Heavens to Betsy, it's Elizabeth "Betsy" Bonaparte's birthday! One of America's first international celebrities, Betsy was born in Baltimore on this day, February 6, 1785. The eldest daughter in a brood of 13 children born to Dorcas Spear Patterson and the shipping merchant William Patterson, Betsy became well known over the years for her great beauty and intelligence. Her charm and wit captivated admirers on both sides of the Atlantic, but it was Jerome Bonaparte, brother of the future French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, who would (at least for a time) capture her heart. Napoleon's disapproval of the marriage and demand for an annulment would eventually lead to the couple's end, but Betsy would, in 1805, give birth to the couple's son, Jerome Napoleon Bonaparte. The ambrotype seen here, made after a painting, is an interesting example of how Betsy's likeness was, in one case, captured and shared at a time before copies of photographs were easily made. Explore other likenesses of B...