'What happened to Alphonse's First Wife?".

[jorose]

It doesn't have to be left unsolved. The answer will be in the French records, just maybe not online.
You need a copy of his second marriage from France, as I said earlier in the thread. These records are not currently online as far as I can tell but you can try to get a copy from the archives.

The second marriage should say if he was divorced, or widowed, and it may even reference the date and location of death for his first wife.

[pb_devon]

I agree with jorose, and we encourage you to write to the archives for a copy of the document(s).
Familysearch has letter templates in French if you’re not fluent.  Yes a fee may be payable, but that is part of the process.
I’ve found that going that extra mile (or should that be kilometer!) makes obtaining a result much more satisfying and unique.

[tornado]

Many thanks for the replies and support here . This is good and i am forwarding this onto my Cousin for him to follow up as i know he wants to persevere with this brick wall. We will see and if i get any luck i will let you all know. Best wishes.