Elizabeth Patterson Bonaparte
| Elizabeth Bonaparte | |
|---|---|
Triple portrait by Gilbert Stuart, 1804
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| Born |
February 6, 1785 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
| Died | April 4, 1879 (aged 94) Baltimore |
| Spouse | Jérôme Bonaparte |
| Issue | Jérôme Napoleon Bonaparte |
| Father | William Patterson |
Elizabeth Patterson "Betsy" Bonaparte (February 6, 1785 – April 4, 1879) was an American socialite. She was the daughter of a Baltimore, Maryland merchant, and the first wife of Jérôme Bonaparte, Napoleon's youngest brother.
Elizabeth's father, William Patterson, had been born in Ireland and came to North America prior to the American Revolutionary War. He was a Presbyterian from Donegal, and the wealthiest man in Maryland after Charles Carroll of Carrollton, a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence. Elizabeth's brother, Robert, married Carroll's granddaughter, Marianne Caton.
Elizabeth and Jérôme Bonaparte were married on December 24, 1803, at a ceremony presided over by John Carroll, the Archbishop of Baltimore. Betsy quickly became known for her risqué taste in fashion, starting with her wedding dress.
Jérôme's brother Napoleon ordered his brother back to France and demanded that the marriage be annulled. Jérôme ignored Napoleon's initial demand that he return to France without his wife.
In the fall of 1804, Jérôme and a pregnant Betsy attempted to travel to France in time for his brother's coronation, but a number of false starts delayed them. When they finally arrived, Elizabeth was denied permission to set foot in continental Europe by order of Napoleon. Jérôme traveled to Italy in an attempt to reason with his brother, writing to his wife, "My dearest Elsa, I will do everything that must be done," but she would never see him again, except for a brief eye-to-eye contact in 1817. After remaining in limbo, unable to disembark in either France or the Netherlands, she gave birth to a son on July 7, 1805, at 95 Camberwell Grove, Camberwell, London. Jérôme gave in to his brother, returned to the French Navy, and married the German princess Catharina of Württemberg on August 22, 1807 in the Royal Palace at Fontainebleau, France. (His marriage to "dearest Elsa" had not yet been dissolved.)
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