Le Cordon Bleu

The History of Le Cordon Bleu International

The name "Cordon Bleu", meaning Blue Ribbon, is rich with history and heritage. It has been synonymous with excellence since the 16th century, when King Henry III created the "L'Ordre des Chevaliers d'Saint Esprit", The Order of the Holy Spirit, in 1578. At the time, it was the most exclusive order in France. Because the members, royalty included, were awarded with the Cross of the Holy Spirit, which hung from a blue ribbon, they were called "Cordon Bleus". The sumptuous banquets accompanying their award ceremonies became legendary. By the 18th century, the term "Cordon Bleu" was applied to anyone who excelled in a particular field, particularly in the culinary arts.

At the end of the 19th century, Marthe Distel, a French journalist, founded a weekly culinary publication entitled "La Cuisinière Cordon Bleu". The weekly magazine "La Cuisinière Cordon Bleu" was published and over the next seventy years became the basis and reference for what is now perhaps one of the largest recipe collections in the world. Many famous chefs contributed to it and taught the art of cooking through recipes they wrote. Stemming from the magazine's popularity, Marthe Distel organized free classes where subscribers saw the Chef at work and practiced under his trained eye. At the same time, she continued to publish the recipes taught in those classes in future issues of the magazine.

Following the success of the publication, Le Cordon Bleu officially opened its doors as a culinary school in Paris in 1895. The first Cordon Bleu cooking class was held on January 14, 1896, in the Palais Royal. From the beginning, Madame Distel made it a practice to invite celebrated Chefs of the time to teach at Le Cordon Bleu. These included Chef Barthelemy, Chef Charles Poulain, Chefs des Cuisines de l'Automobile-Club de France, Chef Auguste Colombe, Chef Charles Driessens, and the most famous of all, Chef Henri-Paul Pellaprat.

The cooking classes were an immediate success. The reputation of the school spread rapidly worldwide with the first Russian student admitted in 1897 and the first Japanese in 1905. Chef Pellaprat, disciple and friend of Auguste Escoffier, taught for 40 years at Le Cordon Bleu, where he wrote his masterpieces, L'Art Culinaire and La Cuisine Familiale et Pratique, which are considered to be modern classics to this day.

Le Cordon Bleu grew and evolved over the following decades into the leading international culinary institution attracting students from all over the world.

In 1933, one of Chef Pellaprat's students, Rosemary Hume, established L'Ecole d'Petit Cordon Bleu in London which marked the early expansion of Le Cordon Bleu.

After Marthe Distel's death in the late 1930's, the Paris school was taken over and relocated by Elizabeth Brassart, who reigned as the Grande Dame of Le Cordon Bleu, welcoming 2 generations of cooks from many different countries and revising the curriculum.

After the liberation of Paris in 1945, Le Cordon Bleu was accredited by the Pentagon for the professional training of young GI's after their tour of duty. As a former member of the OSS, Julia Child qualified and in 1948 enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu. She earned her toque in 1950 and proceeded to revolutionize the teaching of French cooking in the United States.

Twenty years after the opening of the London school, the success of the school was confirmed by its participation in preparing the Coronation luncheon for Queen Elizabeth II.

For over a century, Le Cordon Bleu has grown to become a leading authority on culinary techniques, training and development. In 1984, André J. Cointreau acquired Le Cordon Bleu, strengthened the curriculum, recruited the finest Chefs of France and relocated the Paris school. In addition, he acquired the London school and opened another school in Tokyo and culinary centers in Ottawa and Sydney. With a friendly and innovative spirit, Le Cordon Bleu continues to offer its students the most intensive culinary training available.

To learn more about The Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago's Le Cordon Blue training program, contact us.

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