What's In a Name? - The story of Louis Napoleon Bonaparte

Born on April 20, 1808 in Paris, Charles Louis Napoleon Bonaparte was a very powerful young man. His father, Louis Bonaparte, was the king of Holland (1806-1810) and his uncle, his father’s brother, was the Emperor Napoleon I of France. However, what began as a seemingly perfect life, would be completely turned upside-down in a matter of years. When his uncle was banished from France in 1814, his whole family was forced out with him. Louis received his schooling in both Switzerland and Bavaria. It was his mother who taught her son about the glories of the great Napoleon. These stories would help to shape his dreams for the future.

Louis then did something that surprised everyone. Instead of continuing the war which he was clearly winning, Louis stopped and offered Austria a treaty to end the fighting. So, in 1859, in the town of Villafranca di Verona, Napoleon III and Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria signed the Treaty of Villafranca. The treaty gave Lombardy back to Italy but kept Venetia under Austrian rule. Count Cavour was outraged by this turn of events and forever held a grudge against France. As a result of the Italian War, Louis gained two new “France-haters,” Italy and Austria.

When Louis first emerged into the public spotlight in France, he promised “an empire of peace.” However, between the years of 1854-1870, his country was involved in four major wars which would ultimately lead to Louis’s demise.

When France learned of this, they immediately sent warships to Constantinople and the Bay of Tripoli. The weak Porte was forced to grant France’s request. Angered, Russia sent troops to Constantinople. Joined by Great Britain and Turkey, France officially declared war on Russia in March 1854. By 1856, Russia was forced to surrender and the Crimean War was ended. As a result however, the first “France-hater” emerged in Russia.

is joined the Swiss Army and eventually became a captain. Still striving to live up to the Napoleonic legend, he joined in revolts in Italy in 1830-1831. Finally in 1836, he started to direct his attention towards France. In that year he tried to overthrow the government of the current French ruler, Louis Phillipe. He was unsuccessful and was exiled to the United States. After returning to Switzerland, he once again attempted to overthrow Phillipe and once again was unsuccessful. This time he was tried for treason and sentenced to life imprisonment. While in prison he began to write pamphlets and essays planning out his platform. Six years later, he managed to escape to England and he would not return for another two years.

With Louis Phillipe’s departure after the February Revolution of 1848, Louis Napoleon decided to return to France and begin again. In the same year he was elected to the National Assembly and when they called for a presidential election, he was chosen to run. Louis now became the first modern French politician. He

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