HATFIELD, Pa. – Alderfer Auction Co. will offer at auction Dec. 9 a rare and historically significant document signed by the French emperor Napoleon, his wife Josephine and five military marshals as part of a “Legacy Auction – Rare & Important Autographs and Historical Documents.”
Documents signed by both Napoleon and his wife Josephine are rare, and a document having their autographs, as well as five important military leaders of Napoleonic France is extraordinary.
In early 19th century France, as it is today, getting married was a special event. In France at that time, church weddings were performed, but only civil marriages are legally binding. These civil ceremonies produced a legally binding contacts that detailed specifications for the bride and groom’s estates if death or divorce should occur, as well as financial particulars for the union. During Napoleon’s time, witnesses to the ceremony would sign contracts of this type on the final page.
When Pierre Augustin Hulin, a general in the French Army under Napoleon, was wed to Jeanne Louise Fiersommier many notable persons attended the ceremony. Hulin, most famous for leading the troops that stormed the Bastille during the French Revolution, had proven his loyalty to France and his Emperor and the guest list proved it. The document most notably signed by Napoleon and by Josephine his wife as well as by Hortense Eugénie Cécile Bonaparte, stepdaughter Napoleon and daughter of Josephine. Hortense would become Queen of Holland for a short time. To add to the historical importance of this document no less than five military marshals of France have signed the document.
The most significant of signatures is that of Joachim Murat, who was King of Naples and brother-in-law to Napoleon. Murat would be executed while trying to regain the throne of Naples in 1815. The other marshals that signed this document, Andre Massena, Louis Nicholas Davout, John Baptiste Bessieres and Edward Adolphe Mortier, all held prominent positions in the military of France during the French Revolution, Napoleon’s rule, and some after Napoleon was banished to St. Helena after Waterloo. John Baptiste Bessieres would die in battle in 1813 and Edward Adolphe Mortier would be killed during an assassination attempt on French King Louis Philippe I in 1835.
The 14-page marriage contract holds a presale estimate of $10,000 to $15,000. For additional information contact Alderfer Auction at 800-577-8846 or info@alderferauction.com .