ON THIS DAY: 22 February 1915 – Sarah Bernhardt, the ‘Divine Sarah,’ had her right leg amputated at the age of 71 in the Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière in Paris, France.
Sarah, born Henriette-Rosine Bernard, was a French stage actress and one of the most famous and influential performers of the 19th and early 20th centuries. She starred in plays by Alexandre Dumas, Victor Hugo, and William Shakespeare. Hugo praised her ‘golden voice.’ She performed across Europe and the Americas in a career spanning five decades.
Sarah was born in Paris in 1844 to Julie Bernard, a Dutch-Jewish courtesan. She never knew the identity of her father, but thanks to her mother’s wealthy patrons, she was admitted to an exclusive convent school near Versailles. From 1860 to 1862, she studied acting at the Paris Conservatory, where she was coached by her mother’s friend, Alexandre Dumas (père).
Sarah had an illegitimate son, Maurice, in 1864, and in 1882 she married a Greek-born actor Aristides Damala, twelve years her junior. Their marriage was troubled and short-lived due to Damala’s opium addiction. Though they never officially divorced, they spent most of their time apart. Sarah’s true love was her longtime companion, the painter Louise Abbéma.
In the later years of her career, Bernhardt suffered from a severe leg injury that ultimately led to its amputation. The injury originated from a knee problem she sustained in 1887 when she leapt from a parapet in a performance of La Tosca, a playwritten for her by, Victorien Sardou. The wound, which never fully healed, gradually worsened over time. By 1914, her condition had deteriorated significantly, and she was suffering from intense pain. As a result, in February 1915, after the onset of gangrene, her right leg was amputated above the knee.
Despite the loss of her leg, Bernhardt refused to slow her down. She continued acting, often performing while seated or using a wooden prosthetic limb. Her resilience, charisma, and commitment to her art made her an enduring legend in theatre history. She performed almost until her death in 1923 at the age of 78, with Louise and Maurice at her side.