Assassination Attempt On Louis Napoleon
On the evening of 14 January 1858, as the Emperor and Empress were on their way to the theatre in the Rue Le Peletier, the precursor of the Opera Garnier, to see Rossini's William Tell, Orsini and his accomplices threw three bombs at the imperial carriage. The first bomb landed among the horsemen in front of the carriage. The second bomb wounded the animals and smashed the carriage glass. The third bomb landed under the carriage and seriously wounded a policeman who was hurrying to protect the occupants. Eight people were killed and 142 wounded, though the emperor and empress were unhurt. Napoleon, the first modern European politician, realized that he and Eugénie de Montijo had to proceed to the performance and appear in their box.
Orsini himself was wounded on the right temple and stunned. He tended to his wounds and returned to his lodgings, where police found him the next day.
The attempted assassination actually increased Napoleon III's popularity. Because the bombs had been made and tested in England, it caused a brief anti-British furor in France because of suspicion of British involvement. The Emperor refused to escalate the situation and the indignation eventually died down.
Read more about this topic: Felice Orsini
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