She predicted the destiny for Napoleon

A mysterious foreteller Maria Lenorman living in Paris made a prophesy of violent death for Parisian post-monarch government leaders Marat and Robespiere, becoming emperor for Napoleon and execution through hanging for the leaders of the coup in Russia – Ryleev and Muraviev-Apostol.

...On March 5, 1772 a girl was born in small provincial town Alanson near Paris. The midwife cried out and crossed herself because the newborn baby had long black hair and the mouth full of teeth. He father, a rich merchant selling cotton textiles, had been waiting for a child so long, that was ready  to love a child with any abnormalities, even with horns, paws and hooves. However, public opinion was too important for him, and the parents had to send Maria Adelaida Lenorman  was sent to the Benedictine catholic monastery. Its nuns raised her. 

The girl early  started impress other people. At the age of 6 she predicted that the monastery senior priest will leave her position soon. The senior priest was disturbed with the news and started asking the girl who wants to deprive her of her position. The girl soothed her: the senior priest will stop being a nun and become a bride, she would marry a rich man. A month latter it happened this way. People started respecting the girl much, although they were a little scared of her unusual abilities. The news about the little foreteller spread around quickly, and soon important persons started visiting the monastery to hear the girl's prophesies.

The girl become older, and her appearance was ugly: one shoulder was shorter than the another, her legs were thin and crooked, and her eyes were a little bulging. She was supposed to become a nun because nobody was going to marry the girl of such appearance. After the girl's father death her family stopped paying for her living in the monastery, and Maria moved in Paris. With the help of the former monastery senior priest Maria established a salon for foretelling. She started predicting people's destiny using cards, astrology, different items and flowers' aroma. The more well-known the salon become, the more powerful people visited it. In 1793 the famous foreteller was visited by Robespier, Marat and Sen-Jyust – the post-monarch government leaders. Maria made the prophesy of violent death for all of them. Marat did not believe her words. Seeing this, Maria came very close to him and whispered: "Look into my eyes!"  Marat obeyed and in a moment stepped back from her in horror. He answered his companions' questions: "I will be the first of all us who have seen a sea of blood in this ugly woman's eyes!" Leaving the salon  the men could hear the foreteller's words: "None of you will look handsome after cutting your head!”

Marat was mortally wounded by Sharlotte Conde, and his two companions were beheaded a year later.

One day two ladies entered the salon. One of them named Tereza Taliyan wanted to know if she was going   to marry a rich man. Lenorman predicted the lady obtaining the title of princess and having passionate love. "She is fooling me".- Tereza complained to her companion. "This charlatan exploits my desire of getting married!" After hearing this, Tereza's friend Josephina decided to leave the salon without using the services of the short fat woman-foreteller. "You'd  better stay, Madam", she heard. "In a course of time, the future of France will be in your hands". Josephina was excited by the intrigue. She allowed to persuade herself to hear the prophesy. The foretelling cards showed Josephina (a widow with two children) That Providence had already encountered her destiny. Soon she was going to meet the man she will love with all her heart. The man will make her famous, but finally she will be betrayed by him. Josephina had doubts while listening the foreteller's whisper.  The foreteller took her hand and pricked the little finger with a gold needle: "I am going to show you one thing. Nobody have seen it before.  You should pay me gratitude by protecting me while you are in power".

 
A drop of blood from the little finger fell into a bowl filled with some liquid. The blood started taking various shapes. First it was violet and tulip (Josephina's favorite flowers), then lilac and crown. "You will be an empress", the tired foreteller said.

The ladies left the salon as if half asleep.  Going to the exit door, Josephina could notice the dandy sitting in the darkest corner of the living-room.  "I am not going to be an empress", she thought with a smile. "I start feeling for any stranger whom I meet in salons like this".

"There you are, my lord", the foreteller greeted the stranger. "You are about to get married, soon you will meet your future wife. You will have six high-ranking positions, will become a king. You will be famous and have a luxurious life until you turn 40 years old. But at the age of 40 you will forget that your darling was sent by Providence, and you will leave her.  It will be the start of your life tragic final.
You will die suffer and die, and all your friends and relatives will claim they don't know you any more. "

"Devils!", artillery officer Napoleon Bounaparte was irritated. "How could I be persuaded that a foretell   could help me, and visit her!" The whole evening his mind could not get rid of the image of the woman he encountered in Lenorman's salon. Soon after this he met black-haired woman named Jozephina. He became the emperor of France and the woman's husband.

Napoleon's biographers say when he was 29 years old he first fell in love with Yuzheni Clari, the sister of his brother Joseph's wife.  He was courting her for a while but did not try to have closer relationships. Finally Napoleon asked his brother Joseph to ask his wife to persuade her sister to be more favourable to him. In such a complicated way  Napoleon wanted to propose the woman he loved.  He failed, and this was the first failure in Napoleon's life.

Napoleon decided to find an older woman. His intentions were very serious, but for a long time no woman agreed to become his wife. Probably he would never marry if landlord Paul  Barras did not want to get rid of his mistress Josephina Bogarne who cost much to him. The landlord arranged a date for Napoleon and Josephina.  

Soon the future emperor married Josephina who was 32 years old, 6 years older than him. During the campaign in Egypt Napoleon learnt that she was cheating on him, and started cheating himself. In 1809 their marriage collapsed.

However, Napoleon was extremely happy during the first years of his marriage with Josephina. In 1796-1797 he sent her passionate letters from Italy where he participated in a military campaign. He forgave her many affairs. He knew of her superficiality and lust for all the attributes of luxurious life: diamonds, dresses and balls. However, Napoleon paid no attention to this considering intellect to be a drawback for a woman. It was a hard decision for Napoleon to divorce Josephina. He granted her a palace in Malmezon. For some time after the divorce Napoleon continued sending her sad affectionate letters.

Five years later Russian Army entered Paris, and this made foreteller Maria Lenorman appear in history again.

Many Russian officers heard about the unusual foreteller, but few of them dared to ask her for prophesy. Officers Mikhail Lunin, Kondrati Ryleev and Sergei Muraviev-Apostol visited her salon. Maria predicted quick promotion, successful career and terrible death for each of them.
"You will be hung!", she said drearily to Muraviev-Apostol. 
"Perhaps you are confusing me with a British", the officer replied with a smile. "But I am Russian, and death penalty has been abolished in our country"

Indeed, one could not imagine this brilliant officer, a member of ancient aristocratic family, to be hung. However, later Muraviev-Apostol found himself wearing a shapeless garment of a prisoner sentenced to death. He was standing under the gallows with the other plotters of the unsuccessful coup against the czar.  Soldier beat the drum, and the executor quickly put the rough rope loop around the guard officer's neck…

Maria Lenorman knew that having high-ranking patrons will not protect her life. She was designated to survive fire and water and die of the hands of an unknown man. Her salon was set on fire. Then the boat the foreteller was in turned around and sank in the Sena river. Maria marvelously survived: her corset caught on the beam staying afloat. Several hours later the exhausted woman almost choked with water was rescued by the ferry workers. She died in 1843, being strangled by an unknown young man during riots.

For all her life Maria were writing dairies where she described her clients and the prognoses for their future. These dairies became historical documents.

Nikolai Zaitsev