If you like courtesans, then choose a cheap hostel in Moscow, and be prepared to spend all your money on such enchantresses. So saving on housing will be the best option.
1. Phryne (4th century BC)
The real name of the girl was Mnesaret (translated from Greek means “virtue”), but due to the fact that she was born with an earthy complexion, everyone called her Phryne (“toad”). However, this did not stop her from becoming the most successful and popular courtesan in Ancient Greece. Presumably, it was she who posed for the sculpture of Praxiteles "Aphrodite of Cnidus", one of the most famous works ancient art.
Phryne became incredibly wealthy through connections with influential men in Athens. According to legend, she even offered money to restore the city of Thebes, destroyed by Alexander the Great in 336 BC, but on one condition: its new walls should have had an inscription: “Destroyed by Alexander the Great, restored by hetero Phryne.” Naturally, no one agreed to accept her proposal.
Around 340 BC, Phryne was accused of insulting the gods after she appeared naked at a religious ceremony. At the trial, the orator Hiiperides, her defender and one of the part-time lovers, tore off Phryne's robe with the words that the most beautiful woman Athens cannot be beyond the mercy of the gods. This was enough for the judges to acquit Phryne.
2. Theodora (497-548)
Theodora's father died when she was still young, so her mother sent the girl to work, first as a circus actress, and then as a courtesan.
Theodora became the mistress of a politician named Hekebol. Some time later, she attracted the attention of Justinian I, the emperor's nephew. Justinian was so captivated by the charm of Theodora that he wanted to marry her, but Byzantine law forbade members of the imperial family to marry commoners (and even more so, courtesans). His uncle was forced to change the law, and soon Justinian and Theodora were married.
Justinian ascended the throne in 527 and ruled Byzantium (also known as the Eastern Roman Empire) with his wife. Theodora proved to be a talented politician - she helped create a new code of laws to fight corruption, expanded the rights of women, in particular, to divorce, banned brothels and founded monasteries for former courtesans. She ruled the Byzantine Empire for over 20 years. Historians consider her the most influential and powerful woman in the thousand-year history of Byzantium.
3. Veronica Franco (1546-1591)
Veronica Franco was the daughter of the popular Venetian courtesan Paola Vanozza Fracassa. She studied Greek and Roman literature and played the lute. After a divorce from her husband, a doctor by profession, Veronica had love relationship with many famous politicians, artists, philosophers and poets. She described her sexual adventures in Familiar Letters (1580), a collection of 50 letters dedicated to her lovers, including King Henry III of France and the Venetian painter Jacopo Tintoretto.
In 1575, Veronica Franco was forced to leave Venice. Two years later, she returned to her hometown to find out that her house and wealth had been looted. In 1580, the Roman Inquisitorial Court accused Veronica of immorality and witchcraft. Her fiery defensive speech and a wealthy patron named Dominico Nenier helped the courtesan escape punishment. She lost former glory and lived out the rest of her days in an urban area populated by impoverished prostitutes.
4. Nell Gwyn (1650-1687)
Eleanor "Nell" Gwyn was born in Herford. Later, her family moved to London, where a difficult fate awaited the girl. Eleanor's father left the family when she was still a child. Her mother, drunk, drowned herself in a pond. Nell, in order to somehow survive, began to sell oranges. When she was 15 years old, she got a job as an actress in the theater. Roles for her were written by the famous playwright John Dryden. On stage, she showed an amazing comedic talent. Along with fame, wealthy men also appeared in Nell's life. She became a courtesan. Gwyn cohabited with representatives English nobility, including Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset, and King Charles II of England and Scotland, whose mistress she was for 15 years (from 1670 until her death). They had two sons. Charles II built a mansion for her near Windsor Castle. On his deathbed, the king pleaded with his brother, James II, "not to let poor Nell die of hunger." He complied with his request. He supported Elinor Gwyn and her children until her death.
5. Bark Pearl (1835-1886)
Emma Crouch was born in Plymouth, England. Her father was a musician and a great womanizer who left his family and went to live in America. At the age of twenty, Emma got a job as a milliner, but she did not have enough money, and she decided to go into prostitution in parallel. Soon the girl met Robert Bignell, the owner dance hall and became his mistress. He took Emma with him to Paris, where she was captivated by the bohemian atmosphere of the 19th century. When Bignell invited her to return to England, she refused. Emma did not want to leave France. She changed her name to Cora Pearl and became the most famous courtesan in the capital.
Among the lovers of Cora Pearl there were many famous personalities, including the French statesman Charles de Morny, half-brother of Napoleon III, and the Prince of Orange, heir to the throne of the Netherlands, who gave her black pearl beads, with which she never parted.
Pearl was famous for her eccentric antics. When Bertie (Edward VII, Prince of Wales) wanted to look at her, she asked the waiters to take her out naked on a large silver platter and serve her like that on the table. Emma sometimes liked to soak in a bathtub filled with champagne in front of guests. Pearl was expelled from France after a murder took place in one of her mansions. She spent the rest of her days in poverty, living in a boarding house. Emma died at the age of 51 from stomach cancer.
6. Madame de Pompadour (1721-1764)
Jeanne Antoinette Poisson was born into the family of a discredited purveyor and an ordinary courtesan. When the girl was nine years old, her mother took her to a fortune-teller, who said that she would grow up and become the king's mistress. No one took the words of the soothsayer seriously, but they soon came true. In 1745, Jeanne Antoinette was invited to a costume ball at the Palace of Versailles. She dressed up as a shepherdess and King Louis XV dressed up as a tree. That's how they met. And just a month later, Poisson was already his mistress.
