12 - Napoleon's Mistress

Napoleon had used Italy's disunity to his advantage, allowing him to control most of Italy, either directly or indirectly, for a comparatively small cost in men and resources. However, Napoleon was about to double down on his rise to power, and he'd need to tighten his grip on Italy to help finance his bet. In 1806, Napoleon told a Prussian minister "Italy is my mistress whose favors I want no one to share."

By 1810 the map of Italy will be greatly simplified, and Italy will be divided into three pieces, all under Napoleon’s control. First we'll Napoleon replace the Italian Republic, in the northeast of Italy, with the Kingdom of Italy, making himself its new king. Then he'll dissolve the Papal states, which, with the rest of northwest of Italy, will be annexed to France. Finally, he'll put first his brother and then his brother-in-law on the throne of the nominally independent Kingdom of Naples.