocked” by the French Revolution and feared its rep. Therefore, Maria Amalia forecasted an intentionally small, philistine design when she ended up being queen. She declined to wear the Crown Jewels in official pictures, though she wore them sometimes secretive paints.

Still, some leaders, like Queen Maria Amalia– owner of the taken sapphire parure and diadem– had reason to be cautious regarding flaunting that power. France had not long prior to beheaded its queen, Marie-Antoinette, widely condemned for her lavish displays and glamorous preferences. It is no overestimation in conclusion that she spent for it with her life.

Regardless of the symbolism of her gems, they held little personal worth for her. When the city of Paris offered her a ruby pendant, she rejected and rather used the funds to build an orphanage in the form of a diamond locket: the Maison Eugène Napoleon.

The various other empresses whose gems were taken, however, had a different required. They commanded a France anxious to task restored grandeur– stronger, linked, and modern after the power of fallen short absolutist king Louis XVI. The glittering regalia was back.

Political Symbolism of Royal Jewels

For the majesties who wore them, these jewels were political tools, Dargent said– signs of power and authority, not personal preference. “These sovereigns needed to put on the look of power, and their jewels were features of that power, or political statements, not always a reflection of their very own, individual preference,” Dargent discussed.

One more sovereign whose jewels were taken was Empress Marie-Louise (1791– 1847), who ruled from 1810 to 1814 and replaced Empress Joséphine as the partner of Napoleon I because Joséphine could not birth a beneficiary. A political bride-to-be– she was the little girl of Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor– her marriage briefly maintained connections between France and Austria.

Empress Marie-Louise “had a lot of success with men, and one could say, wasn’t really dedicated to the emperor, however he was really in love with her,” stated Dargent. When it comes to her taste in jewelry, privately, the empress likewise preferred those of sentimental worth.