Louis XV gave Jeanne Antoinette the title of Marquise de Pompadour. The king did not have a soul in her, and Madame de Pompadour spent fortunes on jewelry, art and porcelain. She also became one of Louis XV's foreign policy advisers. At her direction, the king began Seven Years' War with England, which ended with the defeat of France. The people accused Jeanne Antoinette of famine and devastation, but Louis XV remained faithful to her. She died in 1764.
7. Mata Hari (1876-1917)
When Margaret Gertrude Zelle Macleod was 18 years old, she married a Dutch colonial army officer twice her age and moved with him to the Netherlands East Indies. They had two children, but this marriage did not work out from the very beginning: Margareta loved the attention of men, and he loved alcohol. In the end, they divorced. Not having Money for existence and not knowing how to do anything, Margareta decided to become a dancer, and then a prostitute. In 1902, she moved to Paris, where she gained fame as an exotic dancer and a new name - Mata Hari. She also performed in a cabaret, entertaining its visitors with a frank striptease. Among her first Parisian lovers was the wealthy industrialist Emile-Étienne Guimet.
On February 13, 1917, Mata Hari was arrested by French intelligence on charges of spying for the German enemy. The court sentenced her to death, and nine months later she was shot. The classified dossier, which contains documents on the Mata Hari case, will not be opened until 2017, as was ordered by law a hundred years ago.
8. Josephine Marcus (1861-1944)
When Josephine Marcus turned 18, she decided to run away from home to join a traveling theater company as a dancer. During the tour, the girl started an affair with an Arizona sheriff's deputy, Johnny Behan. Soon she decided to move to the city of Tombstone. Here she began to earn a living by prostitution.
In the early 1920s, Josephine met the famous gambler and law enforcement officer Wyatt Earp, who lived in a civil marriage with Matty Blaylock. The woman was addicted to opium, which in those days was used to treat headaches, so it was not difficult for Josephine to take her husband away from her. In 1882, Marcus adopted the surname "Earp", although there is no evidence that she married Matty. Together with him, Josephine went on a trip to the West, where they played gambling, searched for gold and silver, ran several saloons and took part in equestrian competitions.
Josephine died in 1944. Her body was cremated and her ashes scattered near Colma, California.
The material was prepared by Rosemarina - based on an article from neatorama.com
P.S. My name is Alexander. This is my personal, independent project. I am very glad if you liked the article. Want to help the site? Just look below for an ad for what you've recently been looking for.
Copyright site © - This news belongs to the site, and are the intellectual property of the blog, protected by law on copyright and cannot be used anywhere without an active link to the source. Read more - "About Authorship"
Are you looking for this? Perhaps this is what you could not find for so long?
Courtesans. Beauty secrets.
courtesan ( "court lady" translated from French courtisane and from Italian cortigiana) - from the Renaissance to the beginning of the 20th century, the so-called kept women working in the elite strata of society.
From ancient times, from time to time, women appeared who, thanks to their beauty, intelligence, education and the art of love seduction, received power over powerful men.
In the bedrooms of the most famous courtesans kings and aristocrats left a fortune for a night of love. For the sake of owning a famous courtesan and keeping her famous risked not only wealth but also life.
Ancient getters (“companions” in Greek), geishas (“people of art” in Japanese), Indian devadasis, Roman and Venetian courtesans of the 15th-16th centuries, royal favorites - these bright women, poetesses, actresses, singers, ladies of the demimonde had a strong influence on history of his time.
Courtesans had nothing to do with "pornay" - prostitutes of the lowest class. During their lifetime, they were given honors; after death, they were given honorary titles (gravestones).
Since the Renaissance, depending on the position in society and on the professional ladder, two categories of courtesans were recognized, and in Venice an official register was even drawn up ......
History knows many examples when countries and the throne were submitted to women who did not have state power., for the ability to use your mind, talents, beauty and male weaknesses. At the cost of just one night, the Countess de Castiglione convinced not just anyone but the Emperor Napoleon to support the unification of Italy. The trial, which went down in history as a miraculous deliverance from death penalty- the Greek hetaera Phryne was found innocent due to the perfection of her body.
Courtesans who left a memory in the history of different eras:
Centuries BC and the beginning of a new era:
Cleopatra
The era of the Renaissance (beginning of the XIV - early XVII cc):
Agnes Sorel
Marquise de Pompadour
Roksolana
XVII-XVIII centuries:
Claudine Guerin De Tencin
XIX - XX centuries:
Mata Hari.
While most women were domestic recluses, could only run a household, go to church, give birth and raise children, the courtesans were interesting companions, well versed in art, music, philosophy, literature, dance, often practicing magic and mystical rituals.
Unlike boring and uneducated virtuous wives, courtesans radiated voluptuousness and love of life, with them men received pleasure that was not allowed on the marital bed, and often wise advice and spiritual support. Courtesans rarely married, preferring to have connections with several men (in the case when the courtesan was married, her husband was of a lower social position than the wife's clients.)
