The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1897-01-02
THE NAPOLEON FAMILY. :.

THE NAPOLEON FAMILY.
A Pretty Story About the Marriage and
Death of Miss Patterson.
A Washington dispatch of the 26th
inst. says: The most remarkable we'd
ding that has occurred in Washington in
recent years will be thai. of Count Adam
de Moltke Huitfeldt of Denmark to Miss
Louise Bonaparte, which will take place
at st. Paul's Catholic church next Tues
day. Cardinal Gibbons will solemnize
the ceremony.
The count arrival in the city few
days ago with no other attendant than
man servant, and has been stopping at
the Arlington hotel. He is a handsome,
stout-built blonde. wears Van Dyke
beard and, like most OF his countrymen,
is blue-eyed.
1t was at first proposed to celebrate
this wedding with great nagniAcenee,
but owing to the recent death of Count
Moltke's father, who was the Danish
ambassador to Paris, the program was
necessarily changed. About 100 invita-
lions have been issued for the ceremony,
and the wedding breakfast will be sim
ply family affair.
The marriage of next Tuesday recalls
another Bonaparte wedding in this coun
try. Almost a century ago Archbishop
Carroll of Baltimore united Betsy Pat
terson to Jerome. the youngest brother
of Napoleon Bonaparte. During the hos
tilities between France and England Je-
rome was serving on French frigate
in American waters. This vessel upon
one occasion was chased by an English
man-of- war in the harbor~ of New York.
The relations between France and this
country were at that time exceedingly
cordial, and naturally a member of the
Bonaparte family received much social
attention. At an entertainment given
by Secretary Alexander hamilton, .Je.
rome Bonaparte met Elizabeth Patter-
son. Later the acquaintance was renew
ed at the race-course at Baltimore. The
fascinating American girl soon captured
the heart of the young Frenchman;r but
the French consul general at New York,
a personal friend of the FrsEch emperor,
who foresaw the Indignation of Napo-
leon at his brother marrying the dangh7
ter of an American citizen. bitterly. OPP
posed the match and warneds the father
of Miss Patterson that only, unhappi-
ness to his daughter could ensue from
such an alliance. Miss Patterson, how
ever, like the American gill of today,
breatly exaggerated the Importance of
foreign title. The marriage took place
on the 25th of December, 1903. Cemmu-
nication with Europe was slow in those
days, and it was several months before
any intimation was received from Napo-
leon as to his opinion of the marriage.
A dispatch was received from Marshal
Talleyrand to the French consul, stating
that the marriage conflicted with the
law of the twenty-sixth Pluviose, year
IL. Napoleon was SO enraged when he
heard of the escapade Of hts brother
that he ordered him to return to France
Immediately, but to leave the, young
person" with whom he had made illegal
. alliance at home. The American bride,
however, was plucky woman and she
sailed with her husband to England,
where he left her and went to Paris to
endeavor to propitiate his august broth
er. Napoleon was obdurate, however,
and he offered Madame Bonaparte a
large pension if she would consent not
to assume the name OF Bonaparte, which
she Indignantly declined to do The
tickle Jerome, however, was SO dazzled
by the prospects held out to him that he
repudiated his beautiful Baltimore wife
and married Princess Catherine Of Wur-
temburg. In the meantime, SON had
been born to Madame Bonaparte, and
she spent her life partly in Europe and
partly in the United States. This son
married Miss Williams, and the result
of this union was two sons, Jerome,
father of the bride-elect, and Charles,
now resident Of Baltimore. Madame
Patterson Bonaparte died in Baltimore
seventeen years ago. Her husband died
in 1860, having contracted a third mar
riage after the death of Catherine of
Wurtemburg, with an Italian lady of
noble family. Miss Bonaparte, who fs
known as Louise Eugenie, lives in
handsome house on K street in this
city. -. .;''i,- =