I looked up the name of the house because I couldn’t believe it was actually named “bad house.” Surprise! That spot literally had that name for a thousand years.
The name Malmaison, the cherished country estate of Napoleon Bonaparte and Empress Josephine, literally translates to “bad house” or “house of ill repute”.
Derived from the Medieval Latin mala mansio (“ill-fated domain” or “estate of ill luck”), the name likely stems from dark historical associations rather than the quality of the building itself.
According to local legend, the site served as a base for Norman (Viking) invaders in the 9th century, who used it to store plunder and terrorize the surrounding area. The area was historically associated with brigands and was considered “ill-famed” by locals, appearing in records as Mala domus as early as 1244.
Despite the ominous name, Josephine bought the run-down estate in 1799 and transformed it into a place of great beauty, luxury, and botanical significance. It was their primary home during the early years of Napoleon’s rule, and while he often joked about its name and the vast fortune she spent on it, it became one of his favored residences.
Designer_Reference_2 on
I paid a visit to Malmaison and while they did spend time in here together, it was Josephines private chamber and Napoleon had another bedroom in a different part of the house that’s built in a far more simplistic style that you would expect from a soldier. It was the norm for royal couples to have different chambers in those days but Napoleon would sometimes take a candle and sneak up to her room in the middle of the night if he stopped working and everyone at court would know that he and Josephine had banged the previous night because she was in an especially happy mood.
revelinravel on
It looks nice, but my dog would have trouble getting up on the bed, needs a little velvet ramp.
replacethetee on
That’ll run you about 1.4m on Zillow
slinkc on
Love the cuck chairs.
Marcus-Knight0318 on
Sobrio
naegermeister on
oh he was going full roman in his mind
ended up like vercingetorix
DrFartsparkles on
Not gonna lie, that bed looks incredibly uncomfortable
nothisistheotherguy on
Good thing they had that revolution and rooted out the aristocrats…
japskunk on
My neck would hurt from that pillow
Goeffroy on
That bed looks trés uncomfortablé
No-Option-7010 on
The bed does look uncomfortable but the color scheme is on point. And it looks like a one person bed unless you really like your bed buddy
13 Comments
shine a black light on it
I looked up the name of the house because I couldn’t believe it was actually named “bad house.” Surprise! That spot literally had that name for a thousand years.
The name Malmaison, the cherished country estate of Napoleon Bonaparte and Empress Josephine, literally translates to “bad house” or “house of ill repute”.
Derived from the Medieval Latin mala mansio (“ill-fated domain” or “estate of ill luck”), the name likely stems from dark historical associations rather than the quality of the building itself.
According to local legend, the site served as a base for Norman (Viking) invaders in the 9th century, who used it to store plunder and terrorize the surrounding area. The area was historically associated with brigands and was considered “ill-famed” by locals, appearing in records as Mala domus as early as 1244.
Despite the ominous name, Josephine bought the run-down estate in 1799 and transformed it into a place of great beauty, luxury, and botanical significance. It was their primary home during the early years of Napoleon’s rule, and while he often joked about its name and the vast fortune she spent on it, it became one of his favored residences.
I paid a visit to Malmaison and while they did spend time in here together, it was Josephines private chamber and Napoleon had another bedroom in a different part of the house that’s built in a far more simplistic style that you would expect from a soldier. It was the norm for royal couples to have different chambers in those days but Napoleon would sometimes take a candle and sneak up to her room in the middle of the night if he stopped working and everyone at court would know that he and Josephine had banged the previous night because she was in an especially happy mood.
It looks nice, but my dog would have trouble getting up on the bed, needs a little velvet ramp.
That’ll run you about 1.4m on Zillow
Love the cuck chairs.
Sobrio
oh he was going full roman in his mind
ended up like vercingetorix
Not gonna lie, that bed looks incredibly uncomfortable
Good thing they had that revolution and rooted out the aristocrats…
My neck would hurt from that pillow
That bed looks trés uncomfortablé
The bed does look uncomfortable but the color scheme is on point. And it looks like a one person bed unless you really like your bed buddy