NAPOLEON II

The destiny of this child is very sad, he was born as Louis XVII to reign, and an amazing and prestigious destiny awaited him! however he lost everything, his throne, his father, his name, and even his motehr.
He was raised as an Austrian, always spied on by Metternich spies......

"MA NAISSANCE ET MA MORT VOILA LA TOUTE MA DESTINEE"
NAPOLEON II

With "la bonne Louise" as napoleon called her.....

 "The one who put his eggs in the eagle`nest"
  Chateaubriand



before loosing his eye...

Great pictures, Sisi! I love Rostand's play, "L'Aiglon."

   Adam was said to be very charming, even if he was missing one eye, he was very very charming.....

 Marie Louise had two childrens from Neipperg, they were given the titles of Princes of Montenuovo....

 Marie Louise seems to have inherited her father`s need for a companion, her fatehre the emperor kept got married 4 times, becuase he said that he needed a companion and intimate relationshios, but was too prude to have a mistress.

  Something else that is interesting is the fact that after the birth of the Aiglon the doctor told the emperor that they thought that the empress would never concieve again, but she did.....

i am also very interested in the sad destiny of this young man... apparently he was very impressed by his father, even if the austrians tried to hide everything related to napoleon from him. he wanted to step in his footsteps. he died because he caught a cold while insisting to take part in some parade to impress his grandfather, didn't he?

 You`re right he always considered his father a great hero, he was raised as an Austrian Archduke, his mother hoped that some day he qould inherited teh Duchy of Parma, and her father might have ended up accepting to give the Duchy tohis grandson, but Metternich never allowed anything like that, many royals felt unconfortable at the idea that a Bonaparte could reign again in Europe, even if that Bonaparte had Hapsburg blood.

   He was finally given the title of Duke of Reichstadt, he was very handsome, he had blond curls, and blue eyes, he had a nice complexion and very nice hands, but ther was something about him that reminded people of napoleon, if you look at the portrait there was a resemblance between them, escept that the son was blond.

   He was his grand father favourite, and was very smart. He could have accomplished a great deal, but he was always spied on, and he knew that he would never be as grand as his father, and I felt bad about it.

  You are correct he died of tuberculoses, because he attended a parade under the rain.

Great pictures, Sisi! I love Rostand's play, "L'Aiglon."

Thanks Elena Maria, I like to post pictures I think that somehow it transports us back in time.

Franz was indeed fascinated by his father.  Although Napoleon was a verboten subject when he was a child, as he grew older he sought out information about him.   He was very proud of Napoleon's accomplishments, and yearned to have a military career of his own.  This created an awkward situation for his grandfather, who loved Franz but had promised never to give him any power.  Franz was permitted to become an officer, but he never had the chance to see military action.

He died of tuberculosis before he had a chance to show what kind of general he would have made.  He fought the disease for a very long time before succumbing.  He might have recovered if he'd been allowed to go to the warmer climes of Italy, but the government felt it was necessary to keep him under surveillance in Vienna.

He had a ghastly relationship with his mother, who deserted him soon after they moved to Vienna.  She lived in Parma with her new family, rarely seeing him.  He told a friend bitterly that if Josephine had been his mother, he'd never have left Paris.

Franz was indeed fascinated by his father.  Although Napoleon was a verboten subject when he was a child, as he grew older he sought out information about him.   He was very proud of Napoleon's accomplishments, and yearned to have a military career of his own.  This created an awkward situation for his grandfather, who loved Franz but had promised never to give him any power.  Franz was permitted to become an officer, but he never had the chance to see military action.

He died of tuberculosis before he had a chance to show what kind of general he would have made.  He fought the disease for a very long time before succumbing.  He might have recovered if he'd been allowed to go to the warmer climes of Italy, but the government felt it was necessary to keep him under surveillance in Vienna.

He had a ghastly relationship with his mother, who deserted him soon after they moved to Vienna.  She lived in Parma with her new family, rarely seeing him.  He told a friend bitterly that if Josephine had been his mother, he'd never have left Paris.

 You bet he was right! Marie Louise was very selfish, she could have force her father to allow her son to go italy at least to recover, but she never did it! as you mention she barely came to see her son, she prefer to remain in Parma with her lover/husband and her children....
  Reichstadt resented it a lot, he always thought that his mother had abandoned his father to his miserable faith. He was appreciated by the imperial family his aunt Leopoldina who later became Empress of Brasil loved him very much as a child before living to her new Empire.

I have always been surprised at the way ML forgot so easily her husband, I knoew she grew with the idea that he was a monster but during their mariage he treated her very well, he was kind and gentle.... he was the father of his son......

 Also after being married to such a great man, being empress of the french and rule over almost all of Europe, how could she have OK living in her minuscule paarma with this count, and even worse becoming his mistresssss!!!!!!  

It is for me umbeleivable!

Yes, I recall the quote Palatine mentioned: "If Josephine had been my mother, my father would not have died on St Helena, and I would not be wasting my time here in Vienna," something like that.

Archduchess Sophie, mother of Franz Josef and Maximilian, was also kind to Napoleon II, I believe.