Editing Leopold I of Belgium (section)

==Pre-regnal years==
===Military career===
====Russian Imperial army====
In 1796, Leopold's older sister, [[Princess Juliane of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld]], married [[Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich of Russia]], making the [[House of Romanov]] her house by marriage.{{sfn|Huberty|1976|p=484}} The following year, at just six years old, Leopold received an honorary Russian military title in the [[Izmaylovsky Regiment|''Izmaylovsky'' Regiment]], part of the [[Imperial Guard (Russia)|Imperial Guard]], in the [[Imperial Russian Army]]: the rank of captain on 7 May 1797 and subsequently [[colonel]] on 11 September 1798. Leopold also began to specialise in the Russian language.{{sfn|Kirchen|1998|p=57}} On 19 March 1801, he was transferred to the Imperial Guard Cavalry Regiment, when six years later, aged twelve, he received a promotion to the rank of [[major general]].{{sfn|Monarchie website}}

In 1805, at fourteen years old, Leopold accompanied his older brother, [[Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha|Ernest, Hereditary Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha]], to Moravia, where the headquarters of [[Alexander I, Emperor of Russia]] were located, however Leopold nor Ernest partook in combat.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=20}} Following the [[Battle of Austerlitz]], during the [[Napoleonic Wars]], French troops occupied the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg in 1806.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=21}} Leopold and his father, Francis, took refuge in Saalfeld, however Francis died on 9 December 1806, six days before the [[Treaty of Poznan]] signed the Duchy to the [[Confederation of the Rhine]], thus abolishing the Duchy's sovereignty.{{sfn|Bronne|1947|p=16}} When [[Napoleon]] learned that Ernest had previously fought against the French, he removed the Duchy from the Confederation, before seizing the properties of Leopold's family.{{sfn|Puraye|1973|p=23}} Leopold and his mother were confined to a section of one of the confiscated castles and were not let out. During this time, Leopold wrote to his sister, [[Princess Sophie of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld]]: "The poor country of Cobourg is terribly penalized; It must pay 981,000 francs; it's huge. Our coffers and our estates, in short all our income, were confiscated by the Emperor Napoleon. No appanage can be paid."{{sfn|Puraye|1973|p=37|}} After intervention by the Russian Emperor, Napoleon declared the Duchy to be part of the Confederation of the Rhine once more by adding it to the [[Treaty of Tilsit]]. Ernest as the new reigning Duke was allowed to return to Coburg in July 1807.{{sfn|Bronne|1947|p=17}}

[[File:Entrevue Erfurt by Nicolas Grosse.jpg|right|thumb|Napoleon and Alexander I depicted at the Congress of Erfurt]]
Leopold soon went to Paris where he became part of the Imperial Court of Napoleon. Napoleon's wife, [[Joséphine de Beauharnais]], took a protective attitude of Leopold, who met Napoleon in October 1808.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=24}} According to historian [[Carlo Bronne]], Napoloen was in awe of Leopold and briefly considered making him his [[aide-de-camp]].<ref>{{Cite book|author-link=Carlo Bronne |last=Bronne |first=Carlo|title=The Youth of Leopold I; Leopold I the Founder|location=Brussels|year=1981|page=18}}</ref> In Spring 1808, Leopold contracted [[typhoid fever]] and when he recovered, he shortly became [[regent]] of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld when Ernest visited Russia.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=27}}{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=28}} Napoleon later offered Leopold the position of adjutant, but he refused and instead went to Russia to take up a military career in the Imperial Russian cavalry, which then later went to war with France. Leopold accompanied Emperor Alexander I in September 1808 and represented his home Duchy at the [[Congress of Erfurt]], where Napoleon failed to strengthen Franco-Russian relations while the Duchy's interests were ignored. He wrote to Alexander I for assistance, leading to Napoleon demanding that he resign from the Russian army.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|pp=27-28}}

