27. She Stayed Single
Oldoini never did reconcile with her husband—and though this would get her into trouble later, she didn’t much mind for the time being. She returned to Italy only briefly after her royal affair fell apart, but she just couldn't stay away from her beloved France. She went back in 1861 and stayed for good...getting into a lot more trouble in the meantime.
28. She Sold Her Body
When Oldoini broke up with Napoleon III, she didn’t stop “entertaining,” and she continued to have hot and heavy affairs with a series of important suitors throughout her life. She wasn’t cheap, either. Reportedly, the Marquess Richard Seymour Conway once offered her 1 million francs for just 12 hours of her “company".
29. She Helped Create a Country
Listen, girls know how to get things done. Even though it took the virtual dissolution of her marriage, the Countess of Castiglione did eventually succeed in her original mission. In 1861, Italy unified into an official kingdom, thanks in no small part to the countess’s tireless, breathy efforts. Go get ‘em, girl.
30. She Had a Disturbing Reaction to Aging
Oldoini did not cope well with aging, and her insecurities soon took on deranged proportions. Unable to confront her fading looks, the middle-aged countess insisted on spending her final years in black-colored rooms with closed blinds and no mirrors. Not even she was entitled to look at the waning beauty of the Countess of Castiglione. And then it got worse…
31. Her Photos Took a Dark Turn
Despite her self-exile later in life, the Countess of Castiglione still found time to do the occasional photoshoot.…but the results were chilling. Critics have noted how “morbid” her late period images are, with the countess doing things like placing herself inside a coffin and posing with the body of her late terrier pup. Um…
32. She Forced Her Son to Model
Oldoini showed an eerie attachment to her only son Giorgio, but it didn't stop at doting. She also insisted on photographing him constantly, pulling him into many of her projects and often making him serve as her stand-in when she set up shots. As a result, he became the most photographed child of the 19th century.
33. She Made Famous Friends
It wasn’t all disreputable behavior in the court of Napoleon III, and the countess’s proximity to the emperor threw her into the paths of some of the most important figures in Europe at the time, including legendary German statesman Otto von Bismarck, who was like Angela Merkel before Angela Merkel was cool.
34. She Became a Recluse
In her later years, the Countess of Castiglione barely left her house, considering it the height of mortification to show her slightly wrinkled face to the masses. When she did leave, she would wear dark veils and only go out at night so she could cover all evidence of her “shameful” age. Sadly, as we'll see, she might have had a darker reason for this behavior.
35. She Was Arrogant
Sure, the countess was beautiful, but beauty is only skin deep. Her memoirs reveal some disturbing and embarrassing details. In her own writings, she refers to herself in the third person. One choice cringey line? "The Eternal Father did not know what he was creating the day he sent her into the world". I just gagged, and not in the good way.
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36. She Lived Through Terrors
In 1871, things weren’t looking good for the Countess of Castiglione. Prussia had just absolutely destroyed France in the Franco-Prussian war, and German forces were considering occupying Paris and threatening the countess’s luxurious way of life. But it turns out that Oldoini really shone when her back was up against the wall….
37. She Saved France
Even after her tenure as a royal mistress, the countess played an important role in European politics. While Germany was considering occupying France, Oldoini’s old friend Otto von Bismarck called her up personally and set up a secret meeting to ask her advice on the matter. The countess’s totally unbiased response? “Nah, you don’t wanna do that". Guess what? He listened.
38. Her Vanity Knew No Bounds
If Oldoini counted you among her closest friends, you might get a ridiculous memento from her. Throughout her life, the countess made use of her famous photography habit and would often send albums to her nearest and dearest…all filled with picture after picture of her. Gee thanks Virginia, you really shouldn’t have.
39. She Was a Pioneer
Before you go accusing Oldoini of being a good-for-nothing influencer, consider this: She was deeply involved in the production of her "selfie" photos, essentially acting as her own art director. She was notoriously obsessive about this aspect of her work, repositioning the camera with persnickety precision when she didn’t like what she saw.
40. She "Photoshopped" Herself
The countess was one of the first airbrushers. Hand-painted photographs were a luxurious novelty at the time, so naturally Oldoini made the best use of them she could. Whenever she wasn’t perfectly satisfied with a photograph, she’d use hand-painting to soften her unflattering angles and put herself in the best light. Mariah Carey could never.
41. She Was the First Supermodel
Some scholars argue that the Countess of Castiglione wasn’t just the first model of our time—she was also the first supermodel too. Her photographs weren’t just about the clothes she was wearing but also about who was wearing them, putting Oldoini up with the likes of Cindy Crawford and Naomi Campbell.
42. She Had Obsessive Fans
Despite her prickly nature, the Countess had rabid fans long after she passed. The poet and dandy Robert de Montesquiou was obsessed with her even when she was alive, and his ardor only grew. He eventually collected over 400 photos in her massive collection, which are now housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
43. She Predicted a Famous Art Movement
The Countess of Castiglione is sometimes called “The Queen of Surrealism". Her playful photoshoots anticipated the Surrealist aesthetic that would dominate the art scene after she passed In one meta photo, she peers at the viewer through a camera—drawing attention to the ways she's both looking at you while you're looking at her.
44. She Wanted to Go World-Wide
Believe it or not, the countess never had a large-scale public exhibition of her photos. This was all supposed to change at the turn of the century, when the aging model finally had big plans to display her collection of over 700 photos at the Exposition Universelle in Paris. Most tragically, this was not to be…
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45. She Missed Her Destiny
After a lifetime of being camera ready, Oldoini passed on November 28, 1899. She would not live to see the Exposition where she planned to debut her photos. By dying in 1899, she also missed out on the 20th century—an era where photography would only continue to dominate media and society. Rest in peace, you OG diva.
46. She Was a Mean Girl
In case it's not clear yet, the Countess of Castiglione wasn’t a girl’s girl. Uh, not by any stretch of the imagination. She actively spurned the company of other women, often refusing to even talk to them while she was at balls. Instead, she preferred to stand in the middle of the room and let men fawn over her “as if she were a shrine".
47. Her Husband Tried to Punish Her
Sometime during her separation proceedings, the Countess of Castiglione’s estranged husband decided to ramp up the bitterness and do something truly horrific. He tried to claim custody of their only son Giorgio, using his wife’s lavish lifestyle as proof of her bad mothering. The countess’s response was swift and brutal.
48. She Gave a Cruel Payback
When Francesco tried to claim custody of her only beloved son Giorgio, the Countess of Castiglione didn't take it lying down. Instead, she sent her ex a “present” in the mail. When he opened it, he was horrified. It was a seemingly innocent photograph of the beautiful countess dressed up in a luxurious gown—but when the count looked closer, his blood ran cold.
49. She Threatened Her Ex
Oldoini's photograph was a warning shot to her estranged husband: In the portrait, the well-dressed countess was also holding a knife in her hand, half-hidden in the folds of her dress. The best part? She titled the photo “La Venegance,” just to make her message extra clear. Wouldn’t you know, she got custody of Giorgio for the rest of his life.
50. She Suffered an Unimaginable Tragedy
The Countess of Castiglione’s self-seclusion later in her life was rooted not just in vanity but also in tragedy. In 1879, little Giorgio passed from smallpox, predeceasing his utterly bereft mother by a cruel 20 years. Suddenly, her regime of funereal black rooms, veils, and never leaving the house makes tragic sense.
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