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Caroline Bonaparte Murat, Napoleon’s Treasonous Sister
March 5, 2021
Napoleon’s sister Caroline Bonaparte Murat was ambitious and enterprising. Although Caroline and her husband owed their crowns to Napoleon, when it looked like Napoleon was going to be defeated, they allied with his enemies. French Foreign Minister Talleyrand wrote that Caroline “had the head of Cromwell upon the body of a well-shaped woman. Born with much grandeur of character, strong mind, and sublime ideas; possessing a subtle and delicate wit, together with amiability and grace, seductive beyond expression; she was deficient in nothing but in the art of concealing her desire to rule.”
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Elisa Bonaparte Baciocchi, Napoleon’s Capable Sister
January 8, 2021
Elisa Bonaparte was not as well-known as her sisters, beautiful Pauline and treasonous Caroline, but she was more capable than either of them. In fact, she was the Bonaparte sibling most like Napoleon, although she had the least influence over him. Napoleon himself said, “Elisa has the courage of an Amazon; and like me, she cannot bear to be ruled.”
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Pauline Bonaparte on Elba
February 8, 2019
Pauline Bonaparte was the only one of Napoleon’s siblings to join him in exile on Elba. She became the life of his small court, and helped to finance his stay on the island, as well as his escape from it.
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Joseph Bonaparte and the Crown of Mexico
May 25, 2018
When Joseph Bonaparte was King of Spain, he was also, by default, the ruler of Mexico, or New Spain as it was called at the time. The Mexicans didn’t like him. Did they then offer Joseph a crown when he was in exile in the United States and they were seeking independence from Spain?
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Living Descendants of Napoleon and the Bonapartes
April 27, 2018
One question I am often asked is whether Napoleon Bonaparte has any living descendants, or whether a particular sibling of Napoleon has any living descendants. Another version of the question is whether there are any Bonaparte descendants living in America. Here’s a handy summary to help you keep track.
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10 Interesting Facts About Napoleon’s Family
October 27, 2017
If you liked “10 Interesting Facts About Napoleon Bonaparte,” you might enjoy these interesting facts about Napoleon’s family.
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Anecdotes of Napoleon’s Son, the King of Rome
February 24, 2017
Napoleon’s only legitimate son, Napoleon François Charles Joseph Bonaparte, also known as the King of Rome, was born on March 20, 1811. By all accounts he was a cute, strong-willed and kind-hearted little boy. He was also greatly spoiled. Here are some anecdotes of the King of Rome as a young child.
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The Death of Napoleon’s Son, the Duke of Reichstadt
July 22, 2016
Napoleon’s only legitimate child, Napoleon François Charles Joseph Bonaparte, also known as the King of Rome, Napoleon II, or the Duke of Reichstadt, died of tuberculosis at Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna on July 22, 1832. He was 21 years old.
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Achille Murat, the Prince of Tallahassee
June 24, 2016
Napoleon’s nephew Achille Murat was one of the more eccentric Bonapartes. After growing up as the Crown Prince of Naples, he became a colourful Florida pioneer known as the “Prince of Tallahassee.” Though he claimed to be a democrat, he remained at heart an aristocrat, pining for his family’s lost throne and inherited wealth.
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The Perilous Birth of the King of Rome
March 18, 2016
Napoleon’s only legitimate child, Napoleon François Charles Joseph Bonaparte, also known as the King of Rome, Napoleon II or the Duke of Reichstadt, was born at the Tuileries Palace in Paris on March 20, 1811. His birth was a touch-and-go affair. The attending doctor, Antoine Dubois, feared that either Napoleon’s wife Marie Louise, or the baby, might die.
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What did Napoleon’s wives think of each other?
January 29, 2016
Napoleon Bonaparte had two wives: Josephine (Rose de Beauharnais) and Archduchess Marie Louise of Austria. What did they think of each other?
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A Tomb for Napoleon’s Son in Canada
January 15, 2016
Did you know that a tomb originally intended for Napoleon’s son is sitting in a Canadian cemetery? Napoleon’s son, otherwise known as Napoleon II, the King of Rome or Duke of Reichstadt, died of tuberculosis in Vienna on July 22, 1832, at the age of 21. Since his mother, Marie Louise, was the Duchess of Parma, a burial monument for the young man was constructed in Italy. When the Duke of Reichstadt was interred in the Habsburg family crypt at the Capuchin Church in Vienna, the Italian monument was left unused.
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Napoleon’s Illegitimate Children: Léon Denuelle & Alexandre Walewski
March 20, 2015
In addition to his legitimate son (Napoleon II), Napoleon had at least two stepchildren and two illegitimate children: the wastrel Charles Léon Denuelle and the accomplished Alexandre Colonna Walewski.
