Paris, Encre, 309 pages.
Daughter of an Alsatian innkeeper and former Napoleonic grenader, Antoinette Lix (1839-1909) received an unconventional education in horseback riding and weapons handling. She took part in the Polish uprising against the Russian occupiers and, on her return to France, tried in vain to join the regular army, at a time when it was out of the question for a woman to join the armed forces as a combatant. So she joined the Corps-Francs de Lamarche, where she led her men in the defense of the Vosges against the Germans during the 1870 war. In recognition of her commitment and feats of arms, she was awarded a Sword of Honor, now on display at the Armies Museum.
An extraordinary destiny worthy of Françoise’s pen and her sense of epic.