The courtesans chose their patrons, accepted gifts, arranged receptions, lured out money, started intrigues, making men's hearts tremble, burn with passion and perform deeds for the sake of her attention and favor. Important statesmen gathered in their houses, politicians, people of art - musicians, poets, painters and sculptors.
Often, due to a connection with a courtesan, men lost good name, service, family, fortune, position in society, mental health, became outcasts, and sometimes parted with their lives in duels, committed murder or suicide. But this only kindled the passions and popularity of courtesans among men. The names of some courtesans have remained for centuries as the inspirers of great men. whom they inspired to seek and win, to develop a culture of peace.
How and why did girls become courtesans?
Almost everyone who chooses the path of love for wealth was abused as a child. Some women did not want to live in poverty and obscurity, they came to big cities, where they studied the art of love, and not just "sex for money", most of them were actresses and singers, playing in life like on stage. Many of them suffered and died from the disease of those times - syphilis.
Current legislation is ambiguous to sex for money or material goods. Many of them suffered and died from the disease of that time - syphilis.
- In Africa, prostitution is prohibited, but it is widespread, being the cause of AIDS, HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis.
- In Asia, there is a double standard: an official ban on prostitution and the popularity of the services of "priestesses of love" (the recognized world center for sex tourism is Thailand). Men are allowed to have sex for money, but it is customary for prostitutes themselves to be condemned and despised in every possible way, as having entered into an intimate relationship before marriage.
- In most EU countries illegal propaganda and agitation of sex, brothels, pimping. Despite this, prostitution and pimping are very popular in Belgium.
- In Sweden, Iceland and Norway payment for sex is declared a crime as a form of exploitation of a woman on a par with the slave trade, the client is found guilty, not the prostitute.
Marquise Paiva- a woman of mystery, favorite of the Parisian beau monde, hostess literary salon and ... perhaps one of the most famous courtesans of the 19th century. Jewish by birth, she was born in Moscow, her father was a simple tailor, and it seemed that a bleak future awaited the dowry. However, the girl quickly realized that a successful marriage would be a pass to a happy life. And indeed: most of her life she lived in a mansion on the Champs-Elysées, hosting French bohemians.
The real name of the girl is Esther Lashmann. Her parents were impoverished Jewish refugees from Silesia (a Polish region bordering Germany) who took refuge in Moscow. When the girl was 17 years old, she was married to Francois Villot, a Frenchman by birth. The guy was from a poor family, he mastered the sewing business. In the marriage registration department, Esther was given a new name - Russian. Before changing her surname to Viyo, she became Esther Borisovna Lahman. By the way, the husband's surname became the only benefit for the newly-made "Frenchwoman". Family life did not tempt Esther for long; soon after giving birth, she ran away from her betrothed, leaving him with baby by chance. She herself went to seek her fortune in Paris. For greater fidelity, she called herself a widow and changed her name to Teresa.
In Paris, she huddles in the poorest quarter, but tries her best to get to social events. By hook or by crook, she meets the musician Henri Hertz. Teresa sincerely admires his playing, and the pianist's heart melts. Despite the raging passions, their union turns out to be fleeting: while Henri was in America during the next tour, his family insisted that his mistress leave their house immediately. Apparently, the rumors about her true origin did not hide from relatives famous musician. During her life with Henri Teresa managed to get acquainted with the best composers of the era - Liszt and Wagner, she also became close to Theophile Gauthier. And suddenly all her hopes collapsed in an instant, she had to urgently leave for England.
In London, Teresa acted according to an already well-established pattern: this time she won the heart of Lord Stanley, who held the chair of Prime Minister three times in the history of Great Britain. The novel was bright, but the lord turned out to be married, and was not going to get divorced. Then Teresa went on vacation to Baden, where she met Marquis Albino Paiva while playing in the casino. He was young and single, and in order to capture his attention from the very first minute, Esther-Teresa introduces herself under the name of Pauline Villot. She was almost 7 years older than her new chosen one and quickly fooled him, promising that after the wedding she would reveal to him all the secrets of love pleasures. If you believe the rumor, Paiva never fully enjoyed the promised reward: on the night after the wedding, the newly-marquise Paiva confessed to a cold calculation and soon broke up with her next husband.
The courtesan was able to really get rich during the years of her last marriage, this time she went down the aisle with Count Donnesmarck from Germany. It was this man who made Esther's dream of a mansion on the Champs Elysees a reality, he turned her life into a fairy tale. Political events prevented family happiness: during the imminent Franco-Prussian War, the couple was accused of espionage, and they had to leave France. Nervous experiences crippled the health of Countess von Donnersmarck, and she died of a heart attack at the age of 64. According to the legends, the inconsolable widower embalmed the body dead wife and spent nights by his side for several more years.
In the 19th century, courtesans were not only not shy, but were even proud of their position in society. For example, Cora Pearl went down in history as a courtesan,.
God! Let me become a virtuous person, but not a virtuous woman! Choose: either love women or understand them. Ninon de Lanclos The word courtesan in the mid-sixteenth century meant a high-class mistress, primarily associated with the rich, powerful of this world, men of the upper class, who in exchange for her services enriched her with jewelry and gave her status in society. In Renaissance Europe, courtesans played an important role in upper-class society, sometimes even playing the role of wives at social receptions.
