Sarah Bernhardt

Biography

Sarah Bernhardt is one of those women who lived life to the full. And what a life! Her actual name was Rosine Nernard. Her parents were were French and Dutch of Jewish descent, but she was raised in a Catholic convent. At age 13 she she entered the Conservatoire was soon astonishing her teachers with her acting skills. Bernhardt was perhaps the most accalimed actress of the 19th century, if not of all time. She was born in Paris in 1844. She had a spectacularly successful acting career in France and then went to England in 1876 where she soon became the leading actress of the London stage, making annual appearances. She made visits to America in the 1880s and there were two world tours during the 1890s. She asked Oscar Wilde in 1892 to write a play for her. Wilde wrote Salome for her, but the Lord Chamberlain banned it before it could be staged. She founded the Theatre Sarah Bernhardt in Paris during 1899. Her leg was amputated in 1914, but she continued to appear on the stage. She appeared at the front during World War I to entertain the troops and helped raise money in America and Britain. She had one chimd, Maurice (1864- ), after an affair with a Belgian nobleman, Charles Joseph Eugene Henri, Prince de Ligne. She raised Maurice and spoiled him shamefully. She left his hair long and dressed him in fancy clothes until he was quite old. She continued working on the stage until her death. Maurice and Sarah were close their entire lives. She died in his arms during 1923.