WI: Dermide Bonaparte-Leclerc Survives

As it says on the tin, Pauline Bonaparte's only child died young, of an illness which also affected Lucien and his children. They survived, Dermide did not. But what if he had?
 
As it says on the tin, Pauline Bonaparte's only child died young, of an illness which also affected Lucien and his children. They survived, Dermide did not. But what if he had?

I'm pretty sure his health was severely weakened by the Haitian climate, so you'd need to keep him in Europe - easiest way to do that is to have some other General (not Leclerc senior) sent off to puke himself to death in the Caribbean. Then butterflies take over. The only way Dermide gets to do anything interesting is if Napoleon remains in power for at least five more years than OTL - otherwise his nephew is too young to lead an Army, rule a client state or whatever. And even then, this only works if Dermide's personal qualities (whatever they are) make him a more attractive choice to entrust power to than any Bonapartes or Marshals that are still around.
 
I was actually thinking that Dermide's survival would influence Pauline's behavior during the empire. For instance, if Caroline's maternal instincts are anything to go by, Pauline's gonna be ambitious for her son, if not for herself. So, she might accept Napoleon's nomination as duchess of Guastalla solely for her son, rather than OTL where she politely told him to go smoke some more of whatever he had.
 
I was actually thinking that Dermide's survival would influence Pauline's behavior during the empire. For instance, if Caroline's maternal instincts are anything to go by, Pauline's gonna be ambitious for her son, if not for herself. So, she might accept Napoleon's nomination as duchess of Guastalla solely for her son, rather than OTL where she politely told him to go smoke some more of whatever he had.

That's interesting. Certainly Pauline was maternal enough that she had a major breakdown after Dermide's death - she went a bit wonky, circulating around the spa towns of Europe for a year or two, and stopped responding to correspondence. I've read that she refused Guastalla because she saw the writing on the wall and didn't want to spend the last nine years of Imperial life opening schools and all that. She was mainly self-centred and obsessed with beauty and matarial possessions, according to the one biography of her that I've read, so she'd naturally stay in the salons of Paris once her brother was ensconced. Leclerc (and, later, Dermide) might have different ideas, though, and if Leclerc accepted Guastalla, or an equivalent vassal state, Pauline probably would have hated it (unless it was Lucca - she loved Lucca, IIRC) and fallen into Borghese-era shennanigans.

And then when Napoleon is deposed, the whole thing becomes moot anyway.
 
QUOTE =Uhura's Mazda;10946388]That's interesting. Certainly Pauline was maternal enough that she had a major breakdown after Dermide's death - she went a bit wonky, circulating around the spa towns of Europe for a year or two, and stopped responding to correspondence. I've read that she refused Guastalla because she saw the writing on the wall and didn't want to spend the last nine years of Imperial life opening schools and all that. She was mainly self-centred and obsessed with beauty and matarial possessions, according to the one biography of her that I've read, so she'd naturally stay in the salons of Paris once her brother was ensconced. Leclerc (and, later , Dermide) might have different ideas, though, and if Leclerc accepted Guastalla, or an equivalent vassal state, Pauline probably would have hated it (unless it was Lucca - she loved Lucca, IIRC) and fallen into Borghese-era shennanigans.

And then when Napoleon is deposed, the whole thing becomes moot anyway.[ QUOTE ]

Where might have been a valid kingdom/state for Napoleon to entrust a surviving Leclerc with, do you think?
 
Somewhere in Germany or Italy. The point, however, would be that this child would be named Leclerc, not Bonaparte.

But anyway, this child's survival would not change any significant thing.
 
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