August 31, 2024 • 17 mins
(Christine) In 1812, while France’s Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was on a military campaign in Russia, he learned of trouble back home: General Claude-François de Malet and several co-conspirators had tried to take control of the French government. Part of their plan centered around telling people that Napoleon had died - except, of course, he hadn’t. Learn all about the attempted coup from Christine in this episode.
For further reading suggestions and more, please visit: https://www.footnotinghistory.com/
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(00:00):
In 1812, while France’s Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was busy with a military campaign in Russia,
there was an attempt to overthrow him back in Paris. Find out who was behind it,
what they did, and how it all turned out in this episode of Footnoting History.
(00:24):
Hey everyone,
Christine here, excited to go back to my roots…my roots of covering Napoleonic
history, that is. For a time it was basically all I did and I regret that I got away from that so,
here we are, reunited…If you missed out on any of my older Napoleonic episodes–they covered
everything from how to avoid serving in his army to stories of his fascinating family members–you
(00:49):
can find a link to them on the entry for this episode on FootnotingHistory.com and a playlist
of them on our YouTube channel. Those are also the same places you are guaranteed to have the
audio for these episodes with captions, if that’s something you’re interested in.
Now, on to Napoleon and the attempt to overthrow him. Our action today occurs from October to
(01:11):
December of 1812. Okay, that’s great and all, I hear you say, but please give us some context so
everything makes sense. Smart idea. Keeping in mind that for the sake of time this is very much
the abbreviated version of events, let’s take a look at things: By 1812 Napoleon had been a prime
mover in French (and broader European) politics for quite some time. He worked his way up in
(01:36):
the French Army in the second half of the 1700s, right through the infamous French Revolution that
replaced the monarchy with a republic. In 1799, he really put himself front and center. He staged a
coup that overthrew the Directorate. That was the government that formed after the heaviest days of
the Revolution and its guillotine were well done. From then, he never went away. Instead,
(02:00):
he made sure he was creating a new version of France where his family was the ruling one.
As part of that, in December of 1804, Napoleon and his wife, Josephine, were crowned Emperor and
Empress. Once he established the Empire, Napoleon was everywhere even more so than before. He spent
a lot of time trying to spread his power–using military strength (and sometimes diplomacy) to put
(02:25):
family members on thrones around Europe and making politically-astute marriage matches for them,
too. Given that he had taken over France and was pressing himself upon other countries,
it won’t surprise you to hear me say he had a lot of enemies. For our purposes, the ones within
France are the most important. Here, they fell into numerous groups with various gripes. The most
(02:47):
significant gripes were on the opposite ends of the spectrum. First, there were the republicans,
those who were mad that he established what was essentially a new version of the monarchy
when the people of France had worked so hard to overthrow the monarchy and become people-led not
long ago. The other side of this consisted of the royalists, those who thought the monarchy should
(03:09):
never have been done away with in the first place and wanted the old family–well the members of it
that hadn’t been executed–to be back in charge.Despite these haters, Napoleon also had a ton of
internal support, especially from members of the military and he was very good at a lot of things,
which enabled him to have some pretty big successes, especially–again–where the military
(03:32):
was concerned. What he didn’t have, though, was a secure family line. While he had two
stepchildren he loved, Eugene and Hortense, who were Josephine’s children from her first marriage,
the couple had no children of their own. Eventually, Napoleon was forced to divorce
Josephine and marry a younger woman, Marie-Louise of Austria, who gave him the son he wanted to help
(03:54):
his dynasty continue. He had, he hoped, done what he needed to do to secure the Bonapartes
ruling the French Empire for a long time to come.As you probably gathered, Napoleon’s tenure as
Emperor was one of perpetual warfare. So it’s not surprising that in 1812 Napoleon was out of Paris,
leading his army in yet another campaign. This is the infamous Russian campaign… From
(04:17):
the French perspective, to call it a disaster is to be kind. It was a near annihilation of
Napoleon’s army. There are basically no positive takeaways from the Russian campaign if you
were Napoleon or one of his supporters.And while Napoleon and his Grand Armee
were away…Paris was not quiet, at least, not on one night in late October. Yes,
(04:39):
listeners, we’ve made it to the main event.So, while Napoleon is off failing in Russia,
a man in Paris is hatching a plan. The man was Claude François de Malet. Like Napoleon,
Malet had a history with the military. Unlike Napoleon, it wasn’t a famously successful one.
