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Haslip's "Crown of Mexico" tells the story of the last major European war of conquest in the Americas, namely, Napoleon III's outrageous scheme to sponsor a royalist coup in Mexico during the 1860s. As the United States was distracted by civil war, the French government seized the chance to gain an imperial toe-hold in Mexico, installing a lesser son of the House of Hapbsburg - Archduke Fedinand of Austria - as Emperor, backed by a French army. Maximilian and his brave Belgian wife, Carlotta, only barely kept their newly-minted throne for a few months before they were ejected by yet another revolution under the populist leader Juarez. Like Charles I of England before him, Maximilian compensated for bad government by bravely submitting to his fate at the hands of the executioners. One of the interesting facets of Maximilian's life is that his mother was very close to Napoleon II (i.e. Bonaparte's son by Marie-Louise) - and some say that Maximilian himself was a (...) son of Napoleon II, making him a great grand-son of Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. Haslip negotiates the countours of this strange story very well indeed.
2 One of history's great tragedies.
I am sorry that this book is out of print, because the story of Maximilian and Carlota is one of history's great tragedies. Haslip obviously sympathizes with the imperial couple, especially Maximilian, who was too idealistic to be a good ruler and too trustful for his own good. Anyone with any sense would have realized that Napoleon III was not to be trusted; that most Mexicans supported Juarez and those that didn't just wanted to get their lands back; and that the United States would not have allowed a monarchy in Mexico. Haslip also shows that Carlota's madness did not happen all of a sudden but it was the result of years of disappointment and Carlota's own suspicious nature. Haslip ends her narrative with Maximilian's funeral in 1867, thus leaving out almost six decades of Carlota's half-life in Belgium.
3 Easy to read, informative and entertaining
When we think of the history Mexico, we generally think of the Aztec Empire and its demise and then we jump to the Mexican Revolution of 1910. Very few people know that Mexico was once a Monarchy. This book offers a detailed insight of Maximillian's and Charlotte's plight, and all the intrigues behind the Mexican Crown: the secret intentions of the Catholic Church; the political plans of the Mexican aristocracy; Napoleon III's greedy ambitions and many more. The unanimous support of the European Monarchs towards this staggering undertake, to make an European Monarchy out of Mexico and their sudden change of heart marks the beginning of a tragic conclusion. Written with exceptional detail and an engaging style, I think this book is an excellent account of the events that happened in Mexico during the 1860's. A must-read!