The ‘Peace’ Rose by Dave Ingram
The ‘Peace’ rose was first introduced in 1945 and has become the most popular and best-selling rose of the twentieth century. Read the history of this beloved American made rose.
The ‘Peace’ Rose
By Dave Ingram
“The hours when the soul is absorbed by beauty are the only hours when we truly live.”
Robert Jeffries
At the first meeting of the Denver Rose Society on July 10, 1947, we are sure the main topic of conversation was – Roses! And leading the rose talk was no doubt the most popular rose of the day: ‘Peace.’ Introduced to the U.S. in 1945 to unprecedented acclaim, ‘Peace’ was on its way to becoming the most popular (and best-selling) rose of the twentieth century. In the 1947 American Rose Annual “Proof of the Pudding,” W. H. Hoefle of Denver called it, “Incomparable.” Other comments from that time period are, ‘Beautiful beyond description,” “Worthy of all its praise,” and “Canes like fishing poles.” The average score was 9.4 out of 10, the highest of the year.
Of all the roses in commerce back then, ‘Peace’ has best stood the test of time. You still find it sold in almost every nursery you walk into (and offered on its own roots by High Country Roses). ‘Peace’ is still a fine garden rose, with flowers that continue to stop people in their tracks. Because of this, and the fact that ‘Peace’ has been such an enduring symbol for many generations of people, the Denver Rose Society has chosen it as the symbol for our 75th year as a society.
So where did ‘Peace’ come from, exactly?
‘Peace’ was hybridized in 1935 by 23-year-old Francis Meilland at the family nursery just west of Lyon, France. He came from generations of rose-lovers; his great-grandfather, Joseph Rambaux, developed ‘Perle d’Or’ (1875), a polyantha still in commerce. The family business for many decades was fruit trees, vegetables, and roses. Hybridizing in those days was a spare-time hobby; there was no legal protection for a new rose. Anyone could (and did) buy a new bush, propagate it and sell it as their own.
Francis’ father, Antoine (known to all as Papa Meilland once Francis was born) survived the brutal trench warfare of WW I. Once mustered out in 1919, he and his wife Claudia began the back-breaking work of moving their nursery to a larger location in Tassin, just west of Lyon, developing the land there, and raising a family. There was no time for the dream of creating new roses during those hard years. Francis joined them in the fields as an early teenager and in 1929, aged 17, began his first tentative hybridizing crosses. The next 6 years proved both frustrating and discouraging. Endless crosses (and record keeping), hundreds of new seedlings each year, all to no avail. And always the hard work of the nursery business took center stage; new roses only a spare time daydream. His mother, Claudia, was enormously helpful and supportive to Francis and his efforts, but tragically, she died from cancer in the early 1930s, devastating the family.
By the mid-30s, Francis was gaining notice for his efforts, but had not produced any roses worthy to market. It was in this time period that the Meillands met Robert Pyle of Conard-Pyle (later Star) Roses of Pennsylvania, who bolstered their spirits by offering a contract for any new roses they developed. This turned out to be important, since the U.S. was the only country where new plant introductions were protected by patent (starting in 1930), which meant the hybridizer could receive a portion of the sales.
In 1935, young Francis startled his family by announcing that he would take his life savings and tour America. He bought a used Studebaker in New York, and drove15,000 miles around the U.S., visiting any rose-growers he could find, including Robert Pyle. He brought back many innovative ideas, which the family began to incorporate as time and mid-depression money allowed. The nursery business grew; as did the reputation of “Meilland and Son.”
In 1937, Francis introduced his first rose, a yellow hybrid tea. He allowed Robert Pyle to name it ‘Golden State.’ This new rose sold well, and even became the official emblem of the San Francisco International Exhibition that year. The patent money generated was most welcome.
But let’s step back a year. In 1936, Francis filled a trial bed with 800 new seedlings produced from the previous year’s crosses. None of the other crops had produced the sought after “dream rose,” and this new crop did not look very promising, either. Papa Meilland and Francis faced the difficult job of selecting only 50 young plants to be transplanted to another bed for further evaluation; the rest would be destroyed, to make room for next year’s crop of 800 or so seedlings. As the story goes, there was a little seedling in the far corner of the bed that barely made the cut, but did get moved to the new bed. The new label around its tiny stem read, 3 – 35 – 40 (the third hybridization of 1935, and the 40th seedling selected to be further evaluated). And later, when only 5 of the 50 were budded onto rootstock for more study, 3 – 35 – 40 made that cut, too. The new little rose was coming on!
