Consuelo de Saint Exupéry
Consuelo, Viscountess de Saint-Exupéry (née Suncín de Sandoval; 10 April 1901 – 28 May 1979) was a Salvadoran and French writer and artist, and was married to the French aristocrat, writer and pioneering aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.
Also recorded as Consuelo de Saint-Exupéry · Consuelo de Saint Exupery · Consuelo de Saint-Exupery · María Consuelo Suncín- Sandoval
Consuelo de Saint Exupéry

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- Name
- Consuelo de Saint-Exupéry
- Birth Name
- Consuelo Suncín de Sandoval
- Born
- 10 April 1901
- Birthplace
- Armenia, El Salvador
- Died
- 28 May 1979
- Place of death
- Grasse, France
- Occupation
- * Writer
- Full name
- Consuelo Suncín Sandoval.
- Nationality
- El Salvador.
- Languages
- Spanish and French.
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Documentary summary
Consuelo, Viscountess de Saint-Exupéry (née Suncín de Sandoval; 10 April 1901 – 28 May 1979) was a Salvadoran and French writer and artist, and was married to the French aristocrat, writer and pioneering aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.
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Note VALÉORINE
Consuelo de Saint Exupéry (1901–1979) was a journalist, painter and sculptor, among other activities, a national of El Salvador. The journalist was born Consuelo Suncín Sandoval in Armenia and died in Grasse. Languages used include French and Spanish.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 27 September 2026
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Authority files
wikidata · Q445703
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Honorific Prefix — Madame • Name — Consuelo de Saint-Exupéry • Birth Name — Consuelo Suncín de Sandoval • Born — 10 April 1901 • Birthplace — Armenia, El Salvador • Died — 28 May 1979 • Place of death — Grasse, France • Resting Place — Père Lachaise Cemetery • Citizenship — * El Salvador • France • Occupation — * Writer • artist
Early life
Early life
• Illustration — The young Consuelo Suncin Sandoval Zeceña de Saint-Exupéry Born Consuelo Suncín de Sandoval as the daughter of a rich coffee grower and army reservist, she grew up in a family of wealthy landowners in a small town in the Salvadoran department of Sonsonate. Due to her asthma, her father sent her abroad to the United States, where she studied in San Francisco; later she studied in Mexico City, and France.
Personal life
Personal life
Her first marriage was to a Mexican army captain, Ricardo Cárdenas, whom she met in the United States. Though this marriage ended in divorce, she lied and said it ended with his death during the Mexican Revolution, since divorced women were then stigmatized by society, and being a widow was preferable to being a divorced woman. While in France, she met and later married Enrique Gómez Carrillo, a Guatemalan writer, diplomat and journalist. Following his death in 1927, she took up residence in Buenos Aires. In 1931 in Buenos Aires, she met and married the French aristocrat, writer and pioneering aviator Count Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, making her a countess. At the time Consuelo was a once-divorced, once-widowed Salvadoran writer and artist who possessed a bohemian spirit and was known as a mischief-maker. Saint-Exupéry, thoroughly enchanted by the diminutive woman, would leave and then return to her many times; she was both his muse and over the long term the source of much of his angst. It was a stormy union, with Saint-Exupéry travelling frequently and indulging in numerous extramarital affairs, most notably with the Frenchwoman Hélène de Vogüé (1908–2003), known as 'Nelly' and referred to as "Madame de B." in Saint-Exupéry biographies.
Career
Career
Consuelo also had numerous extramarital affairs. Following the disappearance of her husband in July 1944, with her loss of Saint-Exupéry still fresh, she purportedly wrote a memoir of their life together, The Tale of the Rose, which was sealed away in a trunk in her home. Two decades after her death in 1979, the manuscript came to light when José Martinez-Fructuoso, her heir and long-time employee, and his wife, Martine, discovered it in an attic trunk. Alain Vircondelet, author of a biography of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, edited it, improving her French and dividing it into chapters. Its publication in France in 2000, one century after Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's birth on 29 June 1900, became a national sensation. As of 2011, it has been translated into sixteen languages.
Death
Death
Consuelo died on 28 May 1979 and is buried in Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, alongside her second husband Enrique Gómez Carrillo.
Portrayal in The Little Prince
Portrayal in The Little Prince
Despite their tumultuous relationship, Antoine kept Consuelo close to his heart. Consuelo, who has asthma, is the likely inspiration for the major character in The Little Prince, the prince's petulant, vain, but fragile 'flower', identified as The Rose, whom he protects under glass and with a windscreen on his tiny planet which is named Asteroid B-612. Saint-Exupéry's infidelity and doubts about his marriage are symbolised by the field of roses the Prince encounters during his visit to Earth. In the novella, The Fox tells The Prince that his Rose is unique and special, because she is the one whom he loves. The Prince's home asteroid also possesses three tiny volcanoes, likely inspired by the three volcanoes in the Cordillera de Apaneca volcanic range complex, which are directly visible from Consuelo's home town of Armenia, El Salvador. Consuelo's home country is also known as the "Land of Volcanoes". The two active volcanoes were inspired by the Santa Ana Volcano and the famous conical-shaped Izalco, which was likely spewing ash and lava when Antoine visited El Salvador. The dormant volcano is Cerro Verde. • Illustration — One of the active volcanoes in The Little Prince was inspired by El Salvador's Izalco (volcano). At the time Antoine visited Consuelo's home town, Izalco was active spewing ash and lava.
