Joséphine Duchesnois
Catherine-Joséphine Duchesnois, née Rafin, often simply called Mademoiselle Duchesnois, (1777–1835) was a classical French actress who performed at the Comédie-Française. She was also one of Napoleon's mistresses. Early life Born on 5 June 1777 at Saint-Saulve near Valenciennes, Duchesnois was the daughter of an innkeeper. After working for a time as a maidservant and a seamstress, she first appeared in Valenciennes at an amateur production in January 1797. Following her apparently successful debut, she went to Paris to take drama courses under a Mademoiselle Florence. Despite her plain looks, she was picked out by Madame de Montesson who managed to have her trialled by the Théâtre-Français for a period of five months. Career Her Paris début was on 3 August 1802 in Racine's Phèdre. Her acting was so outstanding that Napoleon Bonaparte came to see her perform a few days later. She gained the respect of François-Joseph Talma, a leading actor at the Comédie-Française, quickly becoming his stage partner. Thanks to her warmth, her passion and her strong expressive voice, she was also acclaimed by her audiences. By November, they had become so enthusiastic that they insisted she should be crowned on stage by the other actors. Duchesnois became one