Susan May Williams: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|American heiress}} |
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'''Susan May Williams Bonaparte''' (2 April 1812{{spaced ndash}}15 September 1881) was the daughter of Benjamin Williams, a prominent [[Baltimore, Maryland|Baltimore]] merchant (originally from [[Roxbury, Massachusetts]]), and his wife, Sarah Copeland, widow of Nathaniel Morton. In response to the opening of the [[Erie Canal]], which was in direct competition with the port of Baltimore, her father became one of the founders of the [[Baltimore and Ohio Railroad]], the first railroad company in the [[United States]], chartered on 24 April 1827. |
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{{Infobox royalty |
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| name = Susan May Williams |
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| image = Susan May (Williams) Bonaparte.jpg |
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| caption = portrait by [[George D'Almaine]] |
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| birth_date = {{birth date|1812|4|2}} |
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| birth_place = |
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| death_date = {{death date and age|1881|9|15|1812|4|2}} |
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| death_place = |
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| house = |
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| spouse = {{marriage|[[Jérôme Napoléon Bonaparte]]|1829|1870|end=d.}} |
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| issue = [[Jerome Napoleon Bonaparte II]]<br>[[Charles Joseph Bonaparte]] |
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| father = Benjamin Williams |
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| mother = Sarah Copeland |
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'''Susan May Williams Bonaparte''' (April 2, 1812 – September 15, 1881) was an American heiress and the wife of [[Jérôme Napoléon Bonaparte]], a French-American nephew of [[Napoléon Bonaparte|Napoléon I, Emperor of France]] and a Baltimore lawyer and landowner. |
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Susan was the daughter of Benjamin Williams, a native of [[Roxbury, Massachusetts]], who became a prominent [[Baltimore, Maryland|Baltimore]] merchant; and his wife, Sarah Copeland, widow of Nathaniel Morton. In 1827, Williams helped found the [[Baltimore and Ohio Railroad]], the first railroad company in the United States, in response to the opening of the [[Erie Canal]] and its competition with the port of Baltimore. |
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In November 1829, Susan became the wife of [[Jérôme Napoleon Bonaparte|Jérôme Napoleon Bonaparte-Patterson]] (1805–70), son of the [[Jérôme Bonaparte|King of Westphalia]] ([[Napoleon]]'s youngest brother) and his American first wife, [[Elizabeth Patterson Bonaparte|Elizabeth "Betsy" Patterson]]. He had refused to wait for an arranged marriage to a European princess, instead opting for the $200,000 fortune that Susan brought to the marriage. In an attempt to match the railroad heiress's [[dowry]], the groom's maternal grandfather, William Patterson — one of the wealthiest men in [[Maryland]] — gave the couple [[Montrose Mansion and Chapel|Montrose Mansion]] as a wedding gift.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/stagsere/se1/se5/004000/004100/004190/pdf/msa_se5_4190.pdf|title=Maryland State Archives, Montrose Mansion and Chapel|accessdate=February 25, 2013}}</ref> |
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In November 1829, Susan married Jérôme Napoleon Bonaparte-Patterson, the son of [[Elizabeth Patterson Bonaparte|Elizabeth Patterson]], an American socialite, and [[Jérôme Bonaparte]]; their marriage had been annulled after three years on the orders of Napoléon himself so that his brother could make a more advantageous marriage.<ref name="Stephens2010">{{cite book|author=Gail Stephens|title=Shadow of Shiloh: Major General Lew Wallace in the Civil War|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5PphAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA178|year=2010|publisher=Indiana Historical Society|isbn=978-0-87195-287-5|pages=178–}}</ref> Jérôme Napoleon-Patterson, who had graduated from Harvard but found he preferred raising horses to working in law, soon became interested in Susan and the $200,000 fortune she had inherited. According to his uncle Henry Patterson, the match was purely mercenary on Bonaparte's part. The groom's maternal grandfather, [[William Patterson (Maryland businessman)|William Patterson]], one of the wealthiest men in [[Maryland]], made the financial arrangements for the marriage and gave the couple [[Montrose Mansion and Chapel|Montrose Mansion]] as a wedding gift.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/stagsere/se1/se5/004000/004100/004190/pdf/msa_se5_4190.pdf|title=Maryland State Archives, Montrose Mansion and Chapel|access-date=February 25, 2013}}</ref> Their wedding was conducted in secret behind the back of his mother, who was away in Europe at the time and hoping for an aristocratic match for her son; Susan and Elizabeth Patterson Bonaparte never successfully reconciled after this rift. |
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She had two sons: |
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*[[Charles Joseph Bonaparte]], [[United States Attorney General]] and [[Secretary of the Navy]]; |
