Pauline Bonaparte: Venus of Empire

by Flora Fraser

From acclaimed biographer Flora Fraser, the brilliant life of Napoleon’s favorite sister. Celebrated for her looks, notorious for her passions, immortalized by Antonio Canova’s statue, and always deeply loyal to her brother, Pauline Bonaparte Borghese is a fascinating figure in her own right.

At the turn of the nineteenth century, she was considered by many to be the most beautiful woman in Europe. She shocked the continent with the boldness of her love affairs, her opulent wardrobe and jewels, and, most famously, her decision to pose nearly nude for Canova’s sculpture, which has been replicated in countless ways through the years. But just as remarkable as Pauline’s private life was her fidelity to the emperor (if not to her husbands). She was present for Napoleon’s great victories in Italy, and she was often at Malmaison with her brother and her rival for his loyalty, the empress Josephine. When he was exiled to Elba, Pauline was the only sibling to follow him there, and after the final defeat at Waterloo she begged to be allowed to join him at Saint Helena.

No biographer has gone so deeply into the sources or so closely examined one of the seminal relationships of the man who shaped modern Europe. In Pauline Venus of Empire, Flora Fraser has cast new light on the Napoleonic era while crafting a dynamic, vivid portrait of a mesmerizing woman.

Genres: Biography, History, France, Nonfiction, Royalty, 19th Century

287 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Flora Fraser Soros (born 30 October 1958) is an English writer of historical biographies.

She is the daughter of historian and historical biographer Lady Antonia Fraser and the late Sir Hugh Fraser, a British Conservative politician. Her stepfather was the playwright Harold Pinter, the 2005 Nobel Laureate in Literature, her mother's second husband until his death in 2008. Her maternal grandparents were the late Elizabeth Longford, also an eminent biographer, and the late Lord Longford, a well-known politician, social reformer, and author.

She was named after Scottish Jacobite Flora MacDonald. Using her maiden name Flora Fraser, she has written biographies of Emma Hamilton, Caroline of Brunswick, the daughters of George III, and Pauline Bonaparte.

Reviews

[Jodi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a bad read but felt there was a lot of acceptance as fact over some of the rumors that circulated about the Bonaparte family with no proof to support the rumors given by the author. I’ll use the most obvious example to explain my point with Fraser’s dealing with the rumors of incest between Napoleon and Pauline. The author states "it seems almost inevitable, given their strong sex drives…, their mutual affection, their clannish affinity, that they should have experimented sexually together." This historian needs more proof than conjecture. This is not a novel.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pauline Bonaparte is not a likable person. There it is. Imagine the snottiest most annoying girl in high school, only then give her a brother who is in charge of the greater part of europe, and you have Pauline Bonaparte.

The book was fine I guess. I never felt swept away by the story, and at times I checked EXACTLY how many pages I had left. The author felt that it was important to use $3 words when a nickel one would have done not only as well, but better.

The larger problem is that although we know much about Pauline's brother, we don't know much about her. The author struggled to fill the pages, though there were less than 300.

Instead of this book, I suggest a good bio of her brother as it will be far more interesting.

[Claire · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm giving 2 stars not because of the writing (I read Flora Fraser's book "Princesses" and really liked it) but because of the subject. Pauline Bonaparte was certainly a colorful personality, but in the end, not much more than that. It was interesting to learn about the Bonaparte family (a part of history I am sadly lacking much education in) but in the end, Bonaparte is, well, I'd say the Paris Hilton of her generation but, as much as it pains me to say this, I think Paris Hilton has accomplished more with her life. Towards the end I was wondering why I was reading about Bonaparte. I don't think there is much more beyond the surface of this subject than the fanciful details I read in the review which originally intrigued me. Biographical subjects don't necessarily need to be world-shakers, but I do need to come away feeling like there was a reason why I read that person's biography.

[Maldone · Rating 1 out of 5]

beaucoup de chose pour ne rien dire, beaucoup de ragots, peu de certitude.

