1The Maison de l’Empereur was made up of all officers, servants and administrative staff in the emperor’s domestic and personal service. This institution was designed to manage and bring order to court proceedings, palace daily life and important ceremonial events organised during his reign. The Maison de l’Empereur was similar to the Ancien Régime’s Maison du Roi and comprised the emperor’s household officers, namely his officiers de la chambre (who oversaw the emperor’s private chambers and escort), des écuries (the imperial stables), and de la bouche (the emperor’s dining and food arrangements). It also covered all domestic staff, those expected to perform the more menial household duties. Such an institution was entirely normal for the period. The notion of “Maison” in this case should also not be confused with the other meanings of the word, most obviously that of residence, but also that of a noble or illustrious “family” or “race” (such as the House of Bourbon or the House of Hapsburg). The various members of the Bonaparte family, for example, were known as the Maison impériale.

2All families or individuals of social standing – from the bourgeoisie to royalty – had a Maison comprising their valets and servants. It was therefore absolutely essential that the French emperor have one. As First Consul, for example, he had palace prefects, whilst his wife Josephine had her ladies in waiting. The figures that made up Napoleon’s personal staff are well-known to anyone who is even vaguely familiar with the story. His valets Constant and Marchand, his secretaries Fain and Meneval, the two mamluks bodyguards Roustam and Ali, the Grand Maréchaux Duroc and Bertrand, and even Caulaincourt, the emperor’s grand écuyer, can often be found in the background of paintings and contemporary and historical accounts. On the face of it, their jobs seem easy. Napoleon ate sparingly, apparently cared little for luxury or comfort, and dressed plainly. Only his secretaries would appear to have suffered, submerged under his prodigious capacity for work.

3Historically, many have considered the entire institution to be little more than a small group of servants in the service of a modest individual. Indeed, the term “Maison de l’Empereur” is rarely used, so as to avoid any confusion with the other meanings of the word “maison”. Few people truly understand it. Yet two particular statistics stand out: 3,384 individuals – including 164 officers – served as part of the Maison, and its average budget totalled 15 million francs. There is therefore quite a contrast between the institution’s more commonly accepted image and the reality of the situation. Why were there so many employees and officers, not to mention so much money, involved, if it was such a modest institution?

4Despite all his unequalled military and political success, despite having fought his way to the top, there was still one major challenge that remained to Napoleon Bonaparte. His victories were celebrated, Jacobin and royalist opposition was effectively “over”, the Code Civil and the Légion d’honneur had been created, the Concordat had been signed, even his finances were once again in order. Yet the new ruling dynasty – the fourth in French history – was not properly established in the eyes of the French public and Europe. He needed to give his authority a new coat of paint. He needed to look powerful, respected and well-served. The new regime needed to create – or rather recreate – an institution that would emphasise the sovereign’s position and authority. That institution was the Maison de l’Empereur.

5A grand Maison was first of all a means for Napoleon to demonstrate his power. If the victor of Austerlitz wanted to be the most powerful in Europe, he was going to need the pomp and ceremony to go with it. The Revolution had succeeded in damaging a large number of the former royal palaces, so the first step was to grant the Maison’s stewards substantial funds to renovate, extend and decorate the Imperial Crown residences. The same level of luxury and decoration next had to be applied to everything the emperor would need or use in his daily life, including furnishings, dinner service, stables, carriages, parks and gardens, wardrobe, hunts, chaplaincy, and even meals. This was all paid for out of the allowance granted to the emperor. However, although never miserly, Napoleon was naturally frugal. As a result, he was constantly looking to save money on even the smallest of budgetary items. Administrative disagreements frequently descended into utterly farcical situations. Yet the emperor’s eventual acquiescence in spending such huge sums of money cannot be explained simply as a necessary keeping up of appearances. The Maison’s domestic and military households (the latter of which included the Imperial Guard, who benefited from their own, ring-fenced budget) were also responsible for the emperor’s safety and security. A “protective curtain” was drawn up around the emperor very early on in the empire. He answered to nobody, not even to the state or the army. No justification or explanation was required for his excursions, his daily expenses, his lodgings, his bodyguard, or even his financial expenditure.

6The Maison existed as an entirely separate entity within the Napoleonic state. Authority over it fell to one man: the emperor. Despite being entirely legal, it was effectively a state within a state. Napoleon was in control of a powerful organisation that existed outside of any external influence or authority and that was dedicated entirely to him. By the end, his confidence in the other institutions that he had created himself had been almost completely eroded. Yet this protective shell that he had built around himself was to prove its worth in April 1814. As the imperial state was breaking up about him, he took refuge in the Palais de Fontainebleau, where he was protected by officers of his domestic household and the Imperial Guard. Outside the palace grounds, the Senate and his maréchaux had already begun to treat with the allies.

