Antoine Meilland
French rosarian and nurseryman (1884–1971) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Antoine '("Papa") Meilland (1884–1971) was a French rose grower and co-founder of Meilland International, a large rose growing company in southern France. As a young man, he worked as a nursery assistant for rose breeder, Francis Dubreuil. Antoine married, Dubreuil's daughter, Claudia in 1909 and their son Francis, was born in 1912. Antoine was drafted into the French army when France entered the War in 1914, and Claudia managed the nursery in his absence. Dubreuil died in 1916. When Antoine returned to Lyon, after the war, he and Claudia took over the management of the family business.
In 1919, with the goal of expanding their nursery business, Antoine and Claudia moved to Tassin-la-Demi-Lune. Their son, Francis, followed his parents into the rose business. He was a talented and prolific rose breeder, and is best remembered for developing the legendary 'Peace' rose in 1939. The new rose variety was introduced in 1945 and was a tremendous commercial success. In 1946, the Meilland family sold a majority of their business to rosarian and business owner, Francisque Richardier, so that Francis could devote himself solely to breeding roses. The new company became the Meilland-Richardier company, which is now a subsidiary of Mielland International.