In 2012 a paparazzo took a topless picture of Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge. This happened in France by a French magazine. The British royals have not seen France the same way since.
Just this week Kate gave birth to a baby boy. All week we have wondered what the name would be and we were not disappointed. The boy is to be known as li’l Prince Louis. And then I thought on it some more and realized that this was how Kate was going to get her revenge against the French.
Louis has a proud tradition in the French monarchy. From Louis the I in 814 onward there have been many kings named Louis. They range in nicknames from Louis the pious to Louis the fat. They got all the way to Louis the XVI until the French revolution and Napoleon took over the reins of French leadership.
Even still Napoleon was married to the 1st cousin once removed of Louis the XVII. Napoleon ended up in exile and Louis the XVIII was chosen to rule. They got up to Louis the XIX. Then a huge change happened in the monarchy and Louis-Phillipe became king. Then Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte became Napoleon III. The French monarchy sure did love the name Louis.
Finally in 1870, the French monarchy came to an end and France eventually became a true democracy. And true democracies often have disparaging views of royalty – leading to the 2012 pics and not respecting the privacy of the visiting British royalty.
By naming her child Louis, at last Kate managed to snub the French democracy and bring back memories of its hated monarchy. Well played, Kate, well played.
