Murat, Joachim 1767-1815
French soldier and King of Naples

He was born at La Bastide-Murat, Lot, the son of an innkeeper. He enlisted in the cavalry on the eve of the Revolution, and was promoted general during Napoleon I's Egyptian campaign (1799). He helped Napoleon become First Consul, married his sister, and replaced his brother, Joseph Bonaparte, as King of Naples (1808). There he dismantled the huge landed estates, suppressed brigandage and encouraged cotton-growing. He commanded Napoleon's cavalry during the 1812 invasion of Russia, but resigned his commission (1812) to try and rescue Naples. He supported Napoleon after his defeat (1813) but, defeated by the Austrians at Tolentino (1815), he was eventually captured and executed by the troops of Ferdinand I.

Bibliography: A Hilliard Atteridge, Joachim Murat, Marshal of France and King of Naples (1911)