Louis-Napoléon, Prince Imperial
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Napoléon, Prince Imperial (Napoléon Eugène Louis Jean Joseph Bonaparte; 16 March 1856 – 1 June 1879), also known as Louis-Napoléon, was the only child of
Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...
,
Emperor of the French Emperor of the French ( French: ''Empereur des Français'') was the title of the monarch and supreme ruler of the First French Empire and the Second French Empire. The emperor of France was an absolute monarch. Details After rising to power by ...
, and
Empress Eugénie The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...
. After his father was dethroned in 1870, he moved to England with his family. On his father's death in January 1873, he was proclaimed by the
Bonapartist Bonapartism () is the political ideology supervening from Napoleon Bonaparte and his followers and successors. The term was used in the narrow sense to refer to people who hoped to restore the House of Bonaparte and its style of government. In ...
faction as Napoléon IV. In England, he trained as a
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
officer. Keen to see action, he persuaded the British to allow him to participate in the
Anglo-Zulu War The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in present-day South Africa from January to early July 1879 between forces of the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Two famous battles of the war were the Zulu victory at Battle of Isandlwana, Isandlwana and th ...
. In 1879, serving with British forces, he was killed in a skirmish with a group of Zulus. His early death caused an international sensation and sent shockwaves throughout Europe, as he was the last serious dynastic hope for the restoration of the
House of Bonaparte The House of Bonaparte (originally ''Buonaparte'') is a former imperial and royal European dynasty of French and Italian origin. It was founded in 1804 by Napoleon I, the son of Corsican nobleman Carlo Buonaparte and Letizia Buonaparte (née ...
to the throne of France.