====Napoleonic battles====
In Autumn 1810, Leopold was asked by Ernest to find financial aid for the Duchy, which was lacking soldiers and had been badly affected by war and its previous occupation.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|pp=30-31}}{{sfn |Kirchen|1998|p=48}} Leopold met with Napoleon, who refused to aid the Duchy, but offered that Leopold join the French army. Leopold strongly refused, as did Joséphine.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=32}} In May 1811, Leopold went to [[Munich]] and although he was unsuccessful in securing funding, he managed to persuade [[Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria]] to return small territories that Bavaria had previously annexed from the Duchy. Leopold was hailed in the media for this achievement.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=33}} Following his visit to Munich, Leopold travelled to [[Vienna]], then to various Italian cities during the winter.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=36}} He wrote: "The years of 1810 and 1811 were quite calm. I was disappointed to find myself forbidden from serving in Russia by Napoleon who held my brother responsible, because he knew that otherwise he would not have been able to prevent me."{{sfn|Kirchen|1998|pp=46-47}} In March 1813, Leopold was finally allowed to rejoin the Russian Imperial army.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=37}}

During 1813, Leopold was an active member of the Russian army and participated in the liberation of German states from Napoleonic France. On 28 February 1813, after the signing of the [[Treaty of Kalisz (1813)|Treaty of Kalisz]], Leopold said to Emperor Alexander, "I was the first German Prince who joined the liberating army".{{sfn|Kirchen|1998|p=55}} Leopold participated in multiple conflicts against French troops, including the [[Battle of Lützen (1813)|Battle of Lützen]], [[Battle of Bautzen (1813)|Battle of Bautzen]] and [[Battle of Leipzig]]. He worked closely with his brother-in-law, Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich of Russia, during this time. On 26 August 1813, Leopold helped [[Duke Eugen of Württemberg (1788–1857)|Duke Eugen of Württemberg]] escape his occupiers. Three days later, Leopold was nearly captured by French forces.<ref>{{Cite book|first=Marina |last=Peltzer|title=The Career of Leopold, Prince of Saxe-Coburg in the Russian Army|publisher=Edition of Letters and Documents from the USSR Government Archives<!--|work=Bulletin of the Royal Commission of History-->|year=1967|pages=72–73}}</ref> Later, on 29 and 30 August 1813, Leopold fought in the [[Battle of Kulm]] as the head of his ''[[cuirassier]]'' division. The battle was a French loss, and Leopold was decorated for his participation with the [[Cross of St. George (Russia)|Cross of St. George]], the [[Order of St. Andrew]], the [[Order of Alexander Nevsky]], the [[Order of Saint Anna]] and the [[Kulm Cross]]. Additionally, he was promoted to Major General in the Russian Army.{{sfn|Kirchen|1998|p=61}}

Leopold and Konstantin Pavlovich were unsuccessful in reuniting with Leopold's sister, Julianne, in [[Bern]] in January 1814. Leopold entered France with the Russian army on 30 January.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=41}} On 1 February, he participated in the [[Battle of Brienne]], which resulted in the occupation of [[Troyes]]. Additionally, during the [[Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube]], Leopold commanded the right wing on the army, with France successfully defeated, before Paris was marched on four days later.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=42}} On 31 March, Leopold too entered Paris, [[Battle of Paris (1814)|as Napoleon fell]], to which Leopold commented: "This is the extent to which prudence has humiliated this tyrant, to the horror of all those who would want to follow his example."{{sfn|Puraye|1973|p=37}} Leopold and Ernest represented the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld at the [[Congress of Vienna]]. The Kingdom of Prussia, which Leopold and the Russian Imperial army had fought alongside, was opposed to any gains made by the Duchy, which had been against the annexation of Saxony, an ally of France.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=52}} During the Congress, Leopold held audience with [[Archduke John of Austria]] and Chancellor [[Klemens von Metternich]].{{sfn|Kirchen|1998|p=113}} When Napoleon returned from exile in March 1815, Leopold commanded a Russian cavalry brigade as a [[lieutenant general]], aged 25, on the outskirts of France, as Napoleon lost the [[Battle of Waterloo]].{{sfn|Monarchie website}}