Although he was a general, Malet was no longer active in the role. He had what can
(05:02):
best be called a checkered military record. In 1812, he was in his late 50s, an ardent
republican and–MOST importantly– anti-Napoleon. He hadn’t liked Napoleon from the start of his
government takeover and he certainly hadn’t grown to like Napoleon when he became emperor. In fact,
he disliked Napoleon so much that in 1808 he was arrested for participating in a republican plot
(05:28):
to overthrow him. That attempted coup, however, didn’t get very far. Indeed, it didn’t get off the
ground. The same wouldn’t be the case next time.About two years after Malet was arrested for
wanting Napoleon gone, he was moved from prison to a private sanatorium. This was allegedly due to
health issues and as a result it was very common, for a long time, for historians to simply dismiss
(05:52):
Malet as a madman. Thierry Lentz, who heads the Fondation Napoleon and has studied and written
about Malet at length, offered a more nuanced take on his condition. He said in an interview,
“Whilst it cannot be denied that the man had an obsessive/compulsive side,
it must also be recognized that he was not lacking in either courage or intelligence nor a certain
(06:13):
practical savoir-faire in his undertakings.” This is certainly true enough, given what Malet planned
and enacted in the fall of 1812. From within the sanatorium, which historian Munro Price
described as the early 19th-century equivalent of an open prison, Malet was able to take advantage
of the lax security and spearhead a plan that would, he hoped, get rid of Napoleon for good.
(06:38):
One night at the end of October, the 22nd going into the 23rd, Malet escaped from the sanatorium
to put his plan into action. He set off in the direction of a barracks, wearing military attire
and armed with forged documents, including one that claimed to be from the Senate. They not only
claimed Napoleon was dead, but also named a new provisional government to replace him. This new
(07:02):
provisional government is a funny thing, because it contained names that were well-known, and
people that had a history of being upset with the Empire, however many of these alleged provisional
government members also had no idea who Malet was or that they were included. Presumably Malet
hoped that if he succeeded, these people would want to jump on board. Until then, he was okay
(07:24):
with involving them without their knowledge.He arrived at the barracks and stated his case:
Napoleon was dead, the provisional government was now in charge, and he needed troops to support him
during the changeover. He showed his paperwork and in a move that would have television viewers
gasp if this was part of a scripted drama, he was actually given troops to help him.
(07:45):
Historians’ estimates differ. For example, Munro Price refers to there being ‘several hundred’
troops while Andrew Roberts cites the number as 1200 members of the National Guard. Regardless,
it was hardly something to sneeze at. It also would’ve given heft to his claims. If he had
soldiers with him, surely he must be legit, right?With his new contingent of duped supporters,
(08:07):
Malet made his way to the infamous prison, La Force. There he pulled the same routine with his
fake orders and he called for the release of two specific prisoners. Lahorie and Guidal. They were
fellow republican-leaning generals who disliked Napoleon. Lahorie was the more put together of the
two while Guidal was a heavy drinker and more of a live wire. Both though were happy to be
(08:30):
freed and join the cause. Now with three men to lead things, they continued with the government
takeover. Time was, of course, of the essence.The next step was fairly simple. Visit and,
if necessary, wake up–because remember this was the middle of the night–people of note
for the government of Paris and lock them up. I imagine it felt pretty sweet for those who
(08:52):
had been imprisoned to now be the ones doing the imprisoning. The Minister of Police was
first on the agenda. He was woken up and thrown in prison. Similarly seen as worthy
of being targeted and thrown behind bars was the prefect of police and chief of security. Later,
Napoleon’s stepdaughter Hortense would write that Parisians were amused by knowing that officials
(09:14):
were dragged to prison by people who were supposed to be behind bars themselves. However, it was
certainly no laughing matter to those involved.Eventually, Malet brought his coup to General
Hulin in the Place Vendome. This was a mistake. Hulin was a badass.
