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| Jérôme Napoleon I | |
|---|---|
 | |
| King of Westphalia | |
| Reign | 7 July 1807 –26 October 1813 |
| First Minister | Joseph Jérôme Siméon |
| Prince of Montfort | |
| Tenure | 31 July 1816 –24 June 1860 |
| Successor | Napoléon Jérôme |
| President of the French Senate | |
| In office 28 January 1852 – 30 November 1852 | |
| Predecessor | Étienne-Denis Pasquier (Chamber of Peers) |
| Successor | Raymond-Theodore Troplong |
| Born | 15 November 1784 Ajaccio,Corsica,Kingdom of France |
| Died | 24 June 1860(1860-06-24) (aged 75) Vilgénis,Seine-et-Oise,France |
| Burial | |
| Spouse | |
| Issue | |
| House | Bonaparte |
| Father | Carlo Buonaparte |
| Mother | Letizia Ramolino |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
| Signature |  |
Jérôme Bonaparte (bornGirolamo Buonaparte; 15 November 1784 – 24 June 1860) was the youngest brother ofNapoleon I and reigned asJérôme Napoleon I (formallyHieronymus Napoleon in German),King of Westphalia, between 1807 and 1813.
From 1816 onward, he bore the title ofPrince of Montfort.[1] After 1848, when his nephew,Louis Napoleon, becamePresident of theSecond French Republic, he served in several official roles, includingMarshal of France from 1850 onward, andPresident of the Senate in 1852.[2] He was the only one of Napoleon's siblings who lived long enough to see theBonaparte restoration.
Historian Owen Connelly points to his financial, military, and administrative successes and concludes he was a loyal, useful, and soldierly asset to Napoleon.[3] Others, including historian Helen Jean Burn, have demonstrated his military failures, including a dismal career in the French navy that nearly escalated into war with Britain over an incident in theWest Indies, and his selfish concerns that led to the deaths of tens of thousands during theFrench invasion of Russia when he failed to provide military support as Napoleon had counted upon for his campaign. Further, Jérôme's addiction to spending led to both personal and national financial disasters, with his large personal debts repeatedly paid by family members, including Napoleon, his mother, and both of his first two fathers-in-law. The treasury of Westphalia was emptied.[4] In general, most historians agree that he was the most unsuccessful of Napoleon's brothers.[5]
Jérôme was born inAjaccio,Corsica, the eighth and last surviving child (and fifth surviving son) ofCarlo Buonaparte and his wife,Letizia Ramolino. His elder siblings were:Joseph Bonaparte,Napoleon Bonaparte,Lucien Bonaparte,Elisa Bonaparte,Louis Bonaparte,Pauline Bonaparte, andCaroline Bonaparte.
He studied at the CatholicCollege of Juilly and Lay College at theIrish College in Paris,[6] and then joined theFrench Navy in January 1800. Napoleon put him in charge of a French frigate in theWest Indies. Fleeing from an incident in which he accidentally shot a British ship and thus could have escalated conflict between the two countries, and fearing his brother's wrath, he fled north under the assumed name of "Mr. Albert" to theUnited States, where he planned to remain until his brother's temper cooled. While there, he amassed considerable debts and was nearly in a duel due to ruining at least one lady's honour.[7] Upon the boast by an old naval friend that Baltimore had the most beautiful women in the U.S., he made his way to that city (July 1803), where he met Elizabeth Patterson, reportedly the most beautiful woman in Baltimore[citation needed]. On Christmas Eve, 24 December 1803, nineteen-year-old Jérôme marriedElizabeth Patterson (1785–1879), who herself was only eighteen. The wedding took place against the bride's father's wishes;William Patterson had received an anonymous letter beforehand which detailed Jérôme's womanizing, his massive debts, and his plans to use the marriage only as a way to stay in style in the U.S. until he could return to his family in France.
