April 9, 1821

Charles Baudelaire (April 9, 1821 to August 31, 1867) the symbolist poet, was typically French in his adoration of cats and of women. But his ardor was not just metaphorical: he saw the unique beauty of the feline.

Here are several English translations of the first stanza of his poem "Le Chat." First, the original:

Le Chat

Viens, mon beau chat, sur mon coeur amoureux;
Retiens les griffes de ta patte,
Et laisse-moi plonger dans tes beaux 
Mêlés de métal et d'agate.Roy Campbell, in Poems of Baudelaire (1952) put it this way

The CatCome, superb cat, to my amorous heart;
Hold back the talons of your paws,
Let me gaze into your beautiful eyes
Of metal and agate.And translated into English by William Aggeler, The Flowers of Evil (1954)

The Cat

Come, my fine cat, against my loving heart;
Sheathe your sharp claws, and settle.
And let my eyes into your pupils dart
Where agate sparks with metal.

And as translated by Geoffrey Wagner, Selected Poems of Charles Baudelaire (1974)

The Cat

My beautiful cat, come onto my heart full of love;
Hold back the claws of your paw,
And let me plunge into your adorable eyes
Mixed with metal and agate.

The association of cats and women is quite ancient, and Baudelaire made it fresh, again, by focusing on the feline.