Fashion designer Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel (1883-1971) was born in Saumur in Southern France. Her mother worked in the poorhouse where Gabrielle was born. Her childhood was less than idyllic, and was far removed from the glamour of the future fashion industry in Paris. Her mother died when Gabrielle was only six. Her father abandoned her shortly after her mother's death, leaving the young child and her siblings to the care of relatives. Gabrielle would spend most of her childhood in orphanages. Her teenage years did not fare much better.  more on Coco Chanel