===Marriage to Charlotte of Wales{{anchor|Naturalization of Prince Leopold Act 1816}}===
[[File:Charlotte and Leopold wedding.jpg|thumb|left|Engraving of the wedding of Charlotte and Leopold in 1816]]
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title = Naturalization of Prince Leopold Act 1816
| type = Act
| parliament = Parliament of the United Kingdom
| long_title = An Act far exhibiting a Bill in this present Parliament, for naturalizing His Serene Highness Leopold George Frederick Duke of Saxe, Margrave of Meissen, Landgrave of Thuringuen, Prince of Cobourg of Saalfeld.
| year = 1816
| citation = [[56 Geo. 3]]. c. 12
| royal_assent = 28 March 1816
| commencement = 28 March 1816
| repeal_date = 5 August 1873
| repealing_legislation = [[Statute Law Revision Act 1873]]
| related_legislation = Naturalization of Prince Leopold (No. 2) Act 1816
| status = Repealed
| collapsed = yes
}}
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title = Naturalization of Prince Leopold (No. 2) Act 1816
| type = Act
| parliament = Parliament of the United Kingdom
| long_title = An Act for the Naturalization of His Serene Highness Leopold George Frederick Duke of Saxe, Margrave of Meissen, Landgrave of Thuringuen, Prince of Cobourg of Saalfeld; and settling his Precedence.
| year = 1816
| citation = [[56 Geo. 3]]. c. 13
| royal_assent = 29 March 1816
| commencement = 29 March 1816
| repeal_date = 5 August 1873
| repealing_legislation = [[Statute Law Revision Act 1873]]
| related_legislation = Naturalization of Prince Leopold Act 1816
| status = Repealed
| collapsed= yes
}}

In Spring 1814, Leopold accompanied Emperor Alexander to England, where [[Princess Charlotte of Wales (1796–1817)|Princess Charlotte of Wales]] was seeking a spouse. Charlotte was the only legitimate child of [[George IV|Prince George, Prince Regent]] (later George IV), and therefore second [[List of heirs to the British throne|in line to the British throne]]. George had hoped Charlotte would marry [[William II of the Netherlands|William, Prince of Orange]], but Charlotte favoured Leopold. Emperor Alexander was also opposed to Charlotte marrying William as he believed a future personal union between Great Britain and the Netherlands would become a maritime superpower and dominate the seas.{{sfn|Puraye|1973|p=102|}} Leopold and Charlotte lost contact for months, and the latter often wrote to the former asking that he return to Britain to propose to her. Leopold received [[British citizenship]] in March 1816.<ref name="google.co.uk">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=It0mEAAAQBAJ&dq=leopold+charlotte+duke+of+kendal&pg=PT248|isbn = 9781526736444|title = The Lost Queen: The Life and Tragedy of the Prince Regent's Daughter|date = 2020|publisher = Pen and Sword History |last=Stott |first=Anne}}</ref> Finally, the pair married at [[Carlton House]] in London on 2 May 1816.{{sfn|Huberty|1976|p=485}} Although George was displeased, he found Leopold to be charming and possessing every quality to make his daughter happy, and so approved their marriage. The same year Leopold received an honorary commission to the rank of [[Field marshal (United Kingdom)|Field Marshal]] and Knight of the [[Order of the Garter]].{{sfn|Monarchie website}} The Regent also considered making Leopold a [[royal duke]], the [[Duke of Kendal]], though the plan was abandoned due to government fears that it would draw Leopold into party politics and would be viewed as a demotion for Charlotte.<ref name="google.co.uk"/> The couple lived initially at Camelford House on [[Park Lane]],<ref>{{cite web |last1=Sheppard |first1=F. H. W. |title=Park Lane Pages 264–289 Survey of London: Volume 40, the Grosvenor Estate in Mayfair, Part 2 (The Buildings). Originally published by London County Council, London, 1980. |url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol40/pt2/pp264-289 |website=British History Online |access-date=13 August 2020}}</ref> and then at [[Marlborough House]] on Pall Mall.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Walford |first1=Edward |title=Pall Mall Pages 123–139 Old and New London: Volume 4. Originally published by Cassell, Petter & Galpin, London, 1878. |url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/old-new-london/vol4/pp123-139 |website=British History Online |access-date=13 August 2020}}</ref>

Leopold and Charlotte moved into [[Claremont House]] in August 1816. When Charlotte later suffered a miscarriage, Leopold became concerned for her health. When Charlotte again fell pregnant, she was advised by her obstetrician, [[Sir Richard Croft, 6th Baronet|Sir Richard Croft]], to drastically reduce her diet, however Leopold's physician, [[Christian Stockmar]], heavily disagreed with this advice.<ref>{{Cite book|first1=Ernest|last1=Smith|author2=Anthony|title=George IV|location=New Haven|publisher=[[Yale University Press]]|year=1999|page=164|isbn=978-0-300-07685-1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xOAG3a7mh4IC}}</ref> Charlotte gave birth to a [[stillborn]] son on 5 November 1817. She suffered complications and, just after midnight on 6 November, also died. Leopold was said to have been heartbroken by Charlotte's death.<ref>Holme, Thea (1976), ''Prinny's Daughter'', p. 241, London: Hamish Hamilton. {{ISBN|978-0-241-89298-5}}. {{OCLC|2357829}}</ref>

