Early 19th-century British caricatures presented Josephine in a sexual and political light. The dislike which her female in-laws had for her is often set in high relief. Laure Permon, a close friend of Josephine's, noted her remarkable grace but poor teeth. She is said to have had many lovers. Where, in the past, accounts highlighted her lovers and infidelities, today's story of the Empress almost shows her as a model woman and wife, submissively allowing her life be directed by Napoleon.
The biography here attempts to chart a believable course through such choppy waters. When she was sixteen years old, Rose travelled to Brest France with her father to marry nineteen-year-old Alexandre de Beauharnais, who was also born in Martinique.
The couple was married at the church of Noisy-le-Grand, a town to the east of Paris on 13 December, At the end of November , Alexandre wrote a letter accusing Rose of premarital impurity and infidelity and demanding either that she return to Martinique or that she go into a convent.
The following year Alexandre, faced with a legal challenge from his wife, recanted on every single one of his accusations. On 5 March, , a document enshrining the separation of the Beauharnais couple was signed.
In this out-of-court settlement, Alexandre recognised Hortense as his own daughter. He also agreed to pay Rose 5, livres annually as a pension, as well as to provide an additional 1, livres for his daughter โ Rose was later to maintain that he did not honour this financial agreement. That autumn, Rose moved to Fontainebleau, to be with her ex-father-in-law and aunt. It is possible that this move was brought on by Alexandre's financial difficulties. The latter, weighed down by his father's debt, was unable to pay for his wife to stay in the Abbey.
