Émilie_Ambre--Edouard_Manet

Émilie Gabrielle Adèle Ambre (née Ambroise; (1849 – April 1898) was a French opera singer who performed leading soprano roles in Europe and North America and later became a singing teacher. Born in French Algeria and trained at the Marseilles Conservatory, she was for several years the mistress of William III of the Netherlands. She had a son Robert by her next lover Gaston de Beauplan, but the relationship eventually foundered after their return from the financially disastrous 1880–1881 American tour de Beauplan had organized to showcase her talents. Following her retirement from the stage in 1890, Ambre opened a singing school in Paris with the composer Emile Bouichère and married him in 1894. As a singer, she was particularly known for her performances as Violetta, Manon, and Aida, but is primarily remembered today as the subject of Édouard Manet's portrait of her as Carmen.