There were two types of courtesans: The first category of girls, known in Italy as "cortigiana onesta" or honest courtesan, were considered intellectuals. The latter were called "cortigiana di lume" and were regarded as courtesans of the lower class. Despite the fact that the latter were still considered a class above the usual lady of easy virtue, the former were usually romanticized and even more or less equated with women of the royal family. It is with this type of servants of beauty that the concept of "the art of the courtesan" is associated.
With the fall of most monarchies and the rise of democratic society, the role of courtesans changed. In the government they played the role of spies. This role is usually associated with Mata Hari. Today you can still meet courtesans of the old type, but this is a huge rarity. Countess de Castiglione
In 1856 - 1860 the photographic house of Mayer and Pearson completed an unusual order. One of the regular clients of the photo studio, the Countess of Castiglione, asked to take a series of photos, for which she posed, lifting her skirts, with bare legs. These photographs, by our standards, quite modest, for the middle of the 19th century were perceived as defiant and outrageous. The fame of the customer contributed a lot to the scandal. The Countess de Castiglione is a famous Italian courtesan. According to the general recognition of contemporaries, the most beautiful woman of her century. At the age of 16 she married Count Francesco de Castiglione in 1855 gave birth to his son. In the same year she moved to Paris, where she soon became the lover of Napoleon III. So she, among other things, carried out the instructions of her cousin, Count Cavour, to convince Napoleon not to interfere with the unification of Italy. Their relationship lasted only two years, but she opened the doors to the beauty of the living rooms of the German Empress Augusta, Otto von Bismarck, Adolf Thiers.
Being an influential secular lady, she shone at court, while not neglecting diplomatic missions. Her beauty gave rise to many legends, and significant role photographs played a role in its popularity. For the photo shoot, special costumes were selected, which served as the name of the entire series: "White Nun", ball gown"Queen of Spades", "Black Dress", "Queen of Etruria", "Breton Peasant Woman". In these outfits, the Countess of Castiglione appeared at costume balls. In the famous series "Games of Madness" she posed, covering part of her face with an oval frame for a photograph.
She often sent these photographs to friends, lovers and admirers. Sometimes she used her photo performances to intimidate. So, a series of photographs called "Revenge", where she was taken with a deliberately threatening look (sweeping curls, a ferocious look and a dagger in her hands), was sent to her ex-husband when he wanted to take her child away from her.
In total, she commissioned over 400 shots from Pearson. Sometimes the countess ordered risky shots in dezabille, coquettishly revealing one or another part of the body. A special place in the photo gallery of the Countess was occupied by her legs. Several times she asked to take a close-up of her legs, the shape of which she was especially proud of.
After a break with Napoleon III and several years in Italy, the Countess returned to France and settled in Passy. During the Franco-Prussian war, she fulfilled an important secret mission - to dissuade Bismarck from the occupation of Paris (the capital was not occupied). In the 1880s, suffering from neurasthenia, she shut herself up in her mansion on Place Vendôme, where the walls were covered in black and the mirrors were curtained. She did not want to see what time had done to her, avoided the eyes of others and left the house only at night. Died of apoplexy. She was buried in the Pere Lachaise cemetery. MATA HARI
Mata Hari means "Eye" in Javanese. dawn", but for everyone it became a symbol of a spy. This unique woman became a legend during her lifetime. Her whole life was surrounded by such legends that even now it is very difficult to separate truth from fiction and say exactly who she really was: a scandalous dancer or an indecent spy who worked for two intelligence agencies, an important seductress or an objective victim.Some say that Mata Hari traded herself right and left, not letting a single man through, and, as a result, she got what she deserved, others believe that she was betrayed by those same men who could not share this unheard-of woman among themselves.
Legends, legends, legends ... It is possible that Mata Hari herself distributed them. In life, everything was, as always: both simpler and more tragic. Mata Hari is the daughter of the Dutch master hatter Adam Seele, who became incredibly rich in stock trading and bought a fashionable house in their hometown of Leeuwarden. But soon he went bankrupt, divorced his wife and left the family. A few years later, the still very young Margaret Zelle also lost her mother, who died in 1891 from tuberculosis. Adam Zelle took over the upbringing of two younger twin brothers, and gave his daughter to relatives in the neighboring town of Leiden. In 1895, nineteen-year-old Margaret met and married a Scottish officer who served in India and was on leave through an advertisement. For a time, Margaret Zelle lived in India with her husband. But the family did not work out, and the young woman plunged into the abyss of Paris, trying to find her happiness there. The pseudonym Mata Hari also appeared there. And the ability to dance in an oriental way. In fact, she became the first Parisian stripper, shocking the public with her phenomenal natural beauty, and looseness, and art. The French capital did not know this at that time.
It is now that you will not surprise anyone with strip dancing, but then, in 1905, they became real sensation, especially since they were presented as reproducing religious rites in honor of Buddha, Shiva and others Indian deities. Performances were accompanied by oriental music, also little known at that time, and even tamed snakes, which, wrapping around the dancer's body, remained almost her only attire.
The success of Mata Hari's dance evenings was colossal. The tall, slender brunette quickly gained general fame and such popularity that all the moralists who condemned the dancing of a naked woman were forced to shut up. Mata Hari was especially enthusiastically received in Berlin. Here (as, indeed, in other capitals), many powerful people of this world solicited her love. The number of lovers grew - the performer of erotic dances became one of the most fashionable and highly paid high-society courtesans.
She was in touch with a number of high-ranking military, politicians and other influential people in many countries, including France and Germany. Despite the rich gifts that she received from her lovers, Mata Hari knew long periods of lack of funds and made a lot of debt. Her passion was also card game, for which, perhaps, her money went.
The dancer's fees exceeded the profits of large bankers and entrepreneurs, and almost all newspapers wrote about her love affairs. It is difficult to say what was true and what was fiction, but during the trial of Mata Hari, two kings, the crown prince of Germany, the prime minister, the French minister and several others acted as witnesses to her innocence. major officials who confessed their love affairs with her and asked for indulgence towards the woman. They all said with one voice: no Mata Hari is a spy.
High-ranking lovers are not an ideal source for obtaining all sorts of information! Four years before the start of the war, Mata Hari was recruited by German intelligence, and she became one of its most effective agents. True, it is difficult to understand why she needed such a service. There was no question of any special love for Germany or patriotism, and one could hardly count on special incomes, especially since this woman was used to receiving money without an account from her fans. Some historians claim that she simply spent obviously more than she received, others that she wanted to take revenge on Paris for something. Be that as it may, one can only guess about the reasons.
After many decades, current historians tend to believe that the popularity of a woman really drew attention to her person from the secret services of France and Germany, who were on the verge of war. When trouble struck, Paris was no longer up to dancing and entertainment, and the celebrity fees disappeared like smoke. This forced Mata Hari to move to his native Holland for some time, and it was there that German intelligence got her. Adventurous nature, combined with lack of money, made the woman an agent of H21. But not a spy. In Paris, where she returned at the height of the First World War, she was calculated in no time, and the French had already offered her, using personal connections in high European spheres, to supply them with the necessary information. Back in the early 1920s, Colonel Walter Nicolai, who led the intelligence of the German General Staff, made sensational statement: yes, Mata Hari was looking for an opportunity to earn extra money by cooperating with his department, but she was not a spy. It's just that a beautiful lady got involved in something completely different from women's games, and died for it.
On October 13, 1917, Mata Hari, immediately upon her return to Paris, was arrested by French intelligence and accused of spying for the enemy in war time. Her trial was held behind closed doors. She was charged with transferring information to the enemy that led to the death of several divisions of soldiers. The materials of the court are still classified, but some information has been leaked to the press. Dutch citizen Margareta Zelle was found guilty and shot at a military training ground in Vincennes on October 15, 1917.
Former courtesan and famous double agent, Mata Hari calmly, without a trace of excitement, stood at the execution post. Turning to the nun, she kissed her and, taking off her coat from her shoulders, handed her: “Hug me quickly, I will look at you. Farewell!” She refused to have her wrists tied, preferring to stand by the post without being tied to it. She also refused to wear a black eye patch. Blowing a kiss to twelve soldiers (her executioners), the fearless Mata Hari shouted: “I am ready, gentlemen!” Her body was transferred to the anatomical theater. CAROLINA OTERO
The brilliant character of "La Belle Epoque", actress, singer, dancer, "the last courtesan of the era" - Carolina "La Belle" Otero was born in 1868 in Ponte de Valga Pontevedra in Spain in poor family. At the age of twenty, Carolina found a sponsor in Barcelona who helped develop her dancing career in France. Soon she created the image of La Belle Otero, posing as a Spanish gypsy.
Very quickly, La Belle became the star of the productions of Les Folies Bèrgere in Paris, with each triumphal season more and more hanging her chest with her own real jewels. Like many of her competitors, La Belle Otero soon became more famous as a courtesan. She was called the last great courtesan. She was known for frequent love affairs with powerful men. Her list of love victories - 6 royalty, among whom were the kings of England, Serbia and Spain, the Kaiser, the Prince of Monaco, the Russian Grand Dukes, Peter and Nicholas, the Duke of Westminster and the writer Gabriel d'Anunzio.
Although not confirmed, it was rumored that the six men committed suicide after she broke up with them. And it is certain that at least two men dueled over her. She was charming, determined, she had a beautiful figure, and her breasts were famous. There is a legend that the shape of her chest inspired the architect of the famous French hotel "Carlton" when designing the twin towers. The hotel was built in 1912 and has remained one of the symbols of European glamor and chic for almost a century.
Her love affairs brought her notoriety and the envy of many other famous French ladies of the time. In August 1898, in St. Petersburg, the French cameraman Flix Mesguich (employed by the Lumiere company) filmed Otero performing her famous waltz of the diamonds in a one-minute film, making her perhaps the first movie star in history.
After a concert trip to the front during the First World War, Carolina Otero suddenly retired from the stage, with a huge fortune that she had accumulated over the years. She bought a mansion in the south of France. With her beauty and fame, she led a lavish lifestyle, spending her millions on casino gambling. Belle Otero died in poverty at the age of ninety-seven in Nice, France in 1965, forty-seven years after the end of her extraordinary career.
June 18th, 2015 , 10:03 pm
Good day.
Today, after a short break, I propose to plunge into the history of sexual relations again.
In a letter from the 18th century that has come down to us, a French traveler tells his friend with amazement that “ Italian courtesans wear little panties under their skirts". It is significant that this item of clothing is found precisely among courtesans - pantaloons for a long time were considered extremely indecent, as they meant the usurpation of a male toilette.
Who are they? We know a lot from films and books, here's a little more about "honest" and "dishonest" courtesans and their way of life and clothes.