At present he was the military governor of Paris, but his life included being an active leader in
(09:35):
the storming of the Bastille, being a part of Napoleon’s army, and being made a Grand Officer of
the Legion of Honor. He was certainly no pushover and he didn’t buy what Malet was selling. In
response to this, instead of keeping calm, Malet decided to shoot him in the face. Certainly this
wasn’t the smartest action to take. Malet then encountered one of Hulin’s supporting officers,
(09:58):
Doucet. Doucet recognized all was not right, quickly apprehended Malet, likely tied him
to a chair, and raised the general alarm about what was actually happening in Paris that night.
If you’re worried about Hulin, you need not be. He survived. However, the remnants of the shot could
never be removed from his jaw and there were some who called him ‘bullet eater’ in the years that
(10:19):
followed. He lived for another almost 30 years.Anyway, once the coup attempt was uncovered,
things escalated quickly. Malet and his crew were swiftly arrested. The officials that
had been arrested were freed. The soldiers Malet had taken control of were returned to their true
occupations of working for the actual government. The Imperial Guard was used to bring the city back
(10:41):
to order. Everything was done that you’d expect to happen when you’re trying to stop someone
from taking over the reins of control.Now, you might be asking yourself,
who was actually in charge while Napoleon was away? That role belonged to Cambacérès, one of
Napoleon’s long-time most-trusted associates. Although, again due to the whole overnight
(11:02):
thing and how quickly it happened, he didn’t learn about the coup until after it was nearly stopped,
and he was quick on his reaction game. He made sure the Empress and her son were safe,
handled the statement for the press, held meetings with officials, and took charge over arranging
the process for dealing with those involved. The process was a military trial, or a court-martial.
(11:23):
One particularly interesting bit from the trial is that, when questioned about the coup and
his accomplices, Malet said that had he been successful, everyone would have been
his accomplices. Honestly, he probably wasn’t wrong. One can see the perspective that had
he successfully caused a change in government, everyone who validated his actions and upheld
(11:46):
them would have been participating alongside him. None of this mattered, though, because the coup
failed. The actual result of it was that Malet and many of those labeled his co-conspirators were
executed before October was over, and therefore before Napoleon even learned what had taken place.
It was all over as swiftly as it began.As much wow-factor as this event has,
(12:09):
causing people to pause and marvel at the audacity of it all, it’s hard to imagine
a world where it would have ever been successful. Even if Malet and his assisting parties had gotten
farther in their plan, they would have had to count on either Napoleon actually being killed
while in Russia or people choosing to stick with Malet and crew over Napoleon when they learned
(12:30):
the emperor was still alive. Of course it was possible Napoleon could be killed at any time,
but it wasn’t exactly a guarantee. And in Napoleon’s absence, who is to say that the French
people would have accepted Malet anyway? They were certainly not shy about getting rid of rulers in
this period. The odds were never in Malet’s favor.And of course, Napoleon did come back to Paris,
eventually. Word was sent to Napoleon quickly, but this was 1812 and people weren’t exactly emailing
(12:56):
or making phone calls, so he didn’t receive it until early November. He was pretty darn
busy trying to keep at least some of his Army alive during their crushing Russian campaign,
so he couldn’t just turn around and leave. His return to Paris didn’t occur until December,
which means that the attempted coup was little more than a memory and Malet and his associates
were dead for over a month. It was still important for him to return and show his face and make sure
(13:21):
everything was how it should be—secure. Napoleon, we know, had worked very hard to make sure he had
a wife who could give him a son, and with that son born, he hoped he was establishing a dynasty
that would last. However, while the Malet attempt didn’t succeed, it had gone far enough to make
Napoleon worry…after all, none of the officials who believed Malet’s lies had given so much as a
(13:44):
pause of thought to the fact that if Napoleon died, the next ruler SHOULD be his son. If you
also didn’t think of Napoleon’s son when I was telling this story, you’re forgiven. However,
you are allowed to be caught up in the moment. French officials definitely should not have been.
Their minds should have immediately thought, okay time to rally around the son who is now
(14:07):
Napoleon II. Yes, his son was a child, but it was certainly not uncommon for a child to inherit a
throne when their ruling parent died early. That the coup didn’t cause people to immediately rally
around his son alarmed Napoleon, and rightfully so. As it stood, the dynasty centered solely on
him. The Bonapartes, as a whole, had not been accepted—or maybe it’s better to say they had
(14:33):
not been so heavily embedded as the ideal ruling dynasty into the consciousness of the French
people that they would naturally rally around the next-in-line Bonaparte to take the crown.
