How the Official History makes famous people more respectable.
By topffer
@topffer (42156)
France
November 9, 2012 10:09am CST
The town where I live celebrates this month the 200th birthday of Paul Abadie "son", a 19th C. architect mainly known to have built the Basilica of Sacré-Coeur in Paris, but he also did a lot of restorations of churches and cathedrals in this area -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Abadie --. He was born in Paris on Nov. 9th 1812, and Google, at least in France, celebrates today his 200th birthday -- http://www.google.fr/logos/2012/Abadis-2012-Homepage.jpg -- with a nice logo.
At the time, the Church was not separated from the State -- France became a secular state only in 1905 --, and it was important for a man involved in the restoration of churches to have... how can I say ?... a sort of moral pedigree. I don't like to speak of the private lives of people, but Abadie is dead in the 19th C, and he is an interesting example of how the truth can be a bit different of the Official History, and this Official History is still the only one taught today... He has always been known as Paul Abadie "son", the son of Paul Abadie "father" who has been architect of this state/departement, and it is what you can read officially. It is not easy to find good sources, as the original birth registries have disappeared in Paris in 1871 during the Commune, and this fire has given an opportunity to many people to forge a new identity, though I don't know if it is the way Abadie used to change completely his name. Well, I found a good source here : on November 25th 1846, he comes from Paris to Angoulême for his marriage, and his marriage certificates in the local archives says "Paul *Mallard,* nicknamed *Abadie,* (...) living in Paris, natural son of majority age of Louise Josephine Mallard living also in Paris". So Paul "Abadie" was officially only the son of his mother ; his true name was Mallard. It is unusual to celebrate a marriage in Angoulême when you and your future wife are living in Paris. It was the town where Paul Abadie "father" was living since 1818. Abadie "father" never married, and, at least since the 30's, he appears in the census in the same house than the Veillon's, a couple of owners of a furniture shop. When the Veillons are moving, he moves with them and the census gives him the same household number than the couple, suggesting that it is a "ménage à trois", a love triangle not uncommon at a time where the divorce was suppressed in France. Among the persons signing the marriage certificate of Paul Mallard/Abadie, you find his natural mother, his supposed father, and the shopkeeper Nicolas Veillon, the husband of the supposed mistress of his supposed father. I know : it is a bit confusing
. It does not explain why this certificate has been delivered in Angoulême. Personally, I suspect a problem making this marriage difficult. In Angoulême the town clerk -- the higher public servant -- was in 1846 a son-in-law of the Veillons and was able to smooth away a difficulty ; he signs also with his wife, not as a town clerk, but as a guest of the new couple. It looks like a "closed family", don't you think 
?
The case of Paul Abadie "son" is not rare : when you spend a part of your time in public archives, you often find that the truth is a bit different than the Official History.
It is a bit weird in a Republic, but it seems that you have to have, at least seemingly, respectable origins, to be famous and respected. What is your opinion ?
Following this model, if you become famous tomorrow, historians will probably say that "he/she had a reputation of 100 at myLot", whatever your reputation is. Is not this reassuring 
?
. It does not explain why this certificate has been delivered in Angoulême. Personally, I suspect a problem making this marriage difficult. In Angoulême the town clerk -- the higher public servant -- was in 1846 a son-in-law of the Veillons and was able to smooth away a difficulty ; he signs also with his wife, not as a town clerk, but as a guest of the new couple. It looks like a "closed family", don't you think ?
The case of Paul Abadie "son" is not rare : when you spend a part of your time in public archives, you often find that the truth is a bit different than the Official History.
It is a bit weird in a Republic, but it seems that you have to have, at least seemingly, respectable origins, to be famous and respected. What is your opinion ?
Following this model, if you become famous tomorrow, historians will probably say that "he/she had a reputation of 100 at myLot", whatever your reputation is. Is not this reassuring ?3 people like this
5 responses
@purplealabaster (22094)
• United States
9 Nov 12
It is also interesting your interpretation of the "ménage à trois", especially since it was Nicolas Veillon that signed the marriage certificate rather than his wife or both of them. Perhaps it was Nicolas Veillon and not his wife that Paul Abadie "father" was having the affair with, which would also explain why Paul Abadie "father" never married.
