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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels September 27, 2004 Food & History The two empresses from Martinique, part 2 Jeff Cheek Last week's column introduced two cousins from the Caribbean island of Martinique. This column will cover the rest of their unbelievable life stories. Josephine's husband, Napoleon Bonaparte, dominated Europe for two decades. In 1804, he was crowned Emperor. His wife was now an Empress as the fortune teller had predicted. Napoleon desperately wanted a son to inherit the throne but Josephine, six years his senior, did not produce the much desired heir. He still loved her but divorced her on 10 January 1810. She was 46, beyond child bearing age. He married Princess Marie Louise of Austria who gave birth to Napoleon II on March 20, 1811. Josephine retired to her Chateau de Malmaison outside Paris. Perhaps, in her declining years, she longed for the pleasant, uncomplicated life she had known as a girl, growing up on a plantation in Martinique. She died May 29, 1814. American history is entwined with Aimee's. Moslem corsairs, sailing from Tripoli, raided commercial shipping along the Barbary Coast. Many countries paid tribute to protect their ships. President Jefferson did not. He sent the U.S. Navy to bombard Tripoli. We hear echoes of this in the Marine Corps hymn: "From the halls of Montezuma, To the shores of Tripoli." By the time she was 14, Aimee had grown into a great beauty, with flawless skin, blue eyes and a mass of spun gold hair. When the ship she was on was captured by pirates off the coast of Algiers, the Bey of Algiers recognized the value of his beautiful captive. Instead of adding her to his harem, he sent Aimee as a gift to the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire in Istanbul. She was one of 24 but her grace, charm and intelligence won the heart of the old Sultan, especially when she produced a healthy baby boy, Mahamut. Her son was third in line for the Sultanate. Life in the harem was dull but easy. Their only duty was to give pleasure to their master. Aimee spent her time educating her son, teaching him about the western countries. The other mothers knew only the Ottoman Empire. When the Sultan died, Mahamut's half brothers, Solim and Mustafa, destroyed each other. The half-French son took over as Sultan Mahamut II. Aimee was now Sultana Vallde (Mother of the Sultan.) She was truly the power behind the throne. When she died, her son buried the former plantation girl with royal ceremony. He had this carved on her tomb: "May the beauty of Sultan Mahamut's mother never be forgotten. May her fame and glory never be unveiled. Of her the Majestic Emperor, The Sultan of the world, Mahumut, of soul shining as a cloud was begotten. The Beautiful One, her name. The Queen Mother she was, when this crown of earth was placed upon her head." Coffee has given way to sugar, bananas and pineapples on Martinique and the French government has to subsidize their former gold mine. But memories of the two empresses still linger on the fabled "island of flowers." TSgt Joe Lopez had worked as a bus boy in the Waldorf-Asoria Hotel before joining the Air Force. He taught me how to serve fresh pineapple Waldorf-Astoria style. Preparation Peel one pineapple, slice lengthwise into six pieces. With sharp knife cut a thin rope down the center stalk to hold the ends together. Cut meat from shell but leave enough for a boat shaped container. Cut pineapple into bite-sized chunks and return to shell. Chill and serve. DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams