Bleuette Resulted from "The School Wars"

The French "School Wars" between 1900 and 1910 were multiple political and social controversies over the role of religion in French education and were based on the shaky foundation of the separation of church and state.

Previously, religious education was the responsibility of monks and nuns, with only limited participation from lay-people or ordained clergy. The Education Act of 1901, along with a ban on teaching by religious orders as stated in the Entente law of 1904, created huge changes for students and families.

Book and magazine publisher, Henri Gautier, decided that if the government discouraged religious education, then his goal of promoting patriotism, religion, morality, and family life would be supported by a new publication aimed at young girls, ages eight to thirteen, the future mothers of the nation, as he saw it. His twice-weekly magazine, L'Ouvier (The Worker), began to advertise a weekly magazine for girls in January of 1905.

Above: an illustration of Bleuette along with listings of the weekly contents of the new publication. "Our free bonus [meaning Bleuette] will be sent upon receipt of the subscription payment."

Second on the right is listed "Nous Habillions Bleuette," our beloved pattern page, We Dress Bleuette.  It is described as "A selection of lovely, very easy needlework projects with patterns and illustrations."  As we know, La Semaine de Suzette's first issue was published on the second of February, 1905, with this pattern for the newly arrived Bleuettes.

School, teacher, and textbook conflicts and disagreements in France continued, incredibly, into the 1980s, when private religious and public secular schools eventually began to co-exist.

Who is Loulotte and How Is She Related to Bleuette?

 Loulotte is a character from the Becassine cartoon published by the Gautier & Languereau publishing company for many years, beginning with the first issue (February 2, 1905) of the girls' magazine, La Semaine de Suzette (Suzette's Week).  It looked like this later issue:

The first issue showed an ad for the new magazine's premium doll, a pretty Jumeau doll called Bleuette, and offered a pattern for a dress to sew for her.

In La Semaine de Suzette's weekly cartoon, Loulotte was the baby for whom Becassine was hired to be nanny in the fictional Grand-Air household in Paris.  Like many actual servants of the time, she was a Breton girl who wore the traditional costume of  her native region of France.

 Loulotte was still a character in the Becassine cartoon years later when she become a young woman.  The girl and her Breton nanny had many adventures together.

In reality Loulotte was based on an actual little girl, the daughter of the Maurice Languereaus.  Maurice was one of the publishers of La Semaine de Suzette.

Loulotte became a small doll when she was made by a doll artist, Bernard Terrie, as a souvenir for the Bleuette Congress that took place in Lille, France, on 18 to 20 March, 1994. The Congress was organized for collectors and those who studied Bleuette. Each attendee received one of a limited number of the Loulottes. The souvenir doll was 24 cm (about 9.5 inches) with bisque head, fixed brown eyes, a dark bob wig, and articulated composition body. The heads were marked with a script L (for Lille?) and an edition number. Later the doll continued to be made by Jacques Defaut. His business name was amedeobjects, so he incised AO on the back of the doll's neck.

In 2015 the Georgette Bravot company, famed French makers of doll wigs and shoes, sold a limited edition of Loulotte dolls.  Some had different hair colors and styles than the typical dark bob.  They are marked GB, Loulotte, and an edition number, and were otherwise the same size and type as the first Lille Congress dolls.  Bravot currently sells shoes and clothing for the Loulotte doll, but not the doll itself.  The Bravot doll below is Loulotte # 174.

Who is Loulotte?  Now you know!

Bleuette in 1916

 Bleuette in 1916

The year 1916 provided readers of La Semaine de Suzette with 26 patterns including dresses, hats, handbags, other accessories, lingerie, and a variety of outerwear—in other words, a complete wardrobe. 

1916 France means WW1. The battle of Verdun was raging and would last 10 months before the French and their British and Irish allies triumphed.  Paris was bombed in 1916.  The war was personal for the young Suzettes, a daily concern.

The 1916 G-L catalog featured the uniform of an ambulance nurse and a military-style uniform (“Tipperary”) for Bleuette, which the Suzettes could purchase ready-made.  

Ambulance Nurse

In 1916 LSDS published in issue #7 Manteau de demi-saison, (below) a coat for the between-season, or in this case, spring.  It is a classic coat so popular that it was repeated in 1922, although without the coat sleeves. Below are some of the 1916 patterns made up recently.

 1916, #4 Little Wool Hat

1916, # 5 Spring Dress

1916, # 39 Skirt with Shoulder Straps

1916, #50 & 51 Crocheted Wool Jacket and Gaiters

 

1916, # 28 Handbag