Joséphine de Beauharnais

Joséphine de Beauharnais was the first wife of Napoleon Bonaparte and empress of the French from 1804 until their marriage was annulled in 1810. A survivor of the Terror, she used family and social networks to build influence, patronised art and horticulture, and remained emotionally important to Napoleon after their divorce.

In Tracy Chevalier’s The Glassmaker, her beads reach figures including Joséphine de Beauharnais and Luisa Casati. Simon Scarrow’s The Generals places Joséphine de Beauharnais within a narrative shaped by military command and battlefield decision-making, court politics and dynastic power, and political ambition and government. Other novels featuring Joséphine de Beauharnais include Simon Scarrow’s Fire and Sword.