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Napoleon’s Children: Eugène & Hortense de Beauharnais
March 13, 2015
In addition to his legitimate son (Napoleon II), Napoleon had two stepchildren and at least two illegitimate children. In the first of a two-part post about Napoleon’s children, I focus on his stepchildren: Eugène and Hortense de Beauharnais.
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Jerome Napoleon Bonaparte, Napoleon’s American Nephew
February 20, 2015
Jerome Napoleon Bonaparte was the son of Napoleon’s youngest brother Jérôme and Baltimore socialite Elizabeth (Betsy) Patterson. Despite Betsy’s efforts to raise her son as a European, he preferred life in the United States.
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Elizabeth Patterson Bonaparte, Napoleon’s American Sister-in-Law
February 13, 2015
Baltimore belle Elizabeth Patterson became an international celebrity when she married Napoleon’s youngest brother Jérôme Bonaparte. When Napoleon convinced Jérôme to abandon her, Betsy (as she was known) became America’s most famous single mother.
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Charlotte Bonaparte, Napoleon’s Artistic Niece
January 16, 2015
Charlotte Bonaparte – the daughter of Napoleon’s brother Joseph – was intelligent and cultivated, with a romantic temperament. Known for her talent as an artist, Charlotte lived with her father in the United States for three years, where she drew and painted a number of landscapes. In Europe, she studied with Jacques-Louis David and with Louis-Léopold Robert, who killed himself when his passion for her was not requited. She herself died in sad circumstances at a relatively young age.
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Lucien Bonaparte, Napoleon’s Scandalous Brother
December 19, 2014
Lucien Bonaparte was Napoleon’s most articulate brother, and the only one unwilling to subordinate himself to Napoleon. Politically ambitious, he played an indispensable role in Napoleon’s rise to power. However, he refused to give up his wife when Napoleon demanded, thus – unlike his siblings – he never sat on a throne. Lucien spent most of the imperial years in exile with his large family, nursing his literary vanity.
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Joseph Bonaparte: From King of Spain to New Jersey
July 4, 2014
Joseph Bonaparte was in many respects the opposite of his younger brother Napoleon. Amiable and obliging, Joseph was fond of literature, gardening and entertaining. He was perfectly happy to spend his days pottering about his estate. Napoleon, however, had grander plans for his brother, most notably the Spanish throne. After Napoleon’s defeat in 1815, Joseph fled to the United States, where he is credited with bringing European culture to the locals.
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Cardinal Joseph Fesch, Napoleon’s Art-Collecting Uncle
March 28, 2014
Napoleon’s uncle, Cardinal Joseph Fesch, was a good-natured luxury-lover who used his takings from Napoleon’s stint in power to amass a huge amount of paintings. Fesch got caught in the struggle between Napoleon and the Pope, and tried to soften Napoleon’s policy towards the church.
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Napoleon’s Mother, Letizia Bonaparte
March 21, 2014
Napoleon’s mother Letizia Bonaparte was a pragmatic, stoical and domineering woman who saw the world from the perspective of a Corsican clan. She was devoted to her children and expected them to be devoted to her, and to each other, in return. Years of hardship left her tough and thrifty, with a keen business sense and a habit of hoarding money. She once told Napoleon, “It’s not poverty I’m afraid of, it’s the shame.”
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How Pauline Bonaparte Lived for Pleasure
March 14, 2014
A commoner from Corsica who counted a famous French actor among her lovers, bathed in milk baths to which she was carried by a Negro servant, and married a wealthy Italian prince could be said to have led a rather fortunate life. Pauline Bonaparte’s journey from rags to riches would not have been possible without her older brother Napoleon. Known for her beauty, impulsiveness and questionable moral sense, Pauline loved Napoleon and was the least demanding of his siblings.
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Louis Bonaparte, Napoleon’s Defiant Puppet
March 7, 2014
Napoleon’s younger brother Louis Bonaparte failed to become the great soldier Napoleon had trained him up to be, or even the pliable puppet Napoleon would have settled for. Instead, he became an irritable hypochondriac and literary dilettante who fathered another emperor.
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Napoleon II: Napoleon’s Son, the King of Rome
February 21, 2014
Napoleon had only one legitimate child: Napoleon François Charles Joseph Bonaparte, also known as the King of Rome, Napoleon II, the Prince of Parma and the Duke of Reichstadt. He did not hold all those titles at the same time, and you can tell whether someone was a supporter of Napoleon based on how they referred to the boy after 1815.
We must confess that fate, which sports with man, makes merry work with the affairs of this world.
Napoleon Bonaparte