7Whatever the situation, be it at an unscheduled stopover en route, at campaign headquarters, or during a planned residency, the emperor expected to have an imperial palace (or at least a semblance thereof) waiting for him. All the households of the Maison would accompany him on campaign and during his trips away from Paris. They formed his immediate environment. This protective “bubble” enabled him to remain entirely autonomous for all his household, financial and logistical needs. Where possible, his carriages and horses came from the Maison’s imperial stables. His lodgings were prepared by palace logistical officers. Food intended for the emperor was without exception obtained and prepared by the Maison’s commissariat and kitchen staff. Security was provided by special detachments of the Imperial Guard. Cabinet members (the emperor’s personal library and secretariat) and the entire domestic staff of the Chambre also accompanied Napoleon on all his trips. And last but certainly not least, a portion of the Imperial Crown treasury also followed the convoy. As well as being a sign of the level of security and comfort that surrounded the emperor, the presence of the treasury also sent out a clear message that Napoleon was the most powerful of Europe’s monarchs.

8Yet the Maison was not simply there for security or ceremonial reasons. It was also tasked with overseeing the emperor’s transformation from former Republican general to “Napoleon in Majesty”, an absolute monarch of magnificent splendour. And by cutting himself off from his subjects, Napoleon hoped to begin by creating the requisite regal distance. Even his oldest friends came to find access to his person extremely limited. Admittance to Napoleon subsequently became a sign of great favour. Protocol covering palace organisation and honorary duties was introduced. Strict adherence to this was expected of the newly transformed Imperial Court, at the heart of which was the Maison de l’Empereur. Every aspect of Napoleonic court life was managed by the Maison. Actual power was never really wielded at the Imperial Court: its role was more superficial, a place where people came to be dazzled. Its glittering façade was also intended by Napoleon as a means of rallying the old nobility to his cause without descending into a state of “preferential absolutism”.

9Grand public ceremonies became essential to the new regime. Their splendour was intended to impress, but they also served to deliver clear and commanding messages. Once again, it was the Maison that pulled the strings. It financed and organised them all, from the most important celebrations (the coronation, Napoleon’s marriage to Marie-Louise, and the Roi de Rome’s baptism all come to mind) right down to the more modest events, such as the singing of Te Deums. Orchestration of the event, decoration of the location, even some of the ostensibly public festivities: every aspect was managed by the different services within the Maison, which was ultimately responsible for the success of the event. The same went for the reception of the emperor’s guests. Such visits were an opportunity for Napoleon – cloaked in the most magnificent splendour – to demonstrate to Europe and indeed the world the dominance of his regime.

10Any monarch worth his salts was expected to be benevolent and generous towards his subjects. And whilst Napoleon certainly proved himself magnanimous at events such as his coronation and his marriage to Marie-Louise, he also came to their aid at more difficult moments, such as during the economic crisis in 1811 and 1812. This generosity also became more official with the introduction of monetary handouts, funded by his conquests and organised through the Domaine extraordinare, which was created in 1811. The Maison also fulfilled one final, but no less essential duty: organise and deliver Napoleon’s communication strategy, or as some like to refer to it, the regime’s propaganda campaign. The Maison de l’Empereur was constantly concerned with magnifying his rule, mobilising any and every art form available. Painting, sculpture, theatre, opera, and architecture were the obvious mediums, but everything was fair game: precious metalwork, ornate furniture and even clothing and fashion. Working in close collaboration with artists of the period (whose output was strictly supervised), the Maison was to prove pivotal in the development and dissemination of the famous Empire style.

11Fortunately for Napoleon, he had plenty of precedent on which to base the organisation of his Maison. The Merovingian dynasty had brought structure to royal palace life as early as the fifth century. Overall supervisory responsibilities were fulfilled by the “maire du palais” and the king’s servants proved both efficient and dedicated. Later, on the advice of his mother Catherine de' Medici, Henri III – the last of the Valois dynasty – introduced a strict code of protocol with the goal of setting an example to his kingdom. The king was expected to live in the public eye, hold himself to “regulated” court hours, and introduce a certain degree of distance between him and his court attendants. By Louis XIV’s reign, the crown estates had become a formidable instrument of power. The decorum that reigned at Versailles commanded respect from even the kingdom’s most powerful lords and foreign ambassadors present at court. Only by blending different governmental aspects of previous regimes could the Bonaparte dynasty hope to last. History also served to illustrate what not to do: palace management should be efficient without slipping into mediaeval austerity, protocol should inspire awe but not ridicule, and lastly the majestic pomp of the imperial crown should closely resemble that of Louis XIV whilst avoiding the financial ruin of Louis XVI.

