Napoléon Joseph Curial (9 January 1809 – 22 September 1861) was a French peer and politician.

Early years (1809–48)

Napoléon Joseph Curial was born in Paris on 9 January 1809. His family originated in

Savoy Savoy (; )  is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps. Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south and west and to the Aosta Vall ...

. His parents were Count Philibert Jean-Baptiste François Joseph Curial (1774–1829) and Clémentine Amélie Beugnot (1788–1840). His father was a general in the

First French Empire The First French Empire or French Empire (; ), also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. It lasted from ...

and earned a well deserved reputation in the battles of Austerlitz, Eylau, Friedland and

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. Under the Bourbon Restoration in France, Bourbon Restoration his father was named a Peer of France, and died in 1829 after falling from a horse. Napoléon Joseph Curial was admitted as a page to King

Louis XVIII of France Louis XVIII (Louis Stanislas Xavier; 17 November 1755 – 16 September 1824), known as the Desired (), was King of France from 1814 to 1824, except for a brief interruption during the Hundred Days in 1815. Before his reign, he spent 23 ...

, then at the age of 16 entered the

École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr The École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr (, , abbr. ESM) is a French military academy, and is often referred to as Saint-Cyr (). It is located in Coëtquidan in Guer, Morbihan, Brittany. Its motto is ''Ils s'instruisent pour vaincre'', litera ...

. Two years later he left the school in 1827 as a second lieutenant in the mounted grenadiers of the royal guard. He served with distinction in the

invasion of Algiers in 1830 The invasion of Algiers in 1830 was a large-scale military operation by which the Kingdom of France, ruled by Charles X, invaded and conquered the Deylik of Algiers. Algiers was annexed by the Ottoman Empire in 1529 after the capture of Algi ...

, where he earned promotion to lieutenant. After the

July Revolution The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution (), Second French Revolution, or ("Three Glorious ays), was a second French Revolution after French Revolution, the first of 1789–99. It led to the overthrow of King Cha ...

of 1830 Curial retired from the army and devoted himself to agriculture and horse breeding. On 26 March 1832 he married Louise Félicie Gérard (died 1869) in

Alençon Alençon (, , ; ) is a commune in Normandy, France, and the capital of the Orne department. It is situated between Paris and Rennes (about west of Paris) and a little over north of Le Mans. Alençon belongs to the intercommunality of Alen� ...

. Their son was Count Henri Napoléon Claude 'Philibert' Curial (1835–1904). On 23 March 1835 he was admitted to the Chamber of Peers on a hereditary basis. He became a member of the General Council of

Orne Orne (; or ) is a département in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne. It had a population of 279,942 in 2019.Alençon Alençon (, , ; ) is a commune in Normandy, France, and the capital of the Orne department. It is situated between Paris and Rennes (about west of Paris) and a little over north of Le Mans. Alençon belongs to the intercommunality of Alen� ...

. He was made a Knight 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 ...

on 5 May 1847.

Second Republic (1848–51)

After the

February Revolution of 1848 The French Revolution of 1848 (), also known as the February Revolution (), was a period of civil unrest in France, in February 1848, that led to the collapse of the July Monarchy and the foundation of the French Second Republic. It sparked t ...

Curial was dismissed from his post as Mayor. On 23 April 1848 he was elected Representative of Orne in the Constituent Assembly. He sat with the Right group and was a member of the War Committee and the Departmental and Communal Administration Committee. He was elected President of the Departmental Council of Orne on 21 November 1848 and held this office until 26 August 1861. In the Assembly Curial voted to maintain the guarantee of newspapers, against the right to work, against the progressive tax, for the amendment of

Prosper Duvergier de Hauranne Prosper may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places in the United States * Prosper, Michigan, an unincorporated community * Prosper, Minnesota, an unincorporated community * Prosper, North Dakota, an unincorporated community * Prosper, Oregon, an unincorporat ...

on the two Chambers, against the

Jules Grévy François Judith Paul Grévy (15 August 1807 – 9 September 1891), known as Jules Grévy (), was a French people, French lawyer and politician who served as President of France from 1879 to 1887. He was a leader of the Opportunist Republicans, M ...

amendment on the presidency, for military replacement, for the Rateau proposal, against reduction of the salt tax and for suppression of clubs. Curial was reelected as representative of Orne in the Legislative Assembly on 13 May 1849. He was a consistent supporter of Louis Napoleon Bonaparte. He voted for the educational laws, against universal suffrage and for the Roman expedition.

Later career (1851–61)

After the coup d'état of 2 December 1851 Curial was appointed to the advisory committee. On 26 January 1852 he was named on the first list of senators of the

Second French Empire The Second French Empire, officially the French Empire, was the government of France from 1852 to 1870. It was established on 2 December 1852 by Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, president of France under the French Second Republic, who proclaimed hi ...

. He was a Senator from until his death in Paris on 22 September 1861.

Notes

Sources

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Curial, Napoleon Joseph 1809 births 1861 deaths Counts of France École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr alumni 19th-century French military personnel Members of the Chamber of Peers of the July Monarchy French general councillors Mayors of places in Normandy Members of the 1848 Constituent Assembly Members of the National Legislative Assembly of the French Second Republic French senators of the Second Empire Knights of the Legion of Honour