Napoleon’s concern was well-known. When writing his memoirs, Napoleon’s valet Louis-Joseph
Marchand noted that the Malet attempted coup, “offered new proof of the negligence of all
(14:57):
segments of the administration when he [that is, Napoleon] was not there to direct their
moves. Everything therefore relied on him, on his own person; he had to be everywhere.” Napoleon’s
stepdaughter, Hortense, made a similar observation in her memoirs. She said, rather pointedly,
that Napoleon “felt that those who should have protected his dynasty had shown a contemptible
(15:23):
spirit of vacillation and lack of decision in this affair. He was greatly concerned about it.”
Certainly, Napoleon wasn’t going to leave for the front again without making sure things
were in better order. He couldn’t force people to view his dynasty as more established than it was,
though if he could have figured out a way to do just that I’m sure he would have. However, what
(15:43):
he could do was have the Senate confirm that in his absence, his wife, the Empress Marie-Louise,
would be regent for their son. He further appointed a regency council, featuring all
the usual suspects who were already running things when he was away, to try and solidify a recognized
chain of succession to the best of his ability.Ultimately, Malet’s coup attempt is one of those
(16:06):
events that is fascinating and a little bit bizarre, but was never going to be a romping
success. What it did do, however, was get into Napoleon’s head by underscoring that the dynastic
stability he desperately wanted to achieve did not yet exist. At the end of 1812 he was still
Emperor, but the glory of his ascendancy was in the past and he was right to worry. After all,
(16:28):
with the benefit of being from 200 years later, we know that only a few short years,
Napoleon would be exiled from France for good and it wouldn’t be his son who took over. In fact,
it would take multiple periods of unrest and several decades before another Bonaparte ruled
France. That one would be Napoleon’s nephew, the son of his brother Louis and the aforementioned
(16:52):
stepdaughter, Hortense. He called himself Napoleon III, holding a place for Napoleon I’s son, who had
never ruled. But one can hardly blame Napoleon I, lacking the ability to know the future,
for finding Malet’s ability to have even a modicum of success to be a massive problem.
If I were him, I would have, too.Thank you for joining me for this
(17:14):
episode of Footnoting History. It was great to return to my favorite time period. As always,
for further reading suggestions and to learn how you can help us keep this podcast going,
visit FootnotingHistory.com. And, don’t forget…the best stories are in the footnotes.
In 1812, while France’s Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was busy with a military campaign in Russia,
there was an attempt to overthrow him back in Paris. Find out who was behind it,
what they did, and how it all turned out in this episode of Footnoting History.
(00:24):
Hey everyone,
Christine here, excited to go back to my roots…my roots of covering Napoleonic
history, that is. For a time it was basically all I did and I regret that I got away from that so,
here we are, reunited…If you missed out on any of my older Napoleonic episodes–they covered
everything from how to avoid serving in his army to stories of his fascinating family members–you
(00:49):
can find a link to them on the entry for this episode on FootnotingHistory.com and a playlist
of them on our YouTube channel. Those are also the same places you are guaranteed to have the
audio for these episodes with captions, if that’s something you’re interested in.
Now, on to Napoleon and the attempt to overthrow him. Our action today occurs from October to
(01:11):
December of 1812. Okay, that’s great and all, I hear you say, but please give us some context so
everything makes sense. Smart idea. Keeping in mind that for the sake of time this is very much
the abbreviated version of events, let’s take a look at things: By 1812 Napoleon had been a prime
mover in French (and broader European) politics for quite some time. He worked his way up in
(01:36):
the French Army in the second half of the 1700s, right through the infamous French Revolution that
replaced the monarchy with a republic. In 1799, he really put himself front and center. He staged a
coup that overthrew the Directorate. That was the government that formed after the heaviest days of
the Revolution and its guillotine were well done. From then, he never went away. Instead,
(02:00):
he made sure he was creating a new version of France where his family was the ruling one.
