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Curated playlist

House of Bonaparte

  • NapoleonNapoleon crowned himself emperor with a replica of Charlemagne's crown. The pope had just anointed him.
  • Caroline BonaparteNapoleon's sister Caroline Bonaparte carried her lost kingdom in her exile name. Lipona is an anagram of Napoli.
  • Napoleon IIINapoleon III escaped a life sentence by walking out of prison dressed as a laborer.
  • Julie ClaryJulie Clary was Queen of Spain but never set foot in Spain. Spaniards called her Reina ausente, the Absent Queen.
  • Louis BonaparteNapoleon made his brother Louis king of Holland, and Louis refused to send troops for the Russia invasion.
  • Abdications of BayonneNapoleon took Spain's crown from a father and son without firing a shot. It happened at a French castle in May 1808.
  • Jérôme BonaparteJérôme Bonaparte married a Baltimore woman despite her father's warnings, then abandoned her for a crown.
  • Joseph BonaparteJoseph Bonaparte hid on a ship under a false name while British officers searched it three times.
  • Joséphine de BeauharnaisNapoleon's last words included Joséphine, his ex-wife of eleven years. He had annulled their marriage and remarried.
  • Letizia BonaparteTold her son Napoleon was now Emperor, Letizia Bonaparte replied, "Let's hope it lasts."
  • Elisa BonaparteNapoleon distrusted politically active women, yet he made his sister Elisa a real ruler.
  • Pauline BonapartePauline Bonaparte sold everything she owned to help Napoleon in exile on Elba. Reportedly, no other sibling went.
  • Stéphanie de BeauharnaisNapoleon adopted Stéphanie de Beauharnais so she could marry into Baden's ruling family.
  • Napoleon IINapoleon II was Emperor of the French for only two days. He was three years old and never ruled.
  • Carlo BuonaparteCarlo Buonaparte died broke in 1785, twenty years before his son became Emperor of the French.
  • House of BonaparteOn December 2, 1804, Napoleon I crowned himself, turning the French Republic into an empire.
  • Maison BonaparteMaison Bonaparte, Napoleon's family home in Corsica, was burned and looted, then housed British officers.
  • Lucien BonaparteLucien Bonaparte helped his brother Napoleon seize power, then refused to live under him.

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