Marie-Julie Bonaparte, née Clary

According to latest research this portrait shows Marie-Julie Bonaparte, née Clary (1771-1845). She was the daughter of a wealthy merchant from Marseille and married Napoleon’s eldest brother, Joseph Bonaparte, in 1794. Initially Joseph was supposedly interested in Marie-Julie’s sister Désirée, who later became Queen of Sweden, but then Napoleon also appeared to show an interested in her, which thwarted any ideas Joseph had of marrying her. Marie-Julie Bonaparte had two daughters, Zénaïde and Charlotte, who also later married relatives of Napoleon. Marie-Julie became Queen of Naples (1806-1808) and later Queen of Spain (1808-1813). After Napoleon was removed from power, she was at first offered exile in America or Russia; due to the endeavours of her brother-in-law King Bernadotte of Sweden, however, she lived in Frankfurt and Brussels from then on. Nickel copied this portrait of Marie-Julie Bonaparte from a painting by François Gérard from 1807, which today is found in the Irish National Gallery and shows the lady and her two daughters in a rich interior with a view over park scenery with a pond. Due to Marie-Julie’s unsettled life, Gérard’s painting was sent to different places several times. Nickel possibly saw it in Madrid where he worked temporarily. In his copy on enamel he painted a bust of the queen in front of a monochrome background.

B. P.