Mathilde de Morny – Queen Hortense’s unconventional grandchild (Part one)

Mathilde de Morny was born on 26 May 1863 as the fourth and final child of Charles de Morny, Duke of Morny and Sofia Sergeyevna Trubetskaya. Their father, Charles, was the illegitimate son of Hortense de Beauharnais and Charles Joseph, Comte de Flahaut, making him a half-brother of Emperor Napoleon III. Their mother, Sofia, was officially the daughter of Prince Sergey Vasilyevich Trubetskoy, but she may have been fathered by Emperor  Nicholas I of Russia.

Charles, Duke de Morny (public domain)

Mathilde would not get to know their father very well as he died on 10 March 1865. He had been sick for a few days when doctors felt he was likely to die in a few days. Sofia had collapsed in a fit of screams when confronted with the news. Charles had been close to the children while Sofia was rather indifferent to them, preferring to leave them with governesses. Mathilde, known as Missy in childhood, had been brought to their father with the rest of their siblings to say goodbye. When the time came to leave, they clung to the bed and had to be carried out.

Charles’s death hit Sofia hard, and she began to live as a recluse. She could barely stand to look at Mathilde, who looked so much like their father. They were eventually sent to England by their grandfather to stay with Lady Shelburne while their father’s collection was sold off. Meanwhile, Sofia desperately tried to contact her husband through mediums.1  Three years later, she was ready to remarry. On 4 April 1868, she married José Osorio, 9th Duke of Sesto, but the new match was poorly received by the Imperial relations.

Mathilde and their siblings would have their world changed completely, and they moved to Spain to grow up among the Infantas and Infantes of Spain. Mathilde grew to care for their stepfather and called him “Papa.”2 They enjoyed the court culture and Mathilde immersed themself in theatre, charades, dancing and hunting. Then they had to follow Queen Isabella II into exile to Paris. Mathilde, their sister Marie, and the Spanish Infantas were enrolled at the Couvent du Sacré-Cœur, and they went from a life of luxury to relative poverty and no one to attend to their every need.

Nevertheless, Mathilde received a velocipede (a type of bicycle) from their “papa.” On 25 June 1870, Mathilde and their mother witnessed how Queen Isabella II of Spain was forced to sign away her dynastic rights. Afterwards, she told her son, “Alfonso, give your hand to Pepe (the Duke of Sesto), he has succeeded in making you King.”3

Sofia, Duchess de Morny (public domain)

After this, the family travelled to Switzerland with the Spanish royal family, and it was in Geneva that they learned of the death of their grandfather, the Comte de Flahaut. That same year, Emperor Napoleon III was removed as Emperor following the abolishment of the monarchy. When Mathilde was ten years old, they were able to return to Spain and Mathilde and the Duke of Sesto went on a tour of the Duke’s estate to rally support for King Alfonso XII. He often dressed Mathilde in boys’ clothes during outings to his estates. After months of freedom, they returned to Madrid, which Mathilde found difficult. They found an outlet in horse riding, and their horsemanship was later praised.

Mathilde and their sister Marie were sent back to Paris when there was unrest in Madrid to stay with their grandmother, Princess Trubetskoy, but they were allowed to return to Madrid when King Alfonso XII was restored to the throne. For their 13th birthday in 1876, Mathilde received an apartment from the Duke of Sesto. They were also assigned a footman and received a hunting carriage. A pair of pugs, a rarity at the time, had been a gift from the Duke after a trip to England, and Mathilde often rode the carriage with the pugs under the seat. They also gained a new passion – bullfighting, and they met the famous female bullfighter, La Fragosa, who told them, “What a man does, a woman can do too.”4

In 1877, Mathilde’s elder sister, Marie, married José Ramón Gil Francisco de Borja Nicolás Osório y de Heredia, the 9th Conde de La Corzana, a Grandee of Spain, chamberlain to the King, and nephew of the Duke of Sesto. The King attended the wedding, and he lovingly referred to Marie as “his sister.”5 Shortly after the wedding, the former Queen and the Infantas were allowed to return to Spain, and Mathilde was delighted to see their childhood friends, Pilar, Eulalia and María de la Paz. Pilar’s sudden death two years later would be a great sorrow to Mathilde.

The Duke of Sesto (public domain)

Mathilde’s first ball would be the one given to celebrate the engagement of King Alfonso and Mercedes of Orléans. However, the celebrations soon turned to sorrow as Mercedes died just six months after the wedding. Mathilde was shocked by the Queen’s sudden death, which caused them to question their role in society. Alfonso worried about his sisters, and they were given secluded apartments. However, this did not stop Mathilde from being caught smoking with Eulalia. Mathilde had also brought Eulalia texts from Charles Fourier, who is credited with coining the word “feminism.” Mathilde and Eulalia began to feel that their lives would be better if they were boys. Eulalia was angry that she wasn’t born a boy and felt she was “born to govern.”6

Nevertheless, their education as perfect society hostesses went full steam ahead. Mathilde joined the Infantas for lessons in posture, curtsying, and dancing. Because Mathilde was tall, they were often asked to play the role of the partner. Mathilde’s growing androgyny made it easy for them to go from ballgowns to uniforms. At the time, they were described as “a tall young girl, slender, blonde, very pretty, but faded by her boldness as a marauding soldier. […] Her brown eyes glowed.”7

During this time, they also had their first experience with a man. Mathilde later wrote, “He told me he wanted to kill himself if I resisted him, so… I didn’t resist, but I refused any repeat offence.”8

Part two coming soon.

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