THE DUC D'ENGHIEN CASE

Cases that judged men and reflected an era

An episode from the series HISTORY'S GREATEST TRIALS

Synopsis

In 1804, Bonaparte sent his soldiers across the border to arrest a prince of royal blood on foreign soil. The Duke of Enghien, aged 32 and a descendant of twenty kings of France, had committed only one crime: that of existing.

Following a summary trial and an immediate execution, this political act paved the way for the Empire.