Napoleon’s younger sister, Caroline Bonaparte Murat, would’ve had nothing without Napoleon. One of the biggest sellouts of them all turned out to be this individual. She lived out her days on the dime of Napoleon’s enemies after the execution of her husband. Caroline’s husband, Joachim Murat, was a very tall handsome man with an ambition out of proportion with his abilities. The Murats were integral to the story of Napoleon.
The entire story is here.
Let‘s go back a bit to when Caroline and her husband were constantly hounding Napoleon on the “necessity” of a divorce. The following is a letter by Josephine to her son Eugène. Napoleon’s divorce was central to his downfall.
Dear Eugène
Saint-Cloud, this 22nd of September [1808].
You will not be surprised that I have been ill, my dear Eugene. You know how much trouble I have had: my head felt it.
Last winter, I was in so much emotional turmoil that it manifested itself as physical pain which made me suffer horribly. The Emperor, in this circumstance, has proved his attachment to me by the anxiety he has shown. He got up at night, often up to four times, to come and see me. For six months he has been perfect to me. So it was painful to watch him leave this morning. It caused alarming anxiety for me. I do have a few enemies which surprises me since I have never hurt anyone, but fortunately they are in small in number, and many are already far from here, such as that prince Murat.
I can without injustice cite that one; his hatred for me is so passionate that he does not even try to hide it, and you would have a hard time conceiving what he said against me, ever pushing his desire for divorce. But I take my revenge on him like the others by not trying to harm these people, and the Emperor is too good not to recognize the difference between their conduct and mine.
But, my dear Eugene, I do not want to afflict you by talking to you about those who give me cause to complain about them. I’d rather like to take advantage of this opportunity to kiss you and tell you how touched I am by your feelings towards your mother.
JOSEPHINE.
