Bashkirtseff
Orig | CZ

Madame Brenne

Basic Aktualizováno: 2025-12-07

Research Status: Basic Last Updated: 2025-12-07 Diary Coverage: Book 00 (1884 retrospective preface)

Identity

Madame Brenne was one of Marie Bashkirtseff's French governesses during her childhood in Russia. She is described as having:

  • Pale blue eyes ("des yeux bleus pâles")
  • A hairstyle from the Restoration period ("une coiffure à la Restauration")
  • An appearance of great sadness ("semblait très triste")
  • Age of about 50 years ("ses cinquante ans")
  • Tuberculosis ("sa phtisie")

Physical Appearance

Marie's description of Madame Brenne is quite specific and evocative:

The Restoration Hairstyle

"Une coiffure à la Restauration" refers to hairstyles fashionable during the French Restoration period (1814-1830), featuring:
  • Hair parted in the middle
  • Smooth bands or loops over the ears
  • Often a bun or chignon at the back
  • A somewhat severe, old-fashioned appearance by the 1860s

For Madame Brenne to still wear this style in the 1860s suggests she clung to fashions of her youth, adding to her melancholy, outdated appearance.

Overall Impression

The combination of pale blue eyes, old-fashioned hairstyle, sadness, advancing age, and visible illness created a poignant figure - a woman past her prime, clinging to past fashions, marked by illness and sorrow.

Role in Marie's Education

Unlike the Russian governess Madame Melnikoff (who taught music and dance) or the young Russian companion Sophie Dolgikoff, Madame Brenne appears to have been a French-language governess responsible for:

  • French language instruction
  • Drawing lessons ("elle me faisait dessiner")
  • Cultural refinement

Marie recalls a specific memory: "J'ai dessiné un dessin avec elle, une petite église au trait" (I drew a drawing with her, a little church in outline).

This memory of drawing a small church with Madame Brenne suggests:

  • Patient, gentle instruction
  • Religious or architectural subjects
  • Line drawing technique ("au trait" = in outline/line work)
  • A quiet, focused activity suited to Madame Brenne's sad temperament

Marie's Affection

Despite (or perhaps because of) Madame Brenne's melancholy appearance, Marie explicitly states: "Je l'aimais beaucoup" (I loved her very much).

This affection is touching given that Marie mentions no such warm feelings for the romantic Madame Melnikoff or the young Sophie Dolgikoff. Perhaps Madame Brenne's gentle drawing lessons and sad demeanor appealed to something in young Marie's nature.

Drawing Activity During Card Games

Marie recalls a charming domestic scene: "Du reste je dessinais souvent, pendant que les grands faisaient leurs parties de cartes, je venais dessiner sur le tapis vert" (Besides, I often drew; while the grown-ups played their card games, I would come draw on the green cloth).

This memory places Madame Brenne's drawing instruction in context:

  • Cultivated household: Adults playing cards, child drawing
  • Aristocratic leisure: Cards and drawing as refined pastimes
  • Child's autonomy: Marie drawing independently on the card table's green baize cloth
  • Lasting skill: Madame Brenne gave Marie drawing skills she continued using

Death in Crimea (1868)

Marie states simply: "Mme Brenne est morte en 1868 en Crimée" (Madame Brenne died in 1868 in Crimea).

This detail is significant:

  • Tuberculosis treatment: Crimea was the premier Russian health resort for treating consumption
  • Failed cure: Despite the supposedly salubrious climate, Madame Brenne died there
  • Advanced disease: Her death in Crimea suggests her illness was quite advanced
  • Family care: The Bashkirtseff family either sent her or enabled her to seek treatment in Crimea

The fact that Marie remembered and recorded the specific year of Madame Brenne's death (1868) sixteen years later (in 1884) suggests the governess's death made an impression on her.

Historical Context

French Governesses in Russian Noble Households

Throughout the 19th century, Russian aristocratic families routinely employed French governesses to ensure their children's French language mastery and cultural refinement. French was the language of culture and diplomacy, and speaking perfect French was essential for social success.

These governesses often came from:

  • Impoverished French provincial gentry
  • Families disrupted by French political upheavals (Revolution, Restoration, Napoleonic period)
  • Middle-class educated families needing respectable employment

Tuberculosis and Governesses

Governesses were particularly vulnerable to tuberculosis because:

  • Close quarters with multiple family members increased exposure
  • Stress and overwork weakened immunity
  • Limited medical care for employees
  • Indoor work with poor ventilation

That Madame Brenne had visible tuberculosis ("sa phtisie") and continued working suggests either:

  • The disease was not yet understood as highly contagious
  • The family valued her services despite her illness
  • She had nowhere else to go
  • Her illness was thought mild until it suddenly worsened

Crimea as Last Resort

Sending Madame Brenne to Crimea in 1868 for her tuberculosis reflects:

  • Medical beliefs of the era: Climate therapy was standard treatment
  • Family responsibility: The Bashkirtseffs provided for their governess's medical care
  • Common practice: Crimea was "the Russian Riviera" for health seekers
  • Final attempt: Often patients went to Crimea when illness was already advanced

Lasting Impact on Marie

Marie's specific, affectionate memory of Madame Brenne - including the drawing lesson, the pale blue eyes, the sad demeanor - suggests this governess made a meaningful impression. The quiet activity of drawing together, which Marie continued independently, may have been one of Madame Brenne's most lasting gifts.

Related Entries

Sources

  • Marie's 1884 preface (Book 00, paragraph 00.36)
  • Historical context about French governesses in Russian households
  • Medical history of tuberculosis treatment in 19th-century Crimea
  • French Restoration period fashion history

%%2025-12-07T15:30:00 RSR: Created glossary entry for Madame Brenne based on Book 00, paragraph 00.36. Poignant figure - sad French governess with tuberculosis, teaching Marie to draw, died in Crimea 1868 seeking cure. Marie explicitly states she loved her ("Je l'aimais beaucoup").%%