Newsletter  (Nov 2013)  Page(s) 2-3.  Includes photo(s).
 
[From "200 Years and Counting: Marie Louise", by Darrell g.h. Schramm, pp. 2-6]
The date of her origin is most often given as 1813, a date that seems based on Prevost’s remark in his rose catalogue of 1829 wherein he mentions having received ‘Marie Louise’ at Malmaison in 1813. But “received” does not mean “bred” or “introduced,” though indeed Prevost may well have been introduced to the rose when he received it. Graham Stuart Thomas gives the birth date as 1811; a few other sources echo his words. In 1954, however, Roy E. Shepherd in his classic work asserted the rose had put in its first appearance before 1800. Rather in agreement with him, the French 2002 Pepineres Loubert catalogue states that ‘Marie Louise’ originated about 1800.....The gallica authority Francois Joyaux believes ‘Marie Louise’ to be the same as ‘Agatha Incarnata’, a pale, tender pink gallica. Dickerson speculates it to be the lost agathe rose ‘Blush Belgic’, probably on the basis of Thory’s statement in Les Roses that ‘Blush Belgic’ was “very common in gardens, where it was formerly known under the name of Marie Louise.” But Fillassier in 1791 wrote that ‘Blush Belgic’ was also called “the little Flemish Rose.” Though that phrase may give it an earlier Dutch provenance, ‘Marie Louise’ definitely is not little. Henry Andrews in 1805 and 1828 mentions that ‘Blush Belgic’ is a “pale variety of the Belgic Rose,” implying that there is more than one variety or sort, as does Fillassier, all of which seems to mean that ‘Marie Louise’ is a kind of pale Belgic rose. Lindley, in his Rosarum Monographia of 1820 classifies ‘Blush Belgic’ (not to mention ‘Lesser Belgic’ and ‘Red Belgic’ ) under Rosa damascena. On the other hand, Catherine Gore, who obtained her information from Pierre Boitard, in 1838 lists ‘Marie Louise’ as an agathe, with several synonymous names, including ‘Agathe Couronnee’, ‘Agathe Rose’, and ‘Belle Flammande’. While Julien Alexandre Hardy in his 1837 catalogue names ‘Agathe Marie Louise’ as a gallica, he also gives as its synonyms ‘Agathe Couronnee’ and ‘Belle Flammande’, an identification that suggests ‘Agathe Marie Louise’ the gallica is the same as ‘Marie Louise’ the agathe. In 1885 Max Singer lists ‘Agathe Couronnee’ and ‘Agathe Rose’ also as synonyms for ‘Marie Louise’. Accordingly, since the agathe classification is rarely used today, the rose straddles both gallica and damask categories but with one whole foot and a toe-hold of the other in damask territory

Book  (2012)  Page(s) 41.  
 
Suite de Damas & Belgique...
(Agathe couronnée à Paris,
(Tout aimable Vibert
(Belle Flamande, Pel.[Pelletier]

[brackets denote synonyms]

Book  (Jun 1999)  Page(s) 20.  Includes photo(s).

Book  (Apr 1999)  Page(s) 88.  
 
Marie-Louise ('Agathe Couronnée', 'Agathe Rose', 'Augustine Pourprée', 'Belle Flamande', Caprice du Zéphyre', 'Mutabilis', 'Orphée de Lille', 'Tendresse Admirable') Agathe. Malmaison, 1811?... Pale rose... Flesh... Flesh, white when fully open... Graham Stuart Thomas gives a date for this cultivar; Prévost tells of having received it from Malmaison in 1813... there is some confusion between ['Blush Belgic' and 'Marie Louise']... the mauve-pink cultivar distributed in modern times as 'Marie Louise' does not conform to the descriptions in the old literature...

Book  (Nov 1998)  Page(s) 17, 25.  Includes photo(s).
 
Page 17: [Photo]
Page 25: Marie Louise Damask. Description. Bred at Malmaison and introduced in 1813. Flowers: pink, fragrant, large... so heavy that they weigh down their stems.

Book  (Jul 1998)  Page(s) 299.  

Book  (1997)  Page(s) 172.  
 
Marie Louise Damask. c. 1813. Description and cultivation... flowers: pink...

Book  (Nov 1994)  Page(s) 42.  
 
Grown at Malmaison in 1811. A rather procumbent shrub (due to lax growth, heavy flowers). Mauve-pink, extremely full-petaled, button eye. One of the most sumptuous Damasks.

Book  (Nov 1994)  Page(s) 27, 28.  
 
Page 27: the influence of other roses than Gallica is found in 'Agathe Incarnata'
Page 28: Description... Prior to 1815... An ancient variety probably hybridized with a Damask Rose. Similar to Rosa damascena 'Petite Lisette' and 'Omar Khayyám'. The grey-green downy leaves point to the Damask group, as also the prickly shoots... button eye, pale pink...

Book  (Sep 1993)  Page(s) 277.  Includes photo(s).
 
[dedicated to] Napoleon's second wife in 1813. Description. Bears some of the largest blooms among the Old French Roses. Parentage unknown, summer flowering, fragrant.