married Hugo de Sade. Petrarch first saw her in 1327, and conceived a passion for her, which existed during her life; yet her chastity has never been called in question. Petrarch wrote three hundred and eighteen sonnets and eighty-eight songs, of which Laura was the subject. She died of the plague, in 1348, aged thirty-eight. She is said to have had a graceful figure, a sweet voice, a noble and distinguished appearance, and a countenance which inspired tenderness.
LAVALETTE, EMILIE, COUNTESS DE,
Niece of the Empress Josephine, married Marie Chamans Lavalette, aid-de-camp to Bonaparte. Her maiden name was Emilie Beauharnais. The manner in which the marriage was brought about is well described in the "Memoirs of Lavalette."
General Bonaparte, wishing to reward the bravery of his aid-de-camp, and being then restricted in his power, determined he should marry this niece of Madame Bonaparte. "I cannot make you a major," said Bonaparte, "I must therefore give you a wife. You shall marry Emilie Beauharnais. She is very handsome, and well educated."
Lavalette raised objections: he had no fortune, and was immediately to depart for Egypt with his chief; he urged that he might be killed there, or, which was perhaps his strongest objection, that the lady might not fancy him.
Bonaparte overruled all these objections, telling him that if he, Lavalette, was killed, his widow would have a pension, and might marry again advantageously; and concluded by saying, "The wedding shall take place in eight days. I will allow you a fortnight for the honeymoon. You must then come and join us at Toulon, Come, come, the thing is all settled. Tell the coachman to drive home."
Lavalette tells the story of his brief wooing; but it will be sufficient to say that he won the consent of the beautiful girl, who was then at boarding-school, and that a fortnight after their marriage he left his bride, and joined the expedition to Egypt. In eighteen months he returned, and was most affectionately welcomed by his wife, who presented to him their infant daughter; the happiness of the married pair was complete, and their affection for each other continued faithful and true during years of prosperity.
On the restoration of the Bourbons, the Count Lavalette was imprisoned and condemned to death. His wife tried every means to obtain his pardon, and, failing in this, she proposed to him, the night before his execution, to put on her dress, and imitating her walk and manner, holding his handkerchief to his face, as if he were weeping, to go out from the prison, and when once in the street, she had provided means for his safety. As they were about the same height, the deception succeeded, and Count Lavalette escaped to Belgium, but his wife was kept for six weeks in prison, and not allowed to see any one but her jailor. She passed twenty-five days without sleep, fearing at every moment that she might see her husband brought back a prisoner. This anxiety at length produced insanity, which continued, with some intervals of rationality, during her whole life. Lavalette left France in 1816; in 1822 he was allowed to return, and from that time till his death devoted himself to the care of his wife.
