Charles, Prince Napoléon facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Charles |
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| Prince Napoléon | |||||
Charles in 2008
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| Head of the House of Bonaparte (disputed) | |||||
| Period | 3 May 1997 – present | ||||
| Predecessor | Louis, Prince Napoléon | ||||
| Heir Apparent | Prince Jean-Christophe Napoléon | ||||
| Born | 19 October 1950 Boulogne-Billancourt, France |
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| Spouse |
Princess Béatrice of Bourbon-Two Sicilies
(m. 1978; div. 1989)Jeanne-Françoise Valliccioni
(m. 1996) |
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| Issue | Princess Caroline Napoléon Prince Jean-Christophe Napoléon Princess Sophie Napoléon Princess Anh Napoléon |
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| House | Bonaparte | ||||
| Father | Louis, Prince Napoléon | ||||
| Mother | Alix de Foresta | ||||
| Religion | Catholicism | ||||
| Member of the Nemours Municipal Council | |||||
| In office 21 March 2008 – 3 December 2008 |
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| Deputy Mayor of Ajaccio | |||||
| In office 25 March 2001 – 16 March 2008 |
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| Mayor | Simon Renucci | ||||
| Personal details | |||||
| Other political affiliations |
PS DVG MoDem (2007–2008) |
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Charles, Prince Napoléon was born on October 19, 1950, as Charles Marie Jérôme Victor Napoléon. He is a French politician. He is considered by some to be the head of the House of Bonaparte, which means he is an heir to the family of Emperor Napoléon I.
Other people who support the Bonaparte family believe his son, Jean-Christophe, is the current head. If Charles were to be recognized as the head, he would be known as Napoleon VII.
Contents
The Bonaparte Family History
Charles is the older son of Louis, Prince Napoléon (1914–1997). This makes him a great-great-grandson of Jérôme Bonaparte. Jérôme was the youngest brother of Emperor Napoléon I and was once the King of Westphalia.
Since Napoléon I and Napoléon III of France do not have living male descendants, Jérôme's family members are the only Imperial Bonapartes still alive today.
In 2011, scientists studied DNA from Napoléon I's remains. They compared it to Charles's DNA. The results showed a strong match, proving Charles is a male descendant of the Imperial House of Bonaparte.
Charles's Parents and Childhood
Charles's mother is Alix de Foresta, born on April 4, 1926. Her family has a long history as nobles in Italy and France. They settled in Provence, France, in the 1500s.
Charles was born in Boulogne-Billancourt, France. He has a twin sister named Princess Catherine. He was baptized in Paris by a special church official who later became Pope John XXIII.
Charles spent much of his childhood at his family's home in Switzerland, called the Villa Prangins. It is located near Lake Geneva. He also has two younger siblings, Princess Laure (born 1952) and Prince Jérôme (born 1957).
Education and Career
Charles went to school in France and also studied German in Germany. He earned a special degree called a doctorate in economics from the Sorbonne.
He has written several books. These include "History of Urban Transportation" and "Bonaparte and Paoli." He also wrote "The Bonapartes, Rebels at Heart."
Charles has worked as a banker and a financial planner. He has also been a real estate developer. He was a visiting professor at the American Institute on Foreign Policy.
Marriage and Children
On December 19, 1978, Charles married Princess Béatrice of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. She is a distant cousin.
Charles and Béatrice had two children:
- Princess Caroline Bonaparte (born October 24, 1980). She married Eric Alain Marie Quérénet-Onfroy de Bréville. They have two children:
- Elvire Quérénet-Onfroy de Breville (born August 8, 2010)
- Augustin Quérénet-Onfroy de Breville (born February 12, 2013)
- Jean-Christophe, Prince Napoléon (born July 11, 1986). He married Countess Olympia von und zu Arco-Zinneberg on October 19, 2019. They have one son:
- Prince Louis Bonaparte (born December 7, 2022)
Charles and Béatrice divorced on May 2, 1989.
On September 28, 1996, Charles married Jeanne-Françoise Valliccioni. They had a daughter before they married:
- Princess Sophie Catherine Bonaparte (born April 18, 1992).
In 1998, Charles and Jeanne-Françoise adopted a daughter from Vietnam:
- Princess Anh Bonaparte (born April 22, 1998).
Family Leadership Dispute
Charles was officially recognized as the future head of the Bonaparte family while his father, Louis, Prince Napoléon, was alive. However, when his father's will was made public in December 1997, it stated that Charles should not become the head. Instead, it named his son, Jean-Christophe, Prince Napoléon, who was 11 years old at the time.
The lawyer who handled Prince Louis Napoléon's will said that Charles had distanced himself from the Bonaparte family's traditions. This was because Charles had expressed "republican and democratic opinions." The lawyer also said Charles remarried without his father's permission, which was against the family's rules.
Charles believes his father's will might have been influenced by others. He also argues that his father did not have the power to remove him from the line of succession. Charles says that divorce was not a reason to lose succession rights under the old rules. He also points out that his father's will was written before his second marriage.
Charles also mentioned that the family's legal last name was "Napoléon." He said it was changed to "Napoléon-Bonaparte" by mistake on his birth certificate. When he asked for it to be corrected, the change was also applied to his father's name.
When asked why he still claims to be the head of the family, Charles explained that he carries the "moral heritage" of his name. He believes that refusing the role would mean accepting the accusations against him. He also said that his republican views are not against his family's history. He noted that Napoléon I and Napoléon III were leaders of the French Republic before they became emperors.
Charles and his son, Jean-Christophe, have not had public disagreements. Charles has said there will "never be conflict between us." They have even appeared together in public.
However, a magazine called Point de Vue announced in 2004 that it would now refer to Jean-Christophe as "the Prince Napoleon." This was after the lawyer for Jean-Christophe protested. Charles responded by saying that the rule for the Bonaparte family is that the eldest son becomes the head after his father's death. He believes this rule cannot be changed.
Political Work
In 2001, Charles moved to Corsica. He ran in the local elections for the city of Ajaccio. He joined a group that won the election. He then served as the second deputy mayor, in charge of tourism for the city.
In 2008, Charles planned to run for mayor of Nemours. He led a group called "Ensemble Pour Les Nemouriens." However, he was defeated in that election.
See also
In Spanish: Carlos Bonaparte para niños