12Once Napoleon became emperor, a considerable source of revenue became his to dispose of as he saw fit. This source was the civil list, which had been introduced during the French Revolution. Louis XVI had ceased to be the King of France and had become King of the French, which entailed the loss of all state-controlled property and finances. He was in effect a public servant, albeit one endowed with sizeable funds to meet the expenses incurred during the execution of his duties. On 9^th June 1790, following the reading of a royal message, the National Constituent Assembly granted him an annual revenue of 25 million francs. After ascending to the throne, Napoleon simply reintroduced this measure and claimed for himself the estates and revenues that had previously been accorded to Louis XVI. Article 5 of the sénatus-consulte dated 28 Floréal an XII (18^th May 1804) not only proclaimed the creation of the empire and its constitution but also granted the Emperor of the French an annual revenue of 25 million francs as well as disposal of all palace revenues, buildings, forests, and estates formerly belonging to the Bourbon crown. Furthermore, as King of Italy, Napoleon also received about 8 million francs from that kingdom’s own civil list.

13All these revenues and imperial estates naturally had to be administered. The newly-crowned monarch’s newly-christened imperial palaces also needed staffing to meet his domestic, religious and ceremonial needs. The decree dated 28 messidor an XII (17^th July 1804) on the “organisation and administration of the imperial palace” conferred these tasks on a new institution: the Maison de l’Empereur. The services it would be expected to provide could be divided into two general categories:

• Services généraux (essentially the Maison’s administrative facilities), which covered the estates, health and finances. The intendant general, for example, looked after the commissariat and the Maison médicale (the imperial medical service), whilst the trésorier general was in charge of the civil list funds.
• Services particuliers, which covered routine palace organisation and the imperial couple’s daily requirements. This category was broken down into six individual services: dining and security arrangements, the stables, the imperial chambers, ceremonies, and the imperial chapel.

14These two service wings were also structured differently. The services généraux, which by their very nature were purely administrative, had no ceremonial duties attached. The services particuliers, on the other hand, were nothing but ceremonial. The sénatus-consulte organique pronounced on the 28 floréal an XII (18th May 1804) had introduced a level of palace organisation “in keeping with the dignity of the [imperial] throne and the greatness of the nation” (tit. III, art. 14), creating numerous honorary positions (including écuyeurs, chamberlains and ladies in waiting). The services particuliers were integral to the entire system of imperial representation and were divided into three distinct categories of servant. The services généraux, however, were organised according to a decidedly more conventional hierarchy.

I) The Grands Officiers civils de la Couronne

15The Constitution of An XII created huge swathes of imperial household titles and great officers, including: [1]

• Grand dignitaries (such as the Grand électeur, Archichancelier de l’Empire, Archichancelier d’Etat, Architrésorier, Connétable and Grand amiral).
• Grands officiers de l’Empire (such as the emperor’s maréchaux, inspecteurs and colonels généraux, and grands officiers civil de la couronne).

16As with the title of Grand officier de l’Empire, grands officiers civils de la Couronne presided over an electoral college, and were in principle permanent positions. Despite their constitutional significance, Napoleon decided against giving them a state function of corresponding importance, as had been the case during the Ancien Régime. The Maison de l’Empereur was an imperial institution quite unlike any other, but its unique status also meant that it existed somewhat outside of the state’s sphere of influence. It is hardly surprising to learn then that these grands officiers fulfilled practically no constitutional role whatsoever. The only “privilege” they enjoyed was the honour to serve the emperor in his palaces, and even this proximity brought them absolutely no influence on external affairs. The oath they swore left no room for misinterpretation: “I swear to be obedient to the Empire’s constitutions, and to be loyal to the emperor; to serve his Majesty with integrity and devotion; […] to observe his orders exactly as they are given.” [2] The pledge sounds more like one that might be said by a senior civil servant than a powerful crown dignitary. And just like other department heads in Napoleon’s administration, they were also expected to “manage their [allocated] expenditure economically”. It is little wonder that the title of grand maréchal was generally preferred to that of grand maître de France, a far too demanding and unwieldy position, despite its level of responsibility within the palace.