Biography

Louis-Napoléon was born at the
Tuileries Palace The Tuileries Palace (, ) was a palace in Paris which stood on the right bank of the Seine, directly in the west-front of the Louvre Palace. It was the Parisian residence of most French monarchs, from Henri IV to Napoleon III, until it was b ...
in Paris,The Prince Imperial, Mackinnon, J. P., and S. H. Shadbolt. The South African Campaign, 1879 : a Memorial Volume Containing Sixty Permanent Cabinet Photographs of the Officers of the British Army and Navy Who Lost Their Lives in the Zulu War, Biographical Notices, Detailed Accounts of the Various Engagements, Maps of the Country Showing the Movements of the Various Regiments in the Field, and Separate Records of the Services of Every British Officer Who Was Engaged / Compiled by J.P. Mackinnon ... and Sydney Shadlbolt. Sampson, Low, Marston, Searle and Rivington, 1880. Pp. 35–39, State Library of New South Wales
TQ047678
/ref> and he was baptised on 14 June 1856 at
Notre Dame Cathedral Notre-Dame de Paris ( ; meaning "Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris"), often referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the River Seine), in the 4th arrondissement of Paris, France. It ...
. His godfather was Pope
Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...
, whose representative, Cardinal Patrizi, officiated. His godmother was
Eugène de Beauharnais Eugène Rose de Beauharnais (; 3 September 1781 – 21 February 1824) was a French statesman and military officer who served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Through the second marriage of his mother, Joséphine de Beauharnais, ...
's daughter, Josephine, the Queen of Sweden, who was represented by Grand Duchess Stéphanie of Baden. His education, after a false start under the academic historian
Francis Monnier Francis Monnier was a French literary figure, specialising in the Carolingian era, notably the figure of Alcuin, who was briefly appointed in March 1863 tutor to the Prince Imperial, only son of Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napol ...
, was from 1867 supervised by General Frossard as governor, assisted by
Augustin Filon Pierre Marie Augustin Filon (1841–1916) was a French professor of rhetoric and the author of a number of works of fiction, as well many articles, reviews and books on contemporary English politics, art and literature. The son of the historian ...
as a tutor. His English nurse, Miss Shaw, was recommended by
Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...
and taught the prince English from an early age. His valet Xavier Uhlmann and his inseparable friend Louis Conneau also figured prominently in his life. The young prince was known by the nickname "Loulou" in his family circle. In 1868, he visited
Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...
and attended the centenary festival of the annexation of the island to France. At the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871, he accompanied his father as a sub-lieutenant to the front. The prince was present on the hills above
Saarbrücken Saarbrücken (; Rhenish Franconian: ''Sabrigge'' ; ; ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of cities and towns in Germany, city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken has 181,959 inhabitants and is Saarland's administrative, commerci ...
during the engagement at their base. Still, when the war began to go against the Imperial army, his father sent him to the border with
Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
. In September, his father sent him a message to cross over into Belgium. He travelled from there to England, arriving on 6 September, where his parents joined him, the Second Empire having been abolished. The family settled in England at
Camden Place Chislehurst () is a suburban district of south-east London, England, in the London Borough of Bromley. It lies east of Bromley, south-west of Sidcup and north-west of Orpington, south-east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater ...
in
Chislehurst Chislehurst () is a suburban district of south-east London, England, in the London Borough of Bromley. It lies east of Bromley, south-west of Sidcup and north-west of Orpington, south-east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater ...
, Kent. Upon his father's death in 1873,
Bonapartists Bonapartism () is the political ideology supervening from Napoleon Bonaparte and his followers and successors. The term was used in the narrow sense to refer to people who hoped to restore the House of Bonaparte and its style of government. In ...
proclaimed him Napoleon IV. On his 18th birthday, a large crowd gathered to cheer him at Camden Place. The prince attended elementary lectures in physics at
King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...
. In 1872, he applied and was accepted to the
Royal Military Academy, Woolwich The Royal Military Academy (RMA) at Woolwich, in south-east London, was a British Army military academy for the training of Officer (armed forces), commissioned officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It later also trained officers o ...
. He finished seventh in his class of thirty-four and came top in riding and fencing. He then served for a time with the
Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...
at
Aldershot Aldershot ( ) is a town in the Rushmoor district, Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme north-east corner of the county, south-west of London. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Farnborough/Aldershot built-up are ...
. During the 1870s, there was some talk of a marriage between him and Queen Victoria's youngest daughter,
Princess Beatrice Princess Beatrice, Mrs Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi (Beatrice Elizabeth Mary; born 8 August 1988) is a member of the British royal family. She is the elder daughter of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and Sarah, Duchess of York. She is a niece of King Ch ...
. Queen Victoria also reportedly believed that it would be best for "the peace of Europe" if the prince became Emperor of France. The prince remained a devout Catholic, and he retained hopes that the Bonapartist cause might eventually triumph if the secularising Third Republic failed. He supported the tactics of
Eugène Rouher Eugène Rouher (30 November 18143 February 1884) was a French statesman of the Second Empire. He was born at Riom (Puy-de-Dôme), where he practised law after taking his degree in Paris in 1835. In 1846 he sought election to the Chamber of ...
over those of Prince Napoléon-Jérôme, breaking with Napoléon-Jérôme in 1876. With the outbreak of the
Zulu War The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in present-day South Africa from January to early July 1879 between forces of the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Two famous battles of the war were the Zulu victory at Isandlwana and the British defence at ...
in 1879, the prince, with the rank of lieutenant, forced the hand of the British military to allow him to take part in the conflict, despite the objections of Rouher and other Bonapartists. He was only allowed to go to Africa by the special pleading of his mother, Empress Eugénie, and by the intervention of Queen Victoria herself. He left England on 27 February 1879 with letters of introduction from the
Duke of Cambridge Duke of Cambridge is a hereditary title of nobility in the British royal family, one of several royal dukedoms in the United Kingdom. The title is named after the city of Cambridge in England. It is heritable by agnatic, male descendants by pr ...
, the British commander-in-chief, in the hope he might be allowed to follow the movements of the troops. Once he arrived at
Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...
, he joined the General's Head-Quarters and met
Frederic Thesiger, 2nd Baron Chelmsford General Frederic Augustus Thesiger, 2nd Baron Chelmsford, (31 May 18279 April 1905) was a British Army officer who rose to prominence during the Anglo-Zulu War, when an expeditionary force under his command suffered a decisive defeat at the ha ...
, the commander in South Africa, on 9 April and was nominally placed on his staff. The prince accompanied Chelmsford on his march into Zululand. Keen to see action and full of enthusiasm, he was warned by Lieutenant Arthur Brigge, a close friend, "not to do anything rash and to avoid running unnecessary risks. I reminded him of the Empress at home and his party in France." Chelmsford, mindful of his duty, attached the prince to the staff of Colonel Richard Harrison of the
Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...
, where it was felt he could be active but safe. Harrison was responsible for the column's transport and for reconnaissance of the forward route on the way to
Ulundi Ulundi, also known as Mahlabathini, is a town in the Zululand District Municipality. At one time the capital of the Zulu Kingdom in South Africa and later the capital of the Bantustan of KwaZulu, Ulundi now lies in KwaZulu-Natal Province (of whi ...
, the Zulu capital. While he welcomed the presence of the prince, he was told by Chelmsford that the prince must be accompanied at all times by a strong escort. Lieutenant Jahleel Brenton Carey, a French speaker and British subject from
Guernsey Guernsey ( ; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; ) is the second-largest island in the Channel Islands, located west of the Cotentin Peninsula, Normandy. It is the largest island in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, which includes five other inhabited isl ...
, was given particular charge of him. The prince took part in several reconnaissance missions. However, his eagerness for action almost led him into an early ambush when he exceeded orders in a party led by Colonel
Redvers Buller General Sir Redvers Henry Buller, (7 December 1839 – 2 June 1908) was a British Army officer and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. He served as Commander-in-Chief ...
. Despite this, on the evening of 31 May 1879, Harrison agreed to allow the prince to scout in a forward party scheduled to leave in the morning, mistakenly believing that the path ahead was free of Zulu skirmishers.


