1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:05,199 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio, 2 00:00:05,800 --> 00:00:09,319 Speaker 1: Hello and Welcome to This Day in History Class, a 3 00:00:09,360 --> 00:00:12,320 Speaker 1: show that shines a light on the ups and downs 4 00:00:12,600 --> 00:00:18,000 Speaker 1: of everyday history. I'm Gabe Luesier, and in this episode 5 00:00:18,200 --> 00:00:21,680 Speaker 1: we're talking about all the lucky breaks and sheer coincidence 6 00:00:21,920 --> 00:00:25,160 Speaker 1: that helped turn a new French rose into World War 7 00:00:25,239 --> 00:00:35,120 Speaker 1: Two's flower of Victory. The day was April twenty ninth, 8 00:00:35,360 --> 00:00:40,000 Speaker 1: nineteen forty five. The world famous Peace rose was introduced 9 00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:45,239 Speaker 1: to gardiners at a special ceremony in Pasadena, California. The 10 00:00:45,360 --> 00:00:47,800 Speaker 1: rose that would one day bear the name of Peace 11 00:00:48,120 --> 00:00:53,040 Speaker 1: was developed by French horticulturist Francis Mallon. Between nineteen thirty 12 00:00:53,080 --> 00:00:57,440 Speaker 1: five and nineteen thirty nine, he and his father Antoine 13 00:00:57,560 --> 00:01:00,520 Speaker 1: gathered different varieties of roses from all all over the 14 00:01:00,560 --> 00:01:03,960 Speaker 1: world and then experimented with them in their private greenhouses 15 00:01:04,160 --> 00:01:09,200 Speaker 1: near Lyon, France. Each year, the Mayons spread thousands of 16 00:01:09,319 --> 00:01:13,600 Speaker 1: roses in hopes of producing a striking new variety. In 17 00:01:13,680 --> 00:01:17,479 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty five, after several attempts at cross pollinating two 18 00:01:17,640 --> 00:01:21,000 Speaker 1: tea roses, Francis and his father managed to create a 19 00:01:21,040 --> 00:01:25,720 Speaker 1: promising hybrid which they dubbed Rose number three thirty five forty, 20 00:01:26,760 --> 00:01:30,120 Speaker 1: They spent the next several years nurturing the seedling and 21 00:01:30,160 --> 00:01:34,080 Speaker 1: watching its development. To their delight, the plant thrived and 22 00:01:34,200 --> 00:01:39,760 Speaker 1: proved to be remarkably resistant to weather, disease and insects. However, 23 00:01:39,959 --> 00:01:43,760 Speaker 1: the real payoff was when the plant first bloomed, revealing 24 00:01:43,920 --> 00:01:47,880 Speaker 1: large yellow gold flowers tinged with pink along the edges. 25 00:01:48,880 --> 00:01:53,080 Speaker 1: In addition to their beautiful color, the rose blossoms were enormous, 26 00:01:53,240 --> 00:01:56,800 Speaker 1: measuring six to eight inches in diameter, and because the 27 00:01:56,840 --> 00:02:00,600 Speaker 1: bush bloomed more often than most roses, about twenty five 28 00:02:00,720 --> 00:02:04,360 Speaker 1: times each year, there were plenty of blossoms to go around. 29 00:02:05,520 --> 00:02:09,400 Speaker 1: In June of nineteen thirty nine, Francis Mayon introduced the 30 00:02:09,480 --> 00:02:13,480 Speaker 1: new variety to an international group of rose growers. He 31 00:02:13,600 --> 00:02:17,840 Speaker 1: called it Madame Antoine Mayon, after his mother, and he 32 00:02:17,919 --> 00:02:22,680 Speaker 1: promised that cuttings would soon be available for purchase. Unfortunately, 33 00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:26,880 Speaker 1: he wasn't able to keep that promise. Just three months later, 34 00:02:27,080 --> 00:02:30,520 Speaker 1: World War II broke out and the global rose trade 35 00:02:30,600 --> 00:02:35,360 Speaker 1: ground to a halt along with everything else. Mayon knew 36 00:02:35,400 --> 00:02:38,040 Speaker 1: that it was only a matter of time before Germany 37 00:02:38,120 --> 00:02:41,000 Speaker 1: invaded France, and he wasn't sure what would happen to 38 00:02:41,040 --> 00:02:45,200 Speaker 1: his family's estate under Nazi occupation. He decided that the 39 00:02:45,240 --> 00:02:48,679 Speaker 1: best way to safeguard his new rose was descended out 40 00:02:48,680 --> 00:02:52,720 Speaker 1: of the country before the borders snapped shut. He managed 41 00:02:52,760 --> 00:02:55,880 Speaker 1: to send cuttings to his friends in Italy, Turkey, and 42 00:02:55,960 --> 00:02:59,880 