François d'Orléans, Prince de Joinville (14 August 1818 – 16 June 1900) was the third son of

Louis Philippe Louis Philippe (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850) was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, and the penultimate monarch of France. As Louis Philippe, Duke of Chartres, he distinguished himself commanding troops during the Revolutionary War ...

King of the French The precise style of French sovereigns varied over the years. Currently, there is no French sovereign; three distinct traditions (the Legitimist, the Orleanist, and the Bonapartist) exist, each claiming different forms of title. The three styles ...

, and his wife

Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily french: link=no, Marie-Amélie Thérèse de Bourbon-Siciles , house = Bourbon-Two Sicilies , father = Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies , mother = Maria Carolina of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Caserta Palace, Naples , ...

. An admiral of the

French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...

, François was famous for bringing the remains of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

from Saint Helena to France, as well as a talented artist, with 35 known watercolours. He married Princess Francisca of Brazil, daughter of

Emperor Pedro I Dom Pedro I (English: Peter I; 12 October 1798 – 24 September 1834), nicknamed "the Liberator", was the founder and first ruler of the Empire of Brazil. As King Dom Pedro IV, he reigned briefly over Portugal, where he also became ...

and sister of

Emperor Pedro II Dom PedroII (2 December 1825 – 5 December 1891), nicknamed "the Magnanimous" ( pt, O Magnânimo), was the second and last monarch of the Empire of Brazil, reigning for over 58 years. He was born in Rio de Janeiro, the seventh child of Empe ...

. The dowry received by François upon the marriage became the Brazilian city of

Joinville Joinville () is the largest city in Santa Catarina, in the Southern Region of Brazil. It is the third largest municipality in the southern region of Brazil, after the much larger state capitals of Curitiba and Porto Alegre. Joinville is also a ...

. François and Francisca's grandson

Jean Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jea ...

went on to become the Orléanist claimant to the extinct French throne, a claim passed on to his son, grandson and now great-grandson

Jean, Count of Paris Jean Carl Pierre Marie d'Orléans (born 19 May 1965) is the current head of the House of Orléans. Jean is the senior male descendant by primogeniture in the male-line of Louis-Philippe I, King of the French, and thus, according to the Orléani ...

, current Orléanist claimant to the French crown.

Early life and military career

He was born François-Ferdinand-Philippe-Louis-Marie d'Orléans at the

Château de Neuilly The château de Neuilly is a former château in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. Its estate covered a vast 170-hectare park called "parc de Neuilly" which comprised all of Neuilly that is today to be found between avenue du Roule and the town of Leval ...

, in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. Educated for the navy, he was commissioned

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

in 1836. His first conspicuous service was at the Bombardment of San Juan de Ulúa, in November 1838, commanding the corvette , when he headed a landing party and took the Mexican general

Mariano Arista José Mariano Arista (26 July 1802 – 7 August 1855) was a Mexican soldier and politician. He was in command of the Mexican forces at the opening battles of the Mexican American War: the Battle of Palo Alto and the Battle of Resaca de la P ...

prisoner at

Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...

. The Prince was promoted to captain of the frigate ''La'' , and in 1840 was entrusted with bringing the remains of

from Saint Helena to France.

Marriage to Francisca of Brazil

In 1838, François had made his first trip to

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, where he had been warmly hosted by

, son of Emperor Pedro I of Brazil and Archduchess Leopoldina of Austria, a Habsburg. During his time in the Brazilian court, François met Princess Francisca, Pedro's younger sister, then 16 years old. In 1840, François again stopped in Brazil for two weeks on his way back from St. Helena, where he had headed the expedition entrusted with bringing the remains of

from Saint Helena to France. Three years later, François headed once again to Rio de Janeiro, in order to marry Princess Francisca. They married in that city on 1 May 1843. François received as dowry an area of over 580 km² in the South of Brazil, in the state of Santa Catarina, until then called ''Colônia Dona Francisca'' after its owner, the newly-wed princess, sister to the emperor. The area, near the coast and devoid of any populational settlements, therefore became the Brazilian part of the lands of the Prince of Joinville.

Exile and sale of the lands of Joinville

In 1844 he conducted naval operations on the coast of

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...

, bombarding

Tangier Tangier ( ; ; ar, طنجة, Ṭanja) is a city in northwestern Morocco. It is on the Moroccan coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar, where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel. The town is the capi ...

and occupying

Mogador Essaouira ( ; ar, الصويرة, aṣ-Ṣawīra; shi, ⵜⴰⵚⵚⵓⵔⵜ, Taṣṣort, formerly ''Amegdul''), known until the 1960s as Mogador, is a port city in the western Moroccan region of Marakesh-Safi, on the Atlantic coast. It ha ...