{{cquote|Deep down, I was made for a life of family intimacy [...]. I wanted to be quiet and happy with my mouse [Charlotte] and nothing more [...] Charlotte was a very pretty woman and she possessed to a very high degree of what the English call countenance.|4=Leopold writing to his sister upon Charlotte's death.{{sfn|Puraye|1973|p=169}}}}

[[File:Leopold I, King of the Belgians 1818-50.jpg|thumb|Portrait of Leopold by [[George Dawe]] c. 1818–1825|183px]]
Had Charlotte survived, she would have become [[queen of the United Kingdom]] on the death of her father and Leopold presumably would have assumed the role of [[prince consort]], later taken by his nephew [[Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha]]. Stockmar, who became Leopold's private secretary, advised him to stay in Britain rather than returning to Coburg and despite Charlotte's death, George granted Leopold the British style of ''[[Royal Highness]]'' by [[Order in Council]] on 6 April 1818.<ref name="heraldica.org">{{Cite web|url=https://www.heraldica.org/topics/britain/prince_highness_docs.htm|title=Royal Styles and Titles of Great Britain: Documents|website=www.heraldica.org}}</ref> However, the British public was opposed to the annuity of 50,000 pounds sterling paid by the British government to Leopold, who was no longer even a member of the British royal family. From 1828 to 1829, Leopold had an affair with the actress [[Caroline Bauer]], who bore a striking resemblance to Charlotte. Caroline was a cousin of Stockmar. She came to England with her mother and took up residence at Longwood House, a few miles from Claremont House. But, by mid-1829, the liaison was over, and the actress and her mother returned to Berlin. Many years later, in memoirs published after her death, she declared that she and Leopold had engaged in a [[morganatic marriage]] and that he had bestowed upon her the title of Countess Montgomery. He would have broken this marriage when the possibility arose that he could become [[King of Greece]].<ref>{{citation |first=K. |last=Bauer |title=Aus meinem Bühnenleben. Erinnerungen von Karoline Bauer |language=de |location=Berlin |date=1876–1877}}</ref> The son of Stockmar denied that these events ever happened, and indeed no records have been found of a civil or religious marriage with the actress.<ref>{{citation |first=E. |last=Von Stockmar |title=Denkwürdigkeiten aus den Papiere des Freihernn Christian Friedrich von Stockmar |language=de |location=Brunswick |date=1873}}; {{citation |first=R. |last=Von Wangenheim |title=Baron Stockmar. Eine coburgisch-englische Geschichte |language=de |location=Coburg |date=1996}}</ref>

Following Charlotte's death, Leopold assisted members of [[House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha|his family]] in acceding to various European thrones. He encouraged his sister, [[Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld]], to marry George's brother, [[Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn]], after her first husband, [[Emich Carl, 2nd Prince of Leiningen]], had died. Victoria and Edward were the parents of the future [[Queen Victoria]], who was born in 1819 and lost her father in 1820. Leopold allowed her and her mother to live with him in Claremont House and convinced George, who was now monarch, to give apartments in [[Kensington Palace]] to them.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=82}} Leopold went on to support George's wife, [[Caroline of Brunswick]], in marital disputes and even visited Caroline during George's crowning, leading to disdain from George. Leopold nonetheless remained in Britain for another fourteen years after the death of Charlotte, however regularly travelled Europe.{{sfn|Kirchen|1998|p=174}}

In 1819, Leopold received [[Niederfüllbach]] Castle in Coburg and began preparing to make it his main residence. Leopold's brother, Ernest, had married [[Princess Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg]], who went on to inherit the [[Duchy of Saxe-Gotha]], though Ernest insisted he reigned over it. From thereon, Ernest's Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and Louise's Duchy of Saxe-Gotha merged to form the [[Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha]]. Before the couple divorced in 1826, Ernest and Louise had two sons, the future [[Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha]], and Albert, who went on to marry Queen Victoria.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=159}} Whilst in Paris, Leopold was encouraged to marry [[Marie-Caroline of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duchess of Berry]], the widowed daughter-in-law of [[Charles X of France]], however Leopold declined due to differing views and opinions on matters with the French royal house.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=96}}