[Leah · Rating 3 out of 5]

The fascinating story of a terrible, maliciously stupid princess. Pauline Bonaparte flits her way through the courts of Europe, apparently ignorant of the prominent people she interacts with or the world-changing times they inhabit. For Pauline, all is dresses and carriages and tearing down other women for the attentions of her many lovers. Rarely have I read of a more disgusting woman. Marie Antionette had a few redeeming qualities, an innocent girlhood at least. Pauline Bonaparte is awful through and through. I enjoyed reading her story to the very end.

This is was a very readable book (I finished it in about a day), well told and not overly detailed. I knew next to nothing about Pauline or her family (aside from Napoleon) before this book, but I had no trouble following the narrative or differentiating between the figures who appear in Pauline's life. And yes, there is a Bonaparte family tree included for reference.

[Helen Carolan · Rating 4 out of 5]

an enjoyable re-read of this wonderful biography telling of the life of Pauline Bonaparte, sister to Napoleon ,whose two marriages were both to further her brothers ambitions. She also had a reputation for her many and varied affairs. An interesting woman who rarely features in books about Napoleon.

[Aislynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This should be called “A Biography of Napoleon with Little Anecdotes of His Sister”. Do I know anything about Pauline that I didn’t already after reason this? Not really. Was it super interesting and provocative? No. It was dry and followed a bunch of men. Pauline was a side character in her own book. Poor Pauline would have hated that.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly decent biography of a silly, vain girl who led a silly, vain and self obsessed life.

The only reason she became a well known figure at all was due to her big brother Napoleon who indulged her love of money and jewellery and provided her with an extremely comfortable life on the whole.

[John Chaves]

Loved it. What an interesting life in the shadow (not always) of her famous brother.

[Barb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant! Flora Fraser follows in the footsteps of both her mother and grandmother in producing wonderful literature!!!!!!!!!

[Gerry · Rating 1 out of 5]

Her epitaph should have read "Lovely and loyal." She was both. But she was as flighty as a sparrow and so is this biography, which fails to answer the "so what" question. Well, perhaps it proves that Kardashians have always been with us.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a quick and enjoyable read on a figure who took part on the sidelines of world-changing events. Pauline Borghese was Napoleon's sister, inspired a beautiful statute and other imperial French art, helped fund her brother's campaigns through her advantageous marriage to an Italian prince, and was arguably as devoted to him and the legendary Josephine. I've read reviews that criticize this book because Pauline was not especially likeable, but I think that's beside the point. No, I probably wouldn't want to sit down for a drink with Pauline, because even though she seemed like a lot of fun, she could be vicious, like a lot of fashionable society in her day and today. I don't think that disqualifies her from having a biography that's worth reading. It's a kind of double standard in women's biography review - do you have to think Napoleon is likeable to read a biography of him? Pauline was obviously not as influential as her brother, but she did have an impact on him, which impacted the world. And her legend was used to enhance or bedevil his reputation, so it only seems fair she gets some of her own attention. There is a lot of interesting detail in this book about the Napoleonic era, including Pauline's journey with her first husband to Haiti, then a French colony, her experiences with early 19th century medicine, her family's use as pawns in Napoleon's imperial ambitions. She was more than a fashion plate, she was a devoted wife and sister, political influencer, mother to a child who died young, sufferer of incurable maladies related to childbirth and possible STDs, headstrong, opinionated, and unapologetic.
Overall I felt that perhaps the author envisioned something larger for this book, but ultimately couldn't find enough material. There is a little bit too much reliance on gossip and legend and too little filling in on what actually happened. But the records are scant if not nonexistent for her early childhood, so we don't really meet her until her 16th year, and then, it's all in reference to Napoleon's plans. The rest seems to be parsing the real from the the reported. Still, it's enough to keep you interested for 250 pages.

[Aileen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pauline Bonaparte is lucky to have Napoleon Bonaparte as her brother. Without him, she might end up being a nobody or worst, beheaded for committing adultery and having so many scandalous affairs. Her life is the life of the rich and famous. She is very beautiful and very fashionable but she is also spoilt and cruel. She didn't achieve any high achievements. Her only merit is her utmost loyalty towards her brother, Napoleon Bonaparte.

