Cécile Furtado was born in Paris on March 6, 1821, to a Jewish family of Sephardic (Spanish-Portuguese) ancestry.

In Paris, she lived in a large mansion in the middle of a huge garden, at 28 rue de Monceau.

During the war of 1870, Cécile supported the Red Cross and organized an ambulance service for the repatriation of the wounded.

In 1895, at the return of the French expeditionary force of Madagascar, Cécile sought to relieve the fate of the sick soldiers.

Her charitable activities and generosity earned her the rank of Officer of the Legion of Honor (Légion d'honneur) in 1896.

Her death was marked by a public mourning which is associated with the President of the Republic, Felix Faure, ministers and the municipality of Paris.