As part of that, in December of 1804, Napoleon and his wife, Josephine, were crowned Emperor and
Empress. Once he established the Empire, Napoleon was everywhere even more so than before. He spent
a lot of time trying to spread his power–using military strength (and sometimes diplomacy) to put
(02:25):
family members on thrones around Europe and making politically-astute marriage matches for them,
too. Given that he had taken over France and was pressing himself upon other countries,
it won’t surprise you to hear me say he had a lot of enemies. For our purposes, the ones within
France are the most important. Here, they fell into numerous groups with various gripes. The most
(02:47):
significant gripes were on the opposite ends of the spectrum. First, there were the republicans,
those who were mad that he established what was essentially a new version of the monarchy
when the people of France had worked so hard to overthrow the monarchy and become people-led not
long ago. The other side of this consisted of the royalists, those who thought the monarchy should
(03:09):
never have been done away with in the first place and wanted the old family–well the members of it
that hadn’t been executed–to be back in charge.Despite these haters, Napoleon also had a ton of
internal support, especially from members of the military and he was very good at a lot of things,
which enabled him to have some pretty big successes, especially–again–where the military
(03:32):
was concerned. What he didn’t have, though, was a secure family line. While he had two
stepchildren he loved, Eugene and Hortense, who were Josephine’s children from her first marriage,
the couple had no children of their own. Eventually, Napoleon was forced to divorce
Josephine and marry a younger woman, Marie-Louise of Austria, who gave him the son he wanted to help
(03:54):
his dynasty continue. He had, he hoped, done what he needed to do to secure the Bonapartes
ruling the French Empire for a long time to come.As you probably gathered, Napoleon’s tenure as
Emperor was one of perpetual warfare. So it’s not surprising that in 1812 Napoleon was out of Paris,
leading his army in yet another campaign. This is the infamous Russian campaign… From
(04:17):
the French perspective, to call it a disaster is to be kind. It was a near annihilation of
Napoleon’s army. There are basically no positive takeaways from the Russian campaign if you
were Napoleon or one of his supporters.And while Napoleon and his Grand Armee
were away…Paris was not quiet, at least, not on one night in late October. Yes,
(04:39):
listeners, we’ve made it to the main event.So, while Napoleon is off failing in Russia,
a man in Paris is hatching a plan. The man was Claude François de Malet. Like Napoleon,
Malet had a history with the military. Unlike Napoleon, it wasn’t a famously successful one.
Although he was a general, Malet was no longer active in the role. He had what can
(05:02):
best be called a checkered military record. In 1812, he was in his late 50s, an ardent
republican and–MOST importantly– anti-Napoleon. He hadn’t liked Napoleon from the start of his
government takeover and he certainly hadn’t grown to like Napoleon when he became emperor. In fact,
he disliked Napoleon so much that in 1808 he was arrested for participating in a republican plot
(05:28):
to overthrow him. That attempted coup, however, didn’t get very far. Indeed, it didn’t get off the
ground. The same wouldn’t be the case next time.About two years after Malet was arrested for
wanting Napoleon gone, he was moved from prison to a private sanatorium. This was allegedly due to
health issues and as a result it was very common, for a long time, for historians to simply dismiss
(05:52):
Malet as a madman. Thierry Lentz, who heads the Fondation Napoleon and has studied and written
about Malet at length, offered a more nuanced take on his condition. He said in an interview,
“Whilst it cannot be denied that the man had an obsessive/compulsive side,
it must also be recognized that he was not lacking in either courage or intelligence nor a certain
(06:13):
practical savoir-faire in his undertakings.” This is certainly true enough, given what Malet planned
and enacted in the fall of 1812. From within the sanatorium, which historian Munro Price
described as the early 19th-century equivalent of an open prison, Malet was able to take advantage
of the lax security and spearhead a plan that would, he hoped, get rid of Napoleon for good.
(06:38):
One night at the end of October, the 22nd going into the 23rd, Malet escaped from the sanatorium
to put his plan into action. He set off in the direction of a barracks, wearing military attire
and armed with forged documents, including one that claimed to be from the Senate. They not only
claimed Napoleon was dead, but also named a new provisional government to replace him. This new
(07:02):
provisional government is a funny thing, because it contained names that were well-known, and
people that had a history of being upset with the Empire, however many of these alleged provisional
government members also had no idea who Malet was or that they were included. Presumably Malet
hoped that if he succeeded, these people would want to jump on board. Until then, he was okay
(07:24):
with involving them without their knowledge.He arrived at the barracks and stated his case:
Napoleon was dead, the provisional government was now in charge, and he needed troops to support him
during the changeover. He showed his paperwork and in a move that would have television viewers
gasp if this was part of a scripted drama, he was actually given troops to help him.
