Napoleon and Mother's Day...

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!!

Josephine fans might enjoy this interesting fact concerning Mother’s Day in France…

It was actually Napoleon Bonaparte that instated 'La fête des Mères' in France, in 1806. The holiday was to be celebrated yearly, in spring.

Napoleon had great reverence for mothers. He believed they were at the core of the family unit; absolutely necessary in raising the citizens of the future.

I suppose he also wanted to revere his own mother with this inauguration.

Maria Letizia Ramolino, Napoleon’s mother, was a dominant force in his life. Although she was rigorously strict, and a staunch disciplinarian, in Napoleon’s eyes she was a caring and devoted mother. He believed she was the major influence and strength of the Bonaparte family.

"Let France have good mothers, and she will have good sons." Napoleon




Redoute's painting- From Josephine's garden in Malmaison

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