At the age of 27, he married the widowed aristocrat Josephine de Beauharnais (she was the mistress of many influential politicians after her husband's death).

After marrying Josephine, Buonaparte changed his name, giving it a French spelling and pronunciation. Josephine, thanks to her connections, probably caused Napoleon a few days after the wedding to take command of French troops fighting the Austrians in the territory of northern Italy.