François Blanc (; 12 December 1806 – 27 July 1877), nicknamed "The Magician of Homburg" and "The Magician of Monte Carlo", was a French entrepreneur and operator of casinos, including the
Monte Carlo Casino
The Monte Carlo Casino, officially named Casino de Monte-Carlo, is a gambling and entertainment complex located in Monaco. It includes a casino, the Opéra de Monte-Carlo, and the office of Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo.
The Casino de Monte-Carlo ...
in
Monaco
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
. His daughter,
Marie-Félix, married Prince
Roland Bonaparte.
Early life
François and his twin brother Louis were born on 12 December 1806. Growing up in a small town, they were impressed every time a circus came to town. The show seemed so interesting and simple, so they followed the circus to learn all the tricks of the trade. The boys were dreaming of becoming rich and successful and learned much by working different jobs.
Career
The brothers started to work in gambling businesses in Marseilles and earned some money. They then decided to develop their own business and started to speculate in government pensions and real estate development. They soon attracted attention to their business and were arrested, but their sentence was short, because laws had not been adopted yet for such cases. They were released and moved to Paris, but after
King Louis Philippe passed new laws, they had to move again - to
Luxembourg
Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...
. They ran a profitable business there but it was just a stepping stone to their success in
Hesse-Homburg near
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...
, where the brothers signed a contract with the
Landgrave
Landgrave (, , , ; , ', ', ', ', ') was a rank of nobility used in the Holy Roman Empire, and its former territories. The German titles of ', ' ("margrave"), and ' ("count palatine") are of roughly equal rank, subordinate to ' ("duke"), and su ...
to help service the debts of the city and to develop the tourism industry.
One innovation was the introduction of the single ''0'' style roulette wheel in 1843. This allowed
Bad Homburg to compete against the casinos of Paris which offered the traditional wheel with both single and double zero house pockets. Local legend says that François Blanc supposedly bargained with the devil to obtain the secrets of roulette. The legend is based on the fact that the sum of all the numbers on the roulette wheel (from 0 to 36) is 666, which is the "
Number of the Beast
The number of the beast (, ) is associated with the The Beast (Revelation), Beast of Revelation in chapter 13, verse 18 of the Book of Revelation. In most manuscripts of the New Testament and in English translations of the Bible, the number of ...
".
The venture was a great success, Homburg became popular overnight with lots of entertainment, gambling houses, and hotels - the rich and famous came there for a new diversion and fun. In a while François Blanc earned the nickname "The Magician of Homburg".
Homburg could attract visitors only in the summer months, as during the winter tourists preferred to travel to warmer places. This gave François the idea to move South and open a year-round business.
It happened that
Charles III, Prince of Monaco had recently legalized gambling, so "The Magician of Homburg" became the first person to establish a casino operation in Monaco. To establish Monaco as a gambling mecca for the elite of Europe, he invested in roads and railways to facilitate travel to Monaco as a new place of rest and relaxation. The Prince gave François the freedom he needed to be successful, so he turned from "The Magician of Homburg" to "The Magician of Monte Carlo" and left his mark on the history of Monaco.
Personal life
Blanc was twice married. His first wife was Madeleine-Victoire Huguelin (1823–1852). Together, they were the parents of:
*
Camille Blanc (1847–1927), who married Elisabeth Lanxade (b. 1852) in 1885.
* Charles Blanc (1848–1872), who died aged 24.
After the death of his first wife, he remarried to
Marie Charlotte Hensel (1833–1881), with whom he had:
* Louise Blanc (1854–1911), who married Prince Constantine Wincenty Maria Radziwiłł (1850–1920), a grandson of Prince
Antoni Radziwiłł
Prince Antoni Henryk Radziwiłł (; 13 June 1775 – 7 April 1833) was a Polish and Kingdom of Prussia, Prussian szlachta, noble, magnate, aristocrat, musician, and politician. Initially a hereditary Duke of Nesvizh, Nieśwież and Olyka, Oł ...
and
Princess Louise of Prussia.
*
Edmond Blanc (1856–1920), who married Héloïse Marot (b. 1853) and Marthe Galinier (1874–1947).
*
Marie-Félix Blanc (1859–1882), who married Prince
Roland Bonaparte (1858–1924).
Blanc died in
Loèche-les-Bains on 27 July 1877.
Descendants
Through his daughter Louise, he was the grandfather of Louise Adela Radziwiłł (1877–1942) (who married Armand de La Rochefoucauld, duc de Doudeauville, and was the mother of Marie de La Rochefoucauld (1901–1983), who married
Henri-Antoine-Marie de Noailles, 11th
Prince de Poix) and Prince Léon Radziwiłł, who married Princess Dolores Radziwiłł and Antonine
de Gramont.
Through his daughter Marie-Félix, he was the grandfather of
Princess Marie Bonaparte (1882–1962), who married
Prince George of Greece and Denmark, the second son of
George I of Greece
George I ( Greek: Γεώργιος Α΄, romanized: ''Geórgios I''; 24 December 1845 – 18 March 1913) was King of Greece from 30 March 1863 until his assassination on 18 March 1913.
Originally a Danish prince, George was born in Copenhage ...
and
Olga Konstantinovna of Russia, and is remembered chiefly for having once saved the life of the future
Emperor of Russia
The emperor and autocrat of all Russia (, ), also translated as emperor and autocrat of all the Russias, was the official title of the List of Russian monarchs, Russian monarch from 1721 to 1917.
The title originated in connection with Russia's ...
,
Nicholas II in 1891 during their visit to Japan together.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blanc, Francois
1806 births
1877 deaths
Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery
Businesspeople in the casino industry
19th-century French businesspeople
Blanc family