Leocadia Zorrilla facts for kids
Leocadia Zorrilla (born December 9, 1788, in Madrid; died August 7, 1856, in Madrid), also known by her married name Leocadia Weiss, was a close friend and companion of the famous Spanish painter Francisco Goya during his later years. She was also the mother of the artist Rosario Weiss Zorrilla.
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Her Early Life and Family
Leocadia became an orphan when she was young. Her aunt, Juana Galarza, took care of her education. We don't know much about her very early life. It seems she first met Goya in 1805. This was at the wedding of Goya's son, Javier, to Leocadia's cousin, Gumersinda Goicoechea Galarza.
In 1807, Leocadia married Isidore Weiss. He was a Jewish-German jeweler whose family lived in Madrid. They moved into his parents' home. While living there, Leocadia had two sons: Joaquín (born 1808) and Guillermo (born 1811). However, in 1811, Isidore Weiss made a legal complaint about problems in their marriage, and they separated.
Leocadia had a third child, Rosario, in 1814. Many people have wondered if Goya was Rosario's father. This has never been fully proven, but it is clear that Isidore Weiss was not the father. In 1817, Leocadia and her two younger children, Guillermo and Rosario, moved in with Goya. Goya's wife had passed away in 1812. Leocadia was meant to be his housekeeper.
Life with Goya in France
In 1824, Leocadia had to leave Madrid. Her son, Guillermo, had become involved in political activities with Francisco Espoz y Mina. At the same time, Goya was also unhappy with the political situation in Spain, so he left for Paris.
Leocadia and Goya met again in Bordeaux, France. Many Spanish people who had left Spain for political reasons lived there. Even though Leocadia had a strong and lively personality, and Goya was becoming quite frail, they seemed to enjoy being together. They were often seen out in public.
Leocadia's letters are the only way we know about Goya's last days before he died in 1828. Goya did not include Leocadia in his will. This left her in a difficult financial situation. Javier, Goya's son, let Leocadia keep his father's furniture and gave her some money. We don't know how Isidore, Leocadia's former husband, reacted to Goya's death, even though he had claimed to be Rosario's father. Despite Javier's help, Leocadia's letters show that the next five years were tough. She mostly survived thanks to a pension from the French government.
Return to Madrid and Later Years
After a general pardon was given in 1833, Leocadia and Rosario returned to Madrid. By then, the money Javier de Goya had given them had run out. They supported themselves with what Rosario could earn. Rosario copied and sold artworks by Old Masters at the Museo del Prado museum.
In 1840, Rosario was accepted into the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, which is a famous art academy. She also got a job as a drawing teacher for Princesses Isabel and Luisa Fernanda. She earned a good salary for this. Her brother Guillermo's liberal friends, who knew Agustín Argüelles (Isabel's legal guardian), probably helped her get this position.
Sadly, in 1843, Rosario died suddenly at only twenty-eight years old. Leocadia's life after this is not very clear. We do know that she had to sell some of Goya's artworks that she had kept. She died at home in 1856 and was buried in a mass grave at the Parish of San Martín. Her former husband, Isidore, had died in poverty in 1850.
See also
In Spanish: Leocadia Zorrilla para niños La Leocadia
