Napoleon (1769–1821), second surviving son of Carlo Maria Buonaparte and his wife, Maria Letizia Ramolino, was appointed a general in 1794, elected First Consul in 1799 and self-proclaimed Consul for Life in 1802. He was elected Emperor of the French in 1804 and proclaimed King of Italy in 1805 and Protector of the Confederation of the Rhine in 1806. In 1814 he abdicated the crowns of France and Italy, but in March the following year he resumed imperial power, only to abdicate a second time three months later in favour of his son. Napoleon married in 1796 (civil) and 1804 (religious) Marie Rose Josephine de Tascher de la Pagerie (1763–1814), widow of Alexandre, Vicomte de Beauharnais (1760–1794). Divorced by Imperial Decree in 1809, in the following year he married Archduchess Marie Louise (1791– 1847), second daughter of Franz I, Emperor of Austria (1768–1835), and his second wife, Maria Teresa, Princess of Naples and Sicily (1772–1806). Their son Napoleon François Joseph Charles (1811–1832), styled King of Rome at birth, was for a few days before his own abdication recognised by the Chamber of the ‘Hundred Days’ as Emperor Napoleon II; in 1818 he was created Duke of Reichstadt by his Austrian grandfather. One of the greatest commanders in history, the victor of most of the battles he fought, Napoleon’s success galvanised the countries of Europe to form coalitions to check French domination, their purpose realised finally at the battle of Waterloo in June 1815. For more than a decade he dominated Europe, a colossus that bestrode the narrow world. His impact on civilian life, most notably through the Code Civil, later called the Code Napoléon, was profound, its laws sweeping away the confusion of feudal laws in France, in the lands he conquered and later in more distant countries that sought to modernise through legal reform. Presentation snuffboxes, variously set with his portrait or initial and sometimes jewelled, were one of the principal gifts used by Napoleon as a token of favour. In this way he was continuing the practice established during the Ancien Régime of using snuffboxes as diplomatic presents. The most prestigious in a carefully considered hierarchy was the portrait snuffbox set with diamonds (or without), followed by boxes set with a jewelled initial, and lastly boxes with a gold initial. The hierarchy was reflected in their monetary value, the quantity of diamonds used being the determining factor. This is illustrated by an invoice cited by Maze-Sencier that included six enamelled gold boxes mounted with a portrait miniature and set with diamonds, valued between 5,253 and 14,568 francs, six cipher boxes with a diamond-set initial, valued between 4,202 and 6,587 francs, and twelve cipher boxes with a plain gold initial, valued between 1,069 and 1,121 francs. All grades of presentation snuffbox were made by the same goldsmiths, so that even the most simple one honoured the advice given to Napoleon by Madame Mère: ‘You know how much external splendour adds to that of rank or even personal qualities in the eyes of public opinion.’ According to his critics, Napoleon made excessive use of his initial, as well as a battery of emblems, to define his imperial identity. When the Duchess of Rutland visited the Tuileries shortly after he had left the palace in 1814, she noted, ‘It is not possible to fix the eye where it does not meet some emblem of the Usurper: at every corner is a large N.; the draperies are covered with bees, and each piece of furniture is surmounted by an imperial eagle.’ The diamonds that were part of the original box have been replaced with pastes. This sometimes happened soon after the presentation, the recipient part-monetising the snuffbox by selling the stones back to the jeweller; sometimes, however, it took place later, as in the instance of the snuffbox given to Captain Durham by King Ferdinando IV of Naples and III of Sicily, the diamonds of which were replaced by his family ten years after his death: see inventory number 3207PC553/ДПИ

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