''A Spy of Napoleon'' is a 1934

historical novel Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...

by the British writer

Baroness Emmuska Orczy Baroness Emma Orczy (full name: Emma Magdolna Rozália Mária Jozefa Borbála Orczy de Orci) (; 23 September 1865 – 12 November 1947), usually known as Baroness Orczy (the name under which she was published) or to her family and friends as Em ...

. An illegitimate daughter of

Louis Napoleon Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...

is taken on as an agent by

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...

, ruler of France, who wishes her to marry into and spy on the aristocracy who he suspects of wanting to overthrow him. Her lover, meanwhile, is sent to Switzerland to infiltrate revolutionaries there.

Adaptation

In 1936 it was made into a film ''

Spy of Napoleon ''Spy of Napoleon'' is a 1936 British historical drama film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Richard Barthelmess, Dolly Haas, Frank Vosper, Henry Oscar and James Carew. It is based on the 1934 novel '' A Spy of Napoleon'' by Baroness Emmus ...

'' starring

Richard Barthelmess Richard Semler Barthelmess (May 9, 1895 – August 17, 1963) was an American film actor, principally of the Hollywood silent era. He starred opposite Lillian Gish in D. W. Griffith's '' Broken Blossoms'' (1919) and ''Way Down East'' (1920) and ...

Dolly Haas Dolly may refer to: Tools *Dolly (tool), a portable anvil * A posser, also known as a dolly, used for laundering * A variety of wheeled tools, including: **Dolly (trailer), for towing behind a vehicle **Boat dolly or launching dolly, a device fo ...

and

James Carew James Usselman (February 5, 1876 – April 4, 1938), known professionally as James Carew, was an American actor who appeared in many films, mainly in Britain. He was born in Goshen, Indiana in 1876 and began work as a clerk in a publishing fir ...

References

Historical novels 1934 British novels Novels by Baroness Emma Orczy Hodder & Stoughton books Cultural depictions of Napoleon III British novels adapted into films {{1930s-hist-novel-stub