Eugenie (1830–1889)
Eugenie (1830–1889)
Swedish princess and composer. Name variations: Eugenie Bernadotte. Born Eugenie Charlotte Augusta Amalia Albertina on April 24, 1830; died on April 23, 1889; daughter of Queen Josephine Beauharnais (1807–1876, granddaughter of Joséphine and Napoleon), and Oscar I (1799–1859), king of Sweden (r. 1844–1859); sister of kings Charles XV and Oscar II.
Princess Eugenie was born in 1830, the daughter of Queen Josephine Beauharnais and Sweden's king Oscar I, a man of considerable musical talent. Eugenie's own early interest in music and composing was seen as quite normal in the family. Her brother, Gustaf, also musically inclined, became known as the "singing prince." Princess Eugenie's compositions were largely for the piano and voice, but many were not heard outside Sweden because they were written in Swedish. Eugenie was one of the first members of the Royal Academy of Music, an organization in which her participation was important since women were only then beginning to be admitted to the ranks of musicians (until the mid-19th century, Sweden had a law prohibiting women from playing the organ). In addition to composing, Eugenie devoted her life to the arts and to charitable works.
John Haag , Athens, Georgia