Igenlode Wordsmith

I'll be honest - the year where POTO takes place (1881) doesn't take place in a time that's particularly... interesting from a historical standpoint, at least for me? Not that nothing is happening - public elementary schools become free and secular (schools belonging to the clergy become private) and freedom of press becomes protected by law, but it's not really stuff that will directly affect POTO nor is it really relevant to include it in fanfic. There's the Great Exposition of 1889, Eiffel Tower and all, but that's obviously much later, and the Belle Époque starts in earnest in 1896. I guess it's kind of convenient for the story to take place in 1881 like the musical does, since nothing happens that would directly affect the plot... unlike the movie happening in 1870 :P

I also admit I know very little about how French nobility fared after the fall of the Second Empire - I managed to find this article (in French) that goes into detail about it and how the bourgeoisie got mixed up with the nobility class: https://www.cairn.info/revue-histoire-economie-et-societe-2011-1-page-85.htm

Or if I ever write a fic with exhaustive historical research about Christine and Raoul post-POTO... I might just take the easy path and have them emigrate to England, since I know A LOT more about Gilded Age American heiresses marrying English Lords :P