Person:Jérôme Bonaparte (1)

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Jérôme-Napoléon Bonaparte (born Girolamo Buonaparte; 15 November 1784 – 24 June 1860) was the youngest brother of Napoleon I and reigned as Jerome Napoleon I (formally Hieronymus Napoleon in German), King of Westphalia, between 1807 and 1813. Historian Owen Connelly points to his financial, military, and administrative successes and concludes he was a loyal, useful, and soldierly asset to Napoleon. Others, including historian Helen Jean Burn, have demonstrated his military failures, including a dismal career in the French navy that nearly escalated into war with Britain over an incident in the West Indies and his selfish concerns that led to the deaths of tens of thousands during the Russian invasion when he failed to provide military support as Napoleon had counted upon for his campaign; further, his addiction to spending led to both personal and national financial disasters, with his large personal debts repeatedly paid by family members including Napoleon, his mother, and both of his first two fathers-in-law, and the treasury of Westphalia emptied. In general, most historians agree that he was the most selfish, self-absorbed, unsuccessful, and feckless of Napoleon's brothers.

From 1816 onward, he bore the title of Prince of Montfort. After 1848, when his nephew, Louis Napoleon, became President of the French Second Republic, he served in several official roles, including Marshal of France from 1850 onward, and President of the Senate in 1852. He was the only one of Napoleon's siblings who lived long enough to see the Bonaparte restoration.

Jerome Bonaparte was the youngest son of Carlo Buonoparte, born in Ajaccio, Corsica. He served with the French navy in the West Indies in 1803; he escaped capture by the British by fleeing to the U.S. There he married Elizabeth Patterson (1785-1879) but his brother Napoleon I refused to recognize the marriage and had it annulled. A grandson from this union was the American public official, Charles Joseph Bonaparte. In 1807 Napoleon I created the kingdom of Westphalia and made Jerome its king. Six years later when the power of Napoleon was declining, Jerome went into exile. He returned to command a division in support of his brother at Waterloo in 1815. After the final defeat of Napoleon I, Jerome moved about Europe, living most of the time in Florence, Italy. In 1848, Charles Louis Napoleon, Jerome's nephew, became president of France, and Jerome was created a marshal of France. He served as president of the senate during the presidency of his nephew, which lasted until 1852. The second marriage of Jerome arranged by his brother Napoleon I in 1807, was to Princess Catherine of Wurttemburg (1783-1835). Their son, Napoleon Joseph Charles Paul Bonaparte, was known as Prince Bonaparte.^[3]

His titles include Contre-amiral (1806), Prince of France (1806), Division General (1807), King of Westphalia (1807-1813), Prince de Montfort (1816), reinstated Division General (1848), Governor of Les Invalides (1848), Marshal of France (1850), Senator (1852), President of the Senate (1852), Prince of France (1852), Honorary governor of Les Invalides (1852).

1. ↑ ^1.0 1.1 Jérôme Bonaparte, in Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.
2.   Charles Joseph Bonaparte and the F.B.I., in The History Guy.

   Charles Joseph Bonaparte was one of the American descendants of Jerome Bonaparte, a brother of Napoleon. In addition to serving as a U.S. Attorney General and Secretary of the Navy, Charles Bonaparte also founded the Bureau of Investigation which later became the F.B.I. His life is history that deserves to be remembered.
   
   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3RkQqXvvCQ

3. ↑ Funk & Wagnalls Encyclopedia, Electric Library [1]