Death

On the morning of 1 June 1879, the troop set out, earlier than intended and without the whole escort, largely owing to the prince's impatience. Led by Carey, the scouts rode deeper into Zululand. Without Harrison or Buller present to restrain him, the prince took command from Carey, even though the latter had seniority. At noon, the prince halted the troop at a temporarily deserted
kraal Kraal (also spelled ''craal'' or ''kraul'') is an Afrikaans and Dutch language, Dutch word, also used in South African English, for an pen (enclosure), enclosure for cattle or other livestock, located within a Southern African Human settlement ...
. The prince and Carey made some sketches of the terrain and used part of the thatch to make a fire. No lookout was posted. As they were preparing to leave, about 40 Zulus fired upon them and rushed towards them, screaming. The prince ran to mount his horse and was able to grab onto the holster on the saddle of his horse. The prince's horse then dashed off before he could mount. After about 100 yards, the strap the prince was clinging to broke and the horse kicked the prince in the belly, winding him. The prince fell beneath his horse, and his right arm was trampled. He leapt up, drawing his revolver with his left hand, and started to run, but the Zulus outpaced him. The prince fired three shots from his revolver at his assailants, but he missed each shot. The prince then fired two more shots, albeit slower in order to better aim. However, these, too, missed. One of the prince's assailants, a Zulu named Langalibalele, threw his spear at the prince, but missed. Another spear, thrown by a Zulu named Zabanga, struck the prince's left shoulder. The prince tried to fight on, wielding the spear thrown by Langalibalele in his right hand and his revolver in his left. However, weakened by his wounds, the prince sank to the ground and was overwhelmed. Zabanga stabbed the prince again with an
assegai An assegai or assagai is a polearm used for throwing, usually a light spear or javelin made up of a wooden handle with an iron tip. Area of use The use of various types of the assegai was widespread all over Africa and it was the most common we ...
, followed by Gwabakana; and then the prince suffered a final blow from Klabawathunga –who stabbed the prince in the right eye – penetrating the prince's brain and killing him. When the prince's corpse was recovered the next day, it was found naked and an examination by surgeon-major F. B. Scott counted 18 wounds – all of which were stab wounds. According to later testimonies from several of the Zulu men who had participated in the ambush of the prince's patrol, only 8 of the stab wounds were inflicted upon the prince while he was still alive - the remaining 10 stab wounds were done to the prince's corpse. This was due to the ambushers observing the customary Zulu ''hlomula'' ritual, which entailed stabbing the body of an already fallen adversary. The practice was related to the hunt, when all the participants of the hunt were expected to stab the carcass of a particularly formidable kill, like a lion or buffalo. To do the same to a human foe was to acknowledge that he had fought with the ferocity of a dangerous wild animal. Langalibalele confirmed that ''hlomula'' was performed on the prince's corpse because he had "fought like a lion". It also transpired from the testimonies of the prince's Zulu assailants that the prince's corpse was found naked because Klabawathunga had ritually stripped the prince's body of all his apparel, except for a few medals and the locket around the prince's neck which contained a picture of his mother. After giving the prince's clothes to another Zulu man named Dabayane to hold onto, Klabawathunga explained that he personally performed a slight incision on the prince's naked abdomen in order to observe the customary Zulu ''qaqa'' ritual, which was customarily performed on the corpses of slain foes for the purposes of removing a perceived contagious ritual pollution that followed homicide, called ''umnyama'' in isiZulu (meaning 'dark contagion'). It was believed that the swelling that occurred in corpses was due to the homicide victim's soul trying but failing to escape the decaying body, and therefore the killer had a duty to make a hole in their victim to allow the soul to escape lest the killer's own body swell like a corpse. This was the traditional Zulu explanation for the observable swelling of the body which occurs in corpses due to the fermentation of
butyric acid Butyric acid (; from , meaning "butter"), also known under the systematic name butanoic acid, is a straight-chain alkyl carboxylic acid with the chemical formula . It is an oily, colorless liquid with an unpleasant odor. Isobutyric acid (2-met ...
