Eugénie Blanchard

Eugénie Blanchard (born 16 February 1896) is a French supercentenarian, who at the age of 114 years is the oldest validated living person in the world. She obtained this title upon the death of Japanese supercentenarian Kama Chinen on 2 May 2010. She is the 6th oldest verified French person ever. Blanchard is, however, the oldest person ever from the island of Saint Barthélemy (administratively and legally a part of Guadeloupe from 1878 until 2007), which is an overseas collectivity of France. Blanchard became the oldest living resident in the European Union following the death of 113-year-old Manuela Fernández-Fojaco, from Spain on 6 January 2009.
==Biography==
Born in the Merlet neighborhood of St. Barths, Blanchard for a time became a nun, moving to Curaçao in the Netherlands Antilles at age 33.[1] She was born only 18 years after the former Swedish island of St. Barths was sold back to France. Blanchard returned to St. Barths at age 60, where she lived at home until 1980.[1] She then moved into a retirement home.[1] She is in general good health despite that she is practically blind and very weak.[1] Children from the neighborhood named her "Douchy" (which means "sweets" or "candy" in Curaçao) because she worked as a sweet seller.[1]
==Longevity records==
*On 25 May 2008, Clémentine Solignac died; Blanchard became the oldest living person in France.
*On 6 January 2009, Manuela Fernández-Fojaco died; Blanchard became the oldest verified living person in the European Union.
*On 24 October 2009, Blanchard moved into the top 100 verified oldest who have ever lived.
*On 2 May 2010 Kama Chinen died; Blanchard age 114 years 75 days became the oldest verified living person in the world.