This book didn't manage to thrill me because it tells more of Napoleon's war instead of Pauline's secret and personal life. And as of the latter, it can get quite boring because it's all about her childish behaviour and passionate affairs.

[L. · Rating 1 out of 5]

I see no reason why this woman merited a book all about her. Other than sleeping with any man that walked by, Pauline Bonaparte really does nothing. Because Pauline isn't that important to history, author Flora Fraser writes more about other people and happenings during this turbulent time, making her main subject actually more of a supporting player. It's a very dry read - no juicy tidbits to savor. It's a quick read, it just took me so long to finish because I kept being distracted by other, better books. Still, can't say I can recommend this to anyone.

[Robbi Leah Freeman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read after The Second Empress Moran. I'm a fan of historical fiction and this biography just didn't work for me. I knew most of it from The Second Empress and in that book it was part fiction but was more enjoyable. Where as, I was hoping to learn more about Pauline and I learned more about where she was traveling or what she was buying while Napoleon's wars were given more detail then her. The only new facts I learned from this book was what she did after her brother died and who got what in her fortune.

[Tgill · Rating 1 out of 5]

A really disappointing read. It's a short book, but I feel like there were maybe ten little anecdotes about Pauline herself and the rest was just meaningless filler. I didn't feel like I got to know her at all and just walked away with a few facts like how she liked to rest her feet on her servant's throats. There is so much material here for an interesting story (she was the sister of Napoleon for goodness sake!), but somehow the writer missed the mark. Not worth your time.

[Sarah W. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good overview of Pauline Bonaparte's life. While Pauline never makes for dull reading, I do wish the author had ventured to provide more definitive answers about some aspects of Pauline's life. For example, rumors are mentioned of an affair between Pauline and her brother Napoleon, but Fraser refrains from addressing the truth of these rumors, leaving the reader with maybe or maybe not as the biographer's take on the rumors. Nevertheless, very entertaining.

[Buffy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was only able to make it through a chapter and a half of this book before I put it down from sheer boredom. (I would like to note that it was because of the subject matter and not the writing.) From what little I did read, I gathered that this woman's claim to fame was that she was pretty. She didn't seem to do anything noteworthy to warrant having a book written about her. Very tedious.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was good on the period and the background, rather repetitive about Pauline B herself. Did I miss information on her childhood? (I started reading it on a plane) but was surprised by later references to her and her mother's straitened circumstances.

[Kay Robart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fraser’s biography is interesting and well written. I found Pauline to be a fascinating subject, although not an admirable person.

See my complete review her:

http://whatmeread.wordpress.com/tag/p...

[Rosie Beck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sister to Bonaparte-vain, capricious, loyal (to Bonaparte,not her husbands)-this is a good story of her life and times

[Lyddie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why is it the witches of the world have every man drooling over them? The author made no argument for Napoleon Bonaparte's sister being likable in any way -- except to her brother.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't know a thing about this period in french history.
i did see her Pauline's famous statue at the Borghese Palace in Rome, it was gorgeous !

[Jim Colombo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Famous people acting badly! Very interesting!

[María · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book adds very little to Pauline's bibliography. Is just gossip and contains surprising inaccuracies for a non fiction book.

[Mary Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating, insightful & well written. Recommend.

[Julia F. Simon · Rating 1 out of 5]

I may be biased, since I've never understood the fascination about Pauline, whom I find uninteresting in extreme. The book itself is gossipy and not entirely accurate.

[Fanny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like one of the other readers I was interested in more information after reading the Second Empress by Michelle Moran.

I found this quite a dreary read. It felt like there were some parts of her personal life completely skipped. Supposedly most of the sisters were at one point prostitutes which is probably where Pauline got her STD which affected most of her life thereafter. There wasn't much on her servant that put up with all of her lovers either while supposedly being in love with her.

[Mills College Library]

Biog B697f 2009