in the gut. The prince's bloodstained clothes had meanwhile been removed in order for Klabawathunga to observe the customary Zulu ritual of ''zila'', where a killer was required to wear their victim's clothes (polluted by the harmful influences of his blood) while observing customary ritual abstentions in order to cleanse themself of the crime of homicide. The Zulus had not looted the prince's jewellery because it was seen as a dishonourable thing to do to a warrior, and because it was believed the prince's spirit would haunt them if they stole the jewellery, which was misconstrued for a magical talisman. Two troopers of the
Natal Native Horse The Natal Native Contingent was a large force of auxiliary soldiers in British South Africa, forming a substantial portion of the defence forces of the British colony of Natal. The Contingent saw action during the 1879 Anglo-Zulu War. The Natal ...
, Abel and Rogers, as well the Zulu guide accompanying them, died with the prince during the Zulu ambush. Carey and the four surviving men came together about from where the prince made his final stand but did not fire at the Zulus. Carey led his men back to camp. The prince's body was recovered the next day. After a court of inquiry, a court-martial, and intervention by Empress Eugénie and Queen Victoria, Carey returned to his regiment. Carey died in Bombay on 22 February 1883. Louis-Napoléon's death caused an international sensation. Rumours spread in France that the prince had been intentionally "disposed of" by the British. Alternatively, the French republicans or the Freemasons were blamed. In one account, Queen Victoria was accused of arranging the whole thing, a theory that was later dramatised by
Maurice Rostand Maurice Rostand (26 May 1891 – 21 February 1968) was a French author, the son of the poet and dramatist Edmond Rostand and the poet Rosemonde Gérard, and brother of the biologist Jean Rostand. Rostand was a writer of poems, novels, and play ...
in his play ''Napoleon IV''. The Zulus later claimed that they would not have killed him if they had known who he was. Langalabalele, his chief assailant, was killed in July at the
Battle of Ulundi The Battle of Ulundi took place at the Zulu capital of Ulundi () on 4 July 1879 and was the last battle of the Anglo-Zulu War. The British Army broke the military power of the Zulu Kingdom by defeating the main Zulu army and capturing and bu ...
. Eugénie later made a pilgrimage to Sobuza's kraal, where her son had died, and where the
Prince Imperial Memorial The Prince Imperial Memorial is a memorial cross and battlefield in Nqutu, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is dedicated to Napoléon, Prince Imperial of France who made his last stand on the site in 1879 and was built on the spot where he die ...
, paid for by Queen Victoria, had been erected. The prince, who had begged to be allowed to go to war and who had worried his commanders by his dash and daring, was described by
Garnet Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley Field Marshal Garnet Joseph Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley (4 June 183325 March 1913) was an Anglo-Irish officer in the British Army. He became one of the most influential British generals after a series of victories in Canada, West Africa and E ...
, as "a plucky young man, and he died a soldier's death. What on earth could he have done better?" His remains were brought back to
Spithead Spithead is an eastern area of the Solent and a roadstead for vessels off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England. It is protected from all winds except those from the southeast, with the Isle of Wight lying to the south-west. Spithead and the ch ...
on board the British troopship , and thence transferred onto HMS ''Enchantress'' for sailing on to Woolwich Arsenal; overnight, he lay in state in the western octagonal guardhouse by the riverfront. The funeral procession, including Queen Victoria, went from there to
Chislehurst Chislehurst () is a suburban district of south-east London, England, in the London Borough of Bromley. It lies east of Bromley, south-west of Sidcup and north-west of Orpington, south-east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater ...
, where he was buried in St Mary's Catholic Church. On 9 January 1888, his body was transferred to a special mausoleum constructed by his mother as the
Imperial Crypt The Imperial Crypt (), also called the Capuchin Crypt (''Kapuzinergruft''), is a burial chamber beneath the Capuchin Church and monastery in Vienna, Austria. It was founded in 1618 and dedicated in 1632, and located on the Neuer Markt square of ...
at
St Michael's Abbey, Farnborough Saint Michael's Abbey (French: ''Abbaye Saint-Michel'') is a Benedictine abbey in Farnborough, Hampshire, England. The small community is known for its liturgy (which is sung in Latin and Gregorian chant), its pipe organ, and its liturgical publ ...
, next to his father. The Prince Imperial had appointed Prince
Napoléon Victor Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
as his heir, thus skipping the genealogically senior heir, Victor's father, Prince Napoléon.


