His brother had, three years before, been appointed King of Roumania with Napoleon's good-will.
The proposal was probably made in all good faith; under ordinary circumstances, the Prince, had he been willing to accept, would have been a very proper candidate.

It was, however, known from the first that Napoleon would not give his consent, and, according to the comity of Europe, he had a right to be consulted.

Nor can we say that Napoleon was not justified in opposing the appointment.

It has indeed been said that the Prince was not a member of the Prussian Royal House and that his connection with Napoleon was really closer than that with the King of Prussia.

This is true, but to lay stress on it is to ignore the very remarkable voluntary connection which united the two branches of the House of Hohenzollern.