Jérôme's elder brother Napoleon was furious about the match - he wanted to marry his siblings into royal families across Europe and to expand theBonaparte dynasty through marriage. He was unable to convincePope Pius VII inRome to annul the marriage, and so afterbecoming Emperor in 1804, he annulled the marriage himself (by a French imperial decree, on 11 March 1805), as a matter of state. At the time, Jérôme was on his way to Europe with Elizabeth, who was then pregnant. They landed in neutralPortugal, and Jérôme set off to Italy to persuade his brother to recognize the marriage. Elizabeth tried to land inAmsterdam, hoping to enter France so her baby would be born on French soil, but the Emperor barred the ship from entering the harbour. Elizabeth sailed to England instead, and gave birth to her child,Jérôme Napoléon Bonaparte (1805–1870), inLondon. Jérôme would not attempt to see his son for two decades.
The Emperor followed up his decree of divorce withRoman Catholic and (later) French state divorce proceedings. Jérôme submitted to the Emperor's demands and ended his marriage; in return, he was made an admiral in the French Navy (commanding the Genoa Squadron from May 1805), a general in the army,King of Westphalia (r. 1807–1813), and an imperial prince, and Napoleon arranged marriage for him to a princess. Elizabeth returned alone to America with her son; she never spoke to Jérôme again. Fearing losing control of her son and her finances to Jérôme, Elizabeth was later declared divorced from Jérôme by a special decree and act of theMaryland General Assembly in 1815.
Napoleon made his brother King ofWestphalia, a short-lived realm (1807–13) created from several states and principalities in northwestern Germany that had been in theHoly Roman Empire and were now reorganized by Napoleon into theConfederation of the Rhine.
The Napoleonic realm of Westphalia had its capital inKassel (then: Cassel). Jérôme was married, as arranged by Napoleon before he was divorced from Elizabeth, toPrincess Catharina of Württemberg, the daughter ofFrederick I, King of Württemberg. A marriage to a German princess was intended to boost the dynastic standing of the young French king.
When Jérôme and Catharina arrived in Kassel, they found the palaces in a plundered state. As such, they placed orders for an array of stately furniture and expensive silverware with leading Parisian manufacturers. Local artisans, eager for commissions, oriented themselves with these French models. The king also intended to refurbish his capital architecturally, and the court theatre ranks among the small number of projects realised. Jérôme had it designed byLeo von Klenze and constructed next to the summer residence, previously known as "Wilhelmshöhe", which was changed to "Napoleonshöhe". To emphasize his rank as a ruler, and pander to his own ego, Jérôme commissioned grandiose state portraits of himself and his spouse, Queen Catharina. Other paintings were to celebrate his military exploits, with many of France's most prominent painters taken into his employ. His careless spending continued and stripped the treasury of its funds, putting the new kingdom into debt. This reckless disregard for finances would continue for the rest of his life.
As a model state, theKingdom of Westphalia was expected by Napoleon to serve as an example for the other German states. It received the first constitution and parliament to be found on German soil (decades before other parliaments, legislatures, reichstags, bundesrats, etc. such as inFrankfurt in 1848). Jérôme imported theEmpire style from Paris, bestowing the new state with a modern, representative appearance. The small kingdom thus received more attention since the famousTreaty of Westphalia, which ended theThirty Years' War a hundred and sixty years earlier in 1648. Thanks to these efforts by King Jerome, Kassel celebrated an enormous cultural upturn.
However, Jérôme's expensive habits earned him the contempt of Napoleon and bankrupted his kingdom. His court incurred expenses comparable to Napoleon's court (which oversaw a vastly larger and more important realm), and Napoleon refused to support Jérôme financially.[8]
In 1812, Jérôme was given command of a corps in theGrande Armée, marching towardsMinsk. Jérôme Insisted on travelling "in state". Napoleon reprimanded Jerome for this, ordering him to leave his court and luxurious trappings behind. After theBattle of Mir (1812), Jérome occupiedMir Castle. In pique at Napoleon's order, Jérôme returned with his entire court and train to Westphalia. As a result, tens of thousands of lives were most likely lost during theinvasion of Russia.[9] After the defeat in Russia during the following winter, Jerome petitioned Napoleon to allow his wife to go to Paris, fearing the advance of the Allied armies. On the second attempt, Napoleon granted permission.