(07:45):
Historians’ estimates differ. For example, Munro Price refers to there being ‘several hundred’
troops while Andrew Roberts cites the number as 1200 members of the National Guard. Regardless,
it was hardly something to sneeze at. It also would’ve given heft to his claims. If he had
soldiers with him, surely he must be legit, right?With his new contingent of duped supporters,
(08:07):
Malet made his way to the infamous prison, La Force. There he pulled the same routine with his
fake orders and he called for the release of two specific prisoners. Lahorie and Guidal. They were
fellow republican-leaning generals who disliked Napoleon. Lahorie was the more put together of the
two while Guidal was a heavy drinker and more of a live wire. Both though were happy to be
(08:30):
freed and join the cause. Now with three men to lead things, they continued with the government
takeover. Time was, of course, of the essence.The next step was fairly simple. Visit and,
if necessary, wake up–because remember this was the middle of the night–people of note
for the government of Paris and lock them up. I imagine it felt pretty sweet for those who
(08:52):
had been imprisoned to now be the ones doing the imprisoning. The Minister of Police was
first on the agenda. He was woken up and thrown in prison. Similarly seen as worthy
of being targeted and thrown behind bars was the prefect of police and chief of security. Later,
Napoleon’s stepdaughter Hortense would write that Parisians were amused by knowing that officials
(09:14):
were dragged to prison by people who were supposed to be behind bars themselves. However, it was
certainly no laughing matter to those involved.Eventually, Malet brought his coup to General
Hulin in the Place Vendome. This was a mistake. Hulin was a badass.
At present he was the military governor of Paris, but his life included being an active leader in
(09:35):
the storming of the Bastille, being a part of Napoleon’s army, and being made a Grand Officer of
the Legion of Honor. He was certainly no pushover and he didn’t buy what Malet was selling. In
response to this, instead of keeping calm, Malet decided to shoot him in the face. Certainly this
wasn’t the smartest action to take. Malet then encountered one of Hulin’s supporting officers,
(09:58):
Doucet. Doucet recognized all was not right, quickly apprehended Malet, likely tied him
to a chair, and raised the general alarm about what was actually happening in Paris that night.
If you’re worried about Hulin, you need not be. He survived. However, the remnants of the shot could
never be removed from his jaw and there were some who called him ‘bullet eater’ in the years that
(10:19):
followed. He lived for another almost 30 years.Anyway, once the coup attempt was uncovered,
things escalated quickly. Malet and his crew were swiftly arrested. The officials that
had been arrested were freed. The soldiers Malet had taken control of were returned to their true
occupations of working for the actual government. The Imperial Guard was used to bring the city back
(10:41):
to order. Everything was done that you’d expect to happen when you’re trying to stop someone
from taking over the reins of control.Now, you might be asking yourself,
who was actually in charge while Napoleon was away? That role belonged to Cambacérès, one of
Napoleon’s long-time most-trusted associates. Although, again due to the whole overnight
(11:02):
thing and how quickly it happened, he didn’t learn about the coup until after it was nearly stopped,
and he was quick on his reaction game. He made sure the Empress and her son were safe,
handled the statement for the press, held meetings with officials, and took charge over arranging
the process for dealing with those involved. The process was a military trial, or a court-martial.
(11:23):
One particularly interesting bit from the trial is that, when questioned about the coup and
his accomplices, Malet said that had he been successful, everyone would have been
his accomplices. Honestly, he probably wasn’t wrong. One can see the perspective that had
he successfully caused a change in government, everyone who validated his actions and upheld
(11:46):
them would have been participating alongside him. None of this mattered, though, because the coup
failed. The actual result of it was that Malet and many of those labeled his co-conspirators were
executed before October was over, and therefore before Napoleon even learned what had taken place.
