The Death of Prince Imperial Louis Napoleon during the Zulu War, 1879
On this day in 1879 the last direct claimant to the throne of France, Napoleon, Prince Imperial was killed in Zululand in an ambush by Zulu warriors. The only child of former emperor Napoleon III (1808-1873) the prince had lived comfortably in exile attending the Royal Military academy Woolwich and later using his mothers influence with Queen Victoria to earn a commission as a artillery officer. Louis Napeolon, Prince Imperial 1856- June 1st, 1879 By all accounts Louis Napoleon was a charming and well liked 22 year old who received top marks in cavalry and fencing while at Woolwich. Despite the relative scandal of having a Frenchman, no less the last hope for Napoleonic succession, as an officer in the British army of engineers and artillery. The Prince Imperial The Prince arrived in Zululand well after the great succession of early battles between the British Army and Zulu warriors of King Cetshwayo, of which in several the Brit...