Place Name
Named in honour of Doña María Eugenia Ignacia Augustina de Palafox y KirkPatrick, 16th Countess of Teba, 15th Marchioness of Ardales (May 5, 1826 – July 11, 1920). As the wife of Emperor Napoleon III of France (nephew to Napoleon Bonaparte) she was the last Empress of the French until the end of the Second Empire when the family were exiled to Britain, living at Camden Place from 1871. Chislehurst became the site of the French Court in exile, and there were many visits from British and French politicians and royalty, including Queen Victoria. Their presence put Chislehurst firmly on the list of fashionable places to live. Also known as Eugénie de Montijo, she stayed there until 1881 later moving to Farnborough, in Hampshire, after the deaths of her husband and son in the 1870s.