1 person likes this
@flygrl (15)
•
10 Nov 12
i don't know about it. many place have a history inside the place. Maybe some people don't know too about it so the history of place must be write in books or other media. People need more attention about place where their live.i think it is agood idea to increasing historical learning for many people.
1 person likes this
@toxic_lifestyle (1213)
• Philippines
10 Nov 12
I guess it's because their knowledge and intelligence were been recognized. :)
1 person likes this
@Hatley (163781)
• Garden Grove, California
9 Nov 12
hi topffer good thing I guess that most modern live together s do not marry and get really famous as so many women may have s veral partners and seem to have no qualm to name the child from each new partner after that partner. I guess morals
requiring marriage then child birth have flown the coop. I am showing my age here as I believed and still do in the sanctity of marriage. but to each his own and I do unto others as I would have them do unto me.Yes as I d o have a mylot rep
utation of 9 5.6 I also was born in wedlock to my parents but since i am not likely to become famous I am not at all worried anyway. lol lol
utation of 9 5.6 I also was born in wedlock to my parents but since i am not likely to become famous I am not at all worried anyway. lol lol1 person likes this
@topffer (42156)
• France
9 Nov 12
Hi Ms Hatley,
In 1812 30 to 40% of babies were foundlings -- morality was not high during the Napoleonic era -- ; it means that natural children were generally abandoned at birth. However, it was easy to legitimate a child for a non married person, and I cannot understand why Abadie "father", who was often introducing Abadie Jr as his own son, has not done it, though he helped the mother to raise the child : I don't think it can be a coincidence if the son is architect like his father. I have not solved completely the problem : I found this marriage certificate accidentally, when searching for something else, and I have never really worked on the Abadie family.
You are already famous at myLot Ms Hatley, and your reputation is virtually at 100.
. I have not solved completely the problem : I found this marriage certificate accidentally, when searching for something else, and I have never really worked on the Abadie family.
You are already famous at myLot Ms Hatley, and your reputation is virtually at 100.
@allknowing (130077)
• India
10 Nov 12
Is this not common to all celebrities and who have made history? Once they are proved to be an asset to the public no one bothers to know what they did in their private lives. If you look at all these famous people most have had bad marriages, had more than one wife, had illicit relationships and may have even committed murder. But life goes on. Does Monica Lewinski strike a Bell?
Getting a reputation of 100 in myLot surely makes them famous and acceptable in myLot but in their real life they could for all you know must be painting the town red! 
1 person likes this
@topffer (42156)
• France
10 Nov 12
Hello allknowing,
I never care about the private life of a person. What matters is how efficient this person is when doing his/her job. Every celebrity finds soon or later a biographer, and biographers are generally investigating also about private life. Paul Abadie has strongly hidden his origins and private life, and he made investigations difficult for biographers.
Just my opinion, but for celebrities, online life is an extension of real life, and a celeb must have indeed a reputation of 0 or 100 in myLot... at least in a "good" biography.
.
@robspeakman (1700)
•
10 Nov 12
All through history famous people have had their private life kept secret. Einstein liked to put it around a bit. Newton hated other people and Shakespeare abandoned his wife for many years for the high life in London. These facts are not widely known of people we are encouraged to look up to.
1 person likes this
@topffer (42156)
• France
11 Nov 12
Hello rob,
Except perhaps some show business stars looking for publicity, I don't think that many people like to expose their private life... maybe because in private life there is "private". I did not knew about Shakespeare and his wife, but there are so few details known about his life, that people writing on Shakespeare have to be careful. Abadie was living in the 19th century, which was the golden age of paper : there were no phones or computers, and we have a lot of private and public archives for this time : it was a tour de force to hide something in the 19th C.
. I did not knew about Shakespeare and his wife, but there are so few details known about his life, that people writing on Shakespeare have to be careful. Abadie was living in the 19th century, which was the golden age of paper : there were no phones or computers, and we have a lot of private and public archives for this time : it was a tour de force to hide something in the 19th C.