204 - EUGÉNIE (Eugenia Maria de Montijo de Guzmán, Countess of Téba) [Granada, 1826 – Madrid, 1920], Empress of the French, wife of Napoleon III.

EUGÉNIE (Eugenia Maria de Montijo de Guzmán, Countess of Téba) [Granada, 1826 – Madrid, 1920], Empress of the French, wife of Napoleon III. Set of two signed autograph letters. - Letter addressed to Ferdinand de Lesseps. Tuileries, May 27 (1869); 2 pages, one-quarter in-8°, bearing her crowned monogram. In May 1869, Lesseps ran for a seat in the legislative assembly in Marseille but was unsuccessful. On September 4, 1870, Lesseps went to see Empress Eugénie, who was a relative of his, escorted her out of the Tuileries, and did not leave her side until she was safe. She received his telegram: “You are too accustomed to struggle to give up at the first sign of failure. According to the news I have received, I am assured that Mr. de Barthelemy’s votes would be transferred to you if you were to say a few words to reassure the clericals. This is what the Bishop of Marseille told me the other day [...] We attach the utmost importance to your election. For me, this is not about us, but about you, and you know that I have always had your success at heart ” - Signed autograph letter addressed to Mr. Béhic, Senator from the Gironde. Farnborough, January 2, 1889; two and a half pages. The Empress regrets not having met Mr. Béhic. “I truly regret that, out of a sense of reserve, you did not come to see me in Paris, for opportunities to meet you are becoming increasingly rare, due to health issues and the distance. I hope you have no doubt of the pleasure you would have given me. I’ve found it cold here, which doesn’t help me recover from my cold; the climate in England is harsh, especially because of the penetrating damp, but you must stay there, where you’ve come to wash up like a shipwreck.”