Jérôme briefly re-entered the army in 1813, when his kingdom was being threatened from the east by the advancing alliedPrussian and Russian armies during theGerman campaign of 1813. He led a small force to challenge their attempt at liberation. Following a clash with an enemy detachment, he made camp with his army, hoping for reinforcements from the French army in the west. However, before reinforcements arrived, the main allied force liberated the capital,Kassel. TheKingdom of Westphalia was declared dissolved, and Jérôme's kingship ended. He then fled to join his wife, the former queen, in France. After Napoleon's final defeat in 1815 during theWar of the Seventh Coalition, the Allies would reorganize the former Westphalian territories along with the rest of the German states into aGerman Confederation with Austrian leadership.
During theHundred Days, Napoleon placed Jérôme in command of the 6th Division of the II Corps under GeneralHonoré Charles Reille. AtWaterloo, Jérôme's division was to make an initial attack onHougoumont. It is said that Napoleon wished to draw in theDuke of Wellington's reserves. Whatever the intent, Jérôme was allowed to enlarge the assault such that his division became completely engaged attempting to take Hougoumont to the exclusion of any other possible deployment, without significantly weakening Wellington's centre. The episode became another in the long line of his military failures.
Although Catharina was aware of Jérôme's womanizing and many affairs, she remained true to her husband. They had two sons,Prince Jérôme Napoléon Charles Bonaparte (1814–1847) andPrince Napoléon Bonaparte (1822–1891), also known as "Prince Napoleon" or "Plon-Plon". Their second child was a daughter, PrincessMathilde Bonaparte, who was a prominent hostess during and after theSecond French Empire ofNapoleon III (1852–70).
After the dissolution of his kingdom, Jérôme was given the title of "Prince ofMontfort" (French:prince de Montfort)[10] by his father-in-law,King Frederick I of Württemberg, in July 1816.[11] Previously, King Frederick had forced Jérôme and his wife to leave the country in 1814. During their exile, they visited the United States (his second time there). Jérôme later returned to France and joined Napoleon during an attempt to restore the Empire during the "Hundred Days".
Later, Jérôme moved to Italy, where he married his third wife,Giustina Pecori-Suárez. She was the widow of an ItalianMarquess, Luigi Bartolini-Baldelli and his mistress during his second marriage.
In 1848, his nephew,Prince Louis Napoleon, became President of theFrench Second Republic. Jérôme was madeGovernor ofLes Invalides in Paris, which was the burial place ofNapoleon I--a position which provided a large salary for little work due to his debts and his complete lack of success at previous leadership endeavours. When Louis Napoleon became emperor as Napoleon III, Jérôme was recognized as theheir presumptive to the re-established imperial throne until the birth ofNapoléon Eugène, Prince Imperial. Jérôme was named aMarshal of France in 1850, served as President of theSenate (the upper house in the French Republic's parliament, compared with the lower house of theNational Assembly) in 1852, and received the title of"Prince Français".
Jérôme Bonaparte died on 24 June 1860, at Villegenis, France (today known asMassy inEssonne). He is buried inLes Invalides.
His grandson,Charles Joseph Bonaparte (son ofJerome "Bo" Napoleon Bonaparte, 1805–1870), served asUnited States Secretary of the Navy andUnited States Attorney General in PresidentTheodore Roosevelt's administration, 1901–1909, and addressed the Supreme Court over 500 times. In 1908, he established a Bureau of Investigation within the 38-year-oldDepartment of Justice. The bureau grew under directorJ. Edgar Hoover and was renamed theFederal Bureau of Investigation (F.B.I) in 1935.
