Charles Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, also known as Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte and later Napoleon III (born April 20, 1808 - death January 9, 1873) - the first president of the French Republic, Emperor of France from December 2, 1852 to September 4 1870 g.
Origin
Napoleon III spent the first years of his life in Holland, where his father Louis Napoleon ruled. After the restoration, he and his mother settled in Constanta. Despite his modest position, the attitude towards the Bonaparte family and close relationship with the great emperor made Louis a prominent figure.
Youth
1830 - he enters the secret society of the Carbonari and vows to devote all his strength to the struggle for the unity and liberation of Italy. 1831 - he takes part in the movement of the Italian youth against Pope Gregory XVI. After suppressing the speech, he went into hiding. 1832 - mother and son arrived in France and were there favorably received by King Louis-Philippe. In July, after the death of his son Napoleon I (known as Napoleon II), Louis Napoleon became the main heir to the Bonaparte dynastic traditions.
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Strasbourg conspiracy
Soon Louis Napoleon was able to establish acquaintances with several officers of the 4th Artillery Regiment, stationed in Strasbourg. With the help of 15 like-minded people, he decided to revolt the soldiers of the Strasbourg garrison and, with their help, seize the throne. This venture was successful in the beginning. 1836, October 30 - Colonel Vaudray gathered his regiment in the courtyard of the barracks and presented to Napoleon's soldiers. The soldiers greeted him with enthusiastic shouts, but other regiments refused to support the rebels. Napoleon was soon arrested and escorted to Paris.
Already in those days he could have lost his head for his adventure. But in his act there was so much naivety and frivolity that the king treated him very condescendingly. Louis-Philippe gave him 15 thousand francs and sent him to New York. However, he spent no more than a year in America, and soon returned to Switzerland, and then moved to London. Unusual in this young man was only a firm belief in his destiny and in the fact that sooner or later he would become the French emperor.
Boulogne. Conclusion. The escape
1840 - at the request of Louis-Philippe, the ashes of Napoleon I were solemnly buried in Paris, in the House of the Invalids. The French honored the late emperor as a national hero. Louis Napoleon took advantage of this event and again attempted to seize power. On August 6, he, along with 16 associates, landed at Boulogne and tried to raise an uprising in the 42nd Infantry Regiment. His actions were exactly the same as 4 years ago in Strasbourg. Soon they were all arrested. This time, King Louis-Philippe was not so merciful to his enemy: on October 6, the House of Peers sentenced Louis Napoleon to life in the fortress of Gam.
He spent six years in prison. May 1846 - alterations began in the fortress. Workers entered and exited freely. Napoleon studied the habits of the workers and their gait for several days. Then, shaving off his mustache and beard, he changed into a work blouse and left the fortress without any difficulty. A few hours later he was already in Belgium, and then took refuge in England.
Revolution of 1848
After the February Revolution of 1848, the future emperor arrived in Paris, was expelled a few days later by the Provisional Government and finally returned only in September, after the bloody July events, with a completely different state of mind: the workers by this time had lost faith in the republican politicians, and the bourgeoisie loudly demanded order and a "strong government". Thus, everything contributed to the success of the Bonapartists.
President of the French Republic
Louis Napoleon was able to win his first victory on September 18 during the by-election to the National Assembly, when he defeated his rivals in six provincial departments and in Paris, moreover, in the capital with an advantage of more than 100 thousand votes. This success inspired Napoleon to take part in a larger game. According to the 1848 constitution, all legislative power was concentrated in the National Assembly, and the executive was placed in the hands of the president, who was elected by universal, direct vote for 4 years. He was subject to the army, in which he had the right to appoint all generals, and the government, where he was free to change ministers. In October, he announced his intention to take part in the presidential elections. The most serious of his opponents was General Cavaignac.
In the elections on December 10, Louis Bonaparte received 5 million 400 thousand votes, while Cavaignac - only 1 million 400 thousand. When Louis Bonaparte took office, it turned out that there was no agreement between him and the Assembly. In particular, sharp contradictions manifested themselves in the summer of 1849, when, against the will of the deputies, the president sent French troops to Rome to help the pope and to fight the revolution. In subsequent years, relations between the two branches of government remained extremely tense.