Diane de Poitiers wears the bejewelled crown of France’s most intriguing, and infamous, royal mistress. The chief lover of Henri II, who ruled from 1547 to 1559, an all-powerful Diane made many enemies, and such was her dominant status that she has detractors to this day — many historians write her off as greedy and […]
Louvre
Great Christmas (or Anytime) Gift Ideas for Paris Lovers
If you can’t get to Paris to do your Christmas shopping (le sigh …), some of the city’s most fabulous gift stores will come to you. Whether you’re after a present for your best friend or boyfriend, great-niece or great-uncle, read on for inspiration … Boutique des Musées Consider this website — which sells the […]
In Search of Catherine de Medici’s Paris
One of history’s most influential (not to mention infamous) leaders, Catherine de Medici still enthralls and intrigues the world five hundred years after her birth. Case in point: The Serpent Queen, the new period drama series based on Leonie Frieda’s best-selling biography, Catherine de Medici: Renaissance Queen of France. In 1533, the Florentine heiress, aged […]
Celebrities in Paris: The Vintage Edition
Because nothing makes a glamorous star all the more glamour than a Parisian backdrop, n’est-ce pas? Sophia Loren at Hôtel Plaza Athenée, 1956 When this photo was taken, the Italian starlet was in town promoting her movie Scandal in Sorrento, and well on her way to mega-star status, about to shoot her first Hollywood movie, […]