a.k.a. roi de Rome

Roi de Rome, king of Rome, who is this roi de Rome?

That’s what I thought when I first read this title for the portrait of a boy painted by Théodore Géricault. 

Géricault visited Italy and Rome for a year in 1816-17 to study and paint the classics. Was there a Roman King in 1816? 
I soon found out that the roi de Rome in question was in fact Napoléon Bonaparte’s son. Was Gericault assigned to paint Napoléon’s son? Bizarre.

A step back in time

It is 1811. It’s been seven years since Napoléon crowned himself emperor of France. Ever since he’s been in dire need of an heir to his throne to secure his grip and reign on France. He divorces Josephine and marries the 18 year old Marie Louise of Austria to produce him this much needed heir. She succeeds. The heir is born on 20 March 1811; the most important child in the world. Napoléon-François-Charles-Joseph Bonaparte, l'aiglon, roi de Rome and future 'Napoléon II'.

He is to be the emperor of his father’s ever-growing empire, Napoléon II. Napoléon hasn’t yet commenced his catastrophic military campaign on Russia...
It’s 1811 and he's is at the peak of his power.

What's it like to be the roi de Rome?
To be addresses as Sire or Votre Majesté from birth? To be known by everyone?

How do you portray the roi de Rome?
Because 'roi de Rome' is not just the title of a portrait, roi de Rome symbolises so much more. Géricault paints the dauphin, the future emperor of France. Everything about this child is built around his future reign; this child portrait is of historic importance.


What do you see when you look at the portrait of Napoléon’s son?

The child in the portrait undeniably resembles the roi de Rome. Just as the marble buste of the roi de Rome, the hairdo is identical, so are the round buttons and the large collar. It’s almost like the child was painted whilst sitting for the sculptor. There are two preserved skeleton suits, worn by the young roi de Rome, at the Fontainebleau museum.
Plus the child in the portrait is seated high on a rock enveloped in a golden coat that is sculpted like a throne. He sits there dignified, confident, and still. Royal like a king…of Rome.

This child-roi painted by Géricault looks about seven years old. But aged seven Napoléon’s son was no longer the roi de Rome. In 1814 Napoléon was abdicated and sent to Elba and Marie Louise and their son had to flee France and ended up in Vienna at the court of ‘grand-père’ Franz I. The child was no longer the roi de Rome, he would not be Napoléon II, he would never set foot in France again nor would he ever see Rome. 

There would never be a king of Rome.

*notes ↓