17In the Empire, every “grand” had his place. The grand dignitaries occupied the positions of honour within the state. Within the emperor’s many palaces, it was the grands officiers de la Couronne who wielded the power. And within the army, it was the emperor’s maréchaux who held the most responsibility. At the Tuileries, the grands officiers civils de la Couronne followed immediately after the emperor, and before all the other imperial dignitaries, in recognition of “the services they rendered to the throne”. Beyond the palace walls, this honour remained applicable as long as they were attending the emperor in an official capacity. This recognition was merely an extension of palace protocol, an attempt – as we have seen above – to recreate a tangible imperial presence wherever the emperor went. If the emperor was absent from proceedings, however, these officers found themselves relegated to the background. Their status as lower-tier officials is made plain by the hierarchy of military honours that were accorded to imperial dignitaries, ministers and grand officiers. Twenty canon shots were fired to mark the appearance of a prince or grand dignitary, fifteen for that of a minister, thirteen for a maréchal, and a mere five for the appearance of a grand officier civil de la Couronne. On top of this, the accompanying military honours, such as an escort, men at arms, imperial guard, and ceremonial drums, were kept to a strict minimum, as was the case for all civilian honours. [3]

II) The Officiers civils

18Officiers civils de la Couronne (known simply as officiers after 1810) worked in the services particuliers and answered to grands officiers. This title was reserved for those who served the imperial couple and who occupied a permanent function at court. These officiers served Napoleon and his empress at public events, including everyday palace life and court-based and official ceremonies. The protocol surrounding officiers was markedly different from that of other imperial employees, the latter of which performed purely domestic roles within the palace and fulfilled no honorary duties whatsoever. Napoleon’s famous valet, Constant, for example, was in charge of the emperor’s chambers, but was in actual fact nothing more than a simple service head whose responsibility extended no further than Napoleon’s private apartments. The emperor’s actual officiers, such as his écuyers, were the ones who waited on him during official visits. At the same time, however, it also took more than simply attending a few ceremonies to be considered an officier. Heralds and ceremonial aides did not figure amongst the officier ranks, despite being a constant and active presence at public events. Ceremonial obligations meant that their involvement was at times necessary, but outside of these events, they did not attend the imperial couple.

19The majority of officiers occupying roles in the services particuliers had important responsibilities. The premier écuyer, the premier chambellan and the premier aumônier could all be called on to deputise for the grand officier – their superior – if he was absent. Not only did they oversee the organisation of the department in his stead, but the standard court protocol normally due the grand officier applied too. Over the course of the period, a large number of grand officiers were dispatched by Napoleon on entirely different missions: Caulaincourt, the grand écuyer, served as ambassador to Russia between 1807 and 1812, whilst Duroc, the grand maréchal, was posted to Berlin on a diplomatic mission. Officiers civils who were singled out by the premier in their title were clearly not mere stand-ins. Even with grands officiers present, their rank still commanded an enviable respect, and their functions saw them heavily involved in the day to day running of their department. Some responsibilities were even theirs and theirs alone: the premier chambellan, for example, also served as the head of public displays.

20By the end of the imperial period, there were about 220 officiers serving in the Maisons de l’Empereur and de l’Impératrice, a figure four times higher than that under the Ancien Régime (in 1788, the Maisons du Roi and de la Reine counted just 52). [4]

21Number of officiers serving the Maison de l’Empereur, as of 1^st January 1812 [5]

III) At the bottom: the employees

22Employees of the Maison were subject to an extremely strict hierarchy. At the top of the ladder were the grands officiers, the intendant, the treasurer or the secretary of state. Within the services particuliers, officiers civils were one step further down and would occasionally be required to direct the department on an interim basis or during a particular assignment. Domestic employees also answered to department heads and directors of service. Each department was organised in the same way, with a head of department and – depending on its size and importance – one or more seconds in command. A structured framework was important: by 1^st January 1812, there were 18 directors, 156 department heads and 26 seconds in command. [6] Further subdivisions could also be applied for certain positions. There were, for example, three categories of coachmen: first, second and third class. At the very bottom of the ladder were the youngest employees, apprentices who served as assistants or boys. This was most notably the case in the stables, where there were apprentice grooms and stablehands on half- and third-pay.

23Strict rules and regulations – some specific, others more general – were established to define in detail the responsibilities and functions of each staff member. Early regulations laid down the chain of command and general working requirements (such as uniform, working hours and rhythm, and punishments). Later editions on the other hand were more concerned with specific aspects of the job that needed to be explained in greater detail. The Maison shared the army’s taste for rules and order, and under Duroc’s watchful eye, there was almost nothing that escaped regulation.

24Maison staff numbers as of 1^st January 1812

25The Maison was an entirely autonomous organisation that existed beyond the confines of the state, answerable only to the man it had been created to serve. Given what we know of Napoleon, it is hardly surprising then that he was frequently involved in its everyday running. After all, a man who liked nothing better than to go chasing after every little administrative anomaly was hardly going to delegate the running of an institution which existed solely to serve him. The Maison’s organisation made such direct intervention easy. With no middlemen, ministers or grand officiers to get in the way, Napoleon was free to involve himself in whichever department that took his fancy. His place at the very top of the ladder gave him and him alone a comprehensive view of the Maison and its administration. He was omnipotent and omnipresent, the master of all that he surveyed.