Marie Tussaud was born on 1 December 1761 in Strasbourg, France. Her father, Joseph Grosholtz, was killed in the
Seven Years' War just two months before Marie was born. When she was six years old, her mother, Anne-Marie Walder, took her to Bern, Switzerland. There the family moved into the home of local doctor
Philippe Curtius (1741–1794), for whom Anne-Marie acted as housekeeper. Curtius, whom Marie would call her uncle, was skilled in wax modeling. He initially used this talent to illustrate anatomy, but he later used it for portraits. He moved to Paris in 1765 to establish a
Cabinet de Portraits En Cire (Wax portraiture firm).
Early career Curtius taught Tussaud the art of wax modelling. She showed talent for the technique and began working for him as an artist. In 1777, she created her first wax figure, that of
Voltaire. From 1780 until the Revolution in 1789, Tussaud created many of her most famous portraits of celebrities such as those of philosopher
Jean-Jacques Rousseau,
Benjamin Franklin and Voltaire. During this period her memoirs claim she became employed to teach
votive making to
Élisabeth, the sister of
Louis XVI. In her memoirs, she admitted to be privy to private conversations between the princess and her brother and members of his court. She also claimed that members of the royal family were so pleased with her work that she was invited to live at
Versailles for nine years, although no contemporary evidence exists to confirm her accounts.
French Revolution On 12 July 1789, wax heads of
Jacques Necker and the
duc d'Orléans made by Curtius were carried in a protest march two days before the attack on the Bastille.
blue plaque marking one of Tussaud's homes in the City of Westminster, London As a result of the
Napoleonic Wars, Tussaud was unable to return to France so she travelled with her collection throughout the British Isles. In 1822, she reunited with her son François, who joined her in the family business. Her husband remained in France and the two never saw each other again. In 1835, after 33 years touring Britain, she established her first permanent exhibition in
Baker Street, on the upper floor of the "Baker Street Bazaar". In 1838, she wrote her memoirs. In 1842, she made a self-portrait which is now on display at the entrance of her museum. Some of the sculptures done by Tussaud herself still exist. She died in her sleep in London on 16 April 1850 at the age of 88. There is a memorial tablet to Madame Marie Tussaud on the right side of the nave of
St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, Cadogan Street, London. == Legacy ==