Legacy

In 1880, the inhabitants of
Chislehurst Chislehurst () is a suburban district of south-east London, England, in the London Borough of Bromley. It lies east of Bromley, south-west of Sidcup and north-west of Orpington, south-east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater ...
erected a monument to the Prince Imperial on
Chislehurst Common Chislehurst Common is an open space in Chislehurst in the London Borough of Bromley in south-east London. It is jointly managed with St Paul's Cray Common. The common was used for cricket matches in the 18th century. It was the home venue of Ch ...
near
Camden Place Chislehurst () is a suburban district of south-east London, England, in the London Borough of Bromley. It lies east of Bromley, south-west of Sidcup and north-west of Orpington, south-east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater ...
, which is now Grade II listed. In the 1950s, the road which passes the monument, previously called Station Road, was renamed Prince Imperial Road in his memory. The STD telephone dialing code for Chislehurst is 467 which spells out IMP, short for imperial on the old letter + number telephone dial. The Australian Rules football club Footscray, inspired by the story of the prince's death, renamed their club to the Prince Imperial Football Club in the early 1880s, but they reverted to Footscray a mere two years later. The
asteroid moon A minor-planet moon is an astronomical object that orbits a minor planet as its natural satellite. , there are 457 minor planets known or suspected to have moons. Discoveries of minor-planet moons (and binary objects, in general) are important ...
Petit-Prince was named after the Prince Imperial in 1998, because it orbits an
asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet—an object larger than a meteoroid that is neither a planet nor an identified comet—that orbits within the Solar System#Inner Solar System, inner Solar System or is co-orbital with Jupiter (Trojan asteroids). As ...
named after his mother (
45 Eugenia 45 Eugenia is a large asteroid of the asteroid belt. It is famed as one of the first asteroids to be found to have a moon orbiting it. It was also the second triple asteroid to be discovered, after 87 Sylvia. Discovery Eugenia was discovered ...
).


