More than 200 years after Napoleon married the Archduchess of Austria, the former Imperial House of France and the House of Hapsburg will unite once again, when Bonaparte's heir - who carries on the family name - marries the great-grand-daughter of Austria’s last emperor.

London-based private equity manager Jean-Christophe Napoleon Bonaparte, 32, is the great-great-great nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte I, Emperor of France.

He's set to marry Countess Olympia von und zu Arco-Zinnerberg, 31, the great-granddaughter of Karl I, after proposing with a ring set with a 40 carat diamond taken from the crown of Napoleon III's wife.

The pair are distantly related as Countess Olympia is the great-great-great niece of Napoleon's wife, Archduchess Marie-Louise of Austria.

The union has echoes of Napoleon's marriage to Archduchess Marie-Louise of Austria in 1810, which was designed to secure an ally in his war against Britain and Russia and bring conflict between the two countries to a halt.

However, the pair say that their wedding in October 2019 is a love match, and not designed to further any political ambitions.

He said: 'It's a story of love rather than a nod to history. When I met Olympia, I plunged into her eyes and not into her family tree. Afterwards we were able to smile at this historical coincidence.'

Countess Olympia (left) is a direct descendant of the last Emperor of Austria. She is set to marry Jean-Christophe Napoleon, the heir to Napoleon I, Emperor of France (pictured together earlier this week)

Portrait of Napoleon I (1769-1821) and Archduchess Marie Louise with their son, the King of Rome, Napoleon II, Duke of Reichstadt in the Tuileries Gardens

Bonapartists believe that Jean-Christophe could become a new French 'hero', in an era when public faith in politicians is diminished. Pictured: The couple leaving the annual mass in memory of the first Emperor Napoleon and of soldiers who died for France at the Cathedral Saint-Louis des Invalides in Paris

Although not well known outside of France, followers of the Bonapartist movement see Jean-Christophe as a kind of French hero, in a time when the country is losing faith in modern politicians.

And his supporters are reportedly hoping that the union will propel Bonaparte into the spotlight to play an 'influential role in public affairs', according to The Times.

Bonapartists view Jean-Christophe as the head of the former Imperial House Of France.

Indeed, his own grandfather Louis, Prince Napoléon, said in his will that he wanted his grandson, then 11, to succeed him as head of the Imperial House, after falling out with his son, Charles, for embracing republican principles and re-marrying without his permission.

The family history that has led to the historic union between Countess Olympia and Jean-Christophe Prince Napoleon. Jean Cristophe is the great-great-nephew of Napoleon

Jean-Cristophe has played an influential role in public affairs, appearing alongside the royals of European countries such as Belgium and The Netherlands at official engagements, such as the anniversaries of the Battle of Waterloo.

His bride-to-be has a degree in Political Science from Yale, and is believed to have met her fiancé while spending a semester in Paris.

The couple are keen to honour their heritage by marrying at Les Invalides, where Napoleon's body was brought back from St Helena after his exile from France.

Jean-Christophe told the French newspaper Le Figaro that their marriage was 'the fruit of European reconciliation and construction, which I believe in enormously'.

He went on to say he felt a deep commitment and sense of duty to France, and that he was keen to honour the legacy of his ancestors.

He said: 'The Bonapartes have always been modern men in the avant-garde and helping their era to move forward, and figures who have built their own lives with an extraordinary freedom.

'I firmly intend to pursue my heritage in this direction.'

Napoleon married Archduchess Marie-Louise, a niece of Marie Antoinette, in 1810 after divorcing his wife Josephine, when she failed to produce an heir.

Napoleon's only son died young, leaving his sole successor Napoleon III, who ruled France between 1848 and 1870. Napoleon III was Jean-Christophe's great-great grandfather.

The modern-day Bonaparte has insisted that echoes of the past in the French-Austrian alliance with his wife-to-be are purely coincidental.

