King and Marshal of France de Naples. Douxième child of a couple of landlords, it was initially intended for the Church then engaged in the royal armies in 1787. Driven out army in 1789 for insubordination, it engaged again in 1792 but its military rise started only with the wars of the Revolution.

In 1792-1793, it was useful in the army of North. Considered as Mountain dweller (just as Napoleon Bonaparte), it was put of availability at the following day of Thermidor 9. It was thus in the same situation as Bonaparte when, the 13 vendémiaire year IV (October 5th, 1795), this last was charged by Barras to repress the royalist insurrection in Paris. The intervention of Murat, which brought back plain of Fine sands several pieces of artillery, was decisive.

Consequently, the fortune of Murat was made, and it merged with that of Bonaparte, of which he became the aide-de-camp in Italy (1796) and from which there remained always one of the closest friends. After the countryside of Italy, named general, it followed Bonaparte in the forwarding of Egypt, returned with him when this one left its army to return to France, took an active share with the coup d'etat of the 18 brumaire, and married the sister of the future emperor, Caroline Bonaparte, in 1800. Its bravery was decisive in the victories of Aboukir (1799) and Marengo (1801); besides he played a particularly active part in Italy in the countryside of 1800 -1801, driving out the Neapolitan ones of Rome, and he signed with the king of Naples the armistice of Foligno

The emperor entrusted responsibilities for foreground to him: Murat was made marshal (May 1804), Lord High Admiral and prince d' Empire (1805), accepted the Grand Duchy of Berg (who will become the kingdom of Westphalia) in March 1806, and the kingdom of Naples in July 1808. Better soldier than administrator, it continued the policy of reforms started by Joseph Bonaparte but resided little in his States and continued àcombattre in all Europe

Murat took part àtoutes the Napoleonean campaigns without exception, combatant in charge of the cavalry in all the great battles of the Empire; it took part in the war of Spain, where, after having crushed in blood the insurrection of Madrid (April 1808), it was made lieutenant-general of the kingdom, and in the countryside of Russia, where, after being itself again distinguished by his bravery at the time of the battle of Moskova (1812), he was a commander-in-chief of the Large army in retirement, after the departure of the Emperor. He fought at the side of Napoleon in the countryside of Germany (1813) but, indicator which the Empire was dislocating itself, he signed in January 1814 with England and Austria a treaty promising to provide to united army of 30 ' 000 men in return for his maintenance on the throne of Naples.

But the Bourbons of Naples did not recognize this treaty with the Congress of Vienna, and was Murat was driven out of its kingdom. During the Hundred Days, it was put at the disposal of Napoleon, and tried to involve Italy in a great crusade antiautrichienne. Defeated with Tolentino (May 2nd, 1815), it had to take refuge in Corsica, but it had hardly arrived there when it learned the defeat from Waterloo. Tracked, it tried to reconquer its kingdom of Naples; unloaded in Calabria with 30 partisans, it at once was captured and shot (October 1815).