Napoléon IV, Prince Imperial, often referred to as
Louis Napoléon (Full name:
Napoléon Eugène Louis Jean Joseph, 16 March 1856,
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
– 1 June 1879), Prince Imperial,
Fils de France, was the only child of Emperor
Napoleon III of FranceNapoleon III , Charles-Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, was the first President of the French Republic and the last monarch of France. He was also Napoleon I's nephew. Made president by popular vote in 1848, Napoleon III ascended to the throne on 2 December 1852, the forty-eighth anniversary of Napoleon...
and his Empress consort
Eugénie de MontijoEugénie de Montijo was the 18th Marchioness of Ardales, 18th Marchioness of Moya, 19th Countess of Teba, 10th Countess of Montijo and Countess of Ablitas...
. His early death in Africa sent shock waves throughout Europe, as he was the last dynastic hope for the restoration of the
BonaparteThe House of Bonaparte is an imperial and royal European dynasty founded by Napoleon I of France in 1804, a Corsican military leader who rose to notability out of the French Revolution and transformed the French Republic into the First French Empire within five years of his coup d'état...
s to the throne of France.
Biography
At the outbreak of the
Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between France and Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and Bavaria...
, he accompanied his father to the front and first came under fire at
SaarbrückenSaarbrücken is the capital of the state of Saarland in Germany. The city sits at the heart of a metropolitan area that bounds westwards to Dillingen and northeastwards to Neunkirchen, in which most of the people of the Saarland live....
. When the war began to go against the Imperial arms, however, he had to flee from France with the Imperial Family and settled in England at
ChislehurstChislehurst is a suburban settlement in south east London, England and an electoral ward of the London Borough of Bromley.-Etymology:The name "Chislehurst" is derived from the Saxon words "cisel" which means gravel and "hyrst" which means wooded hill....
,
KentKent , originally Cantia, is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the River Thames estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent...
. On his father's death, Bonapartists proclaimed him
Napoleon IV. During the 1870s, there was some talk of a marriage between him and
Queen VictoriaVictoria was the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837, and the first Empress of India of the British Raj from 1 May 1876, until her death...
's youngest daughter,
Princess BeatriceThe Princess Beatrice was a member of the British Royal Family. She was the fifth daughter and youngest child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha...
. Toward the end of his life there were rumours, not all untrue, that he was romantically attached to Spanish infanta María del Pilar, daughter of Queen
Isabella II of SpainIsabella II was Queen regnant of Spain She was Spain's first and so far only queen regnant, although she is sometimes considered the third Queen Regnant of Spain, as previous monarchs of Leon and Castile were counted...
. Infanta Pilar died the same year as Louis Napoléon.
With the demise of the
Second French EmpireThe Second French Empire or Second Empire was the Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 1852 to 1870, between the Second Republic and the Third Republic, in France.-Rule of Napoleon III:...
, the Prince Imperial was exiled to the United Kingdom, where he first attended elementary lectures in physics at
King's College LondonKing's College London is a British higher education institution and co-founding constituent college of the University of London. Founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, its royal charter is predated, in England, only by those of the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge...
. He subsequently applied and was accepted to the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. After finishing 17th in his class, he was commissioned into the
Royal ArtilleryThe Royal Artillery is the common name for the Royal Regiment of Artillery, an arm of the British Army. Despite its name, it comprises a number of regiments.-History:...
in order to follow in the footsteps of his famous great-uncle. Finally, with the outbreak of the Zulu War in 1879, the Prince Imperial, with the rank of lieutenant, forced the hand of the British military to allow him to take part in the conflict. He was only allowed to go to Africa by special pleading of his mother, the Empress Eugenie, and by Queen Victoria herself. He went as an observer, attached to the staff of
Frederic Thesiger, 2nd Baron ChelmsfordGeneral Frederic Augustus Thesiger, 2nd Baron Chelmsford GCB, GCVO, was a British general.-Early life:Frederic Augustus Thesiger was born 31 May 1827, the son of Frederic Thesiger, a lawyer who later became Lord Chancellor and be created Baron Chelmsford.-Career:He wished to pursue a military...