In the 15th century, it was common in Italy aesthetic prostitution , which, according to the Earl, represented a rebirth. Prostitutes of this class, unlike ordinary ones, were called " meretrices honestae ". They were generally highly educated and moved in the highest spheres of society: among artists, dignitaries, princes, etc.
At Count we find the following description of some of them: the famous Empire learned the art of writing poetry Nicolo Compono, surnamed " Lo Strascino and was fluent in Latin. Lucrezia, nicknamed " Madrema non vuote", could serve as a model of correct and elegant language, and Aretino speaks of her through the mouth of a famous life-saver Ludovico in one of his Regionamenti the following: " She could be called Cicero: she knows by heart everything Petrarch and Boccaccio and a lot of poems from Virgil, Horace, Ovid and many other authors". Lucrezia Squarcia, originally a Venetian, which is mentioned in the famous Tariffa, could often be seen at festivities with essays Petrarch, Virgil And Homer in hand.
Names Tullia d'Aragona And Veronica Franco known in the history of literature, and Camille Pizana wrote a book that I edited Francis del Nero. Her letters that have come down to us are distinguished by a slightly pretentious style, but are not without grace; they contain many Latinisms and even whole latin expressions. Speaking of famous Isabella de Luna, a Spanish woman who traveled half the world, Bandello notices that she was considered the most intelligent and dexterous woman in Rome. Aristocrats and writers not only did not hide their connections with the most famous courtesans, but even boasted about them, and each sought to get more attention from them than his rivals. famous commander Giovanni Medici ordered to forcibly take Lucretia ("Madrema non voule") from Giovanni del Stufa who gave in honor of her feast in Recanati. In 1531, six knights in Florence challenged anyone who did not want to recognize Tullia d'Aragona the most respectable and admirable woman in the world.
"Courtesan" - image of Tullia d'Aragona by Alessandro Moretto (1498−1554)
Courtesans fell into two main categories. The first included the so-called honest "Courtesans - cortigiane "oneste" . Their main characteristic was that they were supported by one or more wealthy patrons, usually from the upper class. The "honest" courtesan had her own certain independence, and had freedom of movement. She is trained in the rules of good behavior, knows how to conduct a table conversation, and sometimes is the owner of high culture and literary talent.
Apart from cultural communication, they performed their direct duties as a prostitute and received a privileged social status Cortegiana, hoc est meretrix honesta (cortigiana, ovvero prostituta onesta) or "honest" courtesan. Honesty in this case has nothing to do with chastity, which means bourgeois way of life, culture and good manners.
Representatives of the nobility openly kept beautiful courtesans, just as they kept rare, precious animals. They rent houses for them or put their house at their disposal, surround them with servants, horses, carriages, buy them luxurious dresses, jewelry, etc., turn their house into a brilliant luxury item. Here they are quite openly, bring their friends here, arrange common festivities. Connections with a courtesan, insane spending of money on her, are even one of the ways to defiantly flaunt one's wealth. Such kept women of the nobility, cardinals and prelates were called in Italy - in contrast to ordinary meretrices - courtisanae honestae .
GEORGION. "Portrait of a Young Woman (Laura)". 1506 Oil painting, 41x34 cm. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna
Especially the rich kept entire harems with one, two and three courtesans. We know this mainly about the wealthy aristocracy of Italy and partly of France. In Italy, famous, noble courtesans lived mainly in Florence, Venice and Rome - in those three centers where waves of gold flowed from all sides of Italy. In Florence reigned the greatest splendor, in Venice - the greatest wealth, in Rome indulged exclusively in voluptuousness and pleasure.
Tiziano Vecellio. "Violante (La Bella Gatta)". 1514 Oil painting, 65x51 cm. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna
Sometimes several friends together covered the costs of maintaining the courtesans. When one of the gentlemen was fed up with his lady, he simply passed her to a friend.
Next to such courtesans, kept by one person or a whole circle, arose in the Renaissance, as once in ancient world, a similar historical and economic situation. It led, of course, to similar consequences - a type of first-class cocotte, la grande Cocotte, la grande Puttana , a type of hetaera, who earned so much with her beauty and sophistication that she could free herself from economic dependence, turning from a slave into a mistress, who was courted by the richest and most powerful people.
CARPACCIO Vittore. "Two Venetian Ladies". 1510 Oil on wood, 94x64 cm. Museo Correr, Venice
Venetian courtesans
In Venice alone, there were, according to the words Montaigne, one and a half hundred first-class courtesans who competed in the sense of brilliance and luxury with the princesses. Experienced in love, the courtesan numbered among her clients the highest noble and intellectual aristocracy of the second half of the 16th century. Her bedroom was a kind of first-class hotel at the busiest crossroads in Europe, linking Rome with the East. A motley string of princes and kings stayed in it, sometimes paying a huge fortune for one night of love. Their characteristic representative, and, moreover, the most famous, was the Venetian Veronica Franco.
Veronica Franco, famous Venetian poet and courtesan. Portrait of Paolo Veronese.
Veronica was a friend of the great Tintoretto and received in her salon famous writers and artists of Italy, as well as those French and German who traveled to Italy. It was not without reason that they said about her: If this new Aspasia changed her place of residence, then her move was like the move of a queen, and the messengers spread the news of her departure and arrival..
For the sake of glory, more than one aristocrat went bankrupt to support the famous and expensive courtesan. For the sake of possessing such a famous courtesan, people risked not only their fortune, but also their lives.
