What title did the only son from Napleon’s second marriage to Marie-Louise of Austria receive? Where did he spend his childhood and youth? How old was he and where is he buried?
Napoleon Franz – the only son of Napoleon Bonaparte
What title did the only son from Napleon’s second marriage to Marie-Louise of Austria receive? Where did he spend his childhood and youth? How old was he and where is he buried?
Napoleon Franz – Duke of Reichstadt and “King of Rome” were his official titles. Reichstadt was a northern Bohemian dominion, which he received in place of the right of inheritance to Parma (after his mother Marie Louise). As “King of Rome”, his claim to the Roman imperial dignity was to be secured.
Born on March 20, 1811 in Paris as the only son of Napoleon Bonaparte in his second marriage to the Habsburg Marie Louise. Napoleon divorced his first wife Josephine as she was no longer able to bear him children.
After Napoleon’s abdication in 1815, he had his son proclaimed Napoleon II, but this was not recognized by the victorious powers. His mother went back to Vienna with him and he was placed under the care of his grandfather Emperor Franz II/I. at Schönbrunn Palace.
Marie Louise was resigned to the Duchy of Parma and married two more times. She rarely visited Vienna and did not dare to stand up to Metternich and bring the child to Parma.
The Viennese court took a liking to Napoleon’s young, fair-haired son. He had many admirers who could not resist his charms. Unfortunately, he had suffered from chronic bronchitis and numerous colds since his earliest childhood.
In 1832, his health deteriorated rapidly, so Marie Louise was summoned from Parma to Vienna. She found her son dying in Schönbrunn. He died of tuberculosis at the age of just 21. His body was transferred from the Capuchin crypt to Paris in 1940.
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