, the commander in South Africa, who was admonished to take care of him. Louis accompanied Chelmsford on his march into
ZululandThe Zulu Kingdom, sometimes referred to as the Zulu Empire or, rather imprecisely, Zululand, was a monarchy in Southern Africa that extended along the coast of the Indian Ocean from the Tugela River in the south to Pongola River in the north....
. Keen to see action, and full of enthusiasm, he was warned by Lieutenant Arthur Brigge, a close friend, "...to avoid running unnecessary risks. I reminded him of the Empress at home and his political party in France."
Chelmsford, mindful of his duty, attached the Prince to staff of Colonel Richard Harrison of the Royal Engineers, where it was felt he could be active but safe. Harrison was responsible for the column's transport and for reconnaissance of the forward route on the way to Ulundi, the Zulu capital. While he welcomed the presence of Louis, he was told by Chelmsford that the Prince must be accompanied at all times by a strong escort. Lieutenant Jahleel Brenton Carey, a French speaker and British subject from
GuernseyThe Bailiwick of Guernsey is a British Crown Dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy.As well as the island of Guernsey itself, it also includes Alderney, Herm, Jethou, Brecqhou, Burhou, Lihou, Sark and other islets. Although the defence of all these islands is the...
, was given particular
charge of Louis. The Prince took part in several reconnaissance missions, though his eagerness for action almost led him into an early ambush, when he exceeded orders in a party led by Colonel
Redvers BullerGeneral Sir Redvers Henry Buller VC GCB GCMG was a British general and Victoria Cross holder.-Early life and career:...
. Despite this on the evening of 31 May 1879, Harrison agreed to allow Louis to scout in a forward party scheduled to leave in the morning, in the mistaken belief that the path ahead was free of Zulu skirmishers.
On the morning of 1 June the troop set out, earlier than intended, and without the full escort, largely owing to Louis' impatience. Led by Carey, the scouts rode deeper into Zululand. Without Harrison or Buller present to restrain him, the Prince took command from Carey, even though the latter had seniority. At noon the troop was halted at a temporarily deserted
kraalKraal is an Afrikaans and South African English word for an enclosure for cattle or other livestock, located within an African homestead or village surrounded by a palisade, mud wall, or other fencing, roughly circular in form.In the Dutch language a kraal is a term derived from the Portuguese...
while Louis and Carey made some sketches of the terrain, and used part of the thatch to make a fire. No lookout was posted. As they were preparing to leave, about 40 Zulus fired upon them and rushed screaming
uSuthu! ("kill") towards them. The Prince's horse dashed off before he could mount, the Prince clinging to a holster on the saddle - after about a hundred yards a strap broke, and the Prince fell beneath his horse, trampling his right arm. He leapt up, drawing his revolver with his left hand, and started to run - but the Zulus could run faster.
The Prince was speared in the thigh, pulled the
assegaiAn assegai or assagai is a pole weapon used for throwing or hurling, usually a light spear or javelin made of wood and pointed with iron....
from his wound, and turned and fired on his pursuers, another assegai struck his left shoulder. The Prince tried to fight on, using the assegai he had pulled from his leg, but weakened by his wounds, he sank to the ground and was overwhelmed. When recovered his body had 18 assegai wounds. Two of his escort had been killed, and another was missing. Lt. Carey and the remaining four came together about 50 yards from where the Prince made his final stand - but not a single shot did they fire at the Zulus. Carey led his men back to camp, where he was greeted warmly for the last time in his career - after a court of inquiry, a court martial, intervention by the Empress Eugenie and Queen Victoria, he was to return to his regiment a
pariahPariah may refer to:*A member of the Paraiyar in Hindu society*Pariah state, a country whose behavior is out of line with international norms*Pariah dog, a breed of canine*Pariah , a 2005 music album by Naglfar...
- shunned by his fellow officers for not standing and fighting. He endured six years of social hell before his death in Bombay.
