Sophie Berthelot Explained

Sophie Berthelot
Birth Name:Sophie Caroline Niaudet
Birth Date:17 February 1837
Birth Place:Nantes, France
Death Place:Paris, France
Resting Place:Panthéon
Known For:First woman interred at the Panthéon
Spouse:Marcellin Berthelot (m. 1861–1907)
Children:André Berthelot
Philippe Berthelot
Relatives:Louis-François-Clement Breguet (uncle)

Sophie Caroline Berthelot (née Niaudet; February 17, 1837 – March 18, 1907)[1] became the first woman to be interred in the Panthéon, alongside her husband Marcellin Berthelot. She was the only woman interred in the Panthéon until Marie Curie almost a century later in 1995.[2] [3]

Biography

Berthelot was born on February 17, 1837, in Nantes. She was the niece of Louis-François-Clement Breguet and received a strict Calvinist education from her mother in the tradition of the Breguet family. She married the chemist and politician Marcellin Berthelot on May 10, 1861.[4] Her husband "lived in complete and happy union with his wife."[5] The couple had four sons and two daughters, including the politician and historian André Berthelot (1862–1938), the scholar Daniel Berthelot (1865–1927), the diplomat Philippe Berthelot (1866–1934) and the philosopher René Berthelot (1872–1960).[6] Sophie Berthelot died of heart disease in Paris on March 18, 1907, mere hours before her husband's death.[7] Acceding to the family's wishes and "in homage to her conjugal virtue," the French government passed a special law to permit Sophie Berthelot to be interred alongside her famous husband in the Panthéon.[8] They had a joint state funeral and were buried in the same tomb. A school in Calais is named in her honor.[9]

Notes and References

  1. Acte de mariage du 10 mai 1861, Paris. Web site: Généalogie détaillée. Généa-Banque de France. .
  2. Web site: Kraft. Scott. 1995-04-21. France Entombs Madame Curie Among the 'Great Men' : Europe: Nobel Prize-winning scientist who faced sexism in life is placed in Pantheon with her husband, Pierre.. 2021-08-23. Los Angeles Times. en-US.
  3. Web site: Pierre-Eugène-Marcellin Berthelot French chemist. 2021-08-23. Encyclopedia Britannica. en.
  4. Ashdown. Avery A.. 1927. Marcellin Berthelot. Journal of Chemical Education. 4. 10. 1217. 10.1021/ed004p1217. 0021-9584.
  5. Armstrong. Henry Edward. 1927. MARCELLIN BERTHELOT AND SYNTHETIC CHEMISTRY. A Study and an Interpretation. 1827 (Oct. 25) — 1907 (March 18). Journal of the Royal Society of Arts. 76. 3919. 145–171. 41357867 . 0035-9114.
  6. Book: Les Sciences religieuses . Éditions Beauchesne . 1996 . 978-2-7010-1341-1 . Laplanch . François . . Paris . fr-FR.
  7. R.. W.. B.. G. H.. T.. H. H.. M.. C. R.. M.. R.. D.. F. W.. 1908-06-20. Obituary notices of fellows deceased. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series A, Containing Papers of a Mathematical and Physical Character. 80. 542. i–xxxviii. 10.1098/rspa.1908.0047. free.
  8. Web site: Bousquet. Danielle. 2014-02-21. Un pas attendu vers la mixité au Panthéon, la reconnaissance du rôle des femmes dans l'histoire - Haut Conseil à l'Égalité entre les femmes et les hommes. 2021-08-23. www.haut-conseil-egalite.gouv.fr.
  9. Web site: Le lycée Sophie Berthelot.