Lawyer, soldier, politician, diplomat and older brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, Joseph Bonaparte served France in a variety of diplomatic and political posts. His first major political posting was to the Kingdom of Naples and the two Sicilies where he served as military commander and then king for two years from 1806-1808. From there, his brother moved him to Spain, replacing him in Naples with his brother-in-law, Joachim Murat. As the King of Spain from 1808-1813, Joseph Bonaparte never gained the full support of the population. On his watch, the English won the Peninsular Wars and Bonaparte abdicated the throne.
In 1815, after his Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo and exile to St Helena, Joseph Bonaparte moved to America, building an estate called Point Breeze in Bordentown, NJ. He lived there until 1832, his home the focal point of emigré society. Above the front door was carved his motto - Non ignara mali, miseris succurere which translates from the Latin as Not unaware of misfortune, I know to help the unfortunate. The decoration on the present vases - poignant scenes relating to War and to charitable works on one side and a gilt Napoleonic eagle on the other, its wings outspread in a manner associated more with an American eagle than with a French Imperial eagle, have a direct relation to Joseph Bonaparte's own life that supports the history of their ownership.
The last eight years of his life were lived in Europe, and he died in Florence in 1844. After his death, the New Jersey estate was sold off and the contents of the home dispersed at auction held on the grounds of the mansion by a Mr. Thomas Birch Jr. An annotated copy of the auction catalogue notes the sale of lot 84, pair China Vases, to someone called Parker for $50 - a considerable sum at the time. This is the only reference to porcelain in the catalogue. In a sworn statement dated 30 November 1936, Elizabeth Harrington certifies that "One pair of Sevres urns (sic) purchased by Elizabeth L. Harrington were formerly owned by Joseph Napoleon Bonaparte (Ex-King of Spain) and bear his crest, purchased in 1845 at Bordentown, New Jersey". As only 61 years had elapsed since the estate sale, it is very possible that she purchased the vases either from Parker or from someone who had acquired them from Parker. They descended through her family until their acquisition by the present owners.