Three years later, in June 1939, as the storm clouds of war rose above Europe, France hosted an international conference of professional rose growers. The Meillands invited a group of their best clients to their nursery to examine the roses in their trial beds. A diverse group from many countries arrived, but the universal language of roses triumphed over speaking barriers. 3 – 35 – 40 was clearly the center of attention, and many orders for this now-spectacular rose were placed for fall shipment.
But on September 1, Germany invaded Poland. World War II began, and darkness settled quickly over Europe. The Meillands managed to ship parcels of their new rose to Germany and Italy, but no word came back on whether they made it or not. In November, an early morning phone call came from the American Consul in Lyon; he could take a package, weight limit one pound, to “a friend” in America, but he was leaving immediately. That package, addressed to Robert Pyle in Pennsylvania, left in a diplomatic pouch on the last plane to leave France for America. It was years before they learned its fate.
The Meillands then had to destroy 200,000 rose bushes, and convert their land to food production during the Occupation. Only a few special roses were saved. The family decided to name their prized new rose ‘Madame A. Meilland’, after Claudia, Papa’s wife, and Francis’ mother, to honor her memory and the years of devotion, hard work and love she had given her family. They had no way of sharing this name, however.
Word did trickle in during the war, first that their rose had reached Germany, where the grower was selling it under the name ‘Gloria Dei’ (Glory to God). Then from Italy; that grower had chosen ‘Gioia!’ (Joy!) as a name. But nothing from the U.S., until September of 1944. In the early days after France was liberated, a letter arrived from Robert Pyle.
Not only had 3 – 35 – 40 made it to the U.S. safely, it had been patented, propagated and trialed by professional growers and American Rose Society members in every region of the country. So spectacular were the reports that a special naming ceremony was scheduled for April 29, 1945 as part of a Pacific Rose Society Exhibition in Pasadena. The statement that was read on this occasion said, “We are persuaded that this greatest new rose of our time should be named for the world’s greatest desire: ‘PEACE.’” And thus was the greatest rose of the 20th century launched in American commerce.
In the first of several coincidences, on the day of this ceremony, Berlin fell.
Shortly after, 49 delegates arrived in San Francisco on May 8, 1945 for the first meeting of the fledgling United Nations. Each delegate received a Peace rose in a vase. This turned out to be the day a truce was declared, ending the war in Europe.
Three months later, the prestigious AARS award was given to ‘Peace’ on the day hostilities ended with Japan.
The Meillands asked for, and received, a 33% commission rate (larger than the normal 15%) on this new rose, in exchange for Conard-Pyle retaining sole U.S. proprietorship. The money that flooded in made for a very different recovery than the family had experienced after WW I.
Francis later wrote in his diary, "How strange to think that all these millions of rose bushes sprang from one tiny seed no bigger than the head of a pin, a seed which we might so easily have overlooked, or neglected in a moment of inattention."
In this way, the most glorious and successful hybrid tea rose of all time came to the world’s hearts and gardens. Generations of rose lovers have admired this rose and embraced its meaning.
As we move through our troubled times of today, let us come forth this year to celebrate the 75th birthday of the Denver Rose Society. Let us gather to share our stories and our roses, to reach out to our neighbors and rebuild a peaceful connection. As she has done before, let us ask the ‘Peace’ rose to lead us to a better tomorrow!
The facts and stories in this article come from: two books, “For Love of a Rose,” by Antonia Ridge, and “A Rose By Any Name,” by Douglas Brenner & Stephen Scanniello; along with many newspaper, magazine and blog articles, and way too many websites to list. The facts are as straight as I can get them, the stories must be true, every single one, but most of all, let us embrace the message this rose brings to our hearts and lives.
Meilland family
Meilland family photos from jardindefrance.org
Peach rose picture taken by Susan Rutherford
