Another brother of Napoleon made king: Who is Louis Bonaparte?

(1778-1846) French statesman. He was king of the Netherlands from 1806 to 1810. He was born on September 2, 1778, in Ajaccio, Corsica. He died in Rome on July 25, 1846. He is the seventh child of Carlo Bonaparte and Letizia Ramolino and the brother of Napoleon I. He studied at a military school in C'hâlons. In 1796, he participated in Napoleon I's expedition to Italy and served as adjutant in Egypt (1798-1799). In 1802, at Napoleon's insistence, he married Josephine's first wife, Hortense de Beauharnais. But this marriage proved to be an unsuccessful experiment for both. He wanted to leave his wife, but Napoleon did not allow it.

Louis Napoléon Bonaparte (born Luigi Buonaparte; 2 September 1778 – 25 July 1846) was a younger brother of Napoleon I, Emperor of the French. He was a monarch in his own right from 1806 to 1810, ruling over the Kingdom of Holland (a French client state roughly corresponding to the modern-day Kingdom of the Netherlands). In that capacity he was known as Louis I.

Louis Bonaparte was promoted to general in 1804. He became governor of Paris in 1805. He was proclaimed king of the Netherlands by Napoleon on July 5, 1806. However, Napoleon was not pleased with Louis, who from the beginning was not very interested in military life and did not participate in most of the expeditions. Napoleon was also angered by the fact that, despite being a foreigner, he was concerned with Dutch national affairs, earning the respect of the local rulers, and not following his orders.

Napoleon, who planned to bring England to heel by preventing it from supplying goods to Continental Europe via the Netherlands, saw that Louis was against this and sent the French armies to the Dutch capital in 1810. Louis fled, leaving his crown and throne. He lived for a while in Bohemia, Austria, and Switzerland.

After that, he was never interested in the problems of the French Empire. He settled in Rome and engaged in literature. He supported national and liberal currents in Italy during the 1830 revolutions. During this period, he wrote a book and two literary works supporting his thoughts on the Dutch government with historical documents.

He died before he could see his youngest son become emperor of France (Napoleon III) in 1852.

An interesting anecdote

What did Napoleon's brother, Louis Bonaparte, say instead of "I am the king of the Netherlands" because he slipped his tongue in his speech in Dutch to the Dutch people?

Answer: I am the Rabbit of Holland.

Instead of “KONING van Holland” he said “KONIJN van Holland” which means instead of “King of Holland” “Rabbit of Holland”...