Émilie Louise Marie Françoise Joséphine Pellapra (11 November 1806 – 22 May 1871), comtesse de Brigode,

princesse de Chimay Prince of Chimay is a title of Belgian and Dutch nobility associated with the town of Chimay in what is now Belgium. The title is currently held by Philippe de Caraman-Chimay, 22nd Prince de Chimay (b. 1948). The main residence of the princely f ...

, was the daughter of Françoise-Marie LeRoy and possibly

Napoleon I of France Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

. She claimed to be the product of her mother's affair with the French Emperor which supposedly took place in April 1805, but this date is impossible with Émilie's birth in November 1806. She was first married to Count Louis-Marie of Brigode and later married to Prince Joseph de Riquet de Caraman, 17th prince de Chimay.

Early life

She was born in

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

on November 11, 1806, the daughter of Madame Pellapra, née Françoise-Marie LeRoy, the wife of a rich financier named Henri (de) Pellapra. For Émilie to have been the daughter of Napoleon it would have been necessary that he stayed in Lyon in February 1806. However, no stay in this city at that time seems to have taken place and, according to several authors (in particular André Gavoty in the Bulletin de l'Institut Napoleon April 1950), Napoleon only met LeRoy in 1810.

Personal life

Émilie married Count Louis Marie de Brigode (1777–1827), a politician under the

First French Empire The First French Empire or French Empire (; ), also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. It lasted from ...

and the

Bourbon Restoration Bourbon Restoration may refer to: France under the House of Bourbon: * Bourbon Restoration in France (1814, after the French revolution and Napoleonic era, until 1830; interrupted by the Hundred Days in 1815) Spain under the Spanish Bourbons: * Ab ...

. He was from an old noble family from

French Flanders French Flanders ( ; ; ) is a part of the historical County of Flanders, where Flemish—a Low Franconian dialect cluster of Dutch—was (and to some extent, still is) traditionally spoken. The region lies in the modern-day northern French regi ...

and his elder brother Romain-Joseph de Brigode-Kemlandt. Before his early death, they were the parents of twins: * Fernand de Brigode (1827–1830), who died young. * Louis Marie ''Henri'' Pierre Désiré de Brigode (1827–1859), marquis of Brigode, French peer, Mayor of Romilly; he married Annette du Hallay-Coëtquen (1831–1905). The Comte de Brigode died in

Bourbonne-les-Bains Bourbonne-les-Bains () is a commune in the Haute-Marne department in north-eastern France in the region Grand Est.Joseph de Riquet de Caraman (1808-1886), 17th prince de Chimay, son of Prince

François-Joseph-Philippe de Riquet François-Joseph-Philippe de Riquet (21 September 1771 - 2 March 1843), as a French aristocrat who became the 16th Prince de Chimay from 24 July 1804 to 1843. Early life François-Joseph-Philippe was born in Paris on 21 September 1771. He was a ...

and Thérésa Cabarrus, and had four children: * Marie Thérèse Émilie de Riquet (1832–1851), who married the politician

Frédéric Lagrange Frédéric and Frédérick are the French versions of the common male given name Frederick. They may refer to: In artistry: * Frédéric Back, Canadian award-winning animator * Frédéric Bartholdi, French sculptor * Frédéric Bazille, Impress ...

and became the countess of Lagrange. * Marie Joseph Guy Henry Philippe de Riquet, 18th prince de Chimay (1836–1892), who married firstly Marie de Montesquiou-Fezensac, then Mathilde de Barandiaran; father of Marie Joseph Anatole Élie and Élisabeth, comtesse Greffulhe. * Valentine de Riquet (1839–1914), Comtesse de Caraman-Chimay, first Princess Paul de

Bauffremont The House of Bauffremont is the name of a French princely family which derived its name from a village in the Vosges, outside of Neufchâteau, Vosges, Neufchâteau, now spelt Beaufremont. The family traces itself to Liébaud, sire de Bauffremon ...

, then Princess Georges Bibesco. * Eugène de Riquet (1847–1881), married Louise de Graffenried-Villars; his daughter Hélène Marie married

John Francis Charles, 7th Count de Salis-Soglio John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...

. She died at the

Château de Menars The Castle of Menars (, ) is a castle (château) associated with Madame de Pompadour situated on the bank of the river Loire in Menars, Loir-et-Cher, France. History Towards 1646, Guillaume Charron, adviser of the King and general treasurer of ...

on May 22, 1871.

Early life

Personal life

References

Further reading