Another grandson wasJerome Napoleon Bonaparte II, (1829–1893). In the early 1850s, he graduated from theUnited States Military Academy atWest Point, was commissioned an officer in the United States Army, and served with the Mounted Rifles inTexas on the American southwestern frontier. He eventually resigned his commission and joined the forces of his cousin, the EmperorNapoleon III in hisSecond French Empire.
Among Jérôme Bonaparte's illegitimate children was Baroness Jenny von Gustedt, born as Jeromée Catharina Rabe von Pappenheim (1811–1890). She became the grandmother of the German Socialist and Feminist writerLily Braun.
The 1923 German comedy filmThe Little Napoleon is loosely based around his life. He is played byPaul Heidemann.
The 1928 part-talkie Vitaphone film "Glorious Betsy" provides a semi-historical narrative depicting the courtship, marriage, and forced breakup of Jérôme Bonaparte (played byConrad Nagel) and Elizabeth "Betsy" Patterson (played byDolores Costello).
In theHornblower television series, he was portrayed by British actorDavid Birkin. The last episode (Duty) introduces Jérôme and Elizabeth ('Betsy'). Adrift in an open boat, they are picked up by Captain Hornblower's ship; Jérôme poses as a harmless Swiss citizen, but Hornblower identifies him. After many diplomatic manoeuvres, the British government decides that Jérôme is of no political importance after all, and he is allowed to return to France while Elizabeth is put aboard a passing American ship.
Jerome and Betsy's marriage is portrayed in the historical novel "The Ambitious Madame Bonaparte" by Ruth Hull Chatlien, published in 2013.
In the 1936 filmHearts Divided, Jerome was portrayed byDick Powell.Elizabeth Patterson was played byMarion Davies, withClaude Rains asNapoleon.
Descendants of Jérôme Bonaparte and Elizabeth Patterson
Descendants of Jérôme Bonaparte and Catharina of Württemberg
| Styles of Jérôme I of Westphalia | |
|---|---|
_2.svg) | |
| Reference style | His Majesty |
| Spoken style | Your Majesty |
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Second French Empire: Baton ofMaréchal de France Second French Empire:Médaille militaire Second French Empire: Grand Croix of theLegion of HonourFirst French Empire: Grand Croix of theLegion of Honour First French Empire: Grand Croix of theOrder of the Iron Crown First French Empire: Grand Croix of theOrder of the Reunion
Netherlands: Grand Croix of theOrder of the Union
Westphalia: Grand Master and Grand Croix of theOrder of the Crown of Westphalia
Belgium: Grand Cordon of theOrder of Leopold,9 June 1855[12]
Württemberg:Grand Cross of the Military Merit Order,18 January 1807[13] Württemberg:Grand Cross of the Order of the Württemberg Crown[14]
Grand Duchy of Hesse:Grand Cross of the Ludwig Order,August 1810[15]
Kingdom of Saxony: Knight of theOrder of the Rue Crown,1807[16]
Denmark: Knight of theOrder of the Elephant,22 March 1811[17]
Sardinia: Knight of theOrder of the Annunciation,29 November 1855[18]Jérôme Bonaparte second empire.
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Jérôme Bonaparte Born: 15 November 1784 Died: 24 June 1860 | ||
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| New title | King of Westphalia 8 July 1807 – 26 October 1813 | Kingdom dissolved |
| Titles in pretence | ||
| Kingdom dissolved | — TITULAR — King of Westphalia 26 October 1813 – 24 June 1860 Reason for succession failure: Kingdom dissolved in 1813 | Succeeded by |
| French royalty | ||
| Preceded by | Heir to the French Throne asHeir presumptive 18 December 1852 – 16 March 1856 | Succeeded by |
| Emperor and immediate family | .svg) | |
|---|---|---|
| French Princes | ||
Several family members held additional titles invassal states | ||
2.svg)
