Initially a supporter of Corsican independence, he briefly served as an aide to Pasquale Paoli, fighting against the Republic of Genoa and later resisting the French invasion.

Twenty years after his death, his second surviving son, Napoleon, became Emperor of the French, elevating several of his siblings to royal status through marriage and noble titles.

[5] Carlo’s ancestor, Guglielmo di Buonaparte, served on Florence's Ghibelline-controlled municipal council in the 13th century.

Buonaparte’s new wife brought a dowry of thirty-one acres of land, including a mill and bakery, which yielded an annual income of roughly £10,000.

The French were eager to obtain the strategically placed island to protect their own coasts, and Genoa was equally keen to relinquish control given their inability to resist growing independence movements.

The family eventually returned to the town, where Buonaparte's wife gave birth to a fourth child, Napoleone.

Buonaparte became an advocate of the Superior Council of Corsica on 11 December 1769 and a Substitute Procurator of the King of France in Ajaccio in October 1770.

Buonaparte noted his situation in his account book: "In Paris, I received 4,000 francs from the King and a fee of 1,000 crowns from the government, but I came back without a penny."

[12] Buonaparte died on 24 February 1785,[13] and, due to his frivolous spending, left his surviving wife and eight children penniless.