The Son of the Emperor

The Prince Imperials and Emperor Napoleon II would reside within at earshot of the Prussian front at Spa for the remaining duration of 1847. The decision would prove to have little effect on the early outcome of the war as Prussia was deeply more concerned about the Russian hordes than Napoleonic troops. With the war of little concern, the domestic front occupied the heart and mind of Napoleon II. The people and the National Assembly had been clamoring for reforms to the state run press; which was heavily censored. On November 12th, 1847, the dreams of the people were granted with the removal of censorship granted creating a truly free press society.

With the early months of 1848 passing without much fare, the war seemed to drag on. Prussia kept fighting the Russians, and depending on the smaller Germanic nations to fend off the French aggression; which they were incapable of doing so. Prussia’s hope for victory was further disillusioned by the declaration of war delivered by Munich to Berlin on March 2nd. Bavaria, the newly found ally of Napoleon II within Germania had been promised the acquisition of Baden and Sigmaringen for her assistance within the war.

Before the war began, King Ludwig I was in a difficult position. Austria, Bavaria’s traditional ally had fallen out of power, and was considered weak by other nation’s standards. Prussia, Bavaria’s traditional enemy was on the rise and threatening a free state of democracy, which was contrary to Ludwig’s rule. Bavaria could fight alone against Prussia, or align herself with France; which she chose to do. Ludwig I owed a good deal to Napoleon II, whose father had elevated the House of Wittelsbach from princely titles to a king.

With Bavaria’s presence in the war now confirmed, newspapers began calling for a second Confederation of the Rhine. Both sides of the political spectrum were speculating on what Emperor Napoleon II would do with the Germanic territory he was likely to demand from Prussia’s inevitable defeat. One side clamored for the restoration of the Kingdom of Westphalia, though most forgot that former King Jerome was now the presiding King of Italy; and would most likely trade his throne for that of a lesser nation. Another side rallied for the direct annexation of the lands to be ministered under French military occupation. Whatever the speculation only one fact was certain, France’s minimal objectives were the annexation of the left bank of the Rhine River.

In the month of May, four battles occurred that foretold the Prussians what awaited them if they were to take the field against the armies of Napoleon. The German minor states were unwilling to cooperate and combine their armies, and suffered major setbacks. Though it is unlikely that combining their armies would have changed the outcome of any battle, it is possible they could have performed better on the field of battle. The battles of Wiesbaden, Darmstadt, Frankfurt and Weimar cost France less than 1,000 dead, but cost the Germanic states over 12,000.



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With the war of against Prussia and the minor German states progressing without setback, Emperor Napoleon II along with the two Prince Imperials headed back to Paris. The taste of war had satisfied both boys lust, especially that of the oldest son Prince Philippe, who had become like his father and thrived with military tradition. The younger Prince Joseph, though intrigued by the scenes of war and victories of French arms, deep down had thoughts about war as a last resort. Unlike his father, Napoleon II war was France’s last resort; constant war had begun to strain France beginning about 1810 until his father’s abdication. The main objective of any war right now was a quick and decisive victory to secure additional benefits for France.

While a decisive victory seemed already secure, a quick victory seemed far off, as none of the Germanic states seemed willing to sign peace agreements, as they hoped Prussia would come to their rescue. On July 8th, in what would be the last battle of the year of 1848 for the French Army. At the battle of Kassel, the Imperial Guard would lose 1,234 men for the destruction of 8,211 Germanic soldiers. In the end though, France’s cost were much higher as Marshal Foch would suffer a wound that would become severely infected.


In an elaborate state event held on August 28th, Marshal Jacques Foch, the “Duke of Versailles” was laid to rest at Les Invalides; which was a great monument and resting place of many of France’s military heroes; including Emperor Napoleon I. Though the death of Foch signaled mourning throughout the empire, the resolve was not undone. France would continue the fight, with new and current generals aiming to become the next “Duke of Versailles” amongst the populace. With these generals, the House of Bonaparte would seek to further extend the sphere of dominance throughout Europe and North Africa.

Expanding such sphere would come at the cost of breaking some principals. Originally at the formation of the Kingdom of Italy, Emperor Napoleon II thought that keeping the peninsula divided between Jerome’s Kingdom and the Kingdom of Naples (Two Sicilies) would keep a balance of power and economic stability to the region. Neither was obtained; in 1846 King Jerome announced that his government was bankrupt, not because of its lavish spending but the failure of the economy to pick up steam and begin the industrialization it required to compete. In addition, the factories produced by the industrialization lacked resources that were found within the Kingdom of Naples. Thus on October 25th, with nephew’s approval Jerome declared war on the Kingdom of Naples.

Before the year would end, the ever calculating court of Napoleon II was eager to avoid allowing their Russian ally to grow too strong. In a conference between the Prussian foreign minister, the Russian foreign minister and the court of Napoleon II at Paris, a peace treaty was settled between the nations. Prussia’s would respect Russia’s territorial rights, Russia would accept Prussia’s. Both nations left France thinking she would accept the territorial rights of Prussia; though she would not. France would remain at war with Prussia to acquire the Left Bank.

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