===Refusal of the Greek throne===
Following a [[Greek War of Independence|Greek rebellion]] against the [[Ottoman Empire]], Leopold was offered the throne of an independent Greece as part of the [[London Protocol (1830)|London Protocol]] of February 1830, which stipulated that the new monarch could not be of Great Britain, France or Russia.{{sfn|Driault|Lhéritier|1926|p=463}}<ref name="Bower346">{{harvsp|Bower|2001|p=346}}</ref>

Though Leopold resided in Britain, he was not considered a member of the British royal family as he was not of the [[House of Hanover]]. He was quite popular across Europe for his role in the Napoleonic wars and, according to Defrance, was often mentioned in Greek "anglophile circles".{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=92}} Despite popularity, he was often in dispute with George and the British government, who supported Leopold as a candidate for the Greek throne and subsequently demanded he give up his British possessions.{{sfn|Driault|Lhéritier|1926|p=27}}{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=102}} Leopold eventually agreed and accepted this offer from [[Duke of Wellington]], the [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom]], and his Cabinet. However, Leopold was still anxious to accept the Greek throne and demanded certain conditions, including having the Greco-Ottoman border changed in Greece's favour by amending the border crossing the [[Achelous River|Achelous River and Valley]], receiving financial and military aid while the state was being set up, and having protection of Greece by the [[Great Powers]] from foreign aggression. He argued this zone of protection should be extended all the way to [[Samos]] and [[Crete]], whose populations had been active in the Greek War of Independence.<ref name="Bower346" />{{sfn||Driault|Lhéritier|1926|p=3}} Most of his demands were agreed to in a series of discussions, with particular priority in protecting the majority Christian inhabitants of the Greek islands. With the Great Powers mainly satisfied, they signed new international protocol, officially giving Leopold, "the son-in-law of George IV", the title of "Sovereign Prince of Greece". A few days later, on 28 February 1830, Leopold officially accepted the Greek crown.{{sfn|Driault|Lhéritier1926|p=4}}

Leopold contacted [[Ioannis Kapodistrias]], the ''de facto'' [[List of heads of state of Greece|Governor of the Greek State]], who he had known since the Napoleonic Wars. Leopold asked of him in his letters to provide assistance in his accession to the throne, however Kapodistrias' reply on 6 April was not of reassuring nature. Kapodistrias insisted that Leopold's border changes did not satisfy Greece, provoked the Ottoman Empire and would need to be ratified by the legislature. Contrary to historians Michel Lhéritier and Édouard Driault, Defrance claims that Kapodistrias's motive was to possibly intimidate Leopold. Kapodistrias also very strongly encouraged Leopold to convert to [[Greek Orthodoxy]] to the wishes of the Greek people, but Leopold was displeased by this. Later that month, the [[Greek Senate]] drafted a memorandum addressed to Leopold to welcome him and give a list of requests of the Greek people, including the border issue, the inclusion of Samos, Crete and Psara in the new Greek nation and the religion of Leopold. From London, Leopold worked to achieve these requests and even succeeded in increasing loans granted to Greece from 12 million to 60 million francs, however he failed to resolve the border dispute and annex Crete from the Ottoman Empire. Feeling the Greek population was too demanding and precarious, Leopold turned down the offer to become King of Greece on 17 May 1830.{{sfn|Ιστορία του Ελληνικού Έθνους|p=575}} The role would subsequently be accepted by [[Otto of Greece|Otto of Wittelsbach]] in May 1832 who ruled until [[Expulsion of Otto of Greece|he was finally deposed]] in October 1862.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Beaton|first=Rodrick|title=Greece: Biography of a Modern Nation|publisher=Allen Lane|year=2019|isbn=9780241312841|pages=111}}</ref> Otto would then be replaced by the [[House of Glücksburg]], with Prince Wilhelm of Denmark becoming [[George I of Greece]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/George-I-king-of-Greece|title=George I|date=20 December 2024|encyclopedia=[[Britannica]]}}</ref>