Could Napoleon II have united France and Parma?

If not for Hundred Days and had he not died in 1832, Napoleon II would have been in line to inherit Parma from his mother Marie-Louise.

Had Napoleon II risen to power in France (whether it be via the July Revolution or 1848), could he have united France with Parma? And, for that matter, Elba as well I suppose.
 
If not for Hundred Days and had he not died in 1832, Napoleon II would have been in line to inherit Parma from his mother Marie-Louise.

Had Napoleon II risen to power in France (whether it be via the July Revolution or 1848), could he have united France with Parma? And, for that matter, Elba as well I suppose.
Why stop at Parma? Had the 1848 revolution been worse for Austria with its government it in chaos the Eaglet could probably make a beeline straight for Italy. He could perhaps present himself before the Italian rebels and use them to take over Italy. He basically retakes his title of King of Rome that Napoleon I crowned him as. Let’s say he’s just as competent as his father, he could even prevent the Papal tension by perhaps making a deal with the Pope. The Pope would then recognize his rule over Italy. Napoleon II might meet up with his cousin Louis-Napoleon who became Napoleon III of otl. Napoleon III also fought with Italian revolutionaries in his youth. Napoleon could then rush into Paris after the instability caused by the Bourbons Ancien Regime and stage a coup with that ends with him reclaiming his mantle as French Emperor.

There wouldn’t be much the other powers could do to stop Napoleon II as the rest of Europe would be in disarray. But everyone would be watching to see whether he would start a war. And in a surprise turn of events he calls for peace in Europe while he basically rebuilds France’s economy and military. With this revived martial and economic vigor France avoids its demographic collapse. The people adore his regime with heavy amounts of propaganda and him following his father’s footsteps and bringing real reform for his people. The Kingdom of Italy would be united with France in a permanent Union with the Italians granted full citizenship rights. Napoleon then appoints new military commanders based on newfound military understanding when he fought among the Austrians and in Italy. France then goes on to annex Algeria and Tunis with a Neo-Roman Imperialist flavor. Napoleon II would then later after he has an heir would then try to expand France to the Rhine border and maybe even temporarily ally with Britain to help it rebuild its economy.

Maybe a Prussia that tries to take advantage of the chaos would be crushed by Napoleon II. Perhaps if a Greater German Empire emerged out of 1848 I feel like Napoleon II might team up with Russia to stop the revolutionary spread. Maybe the Habsburgs directly appeal to Napoleon after losing Hungary for support to avoid being annexed by Germany. Together Napoleon's New Grand Armee along with Russia attack Germany to crush the revolutionaries. This leaves Germany ruined and in chaos allowing for France to expand to its Rhine border virtually unopposed. If Napoleon is skilled enough he might even reinstate the Confederation of the Rhine which would alarm both Russia and Great Britain. Maybe Austria would be coerced to join this confederation but be given an autonomous status. Perhaps there is a sort of cold war between the Revived French Empire and the British Empire for influence across the globe. Maybe in a Great War Napoleonic France allies with the US when they enact war plan red.
 
@Basileus_Komnenos


Since the PoD involves avoiding the Hundred Days, then I can't see Napoleon II conquering all of Italy. Murat's dynasty will likely still be in charge of Naples.

Meanwhile, the British will be interested in limiting what Napoleon II can do. Asserting his title as King of Rome and Duke of Parma to conquer Northern Italy (aka the lands that had been under the rule of Napoleon's First French Empire and Kingdom of Italy)

At most I see a French acquisition of Northern Italy. If he really wants to push it, maybe he'd try for the Illyrian Provinces.

Meanwhile Algeria was already French before the July Revolution. King Charles X was the one who conquered the place.


I cannot see TTL's Frankfurt Parliament looking kindly upon a French annexation of the Rhineland. The most expansion in a northern direction I can imagine happening is a different outcome to the Belgian Revolution which allows for France to gain a slice of Belgium and the Netherlands to retain the remainder.
 
I personally believe that a personal union is more likely in this situation. If the congress of Vienna still goes through, it would be various European nation's (mostly Britain) attempts to keep France in leash, so annexing Parma outright doesn't seem that plausible for much of Napoleon II's reign.
 
Parma was given as compensation to Marie Louise for the loss of the French throne by the Congress of Wien, not for Napoleonic will. And Napoleon II was barred from inherit that throne.

He may have two chances: surviving and hope to win the French throne in 1830, or the Italian rebellion of the same year being successful as well and then obtaining Parma through Austrian concession. Naturally in both cases securing the other throne would be much difficult.
 
Parma was given as compensation to Marie Louise for the loss of the French throne by the Congress of Wien, not for Napoleonic will. And Napoleon II was barred from inherit that throne.

He may have two chances: surviving and hope to win the French throne in 1830, or the Italian rebellion of the same year being successful as well and then obtaining Parma through Austrian concession. Naturally in both cases securing the other throne would be much difficult.

My understanding is that it was after the Hundred Days that Parma was made a non-hereditary entity.
 
The United Empire of France and Italy, excluding the nation's North African holdings.

@Basileus_Komnenos

upload_2019-6-13_13-1-35.png
 
The United Empire of France and Italy, excluding the nation's North African holdings.