It was all over as swiftly as it began.As much wow-factor as this event has,
(12:09):
causing people to pause and marvel at the audacity of it all, it’s hard to imagine
a world where it would have ever been successful. Even if Malet and his assisting parties had gotten
farther in their plan, they would have had to count on either Napoleon actually being killed
while in Russia or people choosing to stick with Malet and crew over Napoleon when they learned
(12:30):
the emperor was still alive. Of course it was possible Napoleon could be killed at any time,
but it wasn’t exactly a guarantee. And in Napoleon’s absence, who is to say that the French
people would have accepted Malet anyway? They were certainly not shy about getting rid of rulers in
this period. The odds were never in Malet’s favor.And of course, Napoleon did come back to Paris,
eventually. Word was sent to Napoleon quickly, but this was 1812 and people weren’t exactly emailing
(12:56):
or making phone calls, so he didn’t receive it until early November. He was pretty darn
busy trying to keep at least some of his Army alive during their crushing Russian campaign,
so he couldn’t just turn around and leave. His return to Paris didn’t occur until December,
which means that the attempted coup was little more than a memory and Malet and his associates
were dead for over a month. It was still important for him to return and show his face and make sure
(13:21):
everything was how it should be—secure. Napoleon, we know, had worked very hard to make sure he had
a wife who could give him a son, and with that son born, he hoped he was establishing a dynasty
that would last. However, while the Malet attempt didn’t succeed, it had gone far enough to make
Napoleon worry…after all, none of the officials who believed Malet’s lies had given so much as a
(13:44):
pause of thought to the fact that if Napoleon died, the next ruler SHOULD be his son. If you
also didn’t think of Napoleon’s son when I was telling this story, you’re forgiven. However,
you are allowed to be caught up in the moment. French officials definitely should not have been.
Their minds should have immediately thought, okay time to rally around the son who is now
(14:07):
Napoleon II. Yes, his son was a child, but it was certainly not uncommon for a child to inherit a
throne when their ruling parent died early. That the coup didn’t cause people to immediately rally
around his son alarmed Napoleon, and rightfully so. As it stood, the dynasty centered solely on
him. The Bonapartes, as a whole, had not been accepted—or maybe it’s better to say they had
(14:33):
not been so heavily embedded as the ideal ruling dynasty into the consciousness of the French
people that they would naturally rally around the next-in-line Bonaparte to take the crown.
Napoleon’s concern was well-known. When writing his memoirs, Napoleon’s valet Louis-Joseph
Marchand noted that the Malet attempted coup, “offered new proof of the negligence of all
(14:57):
segments of the administration when he [that is, Napoleon] was not there to direct their
moves. Everything therefore relied on him, on his own person; he had to be everywhere.” Napoleon’s
stepdaughter, Hortense, made a similar observation in her memoirs. She said, rather pointedly,
that Napoleon “felt that those who should have protected his dynasty had shown a contemptible
(15:23):
spirit of vacillation and lack of decision in this affair. He was greatly concerned about it.”
Certainly, Napoleon wasn’t going to leave for the front again without making sure things
were in better order. He couldn’t force people to view his dynasty as more established than it was,
though if he could have figured out a way to do just that I’m sure he would have. However, what
(15:43):
he could do was have the Senate confirm that in his absence, his wife, the Empress Marie-Louise,
would be regent for their son. He further appointed a regency council, featuring all
the usual suspects who were already running things when he was away, to try and solidify a recognized
chain of succession to the best of his ability.Ultimately, Malet’s coup attempt is one of those
(16:06):
events that is fascinating and a little bit bizarre, but was never going to be a romping
success. What it did do, however, was get into Napoleon’s head by underscoring that the dynastic
stability he desperately wanted to achieve did not yet exist. At the end of 1812 he was still
Emperor, but the glory of his ascendancy was in the past and he was right to worry. After all,
(16:28):
with the benefit of being from 200 years later, we know that only a few short years,
Napoleon would be exiled from France for good and it wouldn’t be his son who took over. In fact,
it would take multiple periods of unrest and several decades before another Bonaparte ruled
France. That one would be Napoleon’s nephew, the son of his brother Louis and the aforementioned
(16:52):
stepdaughter, Hortense. He called himself Napoleon III, holding a place for Napoleon I’s son, who had
never ruled. But one can hardly blame Napoleon I, lacking the ability to know the future,
for finding Malet’s ability to have even a modicum of success to be a massive problem.
If I were him, I would have, too.Thank you for joining me for this
(17:14):
episode of Footnoting History. It was great to return to my favorite time period. As always,
for further reading suggestions and to learn how you can help us keep this podcast going,
visit FootnotingHistory.com. And, don’t forget…the best stories are in the footnotes.
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