The Order of the Union was a chivalric order established in 1806 by Louis Bonaparte, younger brother of Napoleon I, for the Kingdom of Holland. The order was abolished in 1811 when the French Empire absorbed the Kingdom of Holland. It was succeeded by the Order of the Reunion.
Silver embroidered star of the order
Louis Napoleon with star and grand sash of the order.
Seating plan for the third meeting of the Royal Order of the Union in June 1809.
The Kingdom of Holland was the successor state of the Batavian Republic. It was created by Napoleon Bonaparte in March 1806 in order to strengthen control over the Netherlands by replacing the republican government with a monarchy. Since becoming emperor in 1804, Napoleon sought to extirpate republican tendencies in territories France controlled, and placed his third brother, Louis Bonaparte, on the throne of the puppet kingdom. The name of the leading province, Holland, now designated the whole country. In 1807, East Frisia and Jever were added to the kingdom.
The arrival of king Louis Bonaparte in Amsterdam on 20 April 1808
The destruction of the gunpowder disaster in Leiden. Louis Napoleon is on this etching visuable as the man in the white clothing.