@Basileus_Komnenos

View attachment 465414
I like this map. Perhaps in this alternate timeline Napoleon II can ally with the Hapsburgs when Hungary tries to break away from them, and intervenes to save the Austrian Empire from collapse. Perhaps Metternich joins Napoleon II's court after he was dismissed in Austria and serves as an unofficial adviser to him. Though without Lombardy-Venetia one of their most wealthiest provinces they are economically crippled and forced to ally and economically depend on France like how they were tied to Germany in otl. When the revolutionaries in Germany start to clamor for a united Greater Germany in the 1840's the Hapsburgs refuse the Crown to keep their Hungarian lands. Or in an alternate scenario with Austria is that Hungary breaks away and the ally with Napoleon to prevent themselves from being swallowed by Frankfurt Germany or Prussia. Perhaps the Prussian King is forced to resign and a more liberal Hohenzollern accepts the Crown "from the gutter." Napoleon II in this timeline pursues a marriage to a von Wittlesbach Princess and secretly enters in an alliance with the Bavarians and Habsburgs who don't want to be under the Protestants, Prussian, or Revolutionaries. When Napoleon tries to gain the Natural Rhine territories of France this will cause friction between the French and the Germans. This inevitably leads to a Franco-German war over the Rhineland, but thanks to Napoleon's economic and military policies (this is assuming that Napoleon II is like his father) France is able to crush the German army and steamroll them marching on Berlin with the Bavarians defecting to him while the Austrians would join him. Thus Napoleon dismantles Germany and reinstates the Confederation of the Rhine. The Kingdom of Westphalia is restored with Jerome Bonaparte restored to his throne. The Kingdom of Westphalia would be enlarged and along with Bavaria would serve as Napoleon's German marches and principal vassals. The Bavarians also gain some territory while Prussia would be dismantled. Silesia would be given to Austria and Napoleon could free the Poles once again. He would re-establish the Grand Duchy of Warsaw and perhaps put his Polish half brother in charge of it creating a Polish cadet branch of House Bonaparte. Napoleon would then be free to march on the Kingdom of Two-Siciles and annex into his Kingdom of Italy, or maybe even install his cousin via Murat as King of Naples. Though he might just unite Italy altogether and put him as a Grand Duke.

Will cause a new coalition vs France.
This coalition could easily be butterflied away by more widespread and protracted Revolutionary movements in Europe. These butteflies would be the result of Napoleon II surviving his tuberculosis. Perhaps a last minute recovery will cause Emperor Francis II to have pity on him and allow him to serve in the Austrian army thus giving him the military experience to conduct his campaigns. Let's say that Britain doesn't intervene with the Queen Caroline Affair being worse with here living longer increasing George IV's unpopularity and forcing Liverpool to resign. This could be combined with tensions growing between the unpopular King George IV and a Liberal government formed by someone like Grenville. Maybe George IV dissolves Parliament which provokes a huge backlash with opposition parties. With such social tension at home, the last thing on the Britain's mind would be intervening in Europe. Maybe after they resolve everything it would be too late as France would steamroll Germany and establish itself as a continental hegemonic power. Russia could also be kept busy by more radical revolutionary and separatist revolts raging across Russia would force The autocratic Tsar Nicholas I to crush it with military force which would leave large swathes of the countryside devastated. A large peasant revolt would also accomplish the same thing. With all the other European powers occupied by revolutionary movements, a power vacuum would emerge such that Napoleon II could emerge as a Dark Horse to quietly take over France and lay the groundwork to restore the French Empire.
 
Wasn't Parma always eventually supposed to go back to the Bourbon-Parmas though? That's why they were given Lucca (which is not an even exchange) for Marie-Louise's lifetime. I'm pretty sure the rest of Europe wasn't going to just allow Napoleon II (who was going to be raised as an Austrian, lest we forget whether the Hundred Days happened or not) hereditary claim to anything so close to France.

And even if he tried anything, half-Habsburg or not, the rest of Europe will not sit idly by and let the son of the "Corsican Monster" (as the English called him) who swallowed Europe do the same. It would be Coalition time all over again (and this time France would have no military/demographic advantage).
 
Wasn't Parma always eventually supposed to go back to the Bourbon-Parmas though? That's why they were given Lucca (which is not an even exchange) for Marie-Louise's lifetime. I'm pretty sure the rest of Europe wasn't going to just allow Napoleon II (who was going to be raised as an Austrian, lest we forget whether the Hundred Days happened or not) hereditary claim to anything so close to France.

And even if he tried anything, half-Habsburg or not, the rest of Europe will not sit idly by and let the son of the "Corsican Monster" (as the English called him) who swallowed Europe do the same. It would be Coalition time all over again (and this time France would have no military/demographic advantage).
Well France's demographic advantage only really was lost after Germany was unified. Once Germany was unified it experienced a population boom unlike France which suffered under decades of unstable governments and the loss to the Germans in the Franco-Prussian War.

If the rest of Europe is occupied by Revolutionary movements seeking to end the age of Metternich, then there's not much they could do against Napoleon II if he manages to escape Austria and take over Paris. Maybe they could try to limit France once they deal with their problems, but their resources would be strained after putting down revolutions. In Prussia for example, the monarchy narrowly escaped a takeover by revolutionaries who wanted a more Liberal Greater Germany.
 
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