Popular culture
Popular culture
Actress Janet Waldo was the voice for The Rose in the animated TV series "The Adventures of the Little Prince". Singer Máiréad Carlin played The Rose in The Little Prince musical. Consuelo's relationship with Antoine was portrayed by Miranda Richardson and Bruno Ganz in the 1996 biopic Saint-Ex. The film combines elements of biography, documentary, and dramatic re-creation. Consuelo is also a major character in the forthcoming historical novel Studio Saint-Ex by Ania Szado. The book examines Consuelo and Antoine's time in New York City during World War II while Antoine is writing The Little Prince.
Identity and origins
Identity and origins
The authorities additionally record the headings Consuelo de Saint-Exupéry, Consuelo de Saint Exupery, Consuelo de Saint-Exupery and María Consuelo Suncín- Sandoval. Her recorded languages were Spanish and French.

A photograph of the young Consuelo Suncín-Sandoval Zeceña (The Rose of the Little Prince)
Margarita Lissette Arévalo Martínez
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1901
Consuelo de Saint Exupéry born at Armenia.
1979
Consuelo de Saint Exupéry died at Grasse.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Armenia.
Birth place
Grasse.
Death place
Honours
Antoine's 1939 memoir, Wind, Sand and Stars (Terre des hommes), was employed to create the central theme—Terre des hommes/Man and his world—of the 1967 International World's Fair in Montreal, Canada, Expo 67. The Countess de Saint Exupéry, Consuelo, was a guest of honour at the official opening ceremonies of the world's fair.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Severson (2004), p. 159
- 2.Webster, Paul. Flying Into A Literary Storm: Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Author Of The Little Prince, Was Born 100 Years Ago. The Celebrations, However, Have Been Marred By His Widow's Bitter Account Of Their Marriage, London: The Guardian, 24 June 2000.
- 3.Curtis, Cate. André Malraux: a biography. Fromm International Pub. Corp. 180. 1 April 1997. 978-0-88064-171-5.
- 4."Biography: Nelly de Vogüé (1908 – 2003)." AntoinedeSaintExupery.com. Retrieved: 23 May 2012.
- 5.Carrol, Tim. Secret Love of a Renaissance Man, The Telegraph, 30 April 2007.
- 6.Schiff, Stacy. "Bookend: Par Avion." The New York Times, 25 June 2000.
- 7.Reif, Rita. "A Charming Prince Turns 50, His Luster Intact", The New York Times, 19 September 1993.
- 8.El Diario de Hoy, "Consuelo Suncín, La Salvadoreña que inspiró el Principito", 8 April 2018.
- 9.Webster, Paul (1993) Antoine de Saint-Exupéry: The Life And Death Of The Little Prince, London: Pan Macmillan, 1993, pp. 248–251, .
- 10.El Salvador and "The Little Prince". El Salvador.
- 11.National Geographic Partners, LLC. Fast Facts: Republic of El Salvador. Nat Geo Kids. 21 March 2014.
- 12.Global Volcanism Program, 2013. Izalco (343030) in Volcanoes of the World, v. 4.8.0. Venzke, E (ed.). Smithsonian Institution. Accessed 3 June 2019.
- 13.Parque Natural Cerro Verde, Ministerio de Turismo de El Salvador, accessed 3 June 2019.
- 14.Krôller, Eva-Marie. Expo '67: Canada's Camelot? , Canadian Literature, Spring–Summer 1997, Iss. 152–153, pp. 36–51.
- 15.Allon, Yoram. Contemporary British and Irish Film Directors: A Wallflower Critical Guide. Wallflower. 334. 2001. 978-1903364222.
Bibliography printed in the source article · 5
- Vircondelet, Alain. O Consuelo. 2000.
- Suncín, Abigaíl. La rosa que cautivó al principito : Consuelo de Saint-Exupéry. 2003.
- Vircondelet, Alain. Antoine et Consuelo de Saint-Exupéry : un amour de légende. 2005.
- Vircondelet, Alain. C'étaient Antoine et Consuelo de Saint-Exupéry. 2009.
- Carbonel, Marie-Hélène. Consuelo de Saint-Exupéry, une mariée vêtue de noir. 2010.
References
Citations
References
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Further particulars
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Further particulars
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Consuelo de Saint Exupéry is recorded as writer, journalist, painter and sculptor. Recorded at birth as Consuelo Suncín Sandoval.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
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