These love letters were unsealed after 250 years. “Women were not always ashamed to express their intimate desires”

You can read more news at .

Renaud Morieux saw a box in the British National Archives containing over 100 letters confiscated from French sailors who had become prisoners of war during the Seven Years’ War. He didn’t know then that the faded ink and yellowed pages concealed stories of love and longing. – Out of curiosity, I ordered this box from the library. There were three groups of letters tied with ribbons. The letters were very small and closed, so I asked the archivist if he could open them for me. He agreed. I realized that I was the first person to read this extremely personal information. The letters never reached their recipients, he said.

These love letters were unsealed after 250 years

Professor Morieux spent five months studying the letters. They were all untouched – preserved in small envelopes and sealed. As reported by The New York Times, some contained confessions of wives missing their husbands, while others contained discussions about household finances or news of the birth of a child.

Marie Dubosc wrote to her husband in 1758: “I could write to you all night long… I am your faithful wife, forever. Good night, my friend. It’s midnight. It’s time for me to sleep.” Little did she know that they would never see each other again or that her husband would not receive the letter. Louis Chamberelan, was a lieutenant on the warship Galatée, which was captured by the British. Although he survived captivity, his wife died before he returned home.

In turn, Anne Le Cerf wrote to her beloved that she couldn’t wait to “own” him. She used a word that could have meant “embrace” or “make love” at the time. Mrs. Le Cerf signed the letter “your obedient wife Nanette”. This was how her husband, Jean Topsent, affectionately addressed her.

18th century women were not always ashamed to express their intimate desires

Letter writing was a popular pastime in the 18th century. Rebecca Earle, professor of history at the University of Warwick, said what makes this collection of letters extraordinary is that they provide a rare insight into the personal lives of people in 18th-century France. – It is difficult to find sources that say something about the emotional texture of marriages and personal lives of ordinary people in the past – she noted in an interview with The New York Times, adding that it is very difficult for historians to capture it. According to her, the discovered letters are further proof that 18th-century women were not always ashamed to express their intimate desires to their partners.