Thus, "honest" courtesans at the end of the 15th century, thanks to the generous gifts of their patrons, become owners of real estate, luxuriate in luxury, and, like the most sophisticated princesses, arrange daily receptions. The craft of courtesans is so profitable that often mothers are ready to spend a lot of money to educate their daughters, hoping to see their child under the "guardianship" of a noble nobleman.
Since the eminent courtesan was proclaimed by the epoch as the most precious luxury item, the most desirable object of pleasure, she necessarily had to flaunt all those values that then increased the importance of a person. And these values were primarily the arts and sciences.
At the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th century, an unusual decree was issued in Venice, which stated that prostitutes living in special quarters were required to sit in front of windows, hanging out their legs and exposing their breasts in order to attract men more strongly, thereby protecting them from homosexual connections. A document that has come down to our time confirms that in the Venetian Republic of the 15th-16th centuries, the spread of homosexuality assumed too great a scale, especially among intellectuals and religious figures, so that many prostitutes were left without their inveterate clients.
Prostitutes received payment from passing foreigners, then invested in local banks (the courtesans were favorite clients of banks), thereby encouraging the local economy.
The clothes of "honest" courtesans were so similar to the outfits of ladies high society that it was difficult to determine who was who. Therefore, in Florence, a medieval law was reintroduced, obliging courtesans to use identification marks, the law also applied to Jews and lepers. In 1546 Cosimo I orders prostitutes to cover their faces with a yellow veil or attach to their clothes (in a conspicuous place) a yellow bow, the width of a finger. In 1562, the veil is replaced by a beret.
The toilets of the courtesans were luxurious - they were in no way inferior to noble ladies. In turn, in terms of the degree of openness of the neckline, noble ladies did not lag behind the courtesans, they even came to the temple with practically bare breasts, the neckline ended under it, and the nipples were "shamefully" covered with a transparent cloth or mesh: 
VERONESE Paolo. "The family of Darius before Alexander" (detail). 1565-1570 Oil painting. National Gallery, London
An English traveler passing through Venice describes married women seen in the city. He writes that ladies' dresses front and back, reinforced with whalebone. The blond hair of the Venetians is styled in thick braids over the head in the form of peculiar horns, without any support, behind, a black veil falls on the shoulders, covering neither the hair, nor the shoulders, nor the breasts, which are open almost to the stomach. Women seem to be taller than men, because they wear shoes on a very high platform (50 cm), so two maids walk next to the mistress, the lady leans on one when walking, the other carries her train. Young and old ladies move with an unsteady gait, showing their bare breasts to everyone they meet.
Courtesans in Rome or "dishonest" courtesans
After Medici in 1494 they were expelled from Florence, thanks to the patronage of the Pope Alessandro VI Borgia and his followers Popes Giulio II(1503 - 1513) and Popes Leon X(1513 - 1521), Rome becomes the most brilliant center of the Italian Renaissance period.
Not only artists and sculptors of that time, such as Michelangelo, Raffaello and for a while Leonardo da Vinci, but also numerous characters from all over the peninsula, in pursuit of the splendor of Roman life. Among them are intellectuals from all over Europe, aristocrats and philistines from the provinces, hungry for fame, entertainment and circuses.
Every cardinal, and especially every pope, immediately after his election, brought along a whole crowd of relatives and servants, who lived exclusively at the expense of their master. Papa Leone X, according to the testimony of that time, broke all records, he surrounded himself with a "family" consisting of 700 people.
In this regard, in Rome, the male population far exceeds the female population and is about 60% of total townspeople. Many unmarried men live in Rome, among them representatives of the aristocracy, who bought important posts in the papal office at a high price. Here are merchants and bankers connected with the same office, purveyors to the papal army, who, if they were married, kept their wives at a very distant distance. If we add artists, actors, military, all kinds of envoys and ambassadors, then the picture becomes even more complete.
Naturally, all this contributed to the rapid spread of prostitution. Already in 1490, about 6,800 courtesans worked in Rome, not counting concubines and prostitutes from underground brothels. According to the census conducted in 1526 in the Eternal City, there were 4900 courtesans for 55,035 inhabitants. Based on these data, it can be assumed that 10% of the city's population was engaged in this craft.
Roman courtesan
Thus, Rome during the Renaissance was not only the capital Christendom but also the capital of prostitution. A census of the city's population in 1490 was carried out in connection with the dissolute lifestyle of priests and employees of the papal office, since rarely one of them did not have a courtesan or concubine in his house.
From the middle of the 16th century, the religious authorities decided to resume good name city and return to him the title of the capital of Christianity. Therefore, in 1549 a law was issued prohibiting prostitutes from living in certain quarters, in 1556 a new decree was issued prohibiting Roman courtesans from visiting church in the presence of honest townswomen. Prostitutes can no longer drive up to the church in a carriage and listen to a prayer service in male society. Often courtesans, thanks to connections in the highest church circles, easily circumvented all these prohibitions.
With the coming of the Pope Pio V the laws become even stricter, every day more and more courtesans are expelled from the city. The townspeople begin to protest, then, going towards the population, the Pope allows the remaining prostitutes to settle down on the outskirts of the city, away from the rich quarters.
