[1] Born Eugénie Arménaïde Brécourt on 8 April 1837 in Paris, she was the daughter of a printer and a vegetable seller.
The baroness didn't take her seriously and when Gras, the grocer, called to make his delivery, jokingly suggested him for a husband.
[3] The Baroness reluctantly gave her consent and provided a dowry of 12,000 francs, which the couple used to open a grocery store.
[1] Some while later, Brécourt reappeared as a courtesan, calling herself Jeanne de la Cour, having unsuccessfully attempted commerce, acting, literature and journalism.
[1] Gras died in a charity hospital, and Brécourt, now free from her past and wishing to safeguard her future, sought a permanent benefactor.
Roche was a wealthy, young man, age 20, who became infatuated with her, and by the end of that year, they had entered into a relationship.
[10] Nathalis Gaudry had been a childhood friend of Brécourt, and they were reunited when he moved to Paris looking for employment after being in the army.