Jean-François Autié,[1] dit Léonard

Jean-François Autié (1758 – 25 July 1794)[2] was a hairdresser to Queen Marie Antoinette. He was the youngest brother of Léonard-Alexis Autié and Pierre Autié (1753 – 1814), who were also hairdressers at the royal court. All three brothers used the professional name of Monsieur Léonard.[3]

Early life

Born in the medieval town of Pamiers in southwestern France, he was the son of Alexis Autié and Catherine Fournier, who were domestic servants.[3]

Career as a hairdresser

Académie de coiffure on the rue de la Chaussée-d'Antin, 1788

Léonard-Alexis Autié, the oldest of the brothers, was the first to go to Paris, where he became the favorite hairdresser of Marie Antoinette and was called Monsieur Léonard.[4] Léonard-Alexis later arranged for Jean-François and Pierre to join him in Paris, and they became partners in a hair-dressing studio and school, known as the Académie de coiffure, which was eventually situated in the rue de la Chaussée-d'Antin. Taking advantage of their oldest brother's fame, Jean-François and Pierre also adopted the professional name of Monsieur Léonard. The Académie de coiffure in effect became the House of Léonard.[5]

Jean-François and their cousin Villanou (Jean-Pierre Autié, born 4 April 1762) also worked as hairdressers in the household of Marie Antoinette, while Pierre worked for the king's sister, Madame Elizabeth.[3] In 1783, Jean-François purchased the legacy (survivance) of Jean-Remy Le Guay, Marie Antoinette's official valet de chambre and perruquier-baigneur-étuviste. In 1788, upon Le Guay's death, Jean-François became the sole possessor of Le Guay's position.[6] Léonard-Alexis, who was no longer active as a hairdresser, kept the honorary title of Coiffeur de la reine.[7]

The flight to Varennes

In June 1791, Jean-François Autié (often referred to as Monsieur Léonard, hairdresser to the queen, and sometimes confused with Léonard-Alexis) accompanied the Duc de Choiseul during the royal family's flight to Varennes.[8]

Death

Jean-François Autié probably died in Paris under the guillotine on 7 thermidor an II (25 July 1794),[2] although this has been disputed.[6] Will Bashor suggests that with assistance he may have arranged for another nameless prisoner to take his place at the guillotine and fled France for America.[9]

Detail from the list of victims of the Revolutionary Tribunal of Paris on 25 July 1794

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jean-François Autié.

Notes

  1. ↑ Bashor 2013, p. 112.
  2. 1 2 Picard 1911, p. 122.
  3. 1 2 3 Bashor 2013, pp. X–XI, 5, 49.
  4. ↑ Bashor 2013, pp. 2–49.
  5. ↑ Bashor 2013, p. 49.
  6. 1 2 Vuaflart 1916, p. 308.
  7. ↑ Bashor 2013, p. 281.
  8. ↑ Tackett 2003, pp. 59, 68, 71, 264.
  9. ↑ Bashor 2013, pp. 215–216.

Sources

  • Bashor, Will (2013). Marie Antoinette's Head: The Royal Hairdresser, the Queen, and the Revolution. Guilford, Connecticut: Lyons Press. ISBN 9780762791538.
  • Picard, Auguste (1911). Liste des victimes du Tribunal révolutionnaire à Paris. Paris: Librairie Alphonse Picard et fils. Copy at Gallica.
  • Tackett, Timothy (2003). When the King Took Flight. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674010543.
  • Vuaflart, Albert (1916). La maison du comte de Fersen, rue Matignon. La journée du 20 juin 1791 – Monsieur Léonard. Paris. Copy at Gallica.
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