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Their sons were the soldier [[Jerome Napoleon Bonaparte II]] (1830-1893) and the lawyer and government official [[Charles Joseph Bonaparte]] (1851-1921).<ref name="Sobel1990">{{cite book|author=Robert Sobel|title=Biographical Directory of the United States Executive Branch, 1774-1989|url=https://archive.org/details/biographicaldire00sobe|url-access=registration|year=1990|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-313-26593-8|pages=[https://archive.org/details/biographicaldire00sobe/page/33 33]–}}</ref> |
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*[[Jerome Napoleon Bonaparte II]], officer in the armies of both the United States and France. |
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General [[Lew Wallace]] described Susan as:<ref name="Stephens2010"/><blockquote>...staunchly Union, a tall, handsome, black-eyed, Franco-American woman, decidedly masculine in mind, but true to her woman's place</blockquote> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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{{ |
{{reflist}} |
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{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. --> |
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| NAME = Williams-Bonaparte, Susan May |
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| ALTERNATIVE NAMES = |
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| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Princess of France |
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| DATE OF BIRTH = 2 April 1812 |
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| PLACE OF BIRTH = |
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| DATE OF DEATH = 15 September 1881 |
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| PLACE OF DEATH = |
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[[Category:1812 births]] |
[[Category:1812 births]] |
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[[Category:1881 deaths]] |
[[Category:1881 deaths]] |
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[[Category:19th-century American people]] |
[[Category:19th-century American people]] |
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[[Category:House of Bonaparte|Susan May Williams]] |
[[Category:House of Bonaparte|Susan May Williams]] |
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[[Category:People from Baltimore |
[[Category:People from Baltimore]] |
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[[Category:Princesses of France (Bonaparte)|Susan May Williams]] |
[[Category:Princesses of France (Bonaparte)|Susan May Williams]] |
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[[Category:Patterson family of Maryland]] |
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Latest revision as of 11:23, 31 January 2024
| Susan May Williams | |
|---|---|
_Bonaparte.jpg) portrait by George D'Almaine | |
| Born | April 2, 1812 |
| Died | September 15, 1881 (aged 69) |
| Spouse | |
| Issue | Jerome Napoleon Bonaparte II Charles Joseph Bonaparte |
| Father | Benjamin Williams |
| Mother | Sarah Copeland |
Susan May Williams Bonaparte (April 2, 1812 – September 15, 1881) was an American heiress and the wife of Jérôme Napoléon Bonaparte, a French-American nephew of Napoléon I, Emperor of France and a Baltimore lawyer and landowner.
Susan was the daughter of Benjamin Williams, a native of Roxbury, Massachusetts, who became a prominent Baltimore merchant; and his wife, Sarah Copeland, widow of Nathaniel Morton. In 1827, Williams helped found the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, the first railroad company in the United States, in response to the opening of the Erie Canal and its competition with the port of Baltimore.
In November 1829, Susan married Jérôme Napoleon Bonaparte-Patterson, the son of Elizabeth Patterson, an American socialite, and Jérôme Bonaparte; their marriage had been annulled after three years on the orders of Napoléon himself so that his brother could make a more advantageous marriage.[1] Jérôme Napoleon-Patterson, who had graduated from Harvard but found he preferred raising horses to working in law, soon became interested in Susan and the $200,000 fortune she had inherited. According to his uncle Henry Patterson, the match was purely mercenary on Bonaparte's part. The groom's maternal grandfather, William Patterson, one of the wealthiest men in Maryland, made the financial arrangements for the marriage and gave the couple Montrose Mansion as a wedding gift.[2] Their wedding was conducted in secret behind the back of his mother, who was away in Europe at the time and hoping for an aristocratic match for her son; Susan and Elizabeth Patterson Bonaparte never successfully reconciled after this rift.
Their sons were the soldier Jerome Napoleon Bonaparte II (1830-1893) and the lawyer and government official Charles Joseph Bonaparte (1851-1921).[3]
General Lew Wallace described Susan as:[1]
...staunchly Union, a tall, handsome, black-eyed, Franco-American woman, decidedly masculine in mind, but true to her woman's place
References
[edit]- ^ a b Gail Stephens (2010). Shadow of Shiloh: Major General Lew Wallace in the Civil War. Indiana Historical Society. pp. 178–. ISBN 978-0-87195-287-5.
- ^ "Maryland State Archives, Montrose Mansion and Chapel" (PDF). Retrieved February 25, 2013.
- ^ Robert Sobel (1990). Biographical Directory of the United States Executive Branch, 1774-1989. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 33–. ISBN 978-0-313-26593-8.