, and was rewarded with the rank of vice-admiral. In the following year he published in the '' Revue des deux mondes'' an article on the deficiencies of the

which attracted considerable attention. In 1848, François' father, King

, was deposed as the monarchy was abolished in France and the

French Second Republic The French Second Republic (french: Deuxième République Française or ), officially the French Republic (), was the republican government of France that existed between 1848 and 1852. It was established in February 1848, with the February Re ...

instaurated. Like his parents and siblings, François nominally lost all his properties and lands in France, including the French lands of the principality of Joinville, and hastily went with his wife and family to exile in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Having taken refuge with his family at Claremont, and with the Brazilian lands of Joinville as his only remaining property, François decided to make profits off those that were last remnants of his former principality. With the assistance of

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

Senator Christian Mathias Schroeder, with whom the gains were split, parts of the lands were sold to German-speaking immigrants, who started arriving in the Brazilian Joinville on 9 March 1851 and built the first facilities in the area, including a small royal palace. The titularity of the principality was negotiated with Heinrich Ferdinand Wiese, German-speaking noble-man from

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sc ...

whose family was fleeing as the

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

troops invaded their territory during the

First Schleswig War The First Schleswig War (german: Schleswig-Holsteinischer Krieg) was a military conflict in southern Denmark and northern Germany rooted in the Schleswig-Holstein Question, contesting the issue of who should control the Duchies of Schleswi ...

. It was agreed that the transferred title could only be used by Heinrich Ferdinand or his descendants after the passing of François and Francisca, who officially kept the titles of Prince and Princess of Joinville until their death.

Political career and service in the American Civil War

Being excluded from continuing a career in the Second Empire's navy, in 1851 François announced his candidacy for the French presidential election to be held in 1852, hoping to pave the way for an eventual restoration of the monarchy. The attempt to become a second "Prince-President" was aborted by the 2 December 1851 coup by which the first "Prince-President", Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, effected his own ascension to the throne. In 1861, upon the outbreak of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

, he proceeded to Washington, D.C., and placed the services of his son and two of his nephews at the disposal of the United States government. U. S. President Lincoln appointed him and his nephews to the staff of Major General

George B. McClellan George Brinton McClellan (December 3, 1826 – October 29, 1885) was an American soldier, Civil War Union general, civil engineer, railroad executive, and politician who served as the 24th governor of New Jersey. A graduate of West Point, McCl ...

. In June 1862, disagreements with the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

position towards

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

caused the prince to withdraw from the Union forces, and he returned to Europe. With the overthrow of the

Second French Empire The Second French Empire (; officially the French Empire, ), was the 18-year Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 14 January 1852 to 27 October 1870, between the Second and the Third Republic of France. Historians in the 1930 ...

in 1870, François re-entered France, only to be promptly expelled by the

government of national defence The Government of National Defense (french: Gouvernement de la Défense nationale) was the first government of the Third Republic of France from 4 September 1870 to 13 February 1871 during the Franco-Prussian War. It was formed after the procla ...

. Returning incognito, he joined the army of general

Louis d'Aurelle de Paladines Louis Jean-Baptiste d'Aurelle de Paladines (9 January 1804 – 17 December 1877) was a French general. Life He was born at Le Malzieu-Ville, Lozère, educated at the Prytanée National Militaire and St Cyr, and entered the army as sub-lieu ...

, under the assumed name of "Colonel Lutherod", fought bravely in

Orléans Orléans (;"Orleans"
(US) and Gambetta, however, arrested him and sent him back to England. In the elections of 1871 to the

French National Assembly The National Assembly (french: link=no, italics=set, Assemblée nationale; ) is the lower house of the bicameral French Parliament under the Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate (). The National Assembly's legislators are known a ...

, the prince was elected to sit for the

Haute-Marne Haute-Marne (; English: Upper Marne) is a department in the Grand Est region of Northeastern France. Named after the river Marne, its prefecture is Chaumont. In 2019, it had a population of 172,512.former principality. By an arrangement with Thiers, however, the prince did not take his seat until the latter had been chosen president of the provisional republic.

Deafness

Starting at a young age, François became increasingly

deaf Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an Audiology, audiological condition. In this context it ...

, and surgery to cure his hearing loss was totally unsuccessful. His friend

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...

wrote in his memoirs, "''The Prince de Joinville's deafness increases. Sometimes it saddens him, sometimes he makes light of it. One day he said to me: 'Speak louder, I am as deaf as a post". His increasing deafness prevented him from making many contributions to the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

, and he resigned his parliamentary seat in 1876.

Later life and death

In 1886, a new law against pretenders to the throne being part of the French armed forces deprived François of his rank as admiral. François and Francisca lived their last decades of life together in Paris, at their home in avenue d'Antin. Francisca died in 1898, aged 73, and François outlived her by two years, dying at home on 16 June 1900, at the age of 81.

Works

The Prince de Joinville was the author of several essays and pamphlets on naval affairs and other matters of public interest, which were originally published for the most part either unsigned or pseudonymously, and subsequently republished under his own name after the fall of the Empire. They include ''Essais sur la marine française'' (1853); ''Études sur la marine'' (1859 and 1870); ''Guerre d'Amérique, campagne du Potomac'' (1862 and 1872); ''Encore un mot sur Sadowa'' (Brussels, 1868); and ''Vieux souvenirs'' (1894). François de Joinville was also a painter. He was present at the Revolution of 1830 when Charles X was replaced as king by François' father, the Orleanist

. Before and after that, in a number of portraits of French national life he depicted several great events in the life of the French monarchy. As Charles X's troops marshalled at the Place de la Concorde he depicted them firing on the crowd. He painted Charles X as the mob invaded the

Palais-Royal The Palais-Royal () is a former royal palace located in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. The screened entrance court faces the Place du Palais-Royal, opposite the Louvre. Originally called the Palais-Cardinal, it was built for Cardinal ...

, with François' father, future King Louis-Philippe, standing behind him. In a famous scene (depicted on right), François drew a woman atop some men handing her the Tricolor as they marched on July 31, 1830. François' royal motifs contrasted heavily with

Eugène Delacroix Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix ( , ; 26 April 1798 – 13 August 1863) was a French Romantic artist regarded from the outset of his career as the leader of the French Romantic school.Noon, Patrick, et al., ''Crossing the Channel: Britis ...

's famous depiction of the same event. François also painted his own delivery of Napoleon's body on returning from St Helena. In total, François painted 35 watercolours.

Honours

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France ( fro, Reaume de France; frm, Royaulme de France; french: link=yes, Royaume de France) is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the medieval and early modern period. ...

: Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour * : Grand Cross of the Southern Cross * :

Knight of the Golden Fleece This article contains a list of knights of the Order of the Golden Fleece. Knights of the Burgundian Golden Fleece 15th Century !Year of Induction!!Name!!Born!!Died!!Notes , - , rowspan=25, 1430, , Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, , 1396, , ...

, ''29 October 1846'' *

Ernestine duchies The Ernestine duchies (), also known as the Saxon duchies (, although the Albertine appanage duchies of Weissenfels, Merseburg and Zeitz were also "Saxon duchies" and adjacent to several Ernestine ones), were a group of small states whose num ...

: Grand Cross of the

Saxe-Ernestine House Order The Saxe-Ernestine House Order (german: link=yes, Sachsen-Ernestinischer Hausorden)Hausorden
Herz ...

, ''1864'' *

Beylik of Tunis The Beylik of Tunis (), also known as Kingdom of Tunis ( ar, المملكة التونسية) was a largely autonomous beylik of the Ottoman Empire located in present-day Tunisia. It was ruled by the Husainid dynasty from 1705 until the abolit ...

: Husainid Family Order * : Grand Cross of St. Ferdinand and Merit * : Grand Cross of the Tower and Sword Retrieved 2018-09-21. * : Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold, ''22 March 1842''

Ancestry

Children

François and Francisca's oldest daughter,

Françoise Françoise () is a French feminine given name (equivalent to the Italian Francesca) and may refer to: * Anne Françoise Elizabeth Lange (1772–1816), French actress * Claudine Françoise Mignot (1624–1711), French adventuress * Françoise Adn ...

, was the mother of Prince Jean, pretender to the French throne. His own son and his grandson have been considered the legitimate claimants to the throne of France, and his great-grandson,

, is the current claimant to the French crown. François and Francisca' son,

Pierre Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translation ...

(1845–1919), entered the United States Naval Academy on 15 October 1861. He received an honorary appointment as an ensign in the United States Navy on 28 May 1863 and served on the frigate USS ''John Adams''. He was granted a leave of absence from the Navy as of 1 January 1864 and resigned from the Navy on May 30, 1864. He returned to France in June of that year.

References

External links

* Works by François, prince of Joinville - in Wikimedia Commons *
''Memoirs of the Prince de Joinville''
English translation by Lady Mary Loyd, from

Project Gutenberg Project Gutenberg (PG) is a Virtual volunteering, volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Francois dOrleans, Prince of Joinville 1818 births 1900 deaths French Navy admirals People from Neuilly-sur-Seine Princes of France (Orléans) Burials at the Chapelle royale de Dreux Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur Knights of the Golden Fleece of Spain Children of Louis Philippe I Sons of kings