Virginie de Ternant

Marie Virginie de Ternant, née Trahan (August 16, 1818 – November 7, 1887), was the owner and manager of the Parlange Plantation, near New Roads, Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana. It was through her strong personality, diplomacy and charm that she saved the house from destruction throughout its occupation by both the Union and Confederate armies during the American Civil War.

She was the second wife of Claude Vincent de Ternant, 3rd Marquis of Dansville-sur-Meuse, whose grandfather, the first Marquis, had built the plantation house in 1750 on the property obtained by a French land grant. She had three surviving children from this marriage. Through Marie Virginie, her eldest daughter, she was the grandmother of the celebrated Parisian socialite, Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau, who was the subject of John Singer Sargent's painting "Portrait of Madame X".

Her second husband was Colonel Charles Parlange from whom her home derived its name. By him she had one son, Charles Parlange.

As the Union Army led by General Nathaniel Banks was approaching Parlange, Virginie, by that time a widow and the manager of the plantation, ordered her slaves to bury three chests of treasure estimated at between one third and a half million dollars in gold and silver coins. One of these chests has never been found.

Virginie, who was responsible for Parlange's reputation for elegance by her addition of rich, beautiful furnishings and portraits, is described as "the chief personality for Parlange Plantation's greatness".

Marie Virginie Trahan was born on August 16, 1818 in St Martinville, Louisiana, the daughter of Leufroy Joseph Trahan (1797-?) and Julie Ardoin (April 12, 1795 – April 8, 1827) who were both white French Créoles. She had two younger sisters, Marie Eriphile and Ameline. She lost her mother when she was eight years old. At the age of 15, she married her second cousin and guardian, Claude Vincent de Ternant, 3rd Marquis of Dansville-sur-Meuse. She was his second wife, with his first marriage to Dorothee Legros having been childless. The marriage between Claude and Virginie produced three surviving children:

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