Louis Napoleon's death caused an international sensation, and in one slanderous account Queen Victoria was accused of deliberately arranging the whole thing. The Zulus later claimed that they would not have killed him if they had known who he was. Zabanga, his chief assailant, met his death in July at the
Battle of UlundiThe Battle of Ulundi took place at the Zulu capital of Ulundi on 4 July 1879 and was the last major battle of the Anglo-Zulu War. The British army finally broke the military power of the Zulu nation by defeating the main Zulu army and immediately afterwards capturing and razing the capital of...
. Eugénie was later to make a pilgrimage to Sobuza's kraal, where her son died. The Prince, who had begged to be allowed to go to war, taking the sword carried by the
first NapoleonNapoleon Bonaparte later known as Napoleon I, and previously Napoleone di Buonaparte, was a military and political leader of France whose actions shaped European politics in the early 19th century.Born in Corsica and trained as an artillery officer in mainland France, Bonaparte rose to prominence...
at
AusterlitzThe Battle of Austerlitz also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of Napoleon Bonaparte's greatest victories, effectively destroying the Third Coalition against the French Empire...
to war with him, and worried his commanders by his dash and daring, was described by
WolseleyField Marshal Garnet Joseph Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley KP GCB OM GCMG VD PC was a British army officer. He served in Burma, the Crimean War, the Indian Mutiny, China, Canada, and widely throughout Africa—including his brilliantly executed Ashanti campaign...
as "a plucky young man, and he died a soldier's death. What on earth could he have done better?".
After death the Prince was ritually disemboweled by one Hlabanatunga, a common Zulu practice to prevent his spirit seeking revenge on his killers in the afterlife. His badly decomposed body was brought back to England and buried in Chislehurst. Later, it was transferred to a special mausoleum constructed by his mother as the Imperial Crypt at Saint Michael's Abbey,
FarnboroughNot to be confused with Farnborough, Berkshire or Farnborough, KentFarnborough is a town in northeast Hampshire, England, and part of the district of Rushmoor. Farnborough was founded in Saxon times and is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086.The name is formed from Ferneberga which means 'fern...
,
HampshireHampshire , sometimes historically Southamptonshire, Hamptonshire, , or the County of Southampton, is a county on the south coast of England. The county borders , Dorset, Wiltshire, Berkshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
, England, next to his father. As his heir the Prince Imperial appointed Prince Napoléon Victor Bonaparte, thus omitting the genealogically senior heir, Victor's father, the rather detested
Prince NapoléonNapoléon Joseph Charles Paul Bonaparte, Prince Français, Count of Meudon, Count of Moncalieri ad personam was the second son of Jerome Bonaparte, king of Westphalia, by his wife Catherine, princess of Württemberg. He soon rendered himself popular by playing on his family ties to Napoleon I...
(
Plon-Plon).
The
asteroid moonA minor planet moon is a minor planet that orbits another minor planet as its natural satellite. It is thought that many asteroids and Kuiper belt objects may possess moons, in some cases quite substantial in size...
Petit-Prince was named after the Prince Imperial in 1998, because it orbits an
asteroidthumb|260px|right|[[253 Mathilde]], a [[C-type asteroid]] measuring about across. Photograph taken in 1997 by the [[NEAR Shoemaker]] probe.Asteroids, sometimes called minor planets or planetoids, are small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun, especially in the inner Solar System; they are...
named after his mother (
45 Eugenia45 Eugenia is a large Main belt asteroid. It is famed as one of the first asteroids to be found to have a moon orbiting it. It is also the second known triple asteroid, after 87 Sylvia.- Discovery :Eugenia was discovered in 1857 by Hermann Goldschmidt...
).
Titles from birth to death
- His Imperial Highness The Prince Imperial (1856–1870)
- His Imperial Highness Louis Napoléon, Prince Imperial of France (1870–1873)
- His Imperial Highness Prince Imperial Napoléon, Head of the Imperial House of France (1873–1879)
Ancestors
|}
Further reading
- Ellen Barlee, Life of Napoleon, Prince Imperial of France, (London, 1889)
- M. d'Hérrison, Le prince impérial, (Paris, 1890)
- André Martinet, Le prince impérial, (Paris, 1895)
- R. Minon, Les derniers jours du prince impérial sur le continent, (Paris, 1900)
- Ernest Barthez, Empress Eugenie and her Circle, (New York, 1913)
External links