In any case, the persecution of courtesans does not end there, new dad Sisto V continues the work of his predecessor. He orders Roman prostitutes to move to a quarter specially designated for them, but since the number of courtesans is about 15,000, there is not enough room for everyone. In 1566, many creditors of prostitutes fail, housing prices jump up. In December 1585, the Gostardi-Ceuli bank declared itself insolvent. Gostardi-Ceuli administered the money of many Roman courtesans who were forced to leave the city, they withdrew their investments, thus causing an irreparable blow to the bank.
Despite the fact that the courtesans were isolated in the ghetto, despite all the decrees and prohibitions, prostitution in Rome continued to flourish, albeit in a more hidden form. During the Great Jubilee of 1600, papal laws are carried out with greater rigor and zeal, but then everything falls into place again.
Venereal diseases
One of the most dangerous venereal diseases of that time was syphilis, which spread throughout Europe in just a few years, without distinguishing between the lower and upper classes. Prostitution further contributed to this phenomenon. In Italy, this disease was called french disease - mal francese , and in Spain and France, Neapolitan disease - mal napoletano .
The first foci of syphilis appear in Naples in 1495, after arriving there French army. The symptoms of the then unknown disease resemble the plague, this contributes to even greater confusion, from the end of the 15th century to the beginning of the 16th century, syphilis takes countless victims with it.
The first victims of syphilis are courtesans, they are also the main distributors of a dangerous disease. Unlike patients from wealthy respected families who have the opportunity to resort to the treatment of famous doctors or simply leave the high society, hiding from prying eyes in their luxurious palaces, prostitutes are sentenced to severe physical and moral suffering. Sick courtesans are completely excluded from public life, they are doomed to the loss of all clients and complete ruin.
Due to the wide scale of the disease, thanks to the donations and mercy of the city authorities and wealthy members of society, the first shelters for syphilis patients are opened. So, in 1522 in Venice, under the supervision of two ladies from high society and with the support of the Doge, a Hospital for the terminally ill was opened - l "Ospedale degli Incurabili, for 80 seats. This, of course, is a drop in the bucket, so a huge number of patients can be seen throughout the city, on the roadsides, on the steps of churches.
Before sinking to such a state, courtesans try in every possible way to disguise their illness in order to continue a profitable craft. Not being able to turn to doctors, these women often resort to the help of all kinds of charlatans who offer "miraculous" remedies for the disease. First of all, these are expensive aromatic essences that soften the smell of the disease (abscesses, pus, etc.), but have nothing to do with the treatment of syphilis.
Mercury-based detergents are very popular among courtesans. But since the dosage of mercury was chosen by eye, without medical supervision, such shampoos did more harm than good, not to mention their high cost. In connection with the uncontrolled use of mercury, which eliminated the primary signs of the disease, undesirable side effects often appeared, such as loss of hair and teeth.
Some courtesans who use expensive medicine brought from America in 1515-1520 manage to avoid a similar fate. This is a decoction of the so-called holy tree, crosses from this wood are sold as miraculous. In 1530, the disease begins to decline, although the courtesans will continue to suffer in suffering for a long time, still deceived by charlatans and impromptu doctors.
"Portrait of a Young Woman". 1540s Venice
Courtesans and religion
Courtesans were not allowed to be in the church with ladies from decent families, separate places were allocated for prostitutes, and, starting from the 16th century, separate services were held.
At the beginning of the 16th century, a monastery was opened Santa Caterina di Cordai, where the daughters of courtesans at the age of eight to twelve were sent, sometimes by force, where they were taught Christian doctrine for seven years. Then the girls could get married or become nuns, it should be noted that the dowry for those who decided to devote themselves to the church was twice as much as for those wishing to marry.
The courtesans themselves are not forgotten either, in order to convert them to Christianity, a monastery was also opened, but since there are not so many prostitutes who want it, the monastery begins to accept newlywed wives who are allowed to leave their husbands for any reason. In 1563, Pope Pio IV opens another monastery, for the same courtesans who converted to the Catholic faith. They could stay there until they got married or took the vow of nuns.
In 1556, 82 conversions to Catholicism were registered among the courtesans, however, many women were not at all going to become nuns, they preferred to get married as soon as possible, often this was just an excuse to continue their former craft. Who married former courtesans? Usually these were the poor who coveted a dowry or prisoners who, according to ancient custom, received complete freedom by marrying a courtesan.
Often, parents sent their daughters to the monastery in order to preserve the inheritance for their son or to collect a rich dowry for eldest daughter. Such girls entered there without desire and were very far from God. And if we add the courtesans who became nuns, but did not forget their previous activities, then one can only imagine what sometimes happened in these holy places.
But, as everyone knows, the fish goes out from the head, so the church hierarchy itself was not without sin and often set negative examples, as evidenced by the events in Venice, or rather in the monastery delle Convertite, the description of which has survived to this day in a letter dated 1551.
The letter says that the confessor of the monastery, for 19 years, satisfied his sexual needs with 400 nuns, almost all of them were beautiful and young girls. Having learned at confession secret desires, thoughts and sinful impulses, he punished and subjugated all the nuns there to his will. If any girl became pregnant, he personally saw to it that an abortion was performed and that the fruit of sinful love was destroyed. In the summer, the priest forced the most beautiful nuns to strip naked and bathe in his presence. In addition, he appropriated all church money. After the denunciations of the escaped nuns, the confessor was exposed and sentenced to death. They cut off his head and burned his body.
