Background
Before the French Revolutionary Wars, Naples was ruled by the Bourbon King Ferdinand IV. Ferdinand was a natural opponent of Napoleon and was allied with the Third Coalition against him. However, after defeat at the Battle of Austerlitz and the Treaty of Pressburg, Ferdinand was forced to cede Naples to the French in early 1806.
Initially, Napoleon’s brother Joseph Bonaparte ruled Naples. Then in 1808, Joseph was made King of Spain and Napoleon installed his brother-in-law, Joachim Murat, as King of Naples.
Murat originally ruled Naples following the same legal and social system used in France, whilst still participating in Napoleon's campaigns. But following the disastrous Battle of Leipzig, Murat abandoned La Grande Armée to try to save his throne. As defeat in the War of the Sixth Coalition loomed, Murat increasingly moved away from Napoleon, eventually signing a treaty with Austria in January 1814 and joined the Allied side.
But as the Congress of Vienna progressed, Murat's position became less and less secure as there was growing support to restore Ferdinand to the throne. The most vocal of all Murat's opponents was the United Kingdom, which had never recognised Murat's claim to the throne and moreover had been guarding Ferdinand in Sicily, ensuring he retained the Sicilian throne.
When Murat was informed of Napoleon's plan to escape from exile in Elba on 1 March 1815, Murat sided with him once more, and declared war on Austria as soon as he learned of Napoleon's return to France.
Read more about this topic: Neapolitan War
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