Speaker 1: even Germany. Then, in June of nineteen forty he read 43 00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:03,560 Speaker 1: made one final batch of grafting stems for shipment to 44 00:03:03,600 --> 00:03:08,200 Speaker 1: the USA. The package was reportedly transported in the luggage 45 00:03:08,240 --> 00:03:10,800 Speaker 1: of a US consul and made it out on the 46 00:03:10,919 --> 00:03:14,440 Speaker 1: last plain to depart France before the Nazis took over. 47 00:03:15,720 --> 00:03:18,760 Speaker 1: During the war, Mayon had no way to communicate with 48 00:03:18,800 --> 00:03:22,040 Speaker 1: his friends overseas and wasn't sure if his plan had 49 00:03:22,080 --> 00:03:25,800 Speaker 1: even worked. Luckily, as he would find out years later, 50 00:03:26,360 --> 00:03:29,840 Speaker 1: it did. All of the cuttings he sent survived the 51 00:03:29,880 --> 00:03:33,880 Speaker 1: trip and were delivered safely to his friends. The roses 52 00:03:33,919 --> 00:03:36,880 Speaker 1: grew just as hardy and beautiful in a variety of 53 00:03:36,920 --> 00:03:40,760 Speaker 1: climates and quickly became a regional favorite wherever they were grown. 54 00:03:41,880 --> 00:03:45,440 Speaker 1: Mayon's rose took on several different names during the war. 55 00:03:45,960 --> 00:03:50,320 Speaker 1: In Italy it was called Joia or Joy, and in 56 00:03:50,400 --> 00:03:54,760 Speaker 1: Germany it was called Gloria d or Glory of God, 57 00:03:55,680 --> 00:03:59,480 Speaker 1: but it's the flower's American name that's proven the most enduring. 58 00:04:00,400 --> 00:04:03,720 Speaker 1: The cuttings sent to the US were delivered to horticulturist 59 00:04:03,840 --> 00:04:07,720 Speaker 1: and rose breeder Robert Pyle, whom Mayon had met during 60 00:04:07,760 --> 00:04:11,960 Speaker 1: his one and only trip to the States. Pile propagated 61 00:04:12,000 --> 00:04:15,880 Speaker 1: the roses bud Wood in his own trial garden in Pennsylvania. 62 00:04:16,480 --> 00:04:19,920 Speaker 1: Then he shared clippings with rose growers throughout the country 63 00:04:20,120 --> 00:04:24,240 Speaker 1: to test them out in different climates. Pile also sent 64 00:04:24,360 --> 00:04:27,919 Speaker 1: samples of the plant to the American Rose Society, which 65 00:04:27,960 --> 00:04:30,839 Speaker 1: promptly declared it one of the most beautiful roses in 66 00:04:30,920 --> 00:04:35,600 Speaker 1: the world. With that ringing endorsement and positive results from 67 00:04:35,640 --> 00:04:39,080 Speaker 1: his team of growers, Pyle decided to patent the rose 68 00:04:39,200 --> 00:04:42,520 Speaker 1: under Mayon's name and release it for sale in the US. 69 00:04:43,600 --> 00:04:47,760 Speaker 1: Thousands of plants were propagated in preparation, and a contest 70 00:04:47,880 --> 00:04:51,040 Speaker 1: was held to pick the new name. In late nineteen 71 00:04:51,120 --> 00:04:55,160 Speaker 1: forty four. Pyle and his colleagues reviewed hundreds of submissions 72 00:04:55,320 --> 00:04:58,479 Speaker 1: and ultimately settled on the name Peace, the thing that 73 00:04:58,640 --> 00:05:02,800 Speaker 1: everyone in the world craving. Most plans were made to 74 00:05:02,880 --> 00:05:06,479 Speaker 1: reveal the winning name the following spring during a ceremony 75 00:05:06,520 --> 00:05:10,919 Speaker 1: in Pasadena, California, the home of the famous Rose Parade. 76 00:05:11,000 --> 00:05:14,599 Speaker 1: The event was held on April twenty ninth, nineteen forty five, 77 00:05:14,920 --> 00:05:17,440 Speaker 1: and was a featured highlight of the First Rose Show, 78 00:05:17,760 --> 00:05:22,960 Speaker 1: sponsored by the Pacific Rose Society of Pasadena. Spanish American 79 00:05:23,080 --> 00:05:27,200 Speaker 1: actress Jenx Falkenberg was a special guest at the ceremony. 80 00:05:27,640 --> 00:05:30,280 Speaker 1: She helped release a pair of doves into the air 81 00:05:30,360 --> 00:05:34,359 Speaker 1: to mark the occasion, and then christened the rose, saying quote, 82 00:05:34,560 --> 00:05:37,640 Speaker 1: we are persuaded that this greatest new Rose of our 83 00:05:37,720 --> 00:05:41,800 Speaker 1: time should be named for the world's greatest desire Peace. 