Very rare chamberlain's key attached to the House of Napoleon, King of Italy, key distinguished by the Lombard crown appearing on the imperial eagle at the ring.

After the proclamation of the French Empire in May 1804, several negotiations took place to decide the fate of the young Cisalpine republic, closely linked to France. A year later on March 17, 1805, Joseph having renounced a possible crown, a consultata di stato proclaimed Napoleon King of Italy, who came to split the iron crown of the Lombard kingdom on May 26, 1805 in the cathedral of Milan; the following June 7, Prince Eugène de Beauharnais was named by decree viceroy of this kingdom which extended over the entire Po plain, including Lombardy, Novares, Valtellina and Romagna, and later Veneto. As King of Italy, Napoleon had palaces in Milan, Monza, Bologna, Brescia, Mantua, Modena and Venice. Although he only made brief stays in Italy, Napoleon insisted on organizing a true royal house and a court attached to his person. After Melzi d'Eril, former vice-president of the Italian Republic, who took the place of Chancellor, four great officers ensured the service of the Court in Italy: Fenaroli as Grand Master of the House, the Duke of Litta as Grand Chamberlain, Caprara as Grand Squire and Codronchi as Grand Chaplain.

“As usual, Napoleon distributed a model to the other sovereigns of the Empire. Thus, the empress, the princes and princesses, but also the sovereigns have their own Houses. Their label is often modeled on that of the emperor, so it is normal to find the function of chamberlain there. Similar keys are also distributed to them.

It is possible to identify the sovereign concerned thanks to the monogram placed on the shield under the eagle. Among the keys kept in the collections of the Fondation Napoléon, we identify one having belonged to the House of Eugène de Beauharnais (1781-1824), as viceroy of Italy, thanks to the number “E”. The monogram “JN”, in reference to Joseph Napoléon (1768-1844), Napoleon's older brother who reigned in Spain from 1808 to 1813. Furthermore, one of the keys has a different shape: the ring is chiseled with foliage, decorated in the center, cut out, with the number “JM” under the crown. This corresponds to those entrusted to the chamberlains of the court of Joachim Murat (1767-1815), brother-in-law of Napoleon and king of Naples. In addition, it is made up of a bit. This key stands out from Napoleon's model. Finally, a key with the emperor's number directly refers to Napoleon as king of Italy thanks to a detail chiseled on the eagle of the ring. We can see the iron crown of the Lombard kings on the bird's belly. »

Descended from the prestigious Visconti family, Antoine-Jules-François duc de Litta (1748-1820) held the important protocol functions of Grand Chamberlain of the House of the King of Italy in Milan. There will be only about thirty chamberlains attached to the representation services, listed among the largest families of the Italian nobility: Carlo di Modrone Duke of Visconti, Count Jean-Hector Martinengo-Colleone (commander of the Guard of Honour), Gionanni-Giacomo Trivulzio, Carlo Adovrandi, Count Porro, Alessandro Annoni, Carlo Bentovoglio, Count Fagnani, Cesare Bianchetti, Carlo Antisi, Bonifacio Canossa, Scipione Chiaramonti, Antonio Erba, Pietro Pisani, Alvise Quirini, Giuseppe Soresina-Vidoni, Orazio Belgrado, Giovanni Brebbia, Antonio Carlotti, Carlo Cicogna, Francesco di Gazoldo, Luigi Paolucci de Calboli, Lodovico Priuli, Lodovico di Sartirana,

Related works

Fondation Napoléon, Inv. 1119

Bibliography

- Frédéric Coraccini. History of the administration of the Kingdom of Italy during French domination. Paris, Audin, 1823.

- Elodie Lefort. Art. The Chamberlain's Keys. Napoleon Foundation, August 2021