This may not have much to do with France, but I just learned that during the War of 1812 when the British were marching on Baltimore, Maryland, Lt Col. George Armistead paid a local seamstress named Mary Pickersgill $405.90 to sew a small storm banner and an enormous American flag. The flag was so large that Mary had to request the use of a local brewery's floor to lay it out for stitching. Her daughter later recalled that many nights she sewed until past midnight to make sure the comission was ready in time. That flag would come to inspire The Star Spangled Banner, America's National Anthem.
These days as I work in the costume shop until 4am on my Master's Thesis I find this story to be very comforting, because what seamstress has not experienced the late-night time crunch as a deadline looms? It's nice to know there is something empathic in this.
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