Julie Bonaparte

The daughter of François Clary, a wealthy merchant of humble origins, and his second wife, Françoise Rose Somis, a member of the Marseilles gentry, Julie Clary was educated with her sister in a school run by nuns until the outbreak of the French Revolution on 14th July 1789 forced them to return home. During the Reign of Terror in France (1793-1794), Julie and her sister Désirée met the Bonaparte brothers, Joseph and Napoleon. The latter, then in love with Désirée (who would become Queen of Sweden by marriage to Marshal Bernadotte, the future Charles XIV John), encouraged Julie Clary's marriage to his brother Joseph (1768-1844). The wedding took place near Marseilles on 1st August 1794. The couple had three children: Julie (born and died in 1796), Zénaïde (1801-1854) and Charlotte (1802-1839), who would marry their cousins Charles Lucien and Napoléon Louis Bonaparte in 1821 and 1826, respectively. 

For the first years of their marriage, Julie Clary resided in Paris and Mortefontaine near the French capital, while her husband travelled on diplomatic missions to different parts of Europe. After Napoleon was crowned Emperor in 1804, Julie Clary was given the rank of Imperial Princess. Her social ascent reached its peak in 1806, when Joseph Bonaparte was appointed King of Naples, making her Queen consort. Julie was highly popular in the Neapolitan kingdom, to which she headed in the spring of 1808, although she could only stay there for three months due to the proclamation of her husband as King of Spain on 7th July that same year, following the abdications of Charles IV and Ferdinand VII in Bayonne. 

For the duration of Joseph Bonaparte’s reign (1808-1813), Julie Clary lived in Paris. There she supported her husband's policy and the King's commitment to maintaining Spain's territorial integrity in the face of Napoleon's ambitions. After the final fall of the Napoleonic Empire in June 1815, the Bonapartes left France. While Joseph went into exile in America, Julie Clary and her daughters settled in Italy after living for a while in Frankfurt and Brussels. The couple would meet again in 1841. The former Queen cared for her husband until his death in 1844. Julie Clary died in Florence on 7th April 1845. Her remains are buried in the Basilica of Santa Croce in the same city. 

Source: Royal Academy of History (https://www.rah.es)