The lecture by Chris Boïcos focuses on the three aristocrats of the third republic, Countess Greffulhe, Count Montesquiou & Anna de Noailles.

The period running from 1890 to the eve of WWI is often called the "Belle Epoque” in France, despite the many social and political upheavals of the time. In the upper classes of Paris, true financial and political power was held by the new bourgeoisie of industrialists, financiers, and high civil servants. Yet aristocratic names and titles (officially abolished by the Third Republic) still gave their holders a considerable social cachet and encouraged precious attitudes and eccentric behavior which the more stolid bourgeois dare not to assume.

The lecture examines three of the most conspicuous aristocratic characters of the era, whose personalities, fashion statements, and talent for self-advertisement both fascinated and repelled their contemporaries but never left them indifferent. Their mark on the fashions, arts, and literary culture of the Belle Epoque was considerable and all three served as models for the greatest literary account of the era, Marcel Proust’s À la recherche du temps perdu (Remembrance of Things Past).

Every month, on the third Saturday, Christophe and Anne-Catherine take turn and host a conference, followed by a short Q&A session. The conference will be recorded live, and available online for one month.

Starts at 5:00pm (CET) / 11:00am (ET) - available on replay for one month

All invitations are personal and non-transferable.

Credit: Govanni Boldini, Le Comte Robert de Montesquiou, 1897, Don Henri Pinard au nom du comte Robert de Montesquiou, 1922, © RMN-Grand Palais (Musée d’Orsay) / Hervé Lewandowski