French in Australia

French Australian League

The French Australian League of Help provided comforts for French troops and their families throughout World War I. Funds were raised locally and fortnightly shipments of clothing sent to France for distribution by the Red Cross. From 1915, Augustine Soubeiran (1858-1933) coordinated the League's work in Australia.

After the war ended, Ms Soubeiran extended the League's operations for three years to provide continued support for war widows and orphans and assist with the reconstruction of France. Winding up affairs in 1921, she wrote to the Mitchell Library offering the League's archive to ensure its preservation as 'the rightful property of New South Wales'.

Transcript: 

ALLIANCE FRANCAISE

Citizens Chambers, Martin Place, 
Sydney, 28 Sept. 1921

The Librarian 
Mitchell Library 
Sydney

Dear Sir,

I have in my possession numerous documents relating to the activities of the French Australian League during the Great War.

These consist mainly of letters of thanks, many being from some of the most prominent French-men, including Marshall Foch, the Archbishop of Rheims, Marshall Petain & General [Sarrail], etc., etc. 

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Transcript: 

here are also letters form soldiers, expressing admiration for the courage and abilities of the Australian 'Diggers' by whose side they fought.

There are also interesting letters from the French Directors of several Military schools for war orphans, including delightful letters from the children themselves - about the honour in which they hold the Australian flag - etc. -

These documents were desired & asked for, more than once, by 

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the French authorities who wanted to place them in the War Museum in Paris. I didn't feel justified however in parting with them, as they seemed to me the rightful property of N. S. Wales.

If, however, you do not want them for the Mitchell Library, I shall send them to Paris, where they will be welcomed gladly and find a permanent and fitting resting place -

I am, dear Sir, yours faithfully,

A. Soubeiran

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In the early 1950s, Henriette Lamotte operated in Rowe Street, Sydney’s bohemian quarter, amongst coffee lounges, fashion boutiques and galleries. She moved to a salon in the St. James Building, Elizabeth Street, in 1956. By 1969 she had opened a larger millinery salon and boutique in Double Bay, selling fashionable attire as well as her famous hats. Her sumptuous salons with lush interiors, including elegant sofas and mirror hung walls, complemented her exquisite millinery creations.

Her clients were the rich, the famous and the fashionable who sought hats for their elegant daywear or glamorous ‘after-five’ cocktail parties, dinners and balls. For women of the day, hats were an "essential part of a smart outfit" (Daily Mirror, 25 May 1961). “Lamotte is a name that no woman seeking a well-dressed title can afford to ignore – provided of course, her husband can afford to pay for it!” (‘Our Hat Dictators’, Smiths Weekly, 18 February 1950).

Lamotte also collaborated with leading haute couture fashion designers of the day such as Germaine Rocher and Madame Pellier. In addition to her own exclusive hat designs, she manufactured a more affordable range under the name ‘Mademoiselle Hermance’ available through department stores. In 1952, she contributed to the light-hearted French cookery book Oh, for a French Wife which featured recipes and advice from well-known French society ‘wives’.

A well-known Sydney identity, Lamotte charmed everyone with her vivacious personality and sophisticated French background. She was a successful designer, businesswoman, author and one-time actress, who brought colour, glamour and ‘A little bit of Paris’ to Sydney social life.

The Library's Henriette Lamotte collection, 1935-1975, includes business records, scrapbooks, design and fabric sample books, correspondence, photographs and realia, which provide an insight into this enigmatic and fascinating businesswoman.

Yani and Lillibelle

Henriette Lamotte’s exclusive champagne showings featured each season’s ‘must-have’ hats. Lamotte, or ‘Yani’ to her friends, was often accompanied by her French poodle ‘Lillibelle’ adorned in diamante collar and mink tie, no less! Proceeds from the events usually went to charity. Local celebrities and socialites were all in attendance – their photographs splashed across the society pages of the women’s magazines and newspapers the following week.

This gala dinner and fashion parade was held at Princes Restaurant, one of Sydney’s most fashionable dining establishments and meeting place for society ladies and the French community. An added attraction of the evening was "The Lamotte Story" told in hats worn by well-known Sydney women.

One fashion editor later enthused about a show:

"The hat show of the season, in fact almost THE fashion show, was Henriette Lamotte’s sparkling affair given for charity. It had all the ingredients: lush background of the elegant salon, all the ‘right’ people’ in the audience – the smart ladies (wearing their best hats) - and Sydney’s four leading mannequins, with their sleek aplomb and rather disdainful assurance. And the hats. Delicious creations, big, small…We all accepted that a hat show is a lot more than hats" (‘Easter Hat parade’, Women’s Day, April 1 1957)

> View the complete Henriette Lamotte scrapbook online