Napoleon's marriage to Austrian Archduchess Marie-Louise Napoelon met widowed mother-of-two Marie Josèphe Rose Tascher de La Pagerie in September 1795, who was six years his senior, and was instantly smitten. They married in March 1796, making her Empress Joséphine, the first Empress of France. Jean-Christophe's great great grand uncle is Napoleon I, who married Archduchess Marie-Louise of Austria to secure an ally of the country when fighting Britain and the Russians Their relationship was stormy and in 1810, he divorced her after she failed to produce an heir, in favour of Marie Louise, 18, daughter of Emperor Francis I of Austria. Archduchess Marie Louise was not happy about the union with a man 22 years her senior, who she had never met. Her great-aunt Marie Antoinette had also been executed while she was Queen of France, and she feared for her own fate. However, she had to bow to her father's will, and the couple were married by proxy in a religious ceremony on March 11, 1810, which Napoleon did not attend. Marie Louise had grown up against a background of continuous conflict between Austria and revolutionary France, and her home country had suffered a series of heavy defeats. In 1809, the year before their wedding Austria and Britain were engaged in the War of the Fifth Coalition against France and Bavaria, which ended in favour of the French at the Battle of Wagram in July. The resulting Treaty of Schönbrunn led to Austria losing more then three million subjects, after ceding territory to France and Bavaria. However, the marriage of Napoleon and Marie Louise in 1810, signalled a temporary peace between Austria and the French Empire. Despite her initial misgivings, Marie-Louise seemed to warm to Napoleon after the wedding, and became an obedient wife. Napoleon meanwhile compared the shy and timid girl to his former wife Josephine, who was passionate and outgoing. The pair remained in close contact, which upset Marie-Louise. She gave birth to a son in 1811, Napoléon François Joseph Charles Bonaparte, and was a devoted mother. In 1813, Prussia and the UK joined Russia in declaring war on France, but Austria remained neutral due to the connection between the Imperial families. As Napoleon set to battle in Germany, Marie-Louise was appointed Regent and, though she tried to convince her father to ally with France, Austria soon joined the opposition. In January 1814, Marie-Louise saw Napoleon ride off into battle for the last time, as he attempted to stave off the Allied invasion in the north of the country. Three months later, at the instigation of Talleryrand, the Senate announced the deposition of the Emperor and Napoleon abdicated. While he was exiled to Elba, Marie-Louise retained her imperial rank and title, becoming ruler of the duchies of Parma, Piacenza, and Guastalla, with her son as heir. She was dissuaded from contacting her husband, who was said to be distraught over the death of his ex-wife, Josephine. When Napoleon escaped in 1815 and reinstated his rule, Marie-Louise was asked by her stepmother to pray for the success of the Austrian armies, but rejected this. Later that year, when he was defeated in the Battle of Waterloo and exiled to Saint Helena, he made no attempt to contact his wife. Napoleon died on 5 May 1821 having suffered a hard life in exile, and Marie-Louise went on to marry Count Adam Albert von Neipperg on 8 August, whom she had three children with. She fell ill on 9 December 1846, with her condition quickly worsening, and died on December 17. Advertisement

Bonaparte, who is fluent in French, English, and Spanish, has been working for Blackstone group, the private equity firm, in London since graduating Harvard Business school in 2017.

The couple plan to stay in London after the wedding.

Countess Olympia, pictured here in 2014, lost her £1 million engagement ring after a thief stole it from her unlocked car in Paris last month

Jean-Christophe, a Harvard Business School graduate, works for a private equity firm in London, says their marriage will be 'the fruit of European reconcilation and construction'. Pictured here with Queen Mathilde of Belgium and King Philippe of Belgium in 2015

Jean-Christophe's followers are celebrating his engagement to Countess Olympia, though the private equity manager denies the marriage will further his diplomatic ambitions (pictured here with Dutch King Willem-Alexander, Arthur Wellesley the Marquis of Douro and son of the ninth Duke of Wellington and Prince Nikolaus Furst Blucher von Wahlstatt

Countess Olympia (right) and Jean-Christophe will live in London after their marriage, although they intend to have the wedding in France. Pictured: Olympia attending the wedding of Prince Amedeo Of Belgium in Rome in July 2014

Tarik Bougherira, an art expert who specialises in items linked to the emperor, described Bonaparte to The Times as 'a modern prince who understands the problems of of today and is playing a role befitting of our era.'

The road to the wedding hasn't been all smooth, though. Last month the countess left her handbag in their unlocked Mercedes outside a hotel on the streets of Paris.

When they returned, the couple discovered a thief had taken her bag, alongside her £1 million engagement ring, which had been set with a 40 carat diamond taken from the crown of Napoleon III's wife.

Luckily the thief was caught and the ring returned.