Cora Pearl

Lovers and Lifestyle of a Famous Courtesan during the Second Empire

May 5, 2009 Lito Apostolakou

Renowned for her body and as she was for her lifestyle and extravagant tastes, Cora Pearl was one of the most famous French courtesans of the 19th century.

Born Emma Crouch in Plymouth, England, in 1835, Cora Pearl made her way to Paris in the late 1850s. Not particularly attractive, she had a “marvel of nature” body and breasts of perfection and such professionalism and shrewdness that she transformed herself into one of the most famous and luxurious courtesans of Paris and indeed of the Second Empire.

Cora Pearl’s Famous Lovers

Starting her string of lovers with the owner of the famous Argyll Dance Rooms of London, Robert Bignell, who brought her to Paris, Cora managed to attract the attention of Victor Massena, the Duc of Rivoli (later Prince of Essling) who taught her the ways of the world. She went on to become the lover of William Prince of Orange (or “Duke Citron” as she called him), heir of the King of Holland.

An important lover in her life was the Duc de Morny, the illegitimate son of Queen Hortense of Holland, who was when Cora met him one of the most powerful men in France. President of the Corps Legislatif during Napoleon III’s administration, Morny was an intelligent man with strong sexual appetites and found in Cora Pearl an equal match.

After his death, Cora found another protector: Prince Napoleon Bonaparte, the son of Napoleon I’s brother. He was one of Cora Pearl’s longest affairs. His contemporaries had few good things to say about Prince Napoleon’s manners but Cora Pearl wrote of him in her memoirs: “He was only rough externally. A very little knowledge of him revealed his real delicacy of manner.”

Cora Pearl's other lovers included Prince Achille Murat, Paul Demidov of the powerful Russian family and Khalil Bey, the former Ottoman ambassador to St. Petersburg, one of her wealthiest liaisons.

Courtesan Lifestyle

In the zenith of her fame in the 1860s, Cora Pearl commanded a monthly income of 50,000 francs (£90,000 of today). She owned mansions and chateaux, thousands-of-francs worth of gowns by Worth, jewels, paintings, carriages and over 30 of the finest horses. She lived in grand, theatrical style spending fabulous amounts of money on entertaining.

Especially in Vichy where she took up residence at one time, her household expenses were said to top 30,000 francs (£56,000) in two weeks. A born hostess, Cora had an extravagant taste for luxurious display spending thousands of francs on flowers, fruit, champagne, fireworks and the finest food. As she displayed her hospitality to her distinguished guests so she took care to display herself in the most expensive gowns and underwear.

Stories about Cora Pearl’s exploits abound: she was said to have danced on £1000 worth of orchids sent to her by an admirer; invited her guests to watch her while taking a bath in the best vintage champagne and (the most famous of her escapades) had four footmen bring and place in the centre of the dining table a long silver dish where she lay completely naked.

Courtesan Art of Love

Although not particularly attractive, Cora Pearl possessed a body which was described by her contemporaries as a marvel of nature while her breasts were said to be her greatest perfection. Even those who found her vulgar admitted that her body was second to none. An expert horse rider with exhibitionist flair, Cora was said to have a superhuman knowledge of the arts of love and of sensual and visual delights. It was from this knowledge that her power grew.

Sources:

The Memoirs of Cora Pearl, The Erotic Reminiscences of a Flamboyant 19th Century Courtesan, Ed. By William Blatchford, Granada Publishing Ltd: London 1983.

Katie Hickman, Courtesans, Harper Perennial: London 2004.

Virginia Rounding, Grandes Horizontales. The Lives and Legends of Four 19th-Century Courtesans, Bloomsbury: London 2004.

The copyright of the article Cora Pearl in Historical Biographies is owned by Lito Apostolakou. Permission to republish Cora Pearl in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Duc de Morny (1811-1865), Cora Pearl's lover	Prince Napoleon, ca 1860, was Cora Pearl's lover	Prince Willem of Orange, Cora Pearl's lover
Cora Pearl, 1835-1886