84 00:05:43,040 --> 00:05:45,839 Speaker 1: Those in attendants didn't know it at the time, but 85 00:05:45,920 --> 00:05:49,440 Speaker 1: the ceremony happened to coincide with the fall of Berlin 86 00:05:49,680 --> 00:05:53,200 Speaker 1: to Allied forces. The war in Europe was coming to 87 00:05:53,240 --> 00:05:58,680 Speaker 1: a close just as the Peace Rose arrived. Robert Pyle 88 00:05:58,800 --> 00:06:02,320 Speaker 1: had written to Francis Mayon months earlier to tell him 89 00:06:02,320 --> 00:06:05,520 Speaker 1: about the Peace Rose and the upcoming ceremony, and while 90 00:06:05,560 --> 00:06:08,520 Speaker 1: the latter wasn't delivered until that summer, more than a 91 00:06:08,560 --> 00:06:12,560 Speaker 1: month after Germany's surrender, the delay likely made the new 92 00:06:12,640 --> 00:06:16,000 Speaker 1: name seem all the more fitting. In the wake of 93 00:06:16,040 --> 00:06:18,680 Speaker 1: the war, the Peace rose struck a chord with the 94 00:06:18,720 --> 00:06:22,599 Speaker 1: international community, and as a result, more than thirty million 95 00:06:22,640 --> 00:06:26,680 Speaker 1: bushes were sold over the next decade. The rose became 96 00:06:26,760 --> 00:06:30,560 Speaker 1: an especially popular choice for public parks and World War 97 00:06:30,600 --> 00:06:35,279 Speaker 1: II memorials. Peace has claimed a host of honors over 98 00:06:35,320 --> 00:06:38,919 Speaker 1: the years, including in nineteen seventy six when it became 99 00:06:39,000 --> 00:06:42,800 Speaker 1: the first cultivar to win the title of World's Favorite rose. 100 00:06:43,680 --> 00:06:46,800 Speaker 1: But the flower's biggest claim to fame is probably its 101 00:06:46,839 --> 00:06:50,720 Speaker 1: appearance at the inaugural meeting of the United Nations. When 102 00:06:50,760 --> 00:06:53,560 Speaker 1: the delegates gathered in San Francisco in the summer of 103 00:06:53,640 --> 00:06:56,719 Speaker 1: nineteen forty five, they were each presented with a Peace 104 00:06:56,800 --> 00:07:00,280 Speaker 1: rose in the hopes that it would quote influence men's 105 00:07:00,360 --> 00:07:05,920 Speaker 1: thoughts for everlasting world peace. As for Francis Mayon, he 106 00:07:05,960 --> 00:07:09,560 Speaker 1: continued to breed roses after the war, developing more than 107 00:07:09,560 --> 00:07:13,960 Speaker 1: one hundred and fifty varieties during his lifetime. His family 108 00:07:14,080 --> 00:07:16,720 Speaker 1: made a tidy profit from sales of the Piece Rose, 109 00:07:17,040 --> 00:07:21,040 Speaker 1: and the company that grew from that success, Mayon International, 110 00:07:21,440 --> 00:07:24,520 Speaker 1: is now one of the largest and most respected rose 111 00:07:24,600 --> 00:07:28,920 Speaker 1: breeders in the world. In the decades since its introduction, 112 00:07:29,280 --> 00:07:32,240 Speaker 1: the Piece Rose has been used to create hundreds of 113 00:07:32,240 --> 00:07:36,720 Speaker 1: other rose varieties, so many, in fact, that most modern 114 00:07:36,800 --> 00:07:39,800 Speaker 1: roses are now thought to be descended from peace in 115 00:07:39,920 --> 00:07:44,640 Speaker 1: one way or another. How strange to think. Mayon once 116 00:07:44,720 --> 00:07:48,760 Speaker 1: wrote that all these millions of rose bushes sprang from 117 00:07:48,880 --> 00:07:51,960 Speaker 1: one tiny seed, no bigger than the head of a pin, 118 00:07:52,800 --> 00:07:56,560 Speaker 1: a seed which we might so easily have overlooked or 119 00:07:56,640 --> 00:08:03,680 Speaker 1: neglected in a moment of inattention. I'm Gabe blues Yay, 120 00:08:03,920 --> 00:08:07,040 Speaker 1: and hopefully you now know a little more about history 121 00:08:07,120 --> 00:08:10,320 Speaker 1: today than you did yesterday. If you'd like to keep 122 00:08:10,440 --> 00:08:13,280 Speaker 1: up with the show, you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, 123 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:17,560 Speaker 1: and Instagram at TDI HC Show, and if you have 124 00:08:17,640 --> 00:08:20,520 Speaker 1: any comments or suggestions, feel free to send them my 125 00:08:20,600 --> 00:08:24,720 Speaker 1: way by writing to this Day at iHeartMedia dot com. 126 00:08:25,400 --> 00:08:28,480 Speaker 1: Thanks to Kasby Bias for producing the show, and thanks 127 00:08:28,480 --> 00:08:30,880 Speaker 1: to you for listening. I'll see you back here again 128 00:08:30,920 --> 00:08:46,000 Speaker 1: tomorrow for another day in History class.