In literature

The death is presented in some detail in G. A. Henty's ''The Young Colonists: A Tale of The Zulu and Boer Wars'' (1885). In the R. F. Delderfield novel ''Long Summer Day'' (the first of the ''
A Horseman Riding By ''A Horseman Riding By'' is a trilogy of historical novels written by R. F. Delderfield, first published between 1966 and 1968. Set in rural Devon, England, the novels span the years from the late 19th century through World War I, the interwar ...
'' trilogy),
Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic an ...
veteran Paul Craddock buys a farm in 1900 or 1901. The middle-aged estate manager, Rudd, is somewhat embittered at having been one of the soldiers who had failed to rescue the Prince Imperial in 1879. Craddock is aware of the events because, by coincidence, he had been born that very day.
Emma Lazarus Emma Lazarus (July 22, 1849 – November 19, 1887) was an American author of poetry, prose, and translations, as well as an activist for Jewish and Georgism, Georgist causes. She is remembered for writing the sonnet "The New Colossus", which wa ...
wrote sonnets, under the common title of "Destiny", commemorating the prince's birth and death. The contemporary Italian poet
Giosuè Carducci Giosuè Alessandro Giuseppe Carducci (27 July 1835 – 16 February 1907) was an Italian poet, writer, literary critic and teacher. He was noticeably influential, and was regarded as the official national poet of modern Italy. In 1906, he became ...
composed a poem in Alcaic stanzas in his memory in 1879 (later in his ''Odi Barbare''), in which he described the Prince's death as follows (vv. 1 - 4) "Questo la inconscia zagaglia barbara / prostrò, spegnendo li occhi di fulgida / vita sorrisi da i fantasmi / fluttuanti ne l'azzurro immenso". ("The unconscious barbarous
assegai An assegai or assagai is a polearm used for throwing, usually a light spear or javelin made up of a wooden handle with an iron tip. Area of use The use of various types of the assegai was widespread all over Africa and it was the most common we ...
/ prostrated him and extinguished his eyes / of radiant life, at which smiled the ghosts / floating in the immense blue"). In the play ''Napoleon IV'' by
Maurice Rostand Maurice Rostand (26 May 1891 – 21 February 1968) was a French author, the son of the poet and dramatist Edmond Rostand and the poet Rosemonde Gérard, and brother of the biologist Jean Rostand. Rostand was a writer of poems, novels, and play ...
, the prince is killed in a carefully planned ambush arranged with the connivance of Queen Victoria. In a 1943 ''Southern Daily Echo'' article, former Sapper George Harding (2nd Company
Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...
) recalled being ordered to take a horse ambulance and find the prince's body and bring it back to the column. The Prince Imperial had been out on
reconnaissance mission In military operations, military reconnaissance () or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, the terrain, and civil activities in the area of operations. In military jargon, reconnai ...
with a party of the
17th Lancers The 17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1759 and notable for its participation in the Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War. The regim ...
. Describing the mission, he said
We advanced to a dried-up river bed and had to cut away the banks to get the ambulance across. Eventually, we reached a
kraal Kraal (also spelled ''craal'' or ''kraul'') is an Afrikaans and Dutch language, Dutch word, also used in South African English, for an pen (enclosure), enclosure for cattle or other livestock, located within a Southern African Human settlement ...
beside a large mealie field where we found the bodies of the Prince and some of his party. They had been surprised by Zulus as they rested in the kraal. The Zulus broke out of the mealie field and killed them before they could remount their horses. The Prince had been stabbed 16 times with assegais. We made a rough coffin and put his body in the ambulance. After burying the other bodies where they were found, we went back to the column. The Prince's body was taken back to England for burial.
The Prince Imperial is a minor character in
Donald Serrell Thomas Donald Serrell Thomas (18 July 1934 – 20 January 2022) was a British crime writer. His work primarily included Victorian-era historical, crime and detective fiction, as well as books on factual crime and criminals, in particular several acade ...
's
Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a Detective fiction, fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "Private investigator, consulting detective" in his stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with obser ...
pastiche A pastiche () is a work of visual art, literature, theatre, music, or architecture that imitates the style or character of the work of one or more other artists. Unlike parody, pastiche pays homage to the work it imitates, rather than mocking ...
novel ''Death on a Pale Horse'' (2013).


Titles, styles, honours and arms

He was styled Prince Imperial of France from birth.


French honours

* Knight Grand Cross of the
Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...


Foreign honours

* : Grand Cross of the Order of St. Stephen, ''1865'' * : Knight of the
Order of the Elephant The Order of the Elephant () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry and is Denmark's highest-ranked honour. It has origins in the 15th century, but has officially existed since 1693, and since the establishment of constitutional monarchy in ...
, ''11 March 1865'' *
Mexican Empire Mexican Empire may refer to: * First Mexican Empire The Mexican Empire (, ) was a constitutional monarchy and the first independent government of Mexico. It was also the only former viceroyalty of the Spanish Empire to establish a monarchy af ...
: ** Grand Cross of the
Order of Guadalupe There were three Imperial Orders of the Mexican Empire, which were Order of chivalry, Orders of chivalry created to reward Heads of state and prominent people during the two periods of the Mexican Empire (disambiguation), Mexican Empire — the ' ...
, ''1864'' ** Grand Cross of the Order of the Mexican Eagle, ''1865'' * : ** Grand Cross of the
Order of the Tower and Sword The Military Order of the Tower and of the Sword, of Valour, Loyalty and Merit (), before 1917 the ancient and most noble order of the Tower and of the Sword, of valour, loyalty and merit (), is one of the four former ancient Portuguese milita ...
, ''1861'' ** Grand Cross of the Sash of the Two Orders, ''1865'' * : Knight of the Order of St. Andrew the First-called, ''30 May 1865.'' *
Kingdom of Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia, also referred to as the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica among other names, was a State (polity), country in Southern Europe from the late 13th until the mid-19th century, and from 1297 to 1768 for the Corsican part of ...
: Knight of the
Order of the Annunciation The Order of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (), also known as Sisters of the Annunciation or Annonciades, is an enclosed religious order of contemplative nuns founded in honor of the Annunciation in 1501 at Bourges by Joan de Valoi ...
, ''20 February 1859'' * : Knight of the
Order of the Rue Crown The Order of the Rue Crown () or Order of the Crown of Saxony was a dynastic order of knighthood of the Kingdom of Saxony. The order takes its name from the green floral crown of rue ('' crancelin'') found in the coat of arms of Saxony. It occup ...
, ''1857'' * : Knight of the
Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece (, ) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in 1430 in Brugge by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of Portugal, Duchess of Burgundy, Isabella of Portugal. T ...
, ''30 March 1856'' *
Sweden-Norway Sweden and Norway or Sweden–Norway (; ), officially the United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway, and known as the United Kingdoms, was a personal union of the separate kingdoms of Sweden and Norway under a common monarch and common foreign poli ...
: Knight of the
Royal Order of the Seraphim The Royal Order of the Seraphim (; '' Seraphim'' being a category of angels) is the highest order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Sweden. It was created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Ord ...
, ''14 June 1856''


Arms

File:Blason Roi de Rome.svg, File:Imperial Standard of Napoléon Eugène Bonaparte.svg, File:Imperial Monogram of Napoleon, Prince Imperial of France.svg,


See also

*
Railway of the Prince Imperial The railway of the Prince Imperial () was the first documented Rail transport modelling, model railway in the world. Location The model railway was built in 1859 for Napoléon, Prince Imperial, the 3-year-old son of emperor Napoleon III, in the ...
* L'Empereur, sa femme et le petit prince


References


Citations


Bibliography

* Balansó, Juan (mayo de 1999). "Capítulo VI. Las hijas de Isabel", Las perlas de la corona, 2ª edición, Plaza Janés, p. 126. . * David, Saul ''Zulu''. Penguin/Viking, 2004, pp. 311–336. * * * * * * Morris, Donald R. ''The Washing of the Spears''.
Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...
, 1965, pp. 511–545. * *


Further reading

* Ellen Barlee, ''Life of Napoleon, Prince Imperial of France'', (London, 1889) * M. d'Hérrison, ''Le prince impérial'', (Paris, 1890) * André Martinet, ''Le prince impérial'', (Paris, 1895) * R. Minon, ''Les derniers jours du prince impérial sur le continent'', (Paris, 1900) * Ernest Barthez, ''Empress Eugenie and her Circle'', (New York, 1913) * Digby Hague-Holmes ''Napoleon the Fourth'', (Farnborough, St. Michael's Abbey Press, 2016)


External links

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