Napoléon Victor Bonaparte
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| Pretender Victor Napoléon |
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| Born | July 18, 1862 Palais Royal |
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| Died | May 3, 1926 Brussels |
| Regnal name claimed | Napoléon V |
| Title(s) | Prince Napoléon |
| Throne(s) claimed | France |
| Pretend from | 1 June 1879 - May 3, 1926 |
| Monarchy abolished | 1870 |
| Last monarch | Napoleon III |
| Connection with | Cousin |
| Royal House | Bonaparte |
| Father | Prince Napoléon |
| Mother | Princess Maria Clotilde of Italy |
| Spouse | Princess Clémentine of Belgium |
| Children | Princess Marie-Clotilde, Prince Louis |
| Predecessor | The Prince Imperial |
| Successor | Prince Louis |
Prince Victor Napoléon (Napoléon Victor Jérôme Frédéric Bonaparte) (July 18, 1862 - May 3, 1926) was the Bonapartist pretender to the French throne from 1879 until his death in 1926. He was known as Napoléon V by his supporters.
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
He was born in the Palais Royal during the Second French Empire the son of the Prince Napoleon and his wife Princess Marie Clothilde of Savoy, daughter of Victor Emmanuel II of Italy. At the time of his birth he was third in the line of succession to the throne behind the Prince Imperial and his father. The Empire came to an end in 1870 with the abdication of Emperor Napoléon III.
[edit] Bonaparte heir
He was appointed head of the house of Bonaparte at the age of 18 in the will of Napoléon Eugène, Prince Imperial, who died in 1879, and so became Napoleon V to his supporters, though his younger brother, Prince Louis, a colonel in the Russian Imperial Guard, was preferred to him by many Bonapartists.[1] The decision by the Prince Imperial to bypass Prince Victor's father led to a complete breakdown in relations between father and son. In May, 1886 the French Republic expelled the princes of the former ruling dynasties and so Prince Victor left France for exile in Belgium.[2]
[edit] Dreyfus affair
At the time of the death of President Félix Faure during the Dreyfus affair, a number of political factions attempted to take advantage of the disorder and Prince Victor announced to a delegation from the Imperialist committee that he would take action to restore the French Empire when he felt that the time was favourable. In order to achieve this, he announced he would place himself at the head of the movement with his brother, Prince Louis, fighting beside him who he said would be "bringing to the Bonapartist forces his prestige and his military talents as well as his rank in the Russian army". The Duke of Orléans rival claimant to the throne also had forces available and they were ready to cross the French frontier at same time as the Bonapartist forces. In the end the anticipated outbreak in France didn't materialise and the French Third Republic survived one of its gravest crises.[1]
[edit] Death
Prince Victor died on May 3, 1926 in Brussels with the French author Charles Maurras commenting on Prince Victor's time as pretender saying that he hadn't offered any new ideas since 1884 and no radical alternatives to republican governments. [3] He was succeeded as the Bonaparte heir by his only son Prince Louis.
[edit] Family
On November 14, 1910, at Moncalieri, Prince Victor was married to Princess Clémentine of Belgium (1872-1955), daughter of Leopold II of Belgium and Marie Henriette of Austria. They had two children:
- Princess Marie Clotilde Eugénie Alberte Laetitia Généviève Bonaparte (1912-1996) married Serge de Witt
- Prince Louis Napoléon (1914-1997)
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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Napoléon Victor Bonaparte
Born: 18 July 1862 Died: 3 May 1926 |
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| Preceded by Napoléon IV Eugène |
— TITULAR — Emperor of the French 1 June 1879 – 3 May 1926 Reason for succession failure: Empire abolished in 1870 |
Succeeded by Napoléon VI Louis |
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