Julie d’Aubigny, better known as Mademoiselle Maupin, was the daughter of Gaston d’Aubigny, a French nobleman and fencing master. Maupin, born in 1673, quickly followed in her father’s footsteps by learning how to defend herself with a sword, a skill she used every time she could.
When she turned 16, Maupin married her first husband, Saint-Germaine-en-Laye, who left her in Paris to go to southern France shortly after the marriage was official. Maupin, who found her husband dull and dry, began to have an affair with the more interesting Baron de Seranne, an accomplished fencing master, which eventually ended her marriage with Laye.
Around age 18, after already being married, separated and involved in an affair, Maupin’s life took a turn for the crazy. Shortly after beginning her affair, Seranne killed a man in a duel, and the two lovers fled Paris. While on the road, the duo financed their travels by putting on fencing expositions in local taverns, commonly featuring Maupin dressed in male clothing, something she started to do with more frequency.
After traveling around with Seranne for awhile, Maupin grew bored and searched for her next calling: the opera. Maupin was immediately hired by the Marseilles Academy, one of France’s leading opera companies, and quickly became engaged to the company’s director after Seranne left her to continue traveling. While engaged to the director, Maupin embarked upon a slew of other extramarital affairs.
One of her most famous love interests was with a young woman who joined a convent shortly after the two started seeing one another. Undeterred by society’s negative view on lesbian relationships and the church’s rules, Maupin made her way to the convent to rescue her love. In order to bust the girl out of the convent, Maupin stole the body of a dead nun and placed the body in her lover’s bed. Maupin then set the room on fire and ran off into the night with the young girl at her side.
Shortly after, the French government put out a warrant on Maupin because of her actions at the convent and because of her frowned upon lesbian relationship, which caused her lover to return to her parents and end their relationship. Even though she would face death by fire if arrested, Maupin returned to Paris to sing in another opera.
While there she famously won a duel against one of her fellow actors and stole his watch and snuffbox, which she paraded around town as a trophy. She also got her death sentence dropped after attending a masked ball held by the king’s brother. While at the party, Maupin, dressed once again as a boy, propositioned a noblewoman. The woman, who was not thrilled with Maupin’s antics, summoned her three male guards, who Maupin told to meet her under a lamp post a block away from the party so they could settle the dispute like men.
When the guards met up with Maupin outside a few minutes later, she dispatched all three in short succession. Maupin then returned to the party and spoke to the king’s brother, explaining what had taken place and asking him to aid the wounded guards. The man was so impressed with her “heroism” that he awarded Maupin a full pardon.
Maupin continued singing in the opera for a few years, eventually deciding to join a convent to make amends for her once crazy lifestyle. Unfortunately, Maupin